Bella Lewitzky

Bella Lewitzky, a modern dancer and choreographer was originally a student of ballet, Lewitzky launched a modern dance career in 1934, when she studied under LesterHorton, and later became a lead dancer in the Horton Dance Group. In 1966, she formed the Lewitzky Dance Company. Under her artistic guidance, the company became one of the leading international modern dance companies, performing to critical acclaim in 43 states across the U.S. as well as 20 countries on five continents.

"Great control of every motion and placement," she said, "is a kind of self-care. It's self-love in the best sense. I make a contract with the dancers (not literally, of course) to keep them alive and well and progressive-doing level best to see that they're not injured." One must bear in mind, she said, that "dancing is not normal, that only a strong, knowledgeable body can protect against damage."
Bella Lewitzky, from an interview w/ Donna Perlmutter, Dance Magazine, January 1997"

The originality, humanity and unconventional qualities for which Lewitzky's dances are famous often found their way into the management of her company. At a time when it was fashionable for dance companies to be based in New York -- and dangerous not to be -- she kept her company operating out of her native Los Angeles for thirty years.