Donald McKayle
"To me passion is so essential...it hurts any kind of dance when there's no artistry. There are just feats." Born in July 6th 1930 in New York City, Donald McKayle first gained an intense interest and admiration in dance more than half a century ago after a friend brought him to see Pearl Primus, a pioneer in African-American dance. A first-generation American and the son of Jamaican parents, McKayle grew up in Harlem. The McKayle family were part of the New York West Indian community which offered social interaction and cultural awareness to a young boy. McKayle first danced in public at a West Indian social activity. In 1947 Donald McKayle graduated from De Witt Clinton High School. While in high school, he showed a passion for both folk music and American and African-American history. McKayle belonged to a high school chapter of the Frederick Douglass Society and a youth group called Club L'Ouverture which held folk dances and "sings," and on weekends he went to hootenannies and danced Latin at the Grand Plaza. His choreography later drew from these early experiences and interests. McKayle received a scholarship to the New Dance Group. From 1947 to 1949 he attended City College of New Y
" Though known for his modern dance works, he has also done works related to theatrical jazz dance. McKayle has earned five Tony nominations for his work on Broadway. As Donald McKayle gained a solid reputation in the concert dance world as a choreographer, influential people in other theatrical realms took notice. The production was a success and McKayle earned a Tony nomination for his choreography, thus beginning another aspect of his career. He later directed and choreographed a musical version of the hit play Raisin in the Sun, entitled simply Raisin. He won the NAACP Image Award for writing and an Outer Critics Circle Award for choreography in 1981. Sophisticated Ladies in 1981 was McKayle's last endeavor on Broadway. The Dancer Prepares: Modern Dance for Beginners. The show was originally titled "Duke," but was later given the "sexier" title Sophisticated Ladies before the show opened. McKayle is best "known for his use of dramatic tension and narrative to portray the black experience in his dances (Penrod, 59).
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Acceptance Essays
