- physdesc
-
{"format"=>"structured", "physdesc_components"=>[{"name"=>"extent", "value"=>"2 linear feet", "unit"=>"linear feet"}, {"name"=>"extent", "value"=>"4 boxes", "unit"=>"containers"}], "supress_display"=>true}
- unitid
-
{"value"=>"*MGZMD 200", "type"=>"local_call"}
{"value"=>"19863", "type"=>"local_mss"}
- unitdate
-
{"value"=>"1951-1985", "type"=>"inclusive", "normal"=>"1951/1985"}
- date_inclusive_start
-
1951
- date_inclusive_end
-
1985
- keydate
-
1951
- unittitle
-
{"value"=>"Martha Hill papers"}
- repository
-
{"value"=>"<span class=\"corpname\">The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.</span> <span class=\"subarea\">Jerome Robbins Dance Division.</span> <div class=\"address\"><span class=\"addressline\">New York, New York</span></div>"}
- abstract
-
{"value"=>"Martha Hill, a pioneer in the field of dance instruction, served as the first director of dance at The Juilliard School from 1951 until 1985. She mentored several generations of important dancers and choreographers through her teaching and work with dance festivals, government committees and nonprofit organizations devoted to promoting dance. The bulk of this collection relates to Hill’s involvement with these organizations."}
- prefercite
-
{"value"=>"Martha Hill papers, *MGZMD 200. Jerome Robbins Dance Division, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts"}
- origination
-
{"value"=>"Hill, Martha, 1900-1995", "type"=>"persname"}
- bioghist
-
{"value"=>"<p> Martha Hill was born in <span class=\"geogname\">East Palestine, Ohio</span> in 1900. Miss Hill (as she was known throughout her life) graduated from the <span class=\"corpname\">Battle Creek (Michigan) Normal School of Physical Education</span> in 1920, and taught ballet and Swedish gymnastics there and at <span class=\"corpname\">Kansas State Teachers College</span>.</p> <p>In 1926, Hill moved to <span class=\"geogname\">New York City</span> to study with <span class=\"name\">Martha Graham</span> and other dance teachers, and in 1927, Hill accepted a position as Assistant Professor of Dance at the <span class=\"corpname\">University of Oregon</span>, where she taught for two years. Among her students was <span class=\"name\">Bessie Schonberg</span>, who danced with the <span class=\"corpname\">Martha Graham Dance Company</span> and became an influential dance teacher at <span class=\"corpname\">Sarah Lawrence College</span>.</p> <p>Hill returned to New York in 1929, danced with the Martha Graham Dance Company and completed her bachelor’s degree at <span class=\"corpname\">Teachers College, Columbia University</span>. She became the Director of Dance at <span class=\"corpname\">New York University</span> soon after, beginning work in the School of Education in 1930. When her teaching responsibilities increased, Miss Hill left the Martha Graham Dance Company in 1931 and, in 1932, was hired by <span class=\"corpname\">Bennington College</span> in <span class=\"geogname\">Vermont</span> to be Chairman of the Dance Department, serving until 1951 in both the NYU and Bennington College positions. She received a master’s degree from NYU in 1941.</p> <p>At Bennington, Miss Hill founded the <span class=\"corpname\">Bennington School of the Dance</span> and its summer festival in 1934, and at <span class=\"corpname\">Connecticut College</span>, she started the School of the Dance in 1948 and also the <span class=\"corpname\">American Dance Festival</span>, which she co-directed until 1952. Among her Bennington College students was former First Lady <span class=\"name\">Betty Ford</span>, who later served with Hill on the board of directors of the <span class=\"corpname\">Association of American Dance Companies</span>. In Hill’s obituary, the <span class=\"title\">New York Times</span> remarks that such festivals “provided exposure and creative opportunities to…major modern-dance choreographers at crucial times in their young careers.”¹ Participants included dancers <span class=\"name\">Martha Graham</span>, <span class=\"name\">Doris Humphrey</span>, <span class=\"name\">Charles Weidman</span> and <span class=\"name\">Hanya Holm</span>, and choreographers <span class=\"name\">José Limón</span>, <span class=\"name\">Alwin Nikolais</span>, <span class=\"name\">Merce Cunningham</span>, <span class=\"name\">Paul Taylor</span> and <span class=\"name\">Alvin Ailey</span>.</p> <p>Miss Hill became the first director of dance at <span class=\"corpname\">The Juilliard School</span> in 1951 and remained in that role until her retirement in 1985, when she was named Artistic Director, Emeritus. A major influence on several generations of dancers, Miss Hill taught dance at Juilliard until her death in 1995 at the age of 94. The description of the Dance Division notes that Miss Hill’s “influence on the development of modern dance in the United States was profound. She assembled a faculty that included some of the greats in modern dance…[and under] Hill, the School became the first major teaching institution to combine equal dance instruction in both modern and ballet techniques.”²</p> <p>During her long career, Miss Hill served on a variety of boards and organizations committed to promoting dance and dance instruction in the United States, including the <span class=\"corpname\">Association of American Dance Companies</span> and the National Association for Regional Ballet. She worked with the <span class=\"corpname\">American National Theatre and Academy</span>’s Board of Directors in the 1950s and 1960s, and the <span class=\"corpname\">U.S. State Department’s Office of Cultural Presentations</span> in the 1960s. She served on the board of directors of the <span class=\"corpname\">Association of American Dance Companies</span> from its inception in 1966, received an award from that organization for her contributions to dance in 1975, and remained active in the AADC until its dissolution in 1980. Miss Hill also served on the board of directors of the National Association for Regional Ballet (which was later absorbed into the organization <span class=\"corpname\">Regional Dance America</span>) from 1966 until 1985.</p> <p>Miss Hill died in 1995 at her home in <span class=\"geogname\">Brooklyn</span>; she was married to <span class=\"name\">Dr. Thurston Davies</span> from 1952 until his death in 1961. She was survived by her brother, Lewis Hill, of Lake Alfred, Florida and step-daughter, Judith Dilts, of San Jose, California.</p> <ul> <li>¹ <span class=\"title\">New York Times</span>. Martha Hill, Dance Educator, is dead at 94, [Obituary], 1995, November 21, B.9</li> <li>² <span class=\"title\">Dance Division. The Juilliard School.</span> http://www.juilliard.edu/college/dance/dance.html (accessed July 2, 2008).</li></ul>"}
