Margaret H’Doubler: The Legacy of America's Dance Education Pion ...

Part I: Introduction

I never studied with Margaret H’Doubler, nor did I have any opportunity to interact with her. Yet, over the years I have become a great admirer of her legacy and the substance or her life’s work. As a college student majoring in dance in the 1970s I vaguely knew of “H’Doubler” and something about starting the first dance major. Pronouncing her name seemed to challenge everyone who didn’t know of her personally: “Huh-Doobler,” “Hah-Dubler,” the permutations were many and confusing. Occasional mentions of H’Doubler as (the) “pioneer for dance in higher education” appeared in texts and articles I read at that time. The term “pioneer” jumped out at me, it was the same term used to describe the work of Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey and a few select others in the pantheon of American modern dance. But very little was ever said about this pioneer, who she was and why she did what she did. On a practical note, I tried to read her work once, but soon put it down, it seemed so densely argued. The vital substance of H’Doubler’s work and the legacy of