Jeanette Rutherston (1902–1988), later Jeanette Powell, was a British dancer and television critic. She was a writer and assistant editor on the Dancing Times magazine in the 1930s.
Jeanette Rutherston | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1902 Bradford, Yorkshire |
| Nationality | British |
| Other names | Jeanette Powell (after marriage) |
| Occupation(s) | Dancer, writer, editor television critic |
| Relatives | William Rothenstein (uncle) Albert Rutherston (uncle) |
Early life
editJeanette Bertha Rothenstein was born on 10 March 1902 in Bradford, Yorkshire, the daughter of textile manufacturer, art collector and philanthropist Charles Lambert Rothenstein,[1][2][3] who changed his German surname in 1916 to make clear his allegiance to the British during World War I.[4] The Rothensteins were Jewish.[5][6] Her uncles were artist William Rothenstein and stage designer Albert Rutherston.[7] Artist Michael Rothenstein and art historian John Rothenstein were her first cousins.[8][9]
Jeanette Rothenstein studied ballet as a girl, and after completing studies at Bedford Physical Training College, she pursued further dance training in Vienna, with Gertrud Bodenwieser.[7]
Career
editRutherston toured with the Margaret Morris Dancers as a young woman, and danced on the London stage with fellow Bodenwieser student Trudl Dubsky. Dubsky and Rutherston opened a dance school together in London's Great Ormond Street in 1932; Bodenwieser taught at the school as a guest instructor in 1934. The school closed when Dubsky had health issues, married, and moved away from England.[10]
Rutherston was writer and assistant to editor Philip J. S. Richardson, at the Dancing Times magazine, by 1934.[11] She was a very early television critic, assigned to review ballet broadcasts for the magazine's "Television Notes" column in the 1930s. Because she did not initially have a television set at home, she went to use a set at the Alexandra Palace, and was later allowed to watch at Broadcasting House. She suggested that ballets be made especially for the television format, so different from a theatre setting; but she also noted when well-planned camera work, costumes, and set design improved the viewer's experience of the performance.[7]
Personal life
editJeanette Rutherston married Christopher Cecil Powell. She died on 1 August 1988.
References
edit- ^ "Splendid Gift to Manchester". The Guardian. 1925-09-18. p. 9. Retrieved 2020-04-15 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Death of Charles Rutherston". The Guardian. 1927-12-30. p. 4. Retrieved 2020-04-15 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "In Manchester". The Guardian. 1938-02-04. p. 13. Retrieved 2020-04-15 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Morris, Edward (2001). Public Art Collections in North-west England: A History and Guide. Liverpool University Press. pp. 120–121. ISBN 978-0-85323-527-9.
- ^ Landman, Isaac; Cohen, Simon (1943). The Universal Jewish Encyclopedia ...: An Authoritative and Popular Presentation of Jews and Judaism Since the Earliest Times. Universal Jewish Encyclopedia, Incorporated. pp. 234–235.
- ^ Rubinstein, W.; Jolles, Michael A. (2011-01-27). The Palgrave Dictionary of Anglo-Jewish History. Springer. ISBN 978-0-230-30466-6.
- ^ a b c Davis, Janet Rowson (1982). "Ballet on British Television, 1933-1939". Dance Chronicle. 5 (3): 245–304. doi:10.1080/01472528108568840. ISSN 0147-2526. JSTOR 1567403.
- ^ "Michael Rothenstein, Artist, Is Dead at 85". The New York Times. Associated Press. 1993-07-14. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-04-15.
- ^ "'Dancing in the Street', Spencer Gore, c.1904". Tate. Retrieved 2020-04-15.
- ^ Vernon-Warren, Bettina; Warren, Charles (2013-12-19). Gertrud Bodenwieser and Vienna's Contribution to Ausdruckstanz. Routledge. pp. 91–92. ISBN 978-1-134-42366-8.
- ^ Carter, Alexandra; Nicholas, Larraine; Morris, Geraldine (2013-10-18). Rethinking Dance History: A Reader. Routledge. p. 119. ISBN 978-1-136-48500-8.
External links
edit- A chalk portrait of Jeanette Rutherston as a young woman, by Eric Kennington; at ArtNet.
- The Manchester Art Gallery owns a portrait bust of Jeanette Powell as a young woman, made by sculptor Frank Dobson.
