Imitation Artist

Sunny Stalter-Pace is the Hargis Associate Professor of American Literature at Auburn University. She is the author of Underground Movements: Modern Culture on the New York Subway.

Early-twentieth century theatrical innovator Gertrude Hoffmann gets some long-overdue recognition in Sunny Stalter-Pace's delightful new biography. Writing with the verve that characterized Hoffmann's dynamic performance style, Stalter-Pace takes readers on a journey through Hoffmann's personal and professional history as a Broadway choreographer, dancer, director, producer, and imitation artist. We meet a woman who wasn't afraid to flout convention, challenge taboos, and assert her rights as an artist." - Marlis Schweitzer, author of When Broadway Was the Runway: Theater, Fashion, and American Culture"Gertrude Hoffmann's entire career is of major importance to American dance and popular theater. Stalter-Pace has done admirable research on all aspects of Hoffmann's life and career, making it cohesive by emphasizing Hoffmann's understanding of how to link her performances to their audiences." - Barbara Cohen-Stratyner, author of Ned Wayburn and the Dance Routine"Drawing on extensive archival research and writing in lively and economical prose, Stalter-Pace reveals Gertrude Hoffman to have been a major figure in nearly every popular performance tradition of the early twentieth century, from blackface minstrelsy and Orientalist appropriation to early modern dance and the Americanization of ballet to the emergence of the white chorus line. The book will appeal to anyone interested in U.S. performance history, celebrity culture, racialized femininity, and theories of imitation." - Anthea Kraut, author of Choreographing Copyright: Race, Gender, and Intellectual Property Rights in American Dance

• Table of FiguresAcknowledgmentsIntroductionPart I: Learning How to Copy, 1883-1906Chapter 1: A Ballet Girl in San FranciscoChapter 2: Teaming Up with Max HoffmannChapter 3: A Woman Stage ManagerPart II: Solo Imitations, 1906-1909Chapter 4: Imitative CaricaturesChapter 5: Women's Rivalry and CopyrightChapter 6: A Vision of SalomePart III: Producing Revues, 1910-1914Chapter 7: Gertrude Hoffmann's ReviewChapter 8: Pirating the Ballets RussesChapter 9: Mainstream ModernismChapter 10: All-American ArtistPart IV: New Directions, 1914-1923Chapter 11: Grecian Dance, Pantomime, and Silent FilmChapter 12: Snake Acts and Other Wartime SpectaclesChapter 13: Just DriftingChapter 14: From Advanced Vaudeville to CabaretPart V: Offstage, 1923-1966Chapter 15: The Gertrude Hoffmann Girls, At Home and AbroadChapter 16: Modern Dance and Floor ShowsChapter 17: RememberingConclusionBiography NotesIndex