"Frequently producers have partners that they never let the public know about"
About this Quote
Entertainment loves the mythology of the lone genius: the singular choreographer, the lone “producer,” the person whose name can be cleanly printed on a poster. Katherine Dunham punctures that fantasy with a quiet, almost throwaway bluntness. “Frequently” is doing heavy lifting here. She isn’t alleging an exception or a scandal; she’s describing an industry norm. The line lands like insider testimony, the kind you only offer after you’ve watched credit become currency and watched that currency get hoarded.
Dunham’s choice of “partners” is pointedly broad. Not “assistants,” not “backers,” not “lovers,” not “ghostwriters” - a word that would sensationalize. Partners suggests shared authorship and shared risk, the real scaffolding behind cultural production. And “never let the public know” frames concealment as an active strategy, not an accidental omission. This is about power: who gets to appear self-made, who gets framed as merely supportive, and how audiences are trained to crave neat narratives over messy collaboration.
Coming from a dancer and choreographer who built institutions, toured internationally, and navigated the racial and financial politics of mid-century performance, the remark reads as both critique and warning. It hints at the backstage economy of art: relationships, labor, funding, and diplomacy - all the unglamorous logistics that make “vision” possible. Dunham isn’t romanticizing collaboration; she’s exposing how invisibility gets engineered, and how easily the public buys it.
Dunham’s choice of “partners” is pointedly broad. Not “assistants,” not “backers,” not “lovers,” not “ghostwriters” - a word that would sensationalize. Partners suggests shared authorship and shared risk, the real scaffolding behind cultural production. And “never let the public know” frames concealment as an active strategy, not an accidental omission. This is about power: who gets to appear self-made, who gets framed as merely supportive, and how audiences are trained to crave neat narratives over messy collaboration.
Coming from a dancer and choreographer who built institutions, toured internationally, and navigated the racial and financial politics of mid-century performance, the remark reads as both critique and warning. It hints at the backstage economy of art: relationships, labor, funding, and diplomacy - all the unglamorous logistics that make “vision” possible. Dunham isn’t romanticizing collaboration; she’s exposing how invisibility gets engineered, and how easily the public buys it.
Quote Details
| Topic | Relationship |
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