Though she is widely considered one of the "four pioneers" of American modern dance, German-American Hanya Holm (1893-1992) occupies a shadowy presence in dance history literature. She has often been described as someone who fell in love with America, purged her approach of Germanic elements, and emerged with a more universal one. Her "Americanization" has served as evidence of the Americanness of modern dance, thus eclipsing the German influence on modern dance. This dissertation challenges that narrative by casting new light on Holm's worldview and initial intentions in the New World, and by articulating the specifics of the first five years of her American career. In contrast to previous histories, I propose that Holm did not come to the U.S. to forge an independent career as a choreographer; rather, she came as a missionary for Mary Wigman and her Tanz-Gemeinschaft (dance cultural community). To Wigman and Holm, dance was not only an art form; it was a way of life, a revolt against bourgeois sterility and modern alienation, and a utopian communal vision, even a religion. Artistic expression was only one aspect of modern dance's larger purpose. The transformation of social life was equally important, and Holm was a fervent believer in the need for a widespread amateur dance culture. This study uses a historical methodology and accesses traces of the past such as lectures, school reports, promotional material, newspaper articles, personal notebooks, correspondence, photographs, and other material--much of it discussed here for the first time. These sources provide evidence for new descriptions and interpretations of Holm's migration from Germany to the U.S. and from German dance to American dance. I examine cultural contexts that informed Holm's beliefs, such as early twentieth century German life reform and body culture; provide a sustained analysis of the curriculum of the New York Wigman School of the Dance; and consider how the politicization of dance in the 1930s--in both Germany and the U.S.--affected Holm and her work. / Dance

Dès la fin du XIXe siècle, la Lebensreform (« réforme de vie ») recouvre trois aspects qui sont la modernité (ère industrielle), la crise des valeurs et l'émergence de nouvelles pratiques artistiques, culturelles et sociales dans les pays de l'espace germanophone. La Lebensreform est une réponse aux ruptures de la modernité ; de nouvelles formes de vie collectives voient le jour. Les espaces d'accueil fondent leur propre mode de vie autour du programme d'une réconciliation avec la nature, en adoptant plusieurs réformes de la vie. Parallèlement, l'Inde artistique et spirituelle évolue et influence l'art moderne occidental, d'où l'apparition de passerelles transculturelles. Les artistes de la Lebensreform adoptent de nouveaux modes d'expression corporelle qui s'inspirent de l'art indien (mudrâs, rythme, etc.). Il s'agit dans notre thèse d'aborder l' « esthétique du performatif » ; l’art de la danse moderne devient un mode de communication à part entière, c'est-à-dire un langage non verbal, traité sous l'angle du concept de performatif. L'art moderne, qui se développe dans l'espace germanophone, conduit à une nouvelle quête, celle d'une recherche de sa propre identité à travers l'exploration du mouvement. / From the end of the 19th century, the Lebensreform (Life reform) covers three aspects which are modernity (industrial era), crisis in values, and the emergence of new artistic, cultural and social practices in German-speaking countries. The Lebensreform is a response to the break with modernity; new collective lifestyles are born. Hosting places build their own lifestyle around a program of renewals and reconciliation with nature, adopting several reforms of life. At the same time, artistic and spriritual India evolved and influenced modern Western art from whence grew cross-cultural gateways and bridges. Artists from the Lebensreform adopted new corporal forms of expression inspired by Indian art (mudrâs, rythm, etc.). This thesis concerns itself with the « esthetic performative » with the knowledge that the art of modern dancing, viewed from the angle of the performative concept, may be said to have emerged as a global mode of communication, and a non verbal language. Modern art as developed in German-speaking community has also led to a new quest, a search for our own identity through an exploratory movement.

Die Studie analyisiert und beschreibt die wissenschaftlichen, lebensreformerischen und gastronomischen Ernährungsdiksurse zur Zeit des Deutschen Kaisereichs mit dem Ziel ein differenziertes Bild kulinarischer Entwicklungen unter den besonderen Bedingungen der entstehenden Konsumgesellschaft herauszuarbeiten.