Julia Levien

Julia (Golden) Levien, dancer, choreographer and teacher of the technique and repertoire of Isadora Duncan, died on Sunday, September 3, at her longtime residence on Roosevelt Island. She would have celebrated her 95th birthday in October.

Ms. Levien was the leading authority on the dance of Isadora Duncan and had devoted her life to the transmission of the Duncan legacy.

Ms. Levien met Isadora as a child when she began studying with Anna Duncan, one of the six Isadorables. An original member of the dance companies of Anna and Irma Duncan, she made her professional debut in 1929 and performed internationally in the 1930’s and 40’s.

When Isadora Duncan died in 1927, Levien was determined to continue studying Isadora’s art through her disciples. As a teenager she and other Duncan-trained dancers were invited to join Irma Duncan in a tour sponsored by Sol Hurok. Julia went on to create her own choreography which reflected the social concerns of the developing American modern dance in the 1930’s.

Ms. Levien married and moved to Far Rockaway where she raised a family and taught Duncan dance to children. She was instrumental in the revival of Duncan’s repertoire in the 1970’s leading up to the centennial of Duncan’s birth. From 1977 to 1983 she directed The Isadora Duncan Centenary and Commemorative Dance Companies with concerts at Riverside Church, Carnegie Hall, Symphony Space as well as in Boston, Philadelphia and numerous other venues throughout Long Island and Weschester. She has been the teacher and coach of many acclaimed Duncan dancers throughout the world. Ms. Levien taught and lectured widely, traveling to conferences and festivals internationally. She remained actively teaching and coaching the next generation of dancers until last year.

Julia was also led to express her deep understanding of the Isadora Duncan aesthetic through drawing, painting and sculpture. Her book, Duncan Dance, A Guide for Young People was published by Princeton Book Company in 1995 and features her drawings which capture the flow and ecstatic nature of Duncan’s movement. She was an honorary guest participant in many summer workshops at Skidmore College. Her drawings and sculptures have been widely exhibited including several Roosevelt Island showings. She was featured in the RIVAA’s Roosevelt Island Reminisces series in May of 2003 where she presented a dance/art/sculpture slide-lecture of the Duncan legacy with the assistance of dancers Adrienne Ramm, Debbie Orenstein, and pianist Roy Eaton (all Island residents).

On September 6, over 200 people gathered at Lighthouse Park to enjoy a program of Isadora Duncan choreography performed by Dance Visions and Dances by Isadora and dedicated to the memory of Julia (Golden) Levien (October 9, 1911-September 3, 2006).

She is survived by her son Elliot Golden, daughter-in-law Charlotte Golden, and three granddaughters, Lindsay, Jessica, and Abbey.