Fort, Syvilla, 1917-1975

John Cage; joined faculty of Cornish School, September 1938; Syvilla Fort graduated from Cornish on June 12, 1938; graduate of Roosevelt High School; Fort continued at Cornish the following year, paying part of her tuition and expenses by modeling; detailed listing of all Seattle concerts in which Fort appeared with accompaniment or music by Cage

Djoliba National Ballet; first artistic director was Harry Belafonte; around 1959, Belafonte visited Miriam Makeba in Guinea, where the singer was living at the invitation of President Sékou Touré after having been banned from South Africa; Belafonte met Sékou Touré at this time and was offered the position of artistic director at the Djoliba National Ballet

Syvilla Fort; dancer and pioneer in black dance; died November 8, 1975 at Sloan-Kettering Memorial Hospital; was 58 years old; lived at 158 West 44th Street; widow of Buddy Phillips, who died in 1963; attended a tribute five days prior to death organized by Black Theater Alliance at the Majestic Theater [sic]; Alvin Ailye[sic] was one of the speakers at the event; taught at her Manhattan studio for twenty years; Teacher's College of Columbia University; dance director of the Katherine Dunham School, 1948-1955; chosen by Harry Belafonte to go to Guinea and help develop a national dance company; soloist with Dunham troupe; appeared in film, Stormy Weather (1943); born in Seattle; attended Cornish School of the Arts; John Cage composed music for piece she choreographed, Bacchanal [sic]; survived by two brothers, Jack Fort and John Dill, and a stepson, Sabur Abdul-Salaam

Name of studio: Syvilla Fort Studio of Theatre dance; located on second floor of a soon-to-be razed building at 153 W. 44th Street; establishes the years Fort was in West Africa helping to establish a National Dance Company of Guinea as 1964, 1965

Syvilla Fort (1917-1975); Roosevelt High School graduate; first African American student at the Cornish School; performance at a recital given at Seattle's Repertory Playhouse (4045 University Way NE) on April 28, 1940, the Cornish School's theater(710 East Roy); musical accompaniment by two musicans: John Cage, who introduced his "prepared piano" to the public at the performance and Frances Chatters Brook

Timeline includes dates of name changes of Dunham School

Washington, Birth Records, 1870-1935: Syvilla Fort, born July 3, 1915; father, John W L Fort; mother: Mildred Oldwin

Washington, U.S., Birth Index, 1907-1919: Syvilla Fort, born July 3, 1916; father, John W L Ford; mother, Mildred Oldwin

U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900-1999: Syvilla Forte, estimated age, 20; birth year, abt 1914; yearbook date, 1934; school, Roosevelt High School; school location, Seattle, Washington; member of the senior class

1920 United States Federal Census: Syvilla Fort; age 3; birth year: abt 1917; home in 1920: Seattle, King, Washington; street, N 53rd; household members: John L Fort, letter carrier, U.S. Postal Service; mother, Mildred Fort; Syvilla Fort; Anna Oldwin; mother-in-law

1930 United States Federal Census: Syvilla Fort; age 13; birth year: abt 1917; home in 1930: Seattle, King, Washington; 2320 North 53 Street; household members: John L Fort, John L Fort, letter carrier, U.S. Postal Service; mother, Mildred Fort; Syvilla Fort; John Fort (7)

1940 United States Federal Census: Syvilla Fort; age 23; birth year: abt 1917; home in 1940: Seattle, King, Washington; 2320 North 53 Street; household members; Robert E Dill, lamp maintainence, Seattle City Light; Mildred Dill; Syvilla Fort, teacher, private dancing; highest grade completed: college, 2nd year ; John Fort (17); Matthew Adams, lodger

U.S., Veterans' Gravesites, ca.1775-2019: Syvilla Phillips; death age, 59; birth date: July 3, 1916; death date, November 1975; Long Island National Cemetery; spouse, Julius Phillips, Cpl Us Army

New York, New York, U.S., Marriage License Indexes, 1907-2018: Syvilla Fort; marriage license date, 1957; marriage license place, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA; spouse, Julius Phillips

U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995 Manhattan, New York, City Directory, 1959: address listed for both Buddy Phillips and his mother Mrs. Jannie B. Phillips, 1786 Amsterdam Ave.

