Lathrop, Welland

Dancer.

Welland Lathrop (1905-1981) was a dancer, teacher, painter, and choreographer and a leader of the west coast modern and avant-garde dance movement. Born in upstate New York, he initially trained in costume and scenic design at the Eastman Theater in Rochester, New York. In 1928 he moved to San Francisco to continue his design education under Rudolph Schaeffer. While in San Francisco, he began studying dance with Ann Mundstock of the Laban School. Later training included the Cornish School in Seattle, Washington (1930-1934) and the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theater (1938-1941) where he was an assistant in dance composition to Louis Horst. During this time Lathrop performed in several Broadway shows as well as with the Martha Graham Dance Company.

In 1946 he established the Welland Lathrop School and Dance Company, where he was joined shortly by dancer Ann Halprin. The two collaborated as the Halprin-Lathrop Studio Theater from 1948 to 1955. They presented both solo and duo pieces as well as group works they choreographed for their studio company. After their professional separation in 1956, Lathrop continued his school and dance company under his own name for another 10 years. During this time he taught dance at San Francisco State College and Dominican College.

Lapthrop referred to his work as "contemporary theatre-dance." His aim was to fully integrate movement, sound, and visual design within his pieces. He believed that any artist must consider all the components of a performance, and took pride in being able to design the visual display of many of his compositions.

Lathrop choreographed dozens of modern dance works, including Do Not Go Gentle Into That Goodnight, Comment on Space and Freedom, Partita, and Pieces of Nothing .

In 1960, he married Nina Cummings, a prominent psychotherapist in the Bay Area. In the late 1960s, Lathrop retired and closed his school, but continued to advise and choreograph for other San Francisco area groups, including the Shela Xoregos Performing Company. In 1977 he choreographed his last work with this group, Endangered Species . In that year he also traveled to Jerusalem to give master classes at the Rubin Academy.

Welland Lathrop died in San Francisco in 1981.