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Dancing Spirit: An Autobiography

by Judith Jamison, Howard Kaplan

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Overview
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Overview

Judith Jamison is, in every sense, a towering figure. Her commanding physical presence, elegant manner, and extraordinary technique have made her not only a true superstar of American dance and an historic innovator in her field, but also a beacon of inspiration to African-Americans, to women, and to people of all origins around the world. Dancing Spirit presents this phenomenal woman's story in her own direct and uncompromising voice: her early years in Philadelphia, where she began studying dance at the age of six; her discovery by Agnes de Mille, who gave her her first professional role in The Four Marys; years of frustration and struggle in a field that favored petite, fair, white women; her legendary collaboration with Alvin Ailey, reaching its apogee with the landmark solo piece Cry; global success and fame with the Ailey company, touring the United States, Europe, Asia, South America, and Africa; performing on Broadway in the musical Sophisticated Ladies; the formation of her own troupe, the Jamison Project; and her return to the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre as artistic director after its founder's tragic death in 1989. Dancing Spirit teems with vivid portraits of the artists and individuals Judith Jamison has worked with and known throughout the years: Miss Marion Cuyjet, her first dance teacher, and still an important figure in her life; Agnes de Mille; Alvin Ailey; Jessye Norman; dancers James Truitte, Geoffrey Holder, Carmen de Lavallade, and Mikhail Baryshnikov, to name only a few; and many others. And in Dancing Spirit Judith Jamison talks frankly about the price exacted by a dancer's nomadic life - rootlessness, fleeting relationships, the obsession with physical beauty. Illustrated with more than sixty photographs, Dancing Spirit is a candid and immediate self-portrait of a unique American artist whose work has left an indelible mark on the world of dance, and whose life and career are a monument to her passion, her pride, and her vision.

Editorial Reviews

Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly

Jamison has long been one of America's outstanding dancers, well-known for her dramatic, graceful, sinewy presence as a soloist (especially in the solo Cry ) in the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and as the company's artistic director since Ailey's death in 1989. Working in collaboration with freelance writer Kaplan, Jamison tells her life story, and it is engaging. She describes growing up in Philadelphia, and entering a profession--dancing--that is less than welcoming, even now, to African Americans. Yet she does more than tell her own story; Jamison also invites us into the Ailey company, and gives access to the many gifted dancers who have filled it, from Carmen DeLavallade to Donna Wood. Above all, her portrait of the complicated Ailey himself is of interest: ``Alvin and I were like two limbs of a tree, growing and climbing.'' Welcoming, intelligent and chatty--sometimes, too chatty--she also brings down to earth the experience of performing. Photos not seen by PW. (Nov.)

Library Journal - Library Journal

Coinciding with the 35th anniversary of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (of which she is now artistic director), this is the story of the first black superstar of American dance. In a narrative as eloquent and elegant as her dancing, Jamison recounts her early years and training in Philadelphia and New York and her affiliation with a number of dance companies, including the Harkness Ballet, American Ballet Theatre and, most notably, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. A member of that company for 15 years, she became artistic director after Ailey's death in 1989. Before that, she appeared on Broadway in Sophisticated Ladies and also directed the Jamison Project, a small company of her own on which she choreographed a number of original works. Her signature role, in Cry , which Ailey choreographed on her, has been immortalized in photographs by Max Waldman. A candid self-portrait of an important figure in modern American dance; recommended for collections on dance. For a related work, see Jack Mitchell's Alvine Ailey's American Dance Theater , reviewed below.--Ed.-- Carolyn M. Mulac, Chicago P.L.

School Library Journal - School Library Journal

YA-While Jamison describes her childhood and takes great pride in her family and her African heritage, she focuses almost exclusively on her career as a dancer, choreographer, teacher, and now artistic director of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre. What comes through most of all is her pride and her passion for dance. A word of caution: many phrases appear in quotes, some of them slang, without explanation, which may confuse readers as the meanings are not always clear in context. In addition, the author is so totally immersed in her subject that she uses many technical terms from ballet to jazz to Horton techniques without defining them. However, for those who adore dance and the theatre, are familiar with the Alvin Ailey troupe, and have some background in the subject, this book will give immense pleasure. Over 60 marvelous black-and-white photographs capture the essence of this intense and dramatic artist.-Pat Royal, Crossland High School, Camp Springs, MD