U.S., School Yearbooks, 1900-1999: Mrs Syvilla Fort; yearbook dates: 1962-1964; school: Holy Family Academy; school location: Bayonne, New Jersey, USA; Modern dance

Syvilla Fort; member of the cast in The Three-Cornered Hat, the annual dance-drama presented by the women's physical education department (University of Washington), February 27, March 2, [1935]

Syvilla Fort (1917-1975); danced with Merce Cunningham and Katherine Dunham; leader as a dance educator; grew up in Seattle; interest in dance from age 3; turned down by local dance schools due to racial discrimination; took private lessons with Fred Christensen and others; at age 13, gave free lessons to younger children in her neighborhood; performed in musical and dramatic productions in high school; mother was a housekeeper for Nellie Cornish, who allowed Syvilla to enroll free of charge at her Cornish School of the Allied Arts, Cornish’s modern dance program headed by [Martha] Graham dancer Bonnie Bird; Fort's fellow students included Mercier Cunningham and Dorothy Herrmann; Fort, Cunningham, and Hermann appeared together in pieces choreographed by Bird, 1939; Bird hired John Cage for the Cornish School as an accompanist, teacher of experimental music and choreography, and composer for dance works; for her piece Bacchanale (1940), Fort asked Cage to write something with an African "inflection"; spent four years at Cornish; Fort attended the University of Washington, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in two years; moved to Harlem to dance with Katherine Dunham around 1941; toured with Dunham's company and appeared in film "Stormy Weather," approximately 1941-1947; Dunham opened the Katherine Dunham School of Dance and Theatre on West 43rd Street in 1945 and Fort taught both Dunham technique and ballet at the school when she was not on tour; Fort took on the responsibilities of dance director of the Dunham school in 1948; Fort became legal guardian of her 8-year-old brother, John Dill in 1948 after the death of her mother; Dill joined her in Harlem and later became a drummer; Fort met tap dancer and war veteran Buddy Phillips at the Dunham school; married Phillips in the early 50s; Fort and Phillips opened their own school, Phillips-Fort Studio of Theatre Dance, which offered his style of Jazz Tap and her Dunham-based style of Modern-Afro; dancers who studied at the new school included: Alvin Ailey, Chuck Davis, Eartha Kitt, Brenda Bufalino, and Yvonne Rainer; actors who went for movement training included: James Dean, Marlon Brando, Eartha Kitt, Jane Fonda, Shirley MacLaine, James Earl Jones, and Geoffrey Holder; death of husband in 1963; invitation to help develop a national dance company in the country of Guinea secured by Harry Belafonte; after her return from Guinea, she resumed running her school; took an additional part-time job at Teacher’s College, Columbia University, 1967; Fort remained committed to a Black dance aesthetic in her teaching; Fort diagnosed with breast cancer around 1974; Black Theatre Alliance produced a celebration of her life, “Dance Genesis: Three Generations Salute Syvilla Fort,” held at the Majestic Theatre, 1975; death of Fort five days after program was held; former student Joan Peters resuscitated the Syvilla Fort Dance Company (later the Joan Peters Dance Company) around 1976; former student and dancer Glory Van Scott produced programs of Fort’s works at Symphony Space, in New York, 1992, 1993

About page: John Dill's half sister Syvilla Fort became his legal guardian when he was 8 after the death of their parents in 1948; they left Seattle for New York; Syvilla had already established herself as a dancer for the Katherine Dunham Dance Company; moved to Harlem; in the early 50’s, Syvilla and her husband Buddy opened dance studio on 153 West 44th Street using Robert Earl Dill’s estate (father of John Dill; stepfather of Syvilla Fort; after Fort's death in 1975 Dill brought her memorabilia and personal effects to Stockholm;

Remember the Beginning Page: Syvilla and John Dill's father were in Seattle with John when their mother died; John Dill travelled to New York with Syvilla by train; they went to the Dunham School, where Syvilla was director; Dunham offered to adopt John and raise him in Haiti; Syvilla asked John if they could use the money from his father's estate to open her own school so she could better support the family; school would eventually be known as the Syvilla Fort Studio of Theatre Dance on 153 West 44th street;

