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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 22 July 2014
Credit is due a great many individuals for sustained, serious and heartbreaking efforts to achieve successful dance productions within the organization of the Federal Theatre Project in New York, but there is one person who has practically given all her life to it for the past three years and has repeatedly and consistently identified her own career with it. She has been responsible for four productions and has done more than any other one person to hold the whole project together and keep it going. Without her tremendous creative enthusiasm and energy, her personal and artistic integrity, her sense of social responsibility, I doubt if this project could ever have endured. I doubt it could have been organized in the first place.… I am speaking of Tamiris.
The history of the Works Progress Administration's short-lived Federal Dance Theatre embodies many of the aspirations, achievements, ambiguities, handicaps and frustrations of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's New Deal. Like the other Works Progress Administration (WPA) relief programs, the Federal Dance Theatre (FDT) was created with federal funds to help alleviate the hardships brought on by the Great Depression. The FDT was established in January 1936 as a distinct artistic entity within the WPA relief organization. It employed professional dancers, choreographers, musicians, designers, and technicians, and set before them the task of producing socially relevant dance pieces for the American people, in particular, audiences that had not previously had access to the theatre. That the Federal Dance Theatre came into existence at all and managed to stay afloat and produce a few critically acclaimed productions of social portent and artistic merit was largely due to the perseverance of modern dance maverick, Helen Tamiris (1905–1966).
1. Code, Grant, “Dance Theatre of the WPA: A Record of National Accomplishment, Part III,” Dance Observer 7/3 (1940): 34.Google Scholar
2. Mathews, Jane de Hart, The Federal Theatre 1935–1939 (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1967), vii.Google Scholar
3. Lloyd, Margaret, The Borzoi Book of Modern Dance (New York: Alfred Knopf, 1949), 133.Google Scholar
4. Ibid., 141–142.
5. Schlundt, Christena, “Tamiris: A Chronicle of Her Dance Career 1927–1955,” Studies in Dance History 1/1 (Fall/Winter 1989–1990): 88.Google Scholar
6. Helen Tamiris, interview with Walter Terry at the 92nd Street YMHA in New York City. Helen Tamiris Collection (sound recording). Dance Collection, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, New York City, New York. Hereafter cited as Helen Tamiris Collection, NYPL.
7. Tamiris took her stage name from the first line of the poem entitled “Tamiris,” by the South American poet, Amongo Zegri: “Thou Art Tamiris, the ruthless queen who banishes all obstacles.” See Urell, Maude Babcock, “The Dancer Who Stages Herself,” Dance Magazine (July 1928): 61.Google Scholar
8. Tamiris, Helen, “Tamiris in Her Own Voice: Draft of an Autobiography,” Studies in Dance History 1/1 (Fall/Winter 1989–1990): 20.Google Scholar
9. Siegel, Marcia B., “Modern Dance Before Bennington: Sorting It All Out,” Dance Research Journal 19/1 (Summer 1987): 6.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
10. Lloyd, 139–140.
11. Schlundt, 70.
12. Helen Tamiris Collection (Scrapbook: Clippings and Programs 1924–47, vol. 2, 1927–28), NYPL. Tamiris wrote this manifesto after attending a performance given by Martha Graham and Agna Enters at the Little Theatre in New York City. She wrote that “Martha was a great dancer—But did not like her concentration on esoteric and mystical material.” See Daniel Nagrin, “Helen Tamiris and the Dance Historians 1933–1988,” paper presented before the Society of Dance History Scholars, Tempe, Arizona, 19 February 1989.
13. Schlundt, 74.
14. John Martin, quoted in Siegel, 7.
15. Martin, John, “The Dance: Appraising A New Movement,” The New York Times, (19 January 1930): Section X, 9.Google Scholar
16. Helen Tamiris Collection (Folder 200, Biographical Material 1927–47, prepared by Tamiris for Margaret Lloyd, p. 11), NYPL.
