Chapter ?? 10 Modern Dance C H A P T E R

Chapter 10 Modern Dance Enduring understanding: Modern dance is a classic and contemporary dance genre.

Learning Objectives Recognize major modern dance works, styles, and artists in history. Execute basic modern dance vocabulary and technique while performing memorized exercises, combinations, created movement sequences, or studies. Apply modern dance etiquette and dance safety while dancing. Evaluate and respond to traditional and contemporary modern dance performances.

“The Dancer believes that his art has something to say which cannot be expressed in words or in any other way than by dancing... there are times when the simple dignity of movement can fulfill the function of a volume of words.” -- Doris Humphrey, 20th-century American modern dancer, choreographer, and author

Introduction Modern dance is a form of concert dance. Early modern dancers and choreographers presented their dance works in theaters to establish the modern dance genre as a performing art. Contemporary modern dance choreographers may seek other performance spaces beyond theatrical spaces, such as museums, parks, or outdoor settings, to show their work. Modern dance has many facets—creative, educational, and artistic processes and experiences— that contribute to the language of dance.

Modern Dance Choreographic Works Modern dance works can be categorized into these types: Story-based or dramatic works Abstract forms (ideas, themes and emotions, and personal or social statements) Eclectic themes Improvisational forms Chance dance

Forerunners of Modern Dance Early 20th-century choreographers created groundbreaking dance works and sought ways to express contemporary society through their so-called new dance. Loie Fuller ( ) used color, fabric, movement, sound, and light to create her innovative dances as a complete theatrical experience. Her movements used natural body motion to express emotion and spontaneously interpret the music. Isadora Duncan ( ) created simple but heroic abstract dances often inspired by ancient Greek art. Duncan’s movement was motivated by emotion expressed through the entire body to create her personal style as a dance artist. Died a tragic death from her scarf strangling her.

Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn Ruth St. Denis (ca ) – Married to Ted Shawn. Together they created the Denishawn School. Ruth St. Denis’ works were inspired by Oriental and Native American Culture. Ted Shawn ( ) saw Ruth St. Denis perform Incense in By 1914, St. Denis and Shawn married, and the following year they established the Denishawn School of Dancing and Related Arts.

Martha Graham Martha Graham ( ) joined the Denishawn company, but in 1923 she headed for New York. Graham’s early dances expressed the inner conflicts within man, but her choreography changed themes many times during her career. Her dances became the source of her movement vocabulary and later her technique. Graham’s movement theory and technique was based on contraction and release. She was inspired by Greek Mythology

Doris Humphrey and Charles Weidman Doris Humphrey ( ) joined the Denishawn company. In 1927 she and Charles Weidman established a school and company in New York that continued until the 1940s. Her choreography explored the conflict of man with his environment and included strong social content. Humphrey’s technique is based on the theory of fall and recovery. Her book The Art of Making Dances was published in 1959 and has become a classic in the field of dance choreography. Charles Weidman ( ) went to Denishawn, where he met Doris Humphrey. Together in New york they established what became known as the Humphrey-Weidman studio and company. His choreography was a mix of dance, mime, and comedy, but he created some pure movement works as well.

Katherine Dunham ( ) Katherine Dunham was a dancer, choreographer, anthropologist, teacher, and writer. In the 1930s she founded Negro Dance Group and created her Haitian Suite, based on her earlier anthropology studies. She choreographed on Broadway and performed in films during the 1940s. Dunham explored blending African, European, Afro- Caribbean, and American Dance that became the foundation for Dunham technique.

José Limón ( ) José Limón studied dance with Doris Humphrey and Charles Weidman. Limón and Doris Humphrey became co-choreographers of the José Limón Dance Company. His choreography ranged from abstract to strong literary themes as a basis for his powerful, dramatic, narrative dances. Limón’s technique builds upon Humphrey’s movement principles. His technique molds the body to express emotion and ideas.

Lester Horton ( ) Lester Horton moved to the Los Angeles area in the late 1920s. He performed in concerts, nightclubs, and later movie musicals. In 1942 he formed the Lester Horton Dance Theater and School. His works had a wide audience appeal using African American, Haitian, Mexican, and Native American cultural themes. His technique influenced modern dance and West Coast jazz dance through the dancers that were to carry on his legacy. Horton technique expands the dancer’s movement scope and builds a versatile dancer.

