Historical Fiction
Set during a transformative period (1875 - 1921) Dance of the Earth immerses readers in a vividly drawn world of artistic innovation and social upheaval, blending fiction with historical figures and events.
The story follows Rose from her dancing days at London’s gilded Alhambra Theatre music hall, and her children, Nina and Walter. The younger generation pursue their ambitions, loves and dreams in a new world order shaped by Diaghilev’s dazzling Ballets Russes, Stravinsky’s dissonant music, and the devastating First World War.
Art—both serious and comic—is at the story’s beating heart.
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Inspired by Anna M Holmes’s background in dance and theatre, the story offers an authentic and emotionally resonant portrayal of performance as both escape and identity. It’s a story she has been longing to write and share. At the end of the book, Rose insists that pretend worlds are just as important as the real world - something the author fully endorses.
Further Reading:
With so many dance and theatre history books to choose from, these are tiny sample that readers may enjoy.
For Victorian theatre and music halls: The Lost Theatres of London, Raymond Mander & Joe Mitchenson; Ballet in Leicester Square, Ivor Guest
For The Ballets Russes: The Diaghilev Ballet 1909- 1929, S.L. Grigoriev; Diaghilev: his artistic and private life, Arnold Haskell; Ballets Russes, Richard Shead
Dance of the Earth is published by The Book Guild