Katherine Dunham, who died this past weekend aged 96, “was one of the first American artists to focus on black dance and dancers as prime material for the stage… Though Miss Dunham’s academic credentials as an anthropologist were impeccable, including a doctorate from the University of Chicago, it was her gift for seduction that helped most to pave the way for choreographers like Donald McKayle, Talley Beatty and Alvin Ailey.”