17. Siegel, 8.
18. Roberts, W. Adolphe, “Tamiris Speaks Her Mind—More About the Concert Dancers' League,” Dance Magazine (April 1931): 30.Google Scholar
19. Schlundt, 99.
20. “Dance and Studio Notes,” Dance Observer 2/1 (1935): 11.
21. “Dance and Studio Notes,” Dance Observer 2/2 (1935): 23.
22. See “Sullivan Bill” and “Dance and Studio Notes,” Dance Observer 2/5 (1935): 56, 59. The Sullivan Bill called for licensing fees of $25 to $200 and the filing of a bond from $1000 to $10,000 upon all teachers of dance. The bill made no distinction between schools teaching social and “revue” dancing (merchants of these schools supported the bill because they believed it would cut down on rate-slashes in the business), and the serious “theatrical” dance schools.
23. Brown, Lorraine and O'Connor, John, Free, Adult, Uncensored (Washington, DC: New Republic Books, 1978), 2.Google Scholar
24. Ibid.
25. Ibid., 26.
26. “W.P.A. Dance,” Dance Observer 3/2 (1936): 14.
27. Brown and O'Connor, 213.
28. Fanya Geltman Del Bourgo, interview by Karen Wickre, New York, New York, 16 December 1977. Theatre of the Thirties Oral History Collection, Special Collections and Archives, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, (p. 6 of interview transcript). Hereafter cited as Theatre of the Thirties Oral History Collection.
According to the oral history given by Saida Gerrard, the dancers' salaries were lowered to $19.00 a week in response to Federal budget cuts to the WPA relief programs. Saida Gerrard, interview by Karen Wickre, Hollywood, California, 21 February 1978. Theatre of the Thirties Oral History Collection, (p. 20 of interview transcript).
29. Schlundt, 100.
30. “Federal Dance Theatre,” Dance Observer 3/8 (1936): 87.
31. Branches of the Federal Dance Theatre operated in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.
32. Mura Dehn, interview by Karen Wickre, New York, New York, 20 April 1978. Theatre of the Thirties Oral History Collection, (p. 11 of interview transcript).
33. Tamiris, “Dance Groups,” Dance Observer 3/5 (1936): 56.
34. Brown and O'Connor, 214.
35. Tish, Pauline, “Remembering Helen Tamiris,” Dance Chronicle 17/3 (1994): 338.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
On 5 April 1936 a delegation of employed and unemployed dancers picketed the office of Phil Barber of the WPA administration to protest the unmet hiring quota and the gross mismanagement of production arrangements. On April 6th the picketing continued and dancers were arrested. The dancers came to trial on April 22nd and appeared before the judge in a packed courtroom. The case was dismissed. See Code, Grant, “Dance Theatre of the WPA: A Record of National Accomplishment, Part I,” Dance Observer 6/8 (1939): 264.Google Scholar
36. Gilfond, Henry, “Public Hearing: Federal Dance Theatre,” Dance Observer 3/9 (1936): 97.Google Scholar
37. Ibid.
38. Helen Tamiris Collection (Folder 200, Biographical Material 1927–47, p. 19), NYPL.
39. Church, Marjorie, “… And Her Group,” Dance Observer 3/9 (1936): 104.Google Scholar
40. Schlundt, 98.
41. Ibid.
42. Helen Tamiris Collection (Folder 200, Biographical Material 1927–47, p. 27), NYPL.
43. Tish, 338.
44. Salut au Monde, press release. Helen Tamiris Collection (Scrapbook: Clippings and Program 1927–47, vol. 8, 1936–44), NYPL.
