Call Number:

1992.017

Repository:

African American Museum in Philadelphia

Extent:

2.0 linear feet

Language:

English

Date:

circa 1970-1991

Creator:

Brown, Joan Myers

Abstract:

The Philadelphia Dance Company, more commonly known as Philadanco, was founded in 1970 by Joan Myers Brown. It was originally intended to provide quality dance instruction to minority dancers in Philadelphia. At first the Company performed at local community events and schools in the area, but later it built a strong international reputation for itself. The Joan Myers Brown Philadanco papers, circa 1970-1991, include business correspondence received by Brown, advertisements and season booklets, newspaper clippings, reviews, and photographs.

The Philadelphia Dance Company, more commonly known as Philadanco, was founded in 1970 by Joan Myers Brown. It was originally intended to provide quality dance instruction to minority dancers in Philadelphia. At first the Company performed at local community events and schools in the area. Today, the Company has built a strong international reputation for itself, performing throughout the United States, Canada and the Caribbean. It offers workshops, master classes and a children's summer program. Former Philadanco dancers such as Denise Chase, Deborah Manning, David St. Charles, Kevin Brown and Gary Deloatch have gone on to perform with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre. Other dancers have performed with such companies as the Dance Theatre of Harlem and such Broadway shows as The Wiz and Timbuktu. In 1982, Philadanco moved to its own building at 9 North Preston Street. During the 1980s, Philadanco published its own newsletter, Philadanco News.

Ms. Brown is the Artistic/Executive Director and Founder of the Philadelphia Dance Company (Philadanco). In 1960, she founded the Philadelphia School of Dance and Arts. Joan Myers Brown was born in Philadelphia and attended West Philadelphia High School. Ms. Brown is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania's arts management program. Her teachers included Katherine Dunham, William Amour, Ziggy Johnson, Marie Bryant, Stanley Brown, Thomas Madras and Lois Smith. In 1960 she founded the Philadelphia School of Dance and Arts and in 1970 she founded Philadelphia Dance Company (Philadanco), for which she serves as Artistic/Executive Director.

In a 1981 interview with the Philadelphia Inquirer, Ms. Brown stated that her desire to found a Black ballet company grew out of her experiences as a young dancer. "When you're a teenager, that's when you create your dreams. And that's what I wanted to do. But I walked up and down Chestnut Street trying to enroll in a ballet school, and was told over and over, I'm sorry, we can't take you because you're black."

Joan wounded up studying with Syvilla Fort and Karel Shook at the Katherine Dunham School in New York and with Anthony Tudor, who for a while left New York to teach in Philadelphia. He put Joan in a production of Les Sylphides, which caused quite a stir. But Tudor went back to New York and Joan found that she had to turn elsewhere to continue dancing. She toured as a jazz dancer with Cab Calloway, Sammy Davis, Jr. and Pearl Bailey, then for six years was the lead dancer and choreographer with Smart Affairs, Larry Steele's Atlantic City revue. That's when she decided to return to Philadelphia and start her own school.

Ms. Brown has received many awards, including the United Negro College Fund Award, 1990; the Stella Moore Award, 1990; the National Endowment for the Arts Choreographic Fellowship, 1979; the Essence Woman Award, Hazlett Award, the Cotillion Society Ballet Award; Governor's Recognition Citation; B.U.A. Award and recognition from the West Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce and the National Council of Negro Women. She has served on many boards and panels affiliated with the arts including the Philadelphia Dance Alliance, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance, and the Pennsylvania State Arts Council. In 1985 the City of Philadelphia honored Ms. Brown with a resolution.

Under Ms. Brown's leadership, Philadanco has received funding from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the William Penn Foundation and the National Choreographers Plan.

The Philadanco Collection has documentation of the dance company from its inception in 1970 up to 1991. There is also material relating to the career of the founder of the company, Joan Myers Brown. The correspondence is basically incoming and concerns business matters with the exception of a letter to Ms. Brown from her niece. The correspondence has an uneven span from 1951 to 1991. The clippings and photos bear testimony to Ms. Brown's remarkable career.

The advertisements and season booklets carry much valuable biographical information about the Company's dancers. This material dates mainly from the 1980s. The newspaper clippings or reviews, however, span over 20 years including the foundation of the Company. During the 1980s, Philadanco began publishing its own newsletter. The Company traveled to Bermuda in 1986 and 1992, and there are programs and reviews of that booking. Mainly, reviews and programs are for performances in the Philadelphia and Delaware Valley area. There are a number of undated clippings as well as miscellaneous publications which carried advertisements or stories about Philadanco. There is an obituary of Danny Sloan, founder of the Danny Sloan Dance Company.

Finally, there is an album of photographs of the Philadanco Company. Some photos are identified by name of dancers, choreographer and year, but most are not. Some were apparently publicity photos while others appear to be performance pictures. All photographs are in black and white.