Sybil Shearer

Infobox Writer
name = Sybil Shearer
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imagesize =
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birthdate = 1912
birthplace = Toronto Canada
nationality = Canadian
deathdate = 2005
deathplace = Evanston Illinois USA
occupation = Modern Dancer, writer, choreographer
genre =
movement = Modern Dance
spouse =
children =
influences = Martha Graham, Agnes de Mille, Virginia Woolf, Hanya Holm, Doris Humphrey
influenced =

Sybil Shearer, born in Toronto in 1912, was hailed as a "maverick" or "mystic" of modern dance. She studied at Skidmore College, graduating in 1934, and then pursued modern dance at Bennington College's summer workshops in Vermont, with Doris Humphrey, Martha Graham and Hanya Holm.

Biography

Shearer's first solo concert in New York, in 1941, at Carnegie Hall, caused a sensation. And yet, shortly after her New York triumph, she walked away from the fame that was opening for her, settling instead in the American Midwest in the mid-1940s. There, she continued to perform in the Chicago area, and inspired numerous students of dance. She made her last appearance, at age 93, at the Art Institute of Chicago, in one of her solos called "Flame". She died in Evanston, Illinois in 2005.

Although Shearer had mastered virtuoso technique, she preferred to dance in the uninhibited style she called "liquid acting." With her remarkable stage presence and extraordinary agility, free of make-up with flowing auburn hair hanging loose, Shearer would sometimes move in mighty waves as if chosen by the wind, or stand stock-still in pantomimes of nature or fantasy.

Dance historian Margaret Lloyd, in "The Borzoi Book of Modern Dance", described Sybil Shearer as "a perfectionist who likes to believe that perfection is humanly attainable." Her dances were often spiritually-based, reflecting her closeness to nature and to the uncluttered spaces of the American Midwest. She made extensive tours of the United States, sometimes re-appearing in New York where her iconoclastic departures from the conventions of modern dance were greeted with mixed reactions.

She was among the first modern performers to tackle spiritual and social justice issues, such as the plight of factory workers, a theme of one of her pieces. She drew ideas and inspiration from a variety of artistic influences, including lengthy correspondence with Agnes de Mille and Virginia Woolf.

Many of Sybil Shearer's productions were in collaboration with Helen Morrison, a photographer and filmmaker who documented Shearer's career. The Morrison-Shearer Foundation maintains the Shearer and Morrison archives. The first volume of Sybil Shearer's three-part autobiography, "Without Wings the Way Is Steep" (a title taken from one of her dances), was released in 2008.

Persondata
NAME = Shearer, Sybil
ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
SHORT DESCRIPTION = Modern dancer
DATE OF BIRTH = 1912
PLACE OF BIRTH = Toronto, Ontario, Canada
DATE OF DEATH = 2005
PLACE OF DEATH = Evanston, Illinois, United States

References

* Mauro, Lucia. "Swan Song". Chicago Magazine, March 2006.
* Morrison Shearer Foundation website, http://www.morrisonshearer.org
* Encyclopedia of Chicago, http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/833.html
* "Sybil Shearer, Modern Dance Maverick", The Independent (obituary), 22 December 2005.