Muriel Stuart (dancer)

Muriel Stuart (born Muriel Mary Stuart Popper; December 13, 1900 – January 29, 1991) was an English-born dancer and dance educator, based in the United States. She trained with Anna Pavlova, and taught at the School of American Ballet.

This article is about the British-born dancer. For the British poet, see Muriel Stuart.
Muriel Stuart
Muriel Stuart, an English ballerina in 1921, wearing a dark and voluminous costume with floral embroidery, and a powdered wig. She has her hands crossed at her chest. One foot is visible.
Muriel Stuart, in costume and wig, from a 1921 publication.
Born
Muriel Mary Stuart Popper

December 13, 1900
South Norwood, London, England, U.K.
DiedJanuary 29, 1991 (aged 90)
New York City, U.S.
Occupation(s)Dancer, dance educator
Spouses
Julian Brodetsky
​
​
(m. 1926, divorced)​
    James Warwick
    ​
    (divorced)​
    Children1

    Early life and education

    Muriel Mary Stuart Popper was born in 1900,[1] in South Norwood, London.[2][3] She was discovered by Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova as a girl, and trained with Pavlova,[4] and with Ivan Clustine and Enrico Cecchetti. Later she studied modern dance with Martha Graham, Harald Kreutzberg, and Agnes de Mille.[5] "Every new phase of the art is interesting to me," she explained to a newspaper interviewer in 1931.[6]

    Career

    Stuart was a featured dancer with Pavlova's company[7][8] on world tours from 1916 to 1926.[9][10] She moved to Los Angeles in 1927, and opened a ballet school in Hollywood.[11][12][13] One of her Los Angeles students, Joan Bayley, recalled that "Muriel Stewart was so inspiring! She had this long neck and gorgeous epaulement."[14]

    Stuart danced and did choreography with the Chicago Civic Opera Ballet in the 1928-1929 season. She taught for many years at the School of American Ballet in New York, beginning in 1935.[5][15] Among the noted dancers who studied with Stuart were Myra Kinch, Todd Bolender, Laura Dean,[16] Michael Kidd,[17] Jacques d'Amboise,[18] and Alicia Alonso.[19]

    Stuart co-wrote a textbook with Lincoln Kirstein, The Classic Ballet: Basic Technique and Terminology (1952), with an introduction by George Balanchine.[20][21] In 1987, she was the first winner of the Mae L. Wien Faculty Award for Distinguished Service at the School of American Ballet.[22]

    Personal life

    Stuart married and divorced twice. Her first husband was a violinist, Julian Brodetsky.[23] Her second husband was a playwright, James Warwick.[24] She had a son, Peter Warwick. She died in 1991, in New York City, aged 90 years.[5] Her papers, including lesson plans and photographs, are in the Jerome Robbins Dance Division of the New York Public Library.[25] The New York Public Library also has an oral history interview with Stuart, given in 1978.[26]

    References
    1. Who's who in music and dance in Southern California. University of California Libraries. Hollywood : Bureau of Musical Research. 1933. p. 255 – via Internet Archive.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
    2. "Girl Gets Letter from England". St. Louis Globe-Democrat. 1915-10-13. p. 7. Retrieved 2020-04-21 – via Newspapers.com.
    3. "Muriel Mary Stuart Popper, naturalization petition (1930)". Fold3. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
    4. Kinney, Margaret West (1924). The Dance; Its Place in Art and Life. Frederick A. Stokes Company. p. 304.
    5. Dunning, Jennifer (1991-01-30). "Muriel Stuart, 90, Dancer for Pavlova And Ballet Teacher". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
    6. Mayer, Mary (1931-11-29). "Pavlowa Disciple Clings to Classic Ballet Ideal". The Los Angeles Times. p. 34. Retrieved 2020-04-21 – via Newspapers.com.
    7. "Distinguished Dancers to Assist Pavlowa". Pacific Coast Musical Review. 41: 4. January 7, 1922.
    8. "Pavlowa's Ballet Russe". Pacific Coast Musical Review. 41: 5. December 17, 1921.
    9. "Muriel Stuart's biography". Dance Class Music, Jay Distributors. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
    10. "Colorful Dances Brighten the Stage". Theatre Magazine: 25. July 1921.
    11. "American Girls Praised". The Los Angeles Times. 1930-02-16. p. 30. Retrieved 2020-04-21 – via Newspapers.com.
    12. "Exponent of Russian Dancing Arrives". The Los Angeles Times. 1929-11-03. p. 38. Retrieved 2020-04-21 – via Newspapers.com.
    13. "Dancer Commands Large Following". The Los Angeles Times. 1931-03-01. p. 36. Retrieved 2020-04-21 – via Newspapers.com.
    14. "Early life and training". Joan Bayley. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
    15. Fisher, Barbara (2013-09-01). In Balanchine's Company: A Dancer's Memoir. Wesleyan University Press. p. 11. ISBN 978-0-8195-7447-3.
    16. "Laura Dean Biography". Laura Dean - Dancer, Choreographer, Composer. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
    17. "Remembering the Legendary Michael Kidd". L.A. Dance Chronicle. 2018-12-21. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
    18. D'Amboise, Jacques (2011-03-01). I Was a Dancer. Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. pp. 81–82. ISBN 978-0-307-59523-2.
    19. Tompkins, Cynthia; Foster, David William (2001). Notable Twentieth-century Latin American Women: A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 6–7. ISBN 978-0-313-31112-3.
    20. Stuart, Muriel; Kirstein, Lincoln (1952). The Classic Ballet: Basic Technique and Terminology. University Press of Florida. ISBN 978-0-8130-1617-7.
    21. "Miss Muriel Stuart to Talk on Ballet". The Times-Tribune. 1954-01-25. p. 31. Retrieved 2020-04-21 – via Newspapers.com.
    22. "The Mae L. Wien Awards". School of American Ballet. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
    23. WJW (1991-02-16). "Muriel Stuart (obituary)". The Guardian. p. 21. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
    24. "James Warwick Is Dead at 89; Playwright and Screen Writer". The New York Times. 1983-08-19. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
    25. "Muriel Stuart papers". New York Public Library Archives and Manuscripts. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
    26. "Interview with Muriel Stuart, 1978". NYPL Digital Collections. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
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