The third is a devoted scholar of dance education and of H’Doubler’s history and impact on the field. Their text includes contributions from a variety of people whose careers were shaped by H’Doubler personally, philosophically, and pedagogically, including both previously known data, and personal and critical perspectives that provide a scope heretofore not collected in a single volume. This book is not simply a memory of H’Doubler and her work, but addresses the breadth and depth of her career; the person behind the historic events, the tireless advocacy and the philosophical writings.
As stated, this volume seeks to both record and analyze H’Doubler’s legacy, to rekindle interest in individuals and the field by broadening the discussion to include both historical and critical analyses. Because H’Doubler arrived at mythic status so shortly after her death, there has been some reticence by those close to her to offer critical analyses of her work, out of respect and reverence for her personal and professional contributions to the field. In these writings, however, the window opens wider on H’Doubler the person and the importance of her legacy.
We see here the struggle and discovery of the seminal figure that has largely been left out of the historic record, including clearer and more nuanced relationships with other luminaries of her time such as Blanche Trilling, Gertrude Colby, Bird Larson, John Dewey, Louis Chalif, Martha Hill, Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, Hanya Holm, and Rudolf Laban. We also get a clear view of the full arc of H’Doubler’s career through recollections by colleagues and students such as Hermine Davidson, Elizabeth Hayes, Betty Toman, Joan Woodbury, F. Mary Fee, and Marian Van Tuyl. What is created is a multi-layered and multidimensional perspective-beyond the myth, demonstrating critical thinking on the range of topics that H’Doubler ushered into the field of dance in general and dance education in particular.
Interspersed are writings by H’Doubler herself, weaving an informative web of her thoughts, with commentary and critical analysis of them, offering a clear connection between the thought and the influence.