During the late 1920s, Irmgard ended her first marriage to a German history professor and married a Russian ballet dancer, Michail Bartenieff. Combining their dance experiences, the couple founded the Romantisches Tanztheatre Bartenieff, performing and touring for several years.
In 1933, after the Nazi takeover of the German government, the Bartenieffs were forced to close their dance company due to Michail’s Jewish heritage. During this period of forced retirement, Irmgard continued her notation studies with Laban’s colleague, Albrecht Knust, and began translating Feuillet (Baroque dance notation) into Kinetography Laban.
In 1936, the Bartenieffs immigrated to the United States. Although the Bartenieffs had been professional dancers, Irmgard retained an interest in working with amateur dancers from the movement choir/community lay dance aspect of her studies with Laban. This, along with her interest in notation, would prove valuable as a new phase in Irmgard’s career began in a new country.