45. Tish, 341.
46. Helen Tamiris Collection (Folder 200, Biographical Material 1927–47, p.18), NYPL.
47. Gilfond, Henry, “Tamiris—Charles Weidman,” Dance Observer 4/6 (1937): 68.Google Scholar
48. Lloyd, 144.
49. Tish, 347–349.
50. Ibid., 348.
51. Martin, John “Dances Are Given by WPA Theatre,” The New York Times (7 May 1937): 29.Google Scholar
52. Code, Grant, “Dance Theatre of the WPA: A Record of National Accomplishment, Part II,” Dance Observer 6/9 (1939): 280.Google Scholar
53. “Highlights of Constitution of American Dance Association,” Dance Observer 4/5 (1937): 57.
54. The Communist-led Workers'Alliance organized a one-day work stoppage in response to large-scale proposed budget cuts to the WPA. Seven thousand out of the nine thousand New York City workers stayed home on 27 May 1936. See Brown and O'Connor, 30.
55. Tish, 343.
56. Mathews, 103.
57. The oral histories of Paula Bass Perlowin and Fanya Geltman Del Bourgo imply that Charles Weidman was not actually the instigator of this famous sit-in protest but was asked to support and participate in the action by a group of dancers within the FDT. Del Bourgo recalls that a proclamation was written by a group of dancers, herself included, and presented to Weidman to be read to the audience at the Nora Bayes Theatre that evening (17 May 1937). The dancers told their friends and relatives to come to the theatre to participate in the protest. See Fanya Geltman Del Bourgo, interview by Karen Wickre, Theatre of the Thirties Oral History Collection, (p. 4 of interview transcript).
Paula Bass Perlowin stated that she and Sonya (last name not given) approached Weidman asking for his support (p. 18 of interview transcript). Sue Nadel and Paula Bass Perlowin, interview by Karen Wickre, Laguna Hills, California, 23 October 1977, Theatre of the Thirties Oral History Collection.
58. Tish, 352.
59. Church, Marjorie, “Organization News and Views,” Dance Observer 4/8 (1937): 99.Google Scholar
60. Butler, Gervaise, “Tamiris and a Tale of Troy,” Dance Observer 5/5 (1938): 70.Google Scholar
61. Atkinson, Brooks, “Women of Troy According to a Federal Theatre Pattern in Dance, Song and Drama,” The New York Times (22 April 1938): 15.Google Scholar
62. Martin, John, “The Dance: Greek Chorus,” The New York Times (1 May 1938): Section X, 8.Google Scholar
63. Code, , “Dance Theatre of the WPA: A Record of National Accomplishment, Part II,” Dance Observer 6/9 (1939): 281.Google Scholar
64. Helen Tamiris, excerpt from a letter written to Don Oscar Becque, published in Dance Magazine (January, 1937). See Helen Tamiris Collection (Scrapbook: Clippings and Programs 1924–47, vol. 7, 1934–37), NYPL.
65. Schlundt, 88.
66. Soares, Janet Mansfield, “Musician Louis Horst (1884–1964): His Influence on Concepts of Modernism in American Dance,” Proceedings of the Society for Dance History Scholars, Twelfth Annual Conference, Arizona State University, 17–19 February 1989, p. 92.Google Scholar
67. Soares, Janet Mansfield, Louis Horst: Musician in a Dancer's World (Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 1992), 67.Google Scholar
68. Helen Tamiris Collection (Folder 200, Biographical Material 1927–47, p. 2), NYPL.
69. Love, Paul, “Tamiris,” Dance Observer 1/1 (1934): 7.Google Scholar
70. Ocko, Edna, written under the pseudonym Skrip, “Tamiris,” New Theatre 2/2 (February 1935): 29.Google Scholar
71. Schlundt, 89.
72. Helen Tamiris Collection (Folder 200, Biographical Material 1927–47, p. 27), NYPL.
73. Tamiris, along with famous actors of the Broadway stage, was part of the Theatre Arts Committee. Armed with petitions bearing 200,000 signatures, they flew to Washington, D.C. on 16 January 1939 to protest the reduction of personnel to the Federal Arts Project, of which the Federal Theatre Project was a component. See The New York Times (17 January 1939): 17.
