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Steamboat Magazine

100 Years of Famous Faces at Perry-Mansfield

06/09/2013 05:10PM ● By Christina Freeman

Agnes De Mille, the iconic American choreographer, taught dance at Perry-Mansfield in the 1930s. Photos courtesy History Colorado - Perry-Mansfield Dance Camp Collection.

Steamboat Springs, CO - Since frontier days a century ago, when teenage cowboys hid behind trees to catch glimpses of dancers leaping through the aspen groves at Perry-Mansfield dance camp, the school has nurtured young talent. Groundbreaking dancers, choreographers and actors honed their art in Strawberry Park, long before they became famous.


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LEORA DANA AND JuLIE HARRIS, two future Tony Award winners, perform in “Letters To Lucerne” at Perry-Mansfield.







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JOAN VAN ARK, the “Dallas” star, attended Perry-Mansfield as a young aspiring actor in the late 1950s. She likely learned of Perry- Mansfield after interviewing Julie Harris as a student reporter. 





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ISADORA DuNCAN, the famed modern dance pioneer, performed barefoot during her 1915-1918 tour, when she is thought to have visited Perry-Mansfield. 








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“DANCE OF THE WATER NYMPHS” – Inspired by their natural surroundings, 1920s Perry-Mansfield dancers were regularly photographed depicting this famous dance from “Lorely.”






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MARTHA GRAHAM – Often referred to as the “mother of modern dance,” Portia Mansfield was a champion of Graham’s technique, and Graham visited Perry-Mansfield during the 1930s.








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FREE FLOWING SCARVES – Portia Mansfield often incorporated these elegant props in her choreography. 







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DUSTIN HOFFMAN was a young Perry-Mansfield student in the 1950s. The Academy Award-winning actor takes a dance class from Helen Tamiris, who choreographed her most famous piece, “Walt Whitman Suite,” after her summer at the camp. Tamiris was married to Daniel Nagrin, another influential dancer/choreographer who taught at Perry-Mansfield and danced all over the world.