1. Anna Sokolow was an American dancer and choreographer.
34 Facts About Anna Sokolow
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At the beginning of her career, Anna Sokolow was a principal dancer in the Martha Graham Company.
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Anna Sokolow soon became an independent choreographer, who went on to form multiple dance companies throughout her life.
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Anna Sokolow choreographed for and set her work on companies around the world, including major companies such as Batsheva Dance Company, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, The Jose Limon Dance Company, Joffery Ballet and the Daniel Lewis Dance Company.
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Anna Sokolow was born on February 9,1910, in Hartford, Connecticut, and grew up on the Lower East Side of Manhattan.
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Anna Sokolow was the third child of four born to Samuel and Sarah, preceded by Isadore and Rose, and succeeded by Gertie.
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Anna Sokolow began her dance training by taking classes at the Emanuel Sisterhood alongside her sister Rose.
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Anna Sokolow first performed with the Martha Graham Company in 1930.
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Anna Sokolow danced with the company as a soloist for about 8 years.
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Alongside her work with the Martha Graham Company, Anna Sokolow began choreographing and offering solo performances in 1932.
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Anna Sokolow drew inspiration from the Union movement, and stated in a 1975 interview that she considered the unions her first audience.
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From 1955 to 1985, Anna Sokolow regularly choreographed for the Juilliard Dance Ensemble at the Juilliard School.
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Anna Sokolow created many notable pieces for the group including Primavera and Ballade.
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In 1953, Anna Sokolow created Lyric Suite, one of her most well-received works.
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Anna Sokolow considered this piece as the beginning of a new era in her choreography.
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Anna Sokolow returned to the theme in one of her last pieces, Frida, in 1997.
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Anna Sokolow began her association with Broadway in 1947, choreographing for the musical Street Scene.
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Anna Sokolow choreographed for multiple Broadway productions, including Happy as Larry and Camino Real.
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Anna Sokolow worked as the choreographer during the rehearsal process for the first production of the musical Hair, but left the production before its first performance and her contributions were not credited.
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Anna Sokolow frequently staged works for the New York City Opera, including multiple productions in their 1956 season.
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Anna Sokolow choreographed dances for The California Story at San Diego's Fiesta del Pacifico in 1957.
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Anna Sokolow created four works for this company El Renacuajo Paseador.
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Anna Sokolow eventually returned to New York City in the early 1940s but continued to visit Mexico City occasionally throughout her career.
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Jerome Robbins encouraged Anna Sokolow to go to Israel to work with the Inbal Dance Theatre in 1953.
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Anna Sokolow returned to Israel as a guest choreographer for Batsheva Dance Company in 1972.
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One of Anna Sokolow's earliest teaching experiences occurred during a trip to Russia in the early 1930s.
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Anna Sokolow officially joined the faculty in 1958 and taught classes in "method dancing" from 1958 to 1993.
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Anna Sokolow worked alongside Robert Lewis as a teacher at the Repertory Theater at Lincoln Center and the HB Studio.
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In 1967, she received a prestigious grant from the National Council on the Arts, worth $10,000; Anna Sokolow used this funding to create Deserts.
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Anna Sokolow dedicated her works to her inspirations including Isadora Duncan, Louis Horst, Anne Frank, Jose Limon, Vaslav Nijinsky, Martin Luther King Jr.
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Anna Sokolow was romantically involved with Alex North, her musical collaborator, for seven years.
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Anna Sokolow was known for her heavy involvement in the Communist movement.
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Anna Sokolow suffered from depression in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
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Anna Sokolow died at the age of 90, on March 29,2000, in New York City.