Alvin Ailey ( ) -Native Texan -Trained in California with Lester Horton -Moved to New York and founded his own company -Ailey used blues, spirituals, and gospel music to accompany his high-energy choreography. -His most famous piece of choreography is Revelations

Merce Cunningham ( ) -Merce Cunningham joined the Martha Graham Dance Company in the 1940s -In 1953 he started his own company. -In the 1960s he experimented with dances created by using chance and immediacy. -Cunningham’s dances focused on space and time. He developed a technique that uses leg gestures and directional movements

Paul Taylor (1930- ) Paul Taylor went to New York and danced in the Martha Graham Dance Company. He formed a small company and began choreographing in the 1950s. His company continues today. Taylor’s choreography encompasses a light, almost balletic style with some Graham technique.

Twyla Tharp (1941- ) Twyla Tharp had diverse dance training in many genres before studying modern dance and jazz in New York and dancing in the Paul Taylor company. During the 1960s, she experimented with movement and started her own company. In the 1970s she choreographed for the Joffrey Ballet and American Ballet Theatre as well as Broadway Shows. Tharp’s work of creating modern dance for ballet companies was an important milestone for 20th- century modern dance and ballet.

Bill T. Jones (1952- ) Bill T. Jones is from upstate New York. In the 1980s, Jones and Arnie Zane began making works that incorporated narrative, video, and autobiographical information into movement. Jones continues to create works that reflect social issues as part of a fusion of dance and theater. Today his works continue to explore media and technology.

Mark Morris (1956- ) Mark Morris performed with many companies In 1980, he formed the Mark Morris Dance Group and by 1991, his company was considered one of the leading modern dance companies. Morris is a choreographer whose works range from large to small works with eclectic music choices. His style is a blend of ballet, postmodern dance, and court dance with other cultural dance genres.

Trisha Brown (1936- ) Trisha Brown was a founding member of the Judson Dance Theater and explored games, improvisation, and the spoken word in her site-specific works. After 40 years, she and her company continue to expand her movement ideas by creating new works and revisiting some of her timeless pieces.

Basics of Modern Dance Class The modern dance class format is similar to other concert dance forms. The format of the modern dance class may vary depending on what techniques or styles are taught in the class. The class begins with a warm-up of the body and its parts. Center exercises and techniques follow to gain strength and flexibility. Dancers perform combinations in the center or traveling across the floor. An improvisation, movement study, or a longer combination culminates the class work. The class ends with cool-down exercises.

Modern Dance Class Safety Modern dance is usually performed barefoot, so always practice proper foot care to ensure safe dancing. For some surfaces you might choose to foot paws or other footwear. Modern dancers often fall, slide, or otherwise come in contact with the floor. Dancers should take precautions to avoid floor burns. Dance wear, hair styles, and removing jewelry are part of the class dress code.

Articulation – passing through each separate joint while doing a sequential movement. Body Half – a symmetrical portion of your body created with a midline C-Curve – initiated by a contraction of your lower abdominals causing the spine to move back into the backspace and the head and tail to lengthen out and around towards each other

Vocab. Continued Contraction – engaging lower abdominal muscles to push air our creating a c-curve of the spine Core – a group of lower internal abdominal muscles Energy Qualities – descriptive words that indicate the amount of type of effort to put into a movement

Vocab. Continued Fall and Rebound – the human body’s natural reaction to gravity and the recovery of that reaction Grounded – Feeling a full sense of your weight and giving into the floor Head/Tail Connection – An energetic relationship between the head and the tailbone

Vocab. Continued Improvisation – Spontaneous movement without premeditation Initiation – The point in which the movement originates from Locomotive Movement – movement that travels in space Non-Locomotive Movement – Movement that is stationary

Vocab. Continued Parallel Position – the feet and knees facing forward with the feet under the hips Positive Space – space that is being occupied by the body Negative Space – space that is not occupied by the body Prance – A common locomotive movement where you articulate through the feet

Vocab. Continued Release – to set free from confinement or restraint Spiral – a torso twist that begins in the pelvis. As the body turns, each level is separately articulated all the way up the spine Triplet – three steps usually done in a down (plie) up (releve) up (releve) sequence Undercurve – shifting the body weight from one leg to another while dropping the weight lower in the center of the curve