NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Martha Graham

Martha Graham (May 11, 1894 – April 1, 1991) was an American dancer and choreographer. She is regarded as one of the foremost pioneers of modern dance. Martha Graham (December 1844 - June 25, 1959) was an American supercentenarian. ... is the 131st day of the year (132nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1894 (MDCCCXCIV) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... is the 91st day of the year (92nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1991 (MCMXCI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the 1991 Gregorian calendar). ... A contemporary dancer rehearsing in a dance studio Dance generally refers to human movement either used as a form of expression or presented in a social, spiritual or performance setting. ... Choreography (also known as dance composition) is the art of making structures in which movement occurs, the term composition may also refer to the navigation or connection of these movement structures. ... Modern dance is a dance form developed in the early 20th century. ...

1 Biography
2 Quotes
3 Quotes from the Public
4 Dances
5 Early dancers
6 Later former dancers
7 See also
8 External links
9 Footnotes
10 Further reading

Biography

Early years

She was born in Allegheny, Pennsylvania, a small town that is now part of Pittsburgh. Her father George Graham was what in the Victorian era was known as an "alienist" or a doctor of nervous disorders which was an early form of psychiatry. The Grahams were strict Presbyterians. Martha's father was a third generation American of Irish descent and her mother a tenth generation descendant of Myles Standish. As a doctor's family the Graham's had a very high standard of living. Dr. Graham often brought his wife strawberries in the winter at a time when they were very hard to come by. The Graham children were looked after by a live-in Irish maid. They were a proper family at the upper echelon of Pittsburgh society. While the social status in which she was raised contributed to her level or education and her exposure to art, her family's status largely worked against her as the eldest daughter of a prominent Presbyterian doctor would be strongly discouraged from considering any career in the performing arts. Allegheny was a city in western Pennsylvania, located on the north shore of the junction of the Allegheny and Ohio Rivers, across from Pittsburgh. ... â€œPittsburghâ€ redirects here. ... Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her accession to the Throne, 20 June 1837) gave her name to the historic era The Victorian era of the United Kingdom marked the height of the British Industrial Revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ... Psychiatry is a branch of medicine dealing with the prevention, assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of the mind and mental illness. ... Presbyterianism is a form of church government which is most prevalent within the Reformed branch of Protestant Western Christianity. ... Irish population density in the United States, 1872. ... Captain Myles Standish Kt. ...

Though her father was a man of science, he was also theatrical, often playing music and singing for his children. Martha was the eldest daughter in the family and a willful child. When she got in trouble once with her father he asked about what she had done and Martha lied to him. But he read her body language and knew she was lying to him. He told her, perhaps apocryphally, "Movement never lies." It would be a catechism she would repeat throughout her life. Serge Sudeikins poster for the Bat Theatre (1922). ...

When Martha was fourteen years-old her family left the often cold and sooty Western Pennsylvania and moved to Santa Barbara, California on account of Martha's sister Mary's respiratory condition. The Graham family traveled cross-country by train. The seemingly infinite expanses of the Midwest made an impression on young Martha and would later inform such works as "Frontier". Santa Barbara was a wonderland of sunshine, oak trees and flowers, a significant contrast from where they had come, which provided a strong stimulus to the Graham children. This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Nickname: Location in Santa Barbara County and the state of California Coordinates: , County Government - Mayor Marty Blum Area - City 111. ...

When Martha was sixteen years old she saw a poster for a dance performance by Ruth St. Denis in Los Angeles and she begged her father to take her. He complied. In her autobiography, Blood Memory, Graham recalled that her father bought her a bouquet of violets from a Japanese flower vendor outside of the theater. The performance was a revalation to her and she decided on the spot that she would devote her life to dance. This did not go over well with her parents. The world of dance was not a proper pursuit for the daughter of an upstanding physician, let alone a Presbyterian. But something she saw on that stage in Los Angeles struck a chord within her. Graham was undaunted. Ruth St. ...

The prevailing style of dance in the early 20th century United States was an odd mixture of fledgling influences. Ballet had been well-established for centuries in Europe and translated fairly well for American audiences. But American dance also drew on a range of other styles and less formal influences including tribal dance, folk dances, burlesque, vaudeville, fantasy, acrobatics, and others. In contrast to high-brow European ballet, American dance was seen as more exotic, popular entertainment and not a form of high art. (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999...

But Martha was in the right place at the right time. It was Californian Isadora Duncan who began to redefine the concept of American dance and developed a platform upon which the art form could step beyond itself to something richer and more complex. Many of her dances had a naturalistic style, reminiscent of plants and flowers, with women dressed in gauzy, flowing dresses who pranced about the stage in bare feet. Duncan drew upon Greek Mythology for her influences. Simultaneously in California, another dance pioneer, Ruth St. Denis, worked along parallel lines, though she drew upon Asian, Egyptian, Mexican, and Native American influences. Both Duncan and St. Denis took the first steps in building the foundation of what Graham would do later. However vital their infleuneces were to Graham's development, their progress in the field was incremental whereas Graham's would be revolutionary. Isadora Duncan Isadora Duncan (May 27, 1877 â€“ September 14, 1927) was an American dancer. ... Walking barefoot Going barefoot is the practice of not wearing shoes, socks, or other foot covering. ...

