Bill Cratty

Bill Cratty (February 28, 1951 – September 9, 1998) was an American modern dancer and choreographer.

Born William Anthony Cratty in Cleveland, Ohio, Bill Cratty began his dance training with tap and gymnastics lessons at the age of 5. He stopped his lessons (according to him, because too much practice was required; according to his mother, because Cratty's brothers teased him about dance) and didn’t resume dancing until high school, when he became involved in the school musical productions. Cratty went on to attend Ohio University where he received a BFA in dance in 1973.

The six-foot one-inch tall Cratty joined the José Limón Dance Company in 1974, achieved soloist status, and performed for eight years in works by Limón, Charles Weidman, Anna Sokolow, Doris Humphrey and others. He also studied with Ruth Currier, Murray Louis and Daniel Nagrin, whose jazzy style influenced Cratty's choreography.

Cratty's first major choreographic work, "The Kitchen Table", was given its New York premier by the José Limón Company in 1981, at City Center Theater. "The Kitchen Table" was called "a seminal dance work of the 20th century" and "an antidote to post-modernism" by the dance critic Walter Terry.

In 1982, Cratty left the Limón Company to form his own company, the "Bill Cratty Dance Theatre", which toured internationally and presented eight New York seasons. In 1986, the Company appeared at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.. In New York City, the company performed at the Riverside Church Theater, the 92nd Street Y, and the Joyce Theater.

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