Life of Syvilla Fort by "Syvilla’s Husband Buddy’s son Abdul" [Sabur Abdul-Salaam], who John Dill "grew up with on Sugar Hill with Buddy’s mother": born in Seattle, Washington in 1917; the oldest of three children; John, her youngest brother, moved to New York with her; John Dill became a drummer and was with her during most of her years in New York; in the early 1970s, John Dill moved to Sweden; Syvilla's father was a postal clerk; as a child, Syvilla attended regular school during the week and took music lessons and went to movies on Saturdays; her strong desire to become a dancer at an early age probably a result of the movies she attended; she initially wanted to be a ballet dancer but was denied entrance into Seattle's ballet schools, because of the fact that she was black; her mother found her a ballet tutor but learning ballet only added to Syvilla's frustration because there were no jobs for black ballet dancers; attended Cornish School of the Arts; moved to New York where she became a member of the Katherine Dunham Dance Company; appeared in many Dunham dance concerts and the film Stormy Weather; director of Dunham's dance school, 1948-1955; opened her own school in 1955; Fort met Buddy Phillips, a tap dancer and promoter, while working at the Dunham School; Phillips-Fort Dance Studio was located at 153 West 44th Street, between Broadway and Sixth Avenue; the Phillips-Fort Dance Studio had financial struggles; talented students were given scholarships if they could not pay for classes; Buddy Phillips was a Korean War veteran with health problems exacerbated by complications from a wound he received during his service, as well as diabetes; Phillips died in 1963; Syvilla resisted advice to relocate the studio to an area with lower rent, but she wanted to maintain the central location to attract a diverse group of students; Harry Belafonte recommended her for an opportunity to help develop a dance company in Guinea; studio was mismanaged during her absence; Syvilla began teaching dance part-time at Columbia University to keep the studio going; her health deteriorated after 1973 and was in and out of the hospital during the last years of her life; attended a performance of The Wiz, in which some former students were appearing with Sabur Abdul-Salaam; he later attended the tribute to her honor held at the same theatre (the Majestic) a few days before her death

The Northwest enterprise., May 01, 1936, Page 4;
Fort cited as "pledge" to Delta Sigma Theta in article about the annual Jabberwock presentation

The Northwest enterprise., June 12, 1936, Page 4; Notice of dance recitals given with two "Negro girls" appearing with their respective groups; Syvilla Fort with Wellan [sic] Lathrop's modern dance group at the Cornish Theater and Winifred Ingram with Gertrude Weinzerl's group at the Repertory Theater

The Northwest enterprise., July 15, 1938; 4; Notice of a children's dance recital under the direction of Syvilla Fort to be given at Chandler's Hall; students included her brother Jack Fort

The Northwest enterprise., June 02, 1939, Page 2; Syvilla Fort noted as a Seattle member of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority

The Northwest enterprise., April 21, 1939, Page 4; Alpha Omicrom chapter Delta Sigma Theta members meet to complete plans for Syvilla Fort's May 3 recital at the Repertory Playhouse

The Northwest enterprise., May 26, 1939, Page 2; Ad for Fedor Stojak recital with guest, Syvilla Fort

The Northwest enterprise., January 26, 1940; Alpha Omicron election; Syvilla Forte re-elected Vice-President

The Northwest enterprise., February 02, 1940, Page 2; Syvilla Fort teaching weekly recreational classes at Y.W.C.A.

The Northwest enterprise., March 29, 1940; End of 8-week term for Syvilla Fort's dance classes at the Y.W.C.A.

The Northwest enterprise., April 26, 1940, Page 4; Advertisement for Seattle Artist League presentation of recital by Syvilla Forte; other dancers include Jack Forte

The Northwest enterprise., May 03, 1940, Page 4; Review of Syvilla Fort's April 28th recital at the Seattle Repertory playhouse; program included "Nocturne"; "Prelude to Flight"; "Bacchanale" "Frankie and Johnny" (with John Fort); "Spiritual"; "Self-Portrait" and "Entertainer"

The Northwest enterprise., October 31, 1941, Page 2; Nellie Cornish reports back on the success Syvilla Fort is achieving in California after attending a performance of Dunham Company in Los Angeles

The Northwest enterprise., May 29, 1942; Announcement of upcoming engagement of the Dunham Company with local artist, Syvilla Fort

The Northwest enterprise., July 10, 1942, Page 2; Syvilla Fort feted by friends during engagement at Moore Theatre with Dunham troupe; to leave for San Franciso for a six-week engagement with the company

The Northwest enterprise., April 21, 1943, Page 2; Reception in honor of Syvilla Fort and Katherine Dunham Dancers hosted by Mildred Fort Dill at the Savoy Community Center

Dynamite Tonight; York Playhouse; First performance date: March 5, 1964; Opening date: March 15, 1964; Closing date: March 15, 1964; The Actors Studio, Inc., Producer; Arnold Weinstein, Libretto; William Bolcom, Music; Syvilla Fort, Choreographer

