As I squeezed into class, unfortunately a few minutes late, I took a seat in the back and had to take a second to realize what was going on. I was still out of breath from my run from the vertical campus to the 23rd street building. I looked to the front of the classroom and saw a woman facing the rest of us and while sharing a story with clear passion.
“America’s first modern dance…” These are the words Jody Sperling used to describe the legacy that Loie Fuller left behind. Sperling is a dancer, a historian, an entrepreneur, but most of all, she is an artist. Loie Fuller was a dancer, a visionary, but most of all, an inventor. Fuller was able to create new forms of art that affected generations to come, generations like those of Jody Sperling.
Sperling’s appreciation for dance and for Fuller was heard throughout the entire presentation and clearly showed the impact that Fuller had on Sperling’s career. Sperling traced Fuller’s life from the tavern she was born in, to the endless career travels, to her unfortunate death in the late 1920’s. The anger in her voice grabbed my attention when she discussed the producers and “husband” that wronged Loie Fuller. Sperling made it clear to the class as a whole, that many largely popular dance forms of the 20th century had traces that eventually led back to Loie Fuller. It was as if Sperling were protecting her own kin.
credits to http://www.myspace.com/braziliangirls/photos/38641348
Fuller herself was an incredible woman who went on to accomplish incredible things. From the moment she was born in the back of a tavern, her life was already interesting. Originally a successful burlesque dancer, Fuller knew that her passion lied elsewhere. She created the Serpentine Dance and immediately started climbing the ladder. She vibrantly used extensive yards of silk fabric, making it seem as if she “had a million folds [for] every one yard.” Her career eventually led her to Paris and many obstacles had her traveling back and forth, between the states and Europe. Her success attracted the attention of copycats and placed a big problem. But Fuller decided to push the envelope further by developing patented techniques to use light from different angles of the theatre and phase it into her dance. She served as the prime example of someone who could fight with great obstacles and still accomplish great feats.
credits to www.victoriangothic.org
Today Jody Sperling does a great job of shedding light on Fuller’s career and its modern day impact. Sperling herself has gone on to found the Time Lapse Dance Company, produce dance shows, and wear all the hats of a contemporary artist. She discusses the effort required to raise funds for productions and all the means that one must consider, from fundraisers, to grants, to simple email lists. The presentation culminated on a note where Sperling made it evident that the arts industry was difficult and challenging, yet one where true passion, dedication and commitment would yield positive results.
Fuller is a great source of inspiration for Sperling, to the point that Sperling performed one of Fuller’s butterfly pieces in the Library of Congress. Sperling lightly joked of the difficulty in hoisting up two remarkably long poles on her arms and then swaying them as to convey the same beauty that Loie Fuller discovered. The presentation had me wishing I was alive in the era to see the beauty of Loie Fuller’s dances and her innovative use of fabric and light.
Source: Jody Sperling Publications
