Erika Thimey (1910-2006) was born in Itzehoe, Germany, in 1910. She first started studying dance in 1927 in Berlin, but in 1929 moved to Dresden to study at the Wigman School started by modern dance pioneer Mary Wigman. In 1932 Thimey moved to the U.S., settling in Chicago where she taught dance and motion choir. She also began her career performing liturgical dance in churches, initiating her emphasis on spirituality and worship in dance. The year 1938 marked her move to Boston and the beginning of her touring years across the U.S.. She came to Washington, D.C., in 1939 and opened up her first school in 1943 in the Dupont Circle area (it later moved to Georgetown). Thimey began teaching dance at Howard University in 1944, where she remained as faculty until 1955. She ended her performing career three years later, but became involved with teaching dance to children both in her studio and in Washington public schools. Her work with children included choreographing several works for child audiences with her Washington Dance Theatre company. In 1969, she converted a church in Smithsburg, Md., into a performance space. Thimey died in 2006 at the age of ninety-six, though her Erika Thimey Dance & Theater Company survives today.
From the description of Erika Thimey archives, 1970-1993. (Historical Society of Washington, Dc). WorldCat record id: 461268111