The Exception and the Rule / The Prodigal Son; Greenwich Mews Theatre; Opening date: May 20, 1965; Closing date: September 19,1965; Program of two one-act plays: The Exception and The Rule by Bertolt Brecht, directed by Isaiah Sheffer and The Prodigal Son by Langston Hughes, directed by Vinnette Carroll; Greenwich Players Inc., Producer; Syvilla Fort, Choreographer; Glory Van Scott, Jezebel (Prodigal); Philip A. Stamps, Prodigal Son (Prodigal)

Ododo (Truth); St. Mark's Playhouse; Opening date: November 17, 1970; Closing date: December 27, 1970; Negro Ensemble Company, Producer; Joseph A. Walker, Book; Dorothy A. Dinroe, Composer; Syvilla Fort, Choreographer

Syvilla Fort born in Seattle, July 3, 1917; American dancer, choreographer, and dance teacher who drew on her African-American heritage in her original dance works; John Cage wrote his first piece for prepared piano, Bacchanale (1940), for a dance by Fort; began studying dance when she was three years old;denied admission to several ballet schools because she was black; early dance education took place in her home and in private lessons; by the time she was nine years old, Fort was teaching ballet, tap, and modern dance to small groups of neighborhood children who could not afford private lessons; Fort graduated from high school in 1932; attended the Cornish School of Allied Arts in Seattle as their first black student; after spending five years at the Cornish School, Fort decided to pursue her dance career in Los Angeles; William Grant Still, then a neighbor in Los Angeles, introduced Fort to Katherine Dunham in 1939; Fort began dancing and touring with the Katherine Dunham Company and learning the Dunham technique; Fort danced with the company until 1945 and was included in the well-known film Stormy Weather (1943); Fort neglected a serious knee injury sustained while dancing with the Dunham company; injuryh prevented her from performing professionally by the mid-1940s; Dunham appointed Fort as chief administrator and dance teacher of the Katherine Dunham School of Dance in New York in 1948, a position Fort retained until 1954; Fort opened dance studio on West 44th Street in New York with husband Buddy Phillips; Fort developed what she called the "Afro-Modern technique" which fused the Dunham approach with modern styles of dance that Fort learned in her early education; Fort also worked as a part-time instructor of physical education at Teachers College, 1967-1975; the studio on 44th Street thrived until 1975 when Fort began struggling against breast cancer and was unable to solve the school's financial problems; relocated to a new studio for Fort on West 23rd Street where she taught through the summer of 1975; among her best-known students were Marlon Brando, James Dean, Jane Fonda, James Earl Jones, Eartha Kitt, José Limón, Chita Rivera, and Geoffrey Holder; on November 8, 1975, Fort attended a tribute to her life's work which was organized by the Black Theater Alliance and hosted by her student Alvin Ailey and by Harry Belafonte; Fort died November 8, 1975 from breast cancer at the age of 58; Fort's work was honored when dancers from several companies performed an evening of her choreography at New York's Symphony Space in 1992 and 1993

California Eagle, November 28, 1940, p. 11; Announcement that Syvilla Fort, "modern dancer from the Cornish School of Music" will be one of the performers at Jabberwock Variety Show, organized by "Delta Sigma Theta sorors" at the Lincoln Theatre, Los Angeles, December 24, 1940

California Eagle, February 20, 1941, p. 4; play by Vincent Williams is to be staged by the Avalon Young People's Club as part of a special program for Race Relations Month held at the Avalon Christian Church on February 23, 1940; the play directed by Syvilla Fort, "prominent member of the Langston Hughes Little Theatre group"

Hollywood Citizen-News, May 15, 1941, p. 6; Announcement of the premiere of "The Lost Chord" by Eugene Henry Huffman to be given at the Bill Robinson Theatre that evening; "large cast" included Syvilla Fort

California Eagle, September 25, 1941, p. 12; Short interview with Syvilla Fort, "graduate of the Cornish Art School in the Northwest, and a leading local exponent of the dance done with a broad 'a'"; notes her own ethos as a Black choreographer and discusses rehearsals for an upcoming project, "Drum Beat" using young students; hopes to form a "Dance Theatre" in California

Daily News (Los Angeles, California), October 31, 1941, p. 23;
Review of Katherine Dunham Company at the Biltmore Theatre; Syvilla Fort listed as a cast member