The male dance diva who would eventually become the ballet master for the Katherine Dunham Company was a self-described Queen! Grand & graceful, they say he was also warm and kind with a sense of humor. Although delicate and small-boned, Lenwood Morris maintained a fierce dignity in a time when openly gay men consistently faced open ridicule. A former dental student, he was thoroughly professional with a flawless memory for detail. With so many characteristics that duly impressed the keen sensibilities of the demanding Miss D, Morris quickly established himself within the company.
A member of the troupe since the early 1940's, Morris became one of the principal leads and character actors in many of Dunham's signature productions. He was featured prominently in the stage production of Cabin in the Sky and in the film production of Stormy Weather. With great intensity, Morris danced the role of Baron Samedi, one of the loa of Haitian Voodoo with a particular sexual relish.
Katherine Dunham and her dancers turned the heads of many from the least to the greatest, and Miss D wasn't the only one rumored to have received expensive gifts from millionaire playboys. On at least one occasion, Lenwood Morris captured the fancy (and in turn the family jewels) of the son of a certain German emperor. At least that's the rumor!
Talented and intelligent, Lenwood Morris found his calling in dance with a career that lasted well into his senior years until the loss of a leg.
Miss Dunham's company often created its own stars that extended way beyond the group with the likes of Morris, Vanoye Aikens, Archie Savage and especially Eartha Kitt. Claude Marchant (below) should be added to that list!
Some sources say he was born in the Caribbean but others say he was American born. Marchant was also a star dancer and choreographer with Dunham in the 1940's. In the 1950's, Jet magazine tried to imply that he was one of heiress Doris Duke's many boy toys.
But like so many other blacks at that time, Claude Marchant found himself in Europe just in order to continue his career. Marchant eventually opened a popular studio in Sweden where he died in 2004. He is buried in a double plot with one Dennis J. Wiley who died in 1994 (?).
All photographs shown here were taken by Carl Van Vechten in the 1940's.
Magnificent cover of these two artists...
Posted by: Brandon | November 04, 2011 at 09:56 PM
Googling around, as your posts so often make me do, Corey, I found this interesting tidbit (from Wikipedia):
“Tudor City is an apartment complex located on the East Side of Manhattan in New York City. It is the first residential skyscraper complex in the world...In May 1948, Claude Marchant, a ‘well known dancer and teacher in the Katherine Dunham School of Dance,’ won a $1,000 judgement against the owners of Tudor City. Marchant, an African American, had been refused entry into the passenger elevator of the building at 25 Prospect Avenue, on the basis of race.”
Posted by: Jim | November 06, 2011 at 01:21 AM