Fuller, Loie

(born Jan. 15, 1862, Fullersburg, Ill., U.S.—died Jan. 1, 1928, Paris, Fr.) U.S. improvisational dance performer and pioneer of modern dance. She began acting at age four, appearing with stock companies and vaudeville shows. From 1892 in Paris she gained attention with her “serpentine dance,” in which she used yards of flowing silk illuminated by theatrical lighting. She added a “fire dance” (dancing on an illuminated pane of glass) and other acts, attracting critical and public adulation, especially in Europe.

Source: Encyclopedia Britannica