Who's Who in the History of Cornish (A-L)

 

Bird, Bonnie —  director of dance from 1937–40, alumna from 1927–30, Bird left Cornish her final year to dance with Martha Graham. As part of the Graham Group, she graduated from the Neighborhood Playhouse in NYC. As director of dance, she is best known for flipping Merce Cunningham from theater to dance and hiring John Cage as accompanist-composer. Bird went on to a distinguished career as a dance educationalist, including developing the first bachelor's and master's degrees in the UK at the TrinityLaban Conservatoire in London.

Bird, Dorothy — Dorothy Bird was no relation to Bonnie Bird, as she would often have to explain. The two were nevertheless best friends and even looked the part of sisters. Bird attended Cornish in 1930, and preceded Bonnie Bird in Martha Graham's company. She went on to a very successful career as a dancer on Broadway.

Bolm, Adolph — Bolm was a veteran of the Imperial Ballet and the Ballets Russes; he danced with Pavlova and Najinski. He brought the highly theatrical manner of ballet to three seminal seasons on the faculty of Cornish, setting the tone for the department for years after.

Cady, Calvin Brainerd — Nellie Cornish sought out musician and educator Calvin Cady as a mentor, correctly feeling that their approach to education was sympatico. Cady brought the thinking of his Michigan and University of Chicago colleague John Dewey to Cornish when he joined the faculty of Cornish in 1916. Cady graduated from the Oberlin College and Conservatory, with graduate study in Leipzig.

Cage, John — Modern legend John Cage joined the faculty of Cornish in 1938 and left in 1940, brought in originally as a dance accompanist and composer by Bonnie Bird. At Cornish, Cage underwent a professional acceleration, inventing electronic music for the Bird-and-company-choreographed "Imaginary Landscapes" and prepared piano for the senior project of Syvilla Fort '40, "Bacchanale." At Cornish, the groundwork was laid for the lifelong partnership of Cage and Merce Cunningham '36–39.

Cage, Xenia — Xenia Cage arrived at Cornish with her husband, John Cage. She became quite involved with his work there, designing sets for the Dance Department and taking part in his groundbreaking percussion ensemble.

Cornish, Nellie C. — Founder of the Cornish School, Nellie Cornish, was born in the Midwest and raised in the Pacific Northwest, especially in Blaine, Washington, where a large segment of her family ultimately settled.

Cunningham, Merce — as is his partner, John Cage, dancer and choreographer Cunningham is considered a giant of modern performing arts. He attended Cornish from 1936–39, leaving after his junior year to join the Graham Group.

Dewey, John — One of the seminal thinkers of his day, John Dewey is considered the father of Progressive education theory, and his work formed the nucleus of the Cornish Idea through the influence of his colleague at Michigan, Chicago, and Columbia, Calving Brainerd Cady.

Fort, Syvilla — accepted at Cornish to study dance when no one else would have her, Fort was one of the first—if not the first—African-American students at the school. Fort is a profile in courage, teaching herself and children in her neighborhood to dance, which set the stage for a successful career as one of New York's most influential teachers.

Graham, Martha — the icon of modern dance arrived at Cornish in 1930 at a critical moment in her career, just as her style was gelling. Graham's summer session at the school was truly intense, according to all accounts. Though she spent only the one summer on the faculty (though work continues on another possible date), Graham began a 10-year period of harvesting Cornish Dancers: Bonnie Bird, DorothyBird, Nina Fonoroff, and Merce Cunningham, among others.

 

 

CONTINUE, M–Z