History Quiz: Talley Beatty
1. Who was Talley Beatty’s first dance teacher?
2. Beatty’s choreographic genius was transforming experiences of _____ _____into brilliant physical expressions of the _____ _____.
3. True or False: Beatty rejected ballet for Afro-Caribbean and modern dance.
4. What is the name of the first dance that Beatty created for his company?
5. What part of that work has been deemed a masterpiece?
6. Name the artist who said, “If you haven’t studied at least four techniques, you’ll never get through one of Beatty’s ballets.”
7. Which company preserves the most of Beatty’s works?
8. According to New York Times senior dance critic Anna Kisselgoff, Beatty was “one of America’s _____ and most _____ choreographers.”
9. True or False: Beatty was a perfectionist taskmaster who was known for his temper.
10. Explain the signature elements found in a Beatty piece.
ANSWER KEY
1. Katherine Dunham; 2. Social injustice; human spirit; 3. False; 4. Southern Landscape; 5. “Mourner’s Bench”; 6. Judith Jamison; 7. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater; 8. Best; underrated; 9. True; 10. Observations of the harshness of life, and the absence of specific plot or characters.
Photo courtesy of the Dance Magazine Archives.
