Last modified: Tuesday, January 5, 2010
The Indiana University Dance Theater presents 'The Legacy of Graham'
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jan. 5, 2010
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana University dancers will bring history to life during "The Legacy of Graham," the annual guest artist/faculty concert presented by the IU Dance Theater.
Photo courtesy of IU Contemporary Dance Program
Modern dance majors from the Department of Kinesiology perform in Martha Graham's "Panorama"
Produced by the Department of Kinesiology and the Department of Theatre and Drama, the concert will feature modern dance pioneer Martha Graham's Panorama, Paul Taylor's Aureole and 3 Epitaphs as well as works by faculty from the Department of Kinesiology and Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies.
"The Legacy of Graham" will be performed Jan. 15-16, 7:30 p.m., in the Ruth N. Halls Theater at IU Bloomington (275 N. Jordan Ave.). Advance tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for children, seniors and IU students with valid ID. Tickets at the door are $25 for adults and $15 for children, seniors and IU students with valid ID.
A matinee consisting of masterworks by Martha Graham and Paul Taylor only will take place Jan. 16 at 1:30 p.m. Advance tickets are $5 for adults and $1 for children, seniors and IU students with valid ID. Tickets at the door are $10 for adults and $5 for children, seniors and IU students with valid ID. Tickets can be purchased at the IU Auditorium Box Office or by calling 812-855-1103.
Dubbed "Dancer of the Century" by TIME Magazine, Graham is considered the matriarch of modern dance. She created Panorama in 1935 at Bennington College in Vermont during the "infamous" summer dance workshops where the original American modern dancers established their ideas in craft and technique.
"It's a dance that is almost 80 years old that speaks to the time we are living in now in terms of the role of women," said Selene Carter, visiting lecturer in the IU Contemporary Dance Program and dance historian in the Department of Kinesiology.
Carter said this is "the perfect concert" for those who have never seen modern dance before because it is so elemental to the tradition.
"They will be able to see the roots of contemporary dance and the origins of modern dance by the most seminal figure of the 20th century," she said.
The annual concert each year also premieres original works by IU faculty members. Choreographers for this year's works include faculty from the School of HPER's Department of Kinesiology and the Department of African American Diaspora Studies.
IU Contemporary Dance Program Coordinator Elizabeth Shea will premiere The Mo(u)rning, a work that pays homage to the choreographic inventions of Martha Graham, and will re-stage These Hands, which examines the complex layers of lives of women. Contemporary Dance Program faculty member Gwen Hamm will stage Interplay, a collaboration with IU musician Joseph Galvin, and Carter will present Imago, featuring an indigo-dyed installation.
Iris Rosa, professor of African American and African Diaspora studies, will stage Mothers of the Waters, which explores Yoruba water deities. Collaborative guest artists include Rowland Ricketts, of the School of Fine Arts in the College of Arts and Sciences, Ursula Kuhar from the Jacobs School of Music, and Galvin, accompanist and musical director for the IU Contemporary Dance Program.
The restaging of Graham's work was funded through a grant from Dance/USA, the national service organization for professional dance, along with the National Endowment for the Arts.
Below are events related to the concert:
- Jan. 13, Martha Graham and American Modern Art Noon Talk, 12:15-1 p.m., the first floor of IU Art Museum in the Doris Steinmetz Kellett Gallery of Twentieth-Century Art. Carter will discuss Graham's collaborations with contemporary visual artists such as Isamu Noguchi and Alexander Calder. Included in the discussion will be a short demonstration of Graham's modern dance technique and the evolution of her choreographic ideas.
- Jan. 15, pre-concert talk, 6:30 p.m., the Grand Hall of the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center, located at 276 N. Jordan Ave. The talk, "Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Martha Graham" will feature Indiana University Institute for Advanced Study Fellow Constance Dinapoli and IU faculty members Shane Vogel, Department of English, Brenda Weber, Department of Gender Studies, and Iris Rosa, Department of African American and African Diaspora Studies.
- Jan. 16, pre-concert talk, 6:30 p.m., the Grand Hall of the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center. The talk, "Dancing for Martha" will feature David Hochoy, artistic director of Dance Kaleidoscope and former soloist with the Martha Graham Dance Company.
For more information visit www.indiana.edu/~kines/undergraduate/dance.shtml.
For more information on the dance concert or any of the events, contact Selene Carter at 812-856-2819 or sbcarter@indiana.edu.
