Loyce Houlton
| Loyce Houlton | |
|---|---|
| Born |
June 13, 1925 Proctor, Minnesota, United States |
| Died | March 14, 1995 (aged 69) Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Known for | Dance and choreography |
| Movement | Modern dance |
Loyce Houlton (13 June 1925 – 14 March 1995) was an American dancer, choreographer, dance pedagogue, and arts administrator centered for most of her adult life in Minneapolis. Founder of the Minnesota Dance Theatre, she maintained connections with many of the most prominent national and international dance figures and composers of her day. She was acknowledged to be one of the most significant American choreographers of the 20th century and one of the first American women to gain national and international recognition as a choreographer, teacher, and producer.
Houlton was born Loyce Johnson in Proctor, Minnesota, near Duluth, to Norwegian immigrants and immersed herself in music and dance as a child. Her early training in dance was completed at Carleton College, where she studied between 1942 and 1946 and earned a B.A. degree. After establishing herself in her career as a choreographer, she was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters by her alma mater in 1981.
In 1946, Houlton moved to New York City, where she took classes at New York University towards earning an M.A. degree in Dance Education in 1950. In the same period, she was trained in dance at the Martha Graham School by the New Dance Group. Besides Martha Graham, she also studied with Nina Fonaroff, Louis Horst, José Limón, and George Balanchine.
In 1950, Houlton returned to Minnesota to live in Minneapolis, where she was centered for the rest of her life. She married a classmate from Carleton College, the physician William (Henry) Houlton (1923-2010) on July 28, 1950. She raised four children with her husband: Andrew, Joel, Laif, and Lise, who succeeded her mother as artistic director of the Minnesota Dance Theatre after her death in 1995.
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