Died 19 August 1983 | ||
Ida Forsyne (January 1, 1883 – August 19, 1983), sometimes seen as Ida Forcen, was an African-American vaudeville dancer who toured in Europe and Russia before World War I.
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Early life
Ida Forsyne was born on South Side, Chicago, Illinois in 1883, and raised by her mother. She left home at 14 to join a dance troupe, "The Black Bostonians."
Career
In 1898, at age 15, Forsyne joined Sissieretta Jones in Black Patti's Troubadours, as a dancer. She was part of the Smart Set Company in 1902, in the cast of Darktown's Circus Day in 1903, and by 1904 had a solo act in The Southerners, the first interracial musical show, headed by Will Marion Cook. In 1906, she was featured with the Tennessee Students, and with them toured Europe, sometimes billed as "Topsy." An energetic version of the kazatsky dance was her specialty, which she developed during a run in Moscow. "I stole all the steps I could. I liked Russian dancing so much as I wanted to be different than most colored performers," she recalled. She stayed abroad until just before World War I in 1914. Langston Hughes considered her one of the dozen best dancers in Harlem.
By the time she was back in the United States, she was in her thirties, and found it difficult to gain dance jobs. In addition to age, she believed her darker skintone was a barrier to employment, even in all-black shows. She became maid to Sophie Tucker in the 1920s, but soon joined Tucker's act as a dancer. She traveled with Mamie Smith in 1924, Dusty Fletcher in 1925, and Bessie Smith in 1928.
After 1930, Forsyne worked as a domestic servant and elevator operator. She did appear in a few films, including an Oscar Micheaux movie in 1935, and the 1936 film, The Green Pastures. In 1951, she consulted on old-style "cakewalk" choreography for the New York City Ballet. There was a birthday tribute event to Ida Forsyne in 1955, which allowed her to show off her dance skills in her seventies. In the 1960s, Forsyne was interviewed by oral historians of dance, Marshall Stearns and Jean Stearns.
Personal life
Her cousin Ollie Burgoyne was also a dancer in vaudeville shows and on Broadway, who also toured extensively overseas. They appeared together in a 1919 show, They're Off. Forsyne was active with the Negro Actors Guild in her later years.
Ida Forsyne died at age 100, in a nursing home in Brooklyn, New York.