- scopecontent
-
{"value"=>"<p> The Martha Hill papers span the years 1951-1985 and consist of correspondence, board meeting materials, dance program schedules and planning materials, personal remembrances, performance notes and appraisals, press releases and newspaper clippings, mainly relating to her work with the Association of American Dance Companies, the National Association of Regional Ballet and the American National Theatre and Academy, which was part of the U.S. State Department’s Office of Cultural Presentations. The collection contains primary source material reflecting the history of government committees and nonprofit organizations devoted to promoting dance in the 20th century. It includes Miss Hill’s personal reflections, notes and appraisals of many different American regional and international ballet performances and organizations from the 1950s until the 1980s. The collection is mostly professional material, with a few items reflecting Miss Hill’s work in the field of dance education.</p>"}
{"value"=>"<p class='list-head'>The Martha Hill papers are arranged in five series:</p>\n<ul class='arrangement series-descriptions'>\n<li><div class='series-title'><a href='/dan/19863#c428868'>Series I: American National Theatre and Academy and related materials</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1958-1972 and undated</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>These files relate to Martha Hill’s participation on the Dance Advisory Panel of the International Cultural Exchange Service of the American National Theatre and Academy (ANTA) from 1959 until 1966. The Dance Advisory Panel, in association with the U.S. State Department’s International Cultural Program, produced dance programs that showcased American dance culture through tours to the Soviet Union and other Eastern bloc nations. Included are reports detailing international programs, board meeting schedules, minutes, press clippings, correspondence, and dance programs.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/dan/19863#c428876'>Series II: Association of American Dance Companies and related materials</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1966-1980 and undated</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>Martha Hill served as a member of the board of directors of the Association of American Dance Companies (AADC) from its inception at the 1966 National Dance Conference through its dissolution in 1980. These materials provide a chronicle of the association’s goals, initiatives, and activities through board meeting minutes, press clippings, correspondence and conference program materials. Included are materials from the original dance conference at which the Association was formed, along with materials from the American Symphony Orchestra League, upon which the AADC was modeled, as well as other organizational documents related to the founding and eventual demise of the organization.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/dan/19863#c428897'>Series III: National Association for Regional Ballet</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1966-1985 and undated</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>The National Association for Regional Ballet (NARB) was incorporated in 1963 as a national organization to promote the artistic development of regional dance companies in the United States. Martha Hill served on the board of directors and on the advisory committee from 1966 until 1985, when the association dissolved. These materials provide a chronicle of the association’s initiatives, goals and activities through board meeting minutes and organizational materials, press releases, promotional and conference materials and correspondence.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/dan/19863#c428918'>Series IV: Regional ballet festivals and choreography conferences</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1963-1974 and undated</div>\n<div class='series-description'><p>Included are schedules, promotional materials, reports, reviews and Miss Hill’s personal reflections relating to regional ballet and choreography conferences throughout the years 1963 until 1974.</p></div></li><li><div class='series-title'><a href='/dan/19863#c428931'>Series V: General office Files</a></div>\n<div class='series-date'>1951-1977 and undated</div>\n<div class='series-description'></div></li></ul>\n", "type"=>"arrangement"}
- arrangement
-
{"value"=>"<p> <ul> <li>Series I: American National Theatre and Academy and related materials, 1958-1972 and undated</li> <li>Series II: Association of American Dance Companies and related materials, 1966-1980 and undated</li> <li>Series III: National Association for Regional Ballet materials, 1966-1985 and undated</li> <li>Series IV: Regional ballet festivals and choreography conferences, 1963-1974 and undated</li> <li>Series V: General office files, 1951-1977 and undated</li></ul></p>", "supress_display"=>true}
- acqinfo
-
{"value"=>"<p> The Martha Hill Papers were donated to the Jerome Robbins Dance Division in 1992.</p>"}
- userestrict
-
{"value"=>"<p>For permission to publish, contact the Curator, Jerome Robbins Dance Division.</p>"}
- processinfo
-
{"value"=>"<p>Processed by Mary Robison; Machine-readable finding aid created by Mary Robison.</p>"}
- extent_statement
-
2 linear feet (4 boxes)
- date_start
-
1951
- date_end
-
1985