Lome Fuller (1862-1928) was born in Chicago and became famous for her serpentine dance which she accidentally invented during the rehearsal of a play called “Quack MD” in 1889. She began her career on stage as a child actress getting her education as an actress. Although the play “Quack MD” failed, Fuller’s dancing was so successful that she abandoned the career of an actress and performed as a skirt dancer in her twenties. In 1892 she moved to Paris to try her luck there. She performed at the Folies Bergeres, a place known for its circus-style acts, and became a celebrity there. She visited the United States occasionally, but never stayed for a long period of time.
Fuller recalls that she invented her serpentine dance during her rehearsal for the part in the play (Fuller 43). She tried to create a hypnotic effect for her character in front of the mirror. Thus, she wore a long silk skirt and began to wave her arms holding the ends of it. The cloth caught the light of the sun coming through the window and, thus, a special effect was created on which Fuller based her famous serpentine dance. Fuller mainly used the skirt dance as a basis for her performance. Still, she was a pioneer of the modern dance and did not have any specific role models.
Although she had only several dance lessons in her life, she could mysteriously operate with fabric, shaping it into different figures and sculptures, and this skill made her famous. She never injured herself in dance because of its simplicity. Still, the light effects she created for her performances and the skills in playing with fabric made her popular. She learned to operate with lamps to achieve the desired effect while she swirled her skirt on stage. Fuller was one of the first performers who used electric stage lighting which is common nowadays.
Although she never reached the desired popularity in the United States, she had many followers. Even when Fuller came to Paris, she met there a young woman who copied her style, and she had to prove herself as the original creator of the serpentine dance. It was the reason why she had to perform the first two nights under the different name there. Still, her dance images were astonishing and created a sensation in Paris. In her dance, she used optical illusions and changes of color created by proper lighting. During her dancing, her body almost disappeared in the array of light and change of colors. Some reviews admitted that her success was in power to perform thrilling metamorphosis and merge with the hint of supernatural.
It was admitted that Fuller did not look like a star or a glamour girl. She did not have any training and had no natural grace. Still, the metamorphoses of her dance appeared to be a perfect synesthesia (Brandstetter 65). It is striking how she performed on stage never letting anything of her real personality creep into her images. In general, it was admitted by many people that she was fortunate enough to be at the right time in the right place. She continued to experiment with lighting and created many new dances during her career in Paris.
Fuller is significant as a stagecraft innovator inventing stage lighting and different light effects, including the first use of chemical mixes of gels and slides, as well as luminescent salts. She was well known in the scientific community of France. She is also considered to be the first expatriate American dancer.
Works Cited
Brandstetter, G. Poetics of Dance: Body, Image, and Space in the Historical Avant-Gardes. Oxford University Press, 2015.
Fuller, L. Fifteen Years of a Dancer’s Life: With Some Account of Her Distinguished Friends. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2015.