Florence Fleming Noyes (1871– February 4, 1928) was an American modern dancer and dance educator. She founded schools and camps to teach dancers according to her own philosophy of movement. known as the Noyes Rhythm movement system.

Early life and education

Noyes was from

Sharon, Massachusetts Sharon is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 18,575 at the 2020 census. Sharon is part of Greater Boston, about southwest of downtown Boston, and is connected to both Boston and Providence by the Prov ...

, near

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, and studied with

Charles Wesley Emerson Charles Wesley Emerson (1837–1908) was the founder, namesake and first president of Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. Charles Emerson was also a minister with the Unitarian Church and the author of a number of books dealing with orato ...

and Lucia Gale Barber.

Career

In 1912 Noyes opened her first dance studio in

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...

, teaching her own version of rhythmic dance, which she eventually developed into the "Noyes Rhythm" movement system. "With the discovery of a sense of rhythm, pupils find the doors of artistic expression open to them and forms of beauty in color, music, sculture, dance, in the written and spoken word, are the result," she explained in a 1925 interview. Much like the students of

Isadora Duncan Angela Isadora Duncan (May 26, 1877, or May 27, 1878 – September 14, 1927) was an American-born dancer and choreographer, who was a pioneer of modern contemporary dance and performed to great acclaim throughout Europe and the United States. Bor ...

Ruth St. Denis Ruth St. Denis (born Ruth Dennis; January 20, 1879 – July 21, 1968) was an American pioneer of modern dance, introducing eastern ideas into the art and paving the way for other women in dance. She was inspired by the Delsarte advocate Gene ...

, Noyes' dancers wore Greek-inspired flowing silk gowns, and they dance barefoot or in sandals, both choices meant to enhance and communicate the dancer's freedom. Noyes danced in Paris at a 1912 conference about

Rodin François Auguste René Rodin (; ; 12 November 184017 November 1917) was a French sculptor generally considered the founder of modern sculpture. He was schooled traditionally and took a craftsman-like approach to his work. Rodin possessed a u ...

. In 1913 she dressed as Liberty at the Capitol in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

as part of a

tableau vivant A (; often shortened to ; ; ) is a static scene containing one or more actors or models. They are stationary and silent, usually in costume, carefully posed, with props and/or scenery, and may be theatrically illuminated. It thus combines ...

to bring publicity for the cause of women's suffrage. In 1921 she founded two dance camps in

Portland, Connecticut Portland ( ) is a New England town, town in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. The town is part of the Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region, Connecticut, Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region. The population was 9,38 ...

, the Shepherd's Nine for women, and the Junio. Whole families came to her camps in Connecticut as a summer escape.

Publications

*''The Psychology of the New Education'' (1923, with Wolstan Crocker Brown) *''Rhythm: The Basis of Art and Education'' (1923, with Wolstan Crocker Brown)

Personal life and legacy

Noyes died in 1928, in New York City. The Noyes School of Rhythm in New York continued offering dance classes until 2002. Similarly, the Noyes Rhythm Camp in Cobalt, Connecticut, continued long past Noyes's lifetime. The Noyes Rhythm movement system is still taught at summer programs and in classes. Among her students were actress Edith Wynne Matthison, actor Richard Bennett, dancer Grace Christie, and dancer and dance educator Valeria Gibson Ladd.

References

External links

Florence Fleming Noyes
at

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Noyes, Florence Fleming American dancers 1871 births 1928 deaths People from Sharon, Massachusetts Dance education in the United States American suffragists