Carole Johnson (dancer)
Carole Johnson | |
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Born | Carole Yvonne Johnson 1940 (age 83–84) NAISDA and Bangarra Dance Theatre |
Carole Yvonne Johnson (born 1940) is an African American
She is also an activist, arts administrator and researcher.
Early life and education
Carole Yvonne Johnson
After graduating from high school, she was introduced to modern dance at
Early career
Staying in NYC, Johnson continued dance studies in ballet and
In 1966 she joined the
In 1968 (or earlier?[6]) along with Eleo Pomare, Rod Rodgers, Gus Solomon and Pearl Reynolds, Johnson formed the Association of Black Choreographers.[8][9][10] This was the predecessor to the Modern Organization for Dance Evolvement, known as MODE. Its stated emphases were "to be of service to professionals in dance, and to be an educational and informational organisation for the general public and people in other professions interested in dance", and its 12 listed goals showed a focus on black dance.[11]
In 1970[12] Johnson founded and became the editor of The Feet (also styled THE FEET[8][13][14] and The FEET[15]), a magazine for black dancers[8][16] which was published from 1970 to 1973 (23 issues)[12] as a project of MOD, with its final anniversary edition published in June 1973.[11] Bernadine Jennings, who worked under Johnson at the time and later established and ran Dance Giant Steps to promote professional dance artists and companies, was a contributor to the magazine.[16] Contributors included Chuck Davis, Rod Rodgers, and Zita Allen (a founding contributor[17]), and The Feet was later edited by Alicia Adams.[13]
In the final issue of The Feet, Johnson listed several accomplishments of MODE: a new dance service award (with the inaugural one given to Ismay Andrews, an early teacher of many later luminaries); a television panel discussion; a community dance series; and the First National Congress on Blacks in Dance, held at Indiana University Bloomington, from 26 June to 1 July 1973.[11]
In 1971, Johnson was awarded a fellowship by the
Johnson's work contributed to a definition of "Black dance"; she saw it as "first and foremost, movement that is not limited to any one particular technique, vocabulary or style".[15]
Work in Australia
In 1972, the Eleo Pomare Dance Company toured to Australia to perform the
At the Adelaide Festival, Johnson was introduced to Jennifer Isaacs, Indigenous officer for the Australia Council, by South African visual artist Bauxhau Stone (who had been working with
Johnson returned to Australia twice during the following three years to hold workshops in Sydney.
In 1975 she worked with
Over the years, Johnson developed relationships with Yolngu dancers from Yirrkala and Lardil people from Mornington Island (Kunhanha).[3]
In 1988, Johnson left,[2] Raymond D. Blanco became the new head of the organisation, and AISDS was renamed National Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Association (NAISDA).[20]
In 1989, she co-founded, along with Rob Bryant and South-African-born
Later work and research
In the U.S., Johnson worked at Black Dance conferences in Denver and Philadelphia, and lectured on contemporary Australian Indigenous dance.[5]
In 1994 she returned to Australia to work full-time with the Department of Human Services and Health,[b] developing arts workshops for isolated Indigenous communities.[5]
As of May 2021[update], she was conducting a postgraduate degree by research at the
Recognition and awards
- 1999: Induction into the Hall of Fame, Australian Dance Awards[28][2]
- 2003: Centenary Medal, "For service to Australian society through dance and the Indigenous community"[28][2]
Impact and legacy
Many academic and other works cite the influence of Johnson on Indigenous Australian dance[29][30] as well as the definition of black dance.[14]
Works
With the Eleo Pomare company, Johnson danced in the following works, among others:[3]
- The Angels Are Watching Over Me
- Construction in Green
- From the Soul
- Gin, Woman, Distress, as Bessie Smith
- Jailhouse Blues, as Angela Davis
Footnotes
- ^ According to the National Library of Australia catalogue, "Stone was born in South Africa and grew up in Cape Town, moving to Australia as a teenager in 1969. Stone participated in the six-week Black Theatre workshop established by Carole Johnson in Redfern, Sydney in 1975."[21]
- ^ Superseding department name of Department for Community Services.
