Gertz’s communist commitment led to the closure of her school in Halle/Saale by the Gestapo during National Socialism. She emigrated to Prague and later to England, where she continued teaching children’s dance. After the end of the Second World War, Gertz returned to Halle/Saale, where her pedagogical principles and methods were hardly recognised. Her estate at the Tanzarchiv Leipzig contains letters, manuscripts and teaching materials as well as photographs and short films.