| Inspired by a Pearl Primus performance, New York-born Donald
McKayle began dancing in his senior year in high school, winning a
scholarship to the New Dance Group. There he studied with Primus, Sophie
Maslow, Jean Erdman, and others. He made his professional debut in 1948,
and choreographed his first pieces with the New Dance Group when he was
18 years old. In 1951, he, along with Daniel Nagrin and others,
founded the Contemporary Dance Group, which premiered McKayle's
"Games" in 1951. Perhaps his best-known piece, "Games"
juxtaposes the innocent imaginings of urban children with the real dangers
they face. McKayle received a scholarship to the Martha Graham school and
then joined her company from 1955-1956. In addition to his work with
Graham, he danced with Merce Cunningham, Anna Sokolow, and Charles
Wiedman, among others. A free agent, McKayle danced as a guest artist with
various companies, as well as in Broadway musicals.
But McKayle's central focus was always choreography, and though he was
a well-known choreographer, he never maintained a permanent company. He
choreographed for other companies or assembled dancers as he needed them
for specific concert seasons; two popular examples are "Rainbow 'Round
My Shoulder" (1959) and "District Storyville" (1962), both in the
repertory of the Ailey company.
Successful in the worlds of dance and theater, McKayle created dances
for concert stages, Broadway, television, and film. His Broadway credits
include "Golden Boy" (1964), "I'm Solomon" (1969), "Raisin"
(1974), and "Dr. Jazz" (1975); he was also one of the four
choreographers for "Sophisticated Ladies" (1981). Beginning in 1963,
McKayle choreographed for television programs about once a year, including
THE ED SULLIVAN SHOW (1966-1967), THE BILL COSBY SPECIAL (1968), the
1970 OSCAR PRESENTATIONS, and the Marlo Thomas special FREE TO BE WITH YOU AND ME (1974). He created dances for films in THE GREAT WHITE HOPE
(1970), Disney's BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS (1971), and CHARLIE AND THE ANGEL (1972). In the field of popular music, he has
choreographed stage acts for singers such as Harry Belafonte and Tina
Turner.
McKayle's sensibilities were formed by the theatrical dance of the
1950s. A humanistic choreographer, he uses narratives and deals with
potent emotion conveyed through dramatic characters. At times his stories
are specific to the African-American experience, as in his protest dance
"Rainbow 'Round My Shoulder," but his choreography is universal in
its implications.
McKayle has taught at Bennington College, the Juilliard School, the
American Dance Festival, and in Europe. His closest associations are with
the repertory group at the Los Angeles Inner City Cultural Center and with
the School of Dance at the California Institute of the Arts, to which he
was appointed artistic director in 1975. As a prolific craftsman whose
dances exist in many repertories and in many mediums, Donald McKayle has
been one of the most influential African-American choreographers of the
postwar era.
-- Kimberly Pittman
|