References
- ^ a b c Robinson, Raymond Stanley (2000). Dreaming tracks: History of the Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Scheme, 1972-1979: Its place in the continuum. ResearchDirect (MA (Hons)). Western Sydney University. pp. 26–.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Carole Johnson Aboriginal Dance portfolios". New York Public Library Archives. Compiled by Valerie Wingfield, 2013. 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: others (link) - ^ Ausdance Victoria. 17 September 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
- ^ "Marion Cuyjet & Betty Nichols' Orbit: Antony Tudor". MOBBallet. 25 August 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Johnson, Carole (1940-)". Trove.
- ^ S2CID 191484246.
- ^ a b "Keepers of the legacy: Eleo Pomare's map of artistic social justice and protest". The University of Newcastle, Australia. 31 May 2021. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
- ^ a b c "Eleo Pomare: Biography". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
Eleo Pomare was interviewed by The HistoryMakers on April 18, 2007.
Includes link to extensive interview notes summarising the videoed interview. - ^ "Association of Black Choreographers, Inc. : New York (US)". OpenCorporates. 16 January 1968. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
- ^ "Rod Audrian Rodgers". Thirteen. Great Performances: Free To Dance - Biographies. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
- ^ a b c DeFrantz, Thomas (1998). "To make black bodies strange: Social critique in concert dance of the Black Arts Movement" (PDF). Theatrical Interventions. p. 84-93. Archived from the original (PDF) on 30 June 2022. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
- ^ .
V. 1, issues 1-23, inc. (June 1970-June 1973)
- ^ a b "Great Performances: Free To Dance - Dance Timeline (1970-1976)". Thirteen - New York Public Media. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
- ^ ISBN 978-0-19-530171-7. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
- ^ Journal of Pan African Studies. 4 (6): 12,15.
- ^ a b "Bernadine Jennings papers 1969-2005". New York Public Library Archives. 22 February 1999. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
- ^ "Arthur Mitchell: Harlem's Ballet Trailblazer". Columbia University Libraries Online Exhibitions. 6 May 1971. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
- ^ The Dictionary of Sydney. Retrieved 29 August 2022. Text may have been copied from this source, which is available under a Attribution 2.0 Australia (CC BY 2.0 AU)licence.
- ^ Port, Rheannan (December 2020). Aboriginal Contemporary Dance Practice: Embodying Our Ways of Being, Knowing and Doing through Dance Storying (Master of Fine Arts). University of Melbourne. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
- ^ Libraries Australia. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
- ^ a b Harris, Jodie; National Library of Australia (2012), Portraits of Cheryl Stone during an oral history interview at the National Library of Australia, 20 June 2012 (picture) (Photo + catalogue notes), NLA
- hdl:1959.4/53187. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
- JSTOR j.ctt24hdgg.15. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
- NSW Government. Retrieved 27 August 2022.
- ^ Tan, Teresa (13 December 2019). "Bangarra Dance Theatre marks 30 years with digital archive and exhibition". ABC News. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
- ISSN 0810-4123 – via ResearchGate.
- ^ "People". The University of Newcastle, Australia: Purai Global Indigenous History Centre. 16 March 2020. Retrieved 1 September 2022.
- ^ a b "Carole Y. Johnson". Bangarra Knowledge Ground. 27 October 2021. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
- ISBN 978-1-000-36575-7. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
- ISBN 978-1-137-51235-2. Retrieved 2 September 2022.
Further reading
- "Johnson, Carole (1940-)". Trove.
- Port, Rheannan (December 2020). Aboriginal Contemporary Dance Practice: Embodying Our Ways of Being, Knowing and Doing through Dance Storying (Master of Fine Arts). University of Melbourne.
External links
- Carole Johnson interviewed by Lee Christofis (Audio (5:50:34)), 7 February 2011 Listen. An oral history interview recorded 7-8 February 2011 at the National Library of Australia, Canberra.
- Carole Johnson: Dance: A Legend's Journey on YouTube(57:36), interview with Tracie O'Keefe