Nikolais, Alwin

(born Nov. 25, 1910, Southington, Conn., U.S.—died May 8, 1993, New York, N.Y.) U.S. dancer, choreographer, composer, and designer. He studied modern dance with various teachers, including Hanya Holm, whose assistant he later became. In 1948 he became director of the Henry Street Playhouse in New York City, and in 1951 he formed the Nikolais Dance Theater to present his productions of integrated motion, sound, shape, and colour. Nikolais directed the Center for Contemporary Dance in Angers, Fr. (1979–81). In 1989 his company merged with another to form the Nikolais and Murray Louis Dance Company.

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