Jeanne Beaman

Jeanne Beaman
Jeanne Beaman in the 1940s; photo by Romaine
Born
Dorothy Jeanne Hays

October 7, 1919
San Francisco, California, U.S.
DiedFebruary 12, 2020 (age 100)
Bernalillo, New Mexico, U.S.
Occupation(s)Dancer, choreographer, college professor

Dorothy Jeanne Hays Beaman (October 7, 1919 – February 12, 2020) was an American dancer and college professor. She was a pioneer of computational choreography, creating the piece Random Dances in 1964 by using an IBM 7070 computer to select and order movement instructions from three lists.[1][2]

Her 1965 article, "Computer Dance", was widely cited by later practitioners, as was a 1968 exhibition of her process at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London.[3][4]

Early life and education

She born in San Francisco and adopted in 1919 by Nora Christine Schad and Joseph Allen Hays, who lived in Berkeley, California.[5] At age 16, Beaman traveled alone to New York to train at the School of American Ballet. She took extensive notes on her classes, including one by "Mr. Balanchine". Later, she attended classes at Bennington College where she studied with Martha Graham.[6] Back in California, she studied at the University of California, Berkeley, and, following graduation, at Mills College.[7]

Career in dance

Beaman's dance career began as "Baby Jeanne Hays" in Berkeley.[7] From 1938 to 1940, she was a member of the San Francisco Opera ballet. She danced and taught in California, including at the University of Redlands[8][9] and at the University of California, Riverside,[10] and in performances at the Redlands Bowl.[11]

Beaman moved with her husband to Pittsburgh, where she began teaching at Chatham College, and then at the University of Pittsburgh, where she taught from 1961 to 1974. In Pittsburgh she experimented with computational choreography,[12] creating the piece Random Dances in 1964 by using an IBM 7070 computer to select and order movement instructions from three lists.[1][2] Her 1965 article, "Computer Dance", was widely cited by later practitioners. A 1968 exhibition of her process was held at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London.[3][4] In 1971, she was one of the participants in Verities, Values, Visions, a dance conference held at the University of Waterloo, along with Irmgard Bartenieff, Til Thiele, Eleanor Metheny, and Daniel Nagrin, among others.[13]

Personal life

Jeanne Hays married art professor Richard Bancroft Beaman in 1944.[14] They had four children. After 1974, the Beamans lived in Rockport, Massachusetts, where she was active in the Massachusetts Council on the Arts and other organizations. Her husband died in 2003,[15] and she died in Bernalillo, New Mexico, in 2020, at the age of 100.[16] Her papers are in the Jerome Robbins Dance Division, at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.[3]

References

  1. ^ a b Franke, Herbert W. (2012). Computer Graphics. Springer. ISBN 9783642702594. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  2. ^ a b Manning, Erin (2009). Relationscapes. MIT Press. ISBN 9780262134903. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c "Jeanne Hays Beaman papers". Jerome Robbins Dance Division, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  4. ^ a b Zinman, Gregory (2020). Making Images Move. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520302730. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  5. ^ "Hays-Beaman Betrothal Told". The San Bernardino County Sun. November 28, 1943. p. 14. Retrieved June 17, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Jeanne Hays Makes Debut". The Oakland Post Enquirer. October 15, 1937. p. 4. Retrieved June 17, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ a b "R. B. Beaman and Family Visiting Here This Month". The Berkeley Gazette. 1949-08-08. p. 6. Retrieved 2025-06-17 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "University Dancers, Musicians Featured on Orchesis Program". The San Bernardino County Sun. February 20, 1948. p. 18. Retrieved June 17, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Students Honor Dance Instructor". Redlands Daily Facts. February 25, 1944. p. 3. Retrieved June 17, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Jeanne Beaman to Accept Position on UCR Faculty". The San Bernardino County Sun. December 7, 1954. p. 18. Retrieved June 17, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Dancer and Singer to Stage Children's Program at Bowl". The San Bernardino County Sun. July 27, 1949. p. 14. Retrieved June 17, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Eacho, Douglas (2021). "Scripting Control: Computer Choreography and Neoliberal Performance". Theatre Journal. 73 (3): 339–357. doi:10.1353/tj.2021.0071. ISSN 1086-332X.
  13. ^ Pease, Esther E. (February 1971). "Verities, Values, Visions: The Binational Dance Conference". Journal of Health, Physical Education, Recreation. 42 (2): 81–84. doi:10.1080/00221473.1971.10618646. ISSN 0022-1473.
  14. ^ "Jeanne Hayes Married to Navy Officer". Oakland Tribune. March 16, 1944. p. 23. Retrieved June 17, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Thomas, Mary (July 31, 2003). "Richard Bancroft Beaman, Artist, former CMU professor". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. p. 17. Retrieved June 17, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Remembering the life of Jeanne Beaman 1919-2020". Gloucester Daily Times. February 17, 2020. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
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