Irma Duncan
Irma Duncan | |
|---|---|
 Duncan at age 20 (in 1917) | |
| Born | Irma Dorette Henriette Ehrich-Grimme February 26, 1897 Schleswig-Holstein, Germany |
| Died | September 20, 1977 (aged 82) |
| Nationality | Naturalized American (since 1935) |
| Occupation(s) | Dancer, educator |
Irma Duncan (February 26, 1897 – September 20, 1977) was a German-born American dancer and a teacher of dance.
Biography
[edit]Duncan (born Irma Dorette Henriette Ehrich-Grimme)[1] was born on February 26, 1897, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.
In 1905, she began studying with American-born dancer and choreographer Isadora Duncan at her school in the Berlin suburb of Grünewald, Germany.[1] She was one of six students of Isadora Duncan that became the young dance troupe the Isadorables. The group moved to New York City at the beginning of World War I. At that time, all the students changed their last names to Duncan.[2]
In 1921, she relocated to Moscow where she taught at the Duncan School. She became the director of the school in 1924 when Isadora Duncan left to return to the United States.[3] That group, the Isadora Duncan Dancers of Moscow, toured in the Soviet Union, China and the U.S. At the end of the 1929 U.S. tour, Irma chose to stay in the U.S. rather than return to Moscow.[2][3]
In 1935, Duncan obtained U.S. citizenship. The same year, she married Sherman S. Rogers.[1]
In 1966, the Wesleyan University Press published her book Duncan Dancer: An Autobiography.[4]
Duncan died on September 20, 1977, in Santa Barbara, California.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Irma Duncan Collection of Isadora Duncan materials". New York Public Library. Retrieved May 17, 2025.
- ^ a b c "Duncan, Irma". American National Biography (online ed.). Retrieved May 15, 2025.
- ^ a b Kisselgoff, Anna (September 22, 1977). "Irma Duncan Dead; Disciple of Isadora Duncan". The New York Times. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
- ^ "Irma Duncan". Isadora Duncan Archive. Retrieved May 19, 2025.
| International | |
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| National | |
| Academics | |
| Artists | |
- 1897 births
- 1977 deaths
- 20th-century American biographers
- 20th-century American dancers
- 20th-century American women educators
- 20th-century American women writers
- 20th-century German biographers
- 20th-century German dancers
- 20th-century German women educators
- 20th-century German women writers
- 20th-century people from California
- 20th-century people from New York (state)
- American dance teachers
- American female dancers
- American modern dancers
- American women autobiographers
- Dancers from California
- Dancers from Moscow
- Dancers from New York City
- Educators from New York City
- Educators from California
- Emigrants from the German Empire to the United States
- Entertainers from Brandenburg
- Entertainers from Schleswig-Holstein
- German female dancers
- German expatriates in Russia
- German women autobiographers
- Naturalized citizens of the United States
- People from Oberspreewald-Lausitz
- Writers from New York City
- Writers from Santa Barbara, California