Mary De Haven Hinkson (b. Philadelphia, March 16, 1925 d. New York, November 26, 2014) was an African American dancer and choreographer known for breaking racial boundaries throughout her dance career in both modern and ballet techniques.

Hinkson was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1925 to a mother who worked as a public school teacher and a father who was a physician and the first African American head of an army hospital.

[1][2] Hinkson studied Dalcroze technique in a high school eurythmics class, as well as Native American dance forms at summer camp.

[3] Due to not being taken seriously as a living room dancer, she did not receive formal dance training until enrolling at the University of Wisconsin, where she studied with Margaret H'Doubler.

One exercise Hinkson recalled was creating movement on the floor while blindfolded and then recreating it while standing for it to eventually piece together into a phrase.

[4] While at University of Wisconsin, Hinkson also learned from Louise, a technique teacher trained by Mary Wigman and Hanya Holm.

Even though Hinkson never saw Louise fully dance, she knew it was exquisite from the way she took up so much space pacing the front of their enormous studio.

During her first performance with them in Orpheus and Eurydice, a local afro-american paper cited her and Matt Turney, who became lifelong friends, as being the first African American members.

[1] Orpheus and Eurydice was the piece that brought Mary to a real stage for the very first time, allowing her to feel concentration and the warmth of the lights like never before.

Her teacher Louise remarked on the powerful projection she had during this performance, which was a great accomplishment for her considering the anxiety and fickleness that often caused her to skip out on rehearsals.

Although African American students were allowed to enroll, they were often excluded from school events and barred from most dormitories and close rooming houses.

Hinkson had a wonderful time balancing both companies, but sometimes Graham, who was very dedicated to her patterns and methods and could be seen as uncompromising, would become upset at Butler for conflicting schedules.

During their practices on tour, Graham worked them to death in the freezing cold weather, which made them take great advantage of the sometimes long and luxurious breaks in between rehearsals.

Their producer would not let that happen, so Hinkson and the company had to work extra hard to improvise and fill in the blanks which gave them a lot of practice at thinking on their feet.

They left England after three weeks with poor reviews, which Hinkson felt was partly due to the audience not seeing past Graham's more mature age to the performer side of her.

They performed in lecture/demonstration formats doing pieces like Letter to the World, Appalachian Spring, Diversion of Angels and Canticle for Innocent Comedians.

She was enticed to stay by friends she made in Jack Cole's company and the refreshing days they had together, but ended up coming back to New York.

The solo was very militant and full of jumping, but Hinkson “made it more fragile and human and feminine and that she deeply feared what she had to do.” Although Graham usually would adapt roles to the dancer, she stayed true to her vision for this one at the time.

Originally declining to go with the company on a tour to Israel to stay with her daughter, Graham persuaded her to go when one of the dancers became unexpectedly pregnant.

And although the ending was altered later, the original one with some of the cast walking forward holding a stoll above their head had an incredible dark and continuing effect.

So to play Madea as a witch from the moment the curtain pulled up would miss the whole point.” It was also a struggle to learn this piece off of film as they had no notes scribbled on the sheet music.

When it was finally put on the stage, Yuriko helped Hinkson create a memorable head piece by sweeping up her hair with much spray and a looped gold wire.

When Hinkson first saw Dark Meadow as a spectator the concept went right over her head, but performing it gave it a whole new life and meaning for her: “It was as though I had been put in touch with some unknown ancestors or something.

These include ''Bluebeard's Castle'', Clytemnestra, Deaths and Entrances, Cave of the Heart, Ardent Song, Seven Deadly Sins (commissioned by Queen Elizabeth's Theater), Acrobats of God, Phaedra, Canticle for Innocent Comedians, Carmina Burana, Mythical Hunters, The Figure in the Carpet, Secular Games and Circe.

Hinkson and Bertram Ross didn't want the company to fall by the wayside, so they took it upon themselves to grow their numbers and pour into their programs.

They faked “the malady of the seventies where [they] held these auditions and had these young people come in, offered them 100 dollars a week for their services.” They hoped to instill in them a sense of hard work and it was rewarding to see some of them do well, although many were not very committed.

[4] After Bertram Ross told her that he was handing in his resignation, Hinkson went straight to Graham who was hardly present and mostly on pain medication.

[4] In regards to her time at the company, “It was never a bed of roses to work there but at least you always had this belief, this respect for the end product and theater experience.”[4] It was the loss of this that fueled her departure.

Some of them are Harry Belafonte, Alvin Ailey, Pearl Lang, Walter Nix, John Butler, Martha Graham, Glen Tetley, and Merce Cunningham.

Mary often dreaded the practices at Graham's company, but woke up inspired for laughter filled rehearsals with Tetley.