Dancing in Utopia - Dartington Hall and Its Dancers (Paperback)

Bought in 1925 by Dorothy and Leonard Elmhirst, the Devon estate of Dartington Hall earned itself a place in the annals of utopian schemes through the Elmhirsts' conviction that arts, education and work could be integrated into an abundant life for the participation of all. A strand that runs throughout Dartington's history is the consistent belief in dance as an art form worthy of its place alongside the other arts so that this rural paradise became a point of intersection for a complex interweaving of dancers and dance styles, American, European and South Asian.For the first time, Larraine Nicholas traces Dartington's dance history in depth, revealing its fascinating array of dancing characters and setting it within British dance history during a major part of the twentieth century. It will become an essential text, not only for dance scholars and students but also for a wider readership intrigued by the complex phenomenon of Dartington itself.