Revised April 22, 2025. Adorée Villany: Naked Enigma Adopting the Dance of the Seven Veils Adorée Villany tested the European limits on how much skin a dancer could show on stage during the early 20th century. She also pushed the boundaries of early modern dance choreography. Most of all, she was an enigma. Adorée (or…
As the motion picture industry took off, Salomania stormed the silver screen—Salome movies shocked, scandalized, and mesmerized people around the globe. It is hard to overstate how influential the Salome story was in silent film. The British Film Institute lists 21 films containing “Salome” in the title for films made before 1930, but this is…
Salomania was a performance phenomenon and cultural craze that swept through America and Europe during the early years of the 20th century. It sprang from a popular reinterpretation of the story of Salome, a figure alluded to in the New Testament who danced for a king and, as a reward, requested a head on a…
Revised April 2, 2025 A Salome story: I spent many years working with historical documents at the Library of Congress and other cultural heritage institutions. Historical documents, also known as primary sources, provide firsthand evidence about people, events, and ideas from the past. Primary sources can reveal great stories about what has—and hasn’t—changed over time….