Choreographer

1912-2000

Lucas Hoving

Lucas Hoving & José Limón in The Moor's Pavane

Lucas Hoving was a modern dancer, choreographer, and teacher most famous for the roles he created as an original member of the José Limón Dance Company. He also danced in works by seminal modern dance figures Kurt Jooss, Martha Graham, Agnes De Mille, Doris Humphrey, and Helen Tamiris before forming his own company. 

In 1961, Hoving started his own dance company which toured throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe. As a choreographer, he was best known for Icarus, a modern dance classic created in 1964 for his own company and performed by troupes including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. He also choreographed for companies including Bat-Dor of Israel, Kulberg Balletten of Sweden, and Les Grands Ballets Canadiens of Canada. 

Born in the Netherlands, Hoving left for the United States in the mid-1940s and danced with the companies of Martha Graham and Valerie Bettis, also appearing in Broadway musicals choreographed by Bettis, Agnes de Mille, and Catherine Littlefield. 

Hoving joined the José Limón Dance Company in 1949 and performed with the company until 1963, becoming a major interpreter of Limón’s choreography. He performed opposite Limón in several of the company's best-known works, including The Moor's Pavane, The Traitor, and Emperor Jones. Hoving served as the artistic adviser of the Limón company in the early 1980s and taught modern dance in schools and universities including the High School of Performing Arts, Juilliard, and the American Dance Festival. In 1971, he was invited by the Dutch government to return to the Netherlands, where he directed the Rotterdam Dance Academy from 1971 to 1978 and was supervisor of dance education for the Dutch government through 1979.