After the first TDT season, Beatty sent Itcush to an autumn course at Connecticut College: six weeks of four classes daily, with evening concerts performed by the greats of American Modern Dance (Martha Graham, Jose Limon, Anna Sokolow, Lucas Hoving).
“It was an excellent time. I was devastated – in a good way – because this Modern Dance had so much power and depth. I had at last found a powerful enough way to communicate what I had to say.”
Three weeks into the course, a different kind of devastation: Amelia developed sciatica. Diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis, she was administered cortisone and told to stop dancing. She attended a solo performance by the great Jane Dudley, known for her social protest dances and performances with the Graham company. Dudley, at 50, suffered from debilitating arthritis of the hip.