74. Heymann, Jeanne Lunin, “Dance in the Depression: The WPA Project,” Dance Scope 9/2 (Summer 1975): 33.Google Scholar
75. Church, Marjorie, “Federal Dance Theatre,” Dance Observer 6/2 (1939): 171.Google Scholar
76. Gilfond, Henry, “Adelante,” Dance Observer 6/5 (1939): 218.Google Scholar
77. Lloyd, 146.
78. Tish, 357.
79. In her oral history, Paula Bass Perlowin stated that, due to its pro-Loyalist message, Adelante was closed because of pressure exerted on Hallie Flanagan by the Catholic Church. Paula Bass Perlowin, interview by Karen Wickre, Theatre of the Thirties Oral History Collection, (p. 32 of interview transcript).
The program notes to Adelante included the following disclaimer, perhaps intended to protect the WPA administration from accusations of political subversion: “The Federal Theatre is part of the WPA program. However, the viewpoint expressed in its productions is not necessarily that of the WPA or any other branch of the government.” See Helen Tamiris Collection (Scrapbook: Clippings and Programs 1924–47, vol. 8, 1936–44, program notes for Adelante), NYPL.
80. Grant Code states that Tamiris's Adelante was never transferred to the New York World's Fair; however, Henry Gilfond's mention of an abbreviated version of Adelante showing at the fairgrounds contradicts Code's assertion. See Code, , Dance Observer 6/9 (1939): 290Google Scholar and Gilfond, , Dance Observer 6/5 (1939): 218.Google Scholar
Owen Burke reviewed the abridged version of Adelante for New Masses (16 May 1939). According to his review, the production had been shortened to one hour to meet a New York World's Fair time regulation. It was mounted in the WPA Buildings at the fairgrounds sometime in late April and was still running as of 16 May, the date of the review. See Helen Tamiris Collection (Scrapbook: Clippings and Programs 1924–47, vol. 8, 1936–44), NYPL.
81. Martin, John, “The Dance: ‘Adelante’,” The New York Times (30 April 1939): Section X, p. 6.Google Scholar
82. Sherwood, Robert E., Roosevelt and Hopkins (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1948), 104.Google Scholar
83. Bentley, Eric, ed., Thirty Years of Treason: Excerpts from Hearings Before the House Committee on Un-American Activities 1938–1968 (New York: Viking Press, 1971), 3.Google Scholar
84. “Theatre Project Faces an Inquiry,” The New York Times (27 July 1938): 19.
85. Brown and O'Connor, 31.
86. Ibid., 34.
87. Mathews, 199.
88. Bentley, xvii.
89. Mathews, 200–201.
90. Bentley, 5.
91. Mathews, 204–205.
92. Ibid., 205.
93. Ibid., 234–235.
94. Tamiris, Helen, “Dance Groups,” Dance Observer 3/5 (1936): 56.Google Scholar
95. Helen Tamiris Collection (Folder 200, Biographical Material 1927–47, p. 27), NYPL.
96. Schlundt, 121.
97. Fanya Geltman Del Bourgo, p. 23 of interview transcript; Mura Dehn, p. 11 of interview transcript; Saida Gerrard, p. 20 of interview transcript. Theatre of the Thirties Oral History Collection.
98. Paula Bass Perlowin, pp. 60–61 of interview transcript. Theatre of the Thirties Oral History Collection.
99. Tamiris adopted her stage name in 1924 and used it continuously until April 1939 when “Helen Tamiris” was printed in the program notes for Adelante, her last dance production for the WPA. It is worth noting that Adelante was created and performed in the midst of the House Un-American Committee hearings in Washington, D.C, when suspicion of Communist infiltration within the ranks of the Federal Theatre Project was mounting.
100. Helen Tamiris Collection (Folder 200, Biographical Material 1927–47, p. 27), NYPL.
101. Schlundt, 129.
102. Nagrin, 2.
103. Ibid., 21.