As soon as Martha had completed high school she was enrolled at the Cumnock School, a junior college where she could study liberal arts as well as the arts. In 1916, at the age of twenty, Martha enrolled with the Denishawn Dance School, studying under Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn. She was told that she was too old to begin to dance and that her body did not have the correct build for it. But she persevered. Martha proved to be a quick study with an impressive attention to detail and she worked incredibly hard to train her body to great precision.

1920s

She toured with their company for years before she moved to New York City in 1923. She lived in Greenwich Village and had some success as she danced on Broadway with the Greenwich Village Follies. She was able to make an impressive sum of money but she was dissatisfied. At the age of thirty she accepted a teaching position at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York, where she directed a newly formed dance department. She enjoyed having her own students to teach but she chafed against the limits and the bureaucracy of the school. She returned to New York City and began to teach dance out of a classroom in the back of Carnegie Hall. During this time she began to choreograph some of her earliest dances. On April 18, 1926, she gave the first performance of her very own dance company. This was an important milestone for the young dancer but even she recognized her early performances as derivative of her work with Denishawn. As she continued to choreograph her dances increasingly became her own, each one pushing herself and the art form further. With early dances such as "Revolt" (1927) and "Fragments" (1928) Graham found her voice. But her breakthrough was in 1929 with "Heretic", in which Graham appeared as a sole dancer dressed in white facing a wall of opposing dancers dressed in black with a simple, stark Breton song pounded out on the piano by Louis Horst, who would go on to become a life-long collaborator. 1930's "Lamentation" saw Graham as a solo dancer on a bare stage encased in a tube of stretch jersey fabric, rocking with pain and anguish. The 1920s is a decade that is sometimes referred to as the Jazz Age or the Roaring Twenties, usually applied to America. ... New York, New York and NYC redirect here. ... The Washington Square Arch Greenwich Village (IPA pronunciation: ), also called simply the Village, is a largely residential area on the west side of downtown (southern) Manhattan in New York City named after Greenwich, London. ... For other uses of Broadway, see Broadway. ... Nickname: Motto: Rochester: Made for Living Location of Rochester in New York State Country State County Monroe Government [1] - Mayor Robert Duffy (D) Area - City 37. ... Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street. ... is the 108th day of the year (109th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1926 (MCMXXVI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Graham's early dances were not generally well-received by audiences who were not sure of what they were seeing. The works were spare, powerful and modern, devoid of the dreaminess and glamour of the works of the previous decades. But the works, many based on strong, precise movement and pelvic contractions, were charged with beauty and emotion. It was a stirring period of revolution for Graham in which she would begin to establish a new language of dance which was different from everything that preceded it and which would leave everything that came after it indelibly changed.

In the 1930s, Graham taught at Bennington College and New York University where Martha Hill directed the dance departments. In 1951, Graham was a founding member of the dance division of the Juilliard School, also directed by Martha Hill. Face The 1930s (years from 1930â€“1939) were described as an abrupt shift to more radical and conservative lifestyles, as countries were struggling to find a solution to the Great Depression, also known in Europe as the World Depression. ... Bennington College is a liberal arts college located in Bennington, Vermont. ... New York University (NYU) is a private, nonsectarian, coeducational research university in New York City. ... Martha Hill (1900â€”1995) was an influential American dance instructor. ... The Juilliard School is one of the worlds premiere performing arts conservatory located in New York City, it is informally identified as simply Juilliard, and trains in the fields of Dance, Drama, and Music. ...

A new era in dance

Photo by Yousuf Karsh, 1948

In 1936, Graham made her defining work, "Chronicle", which signalled the beginning of a new era in contemporary dance. The dance brought serious issues to the stage for the general public in a dramatic manner. Influenced by the Wall Street Crash, the Great Depression and the Spanish Civil War, it focused on depression and isolation, reflected in the dark nature of both the set and costumes. Image File history File links Martha Graham, 1948 Source: Yousuf Karsh / Library and Archives Canada Copyright: Expired Credit: Yousuf Karsh / Library and Archives Canada / PA-212251 File links The following pages link to this file: Martha Graham ... Image File history File links Martha Graham, 1948 Source: Yousuf Karsh / Library and Archives Canada Copyright: Expired Credit: Yousuf Karsh / Library and Archives Canada / PA-212251 File links The following pages link to this file: Martha Graham ... Yousuf Karsh - Self portrait Yousuf Karsh, CC (December 23, 1908 â€“ July 13, 2002) was a Canadian photographer of Armenian birth, and one of the most famous and accomplished portrait photographers of all time. ...

In 1927, the Martha Graham Center of Contemporary Dance was established. One of her students was heiress Bethsabée de Rothschild with whom she became close friends. When Rothschild moved to Israel and established the Batsheva Dance Company in 1965, Graham became the company's first director, groomed its first generation of dancers, and made works for it. Martha Graham Center of Contemporary Dance is located in New York City and is the headquarter to the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance and the Martha Graham Dance Company, which is the oldest continually performing dance company in the world. ... Baroness BethsabÃ©e de Rothschild, born September 23, 1914 in London â€“ died April 20, 1999 in Tel Aviv, Israel, was a philanthropist, a patron of dance, and member of the prominent Rothschild family. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ...

In 1948, Graham married Erick Hawkins (a principal dancer in her company). She didn't want to marry, but after eight years of living together, she decided they should. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Her largest-scale work, the evening-length Clytemnestra, was created in 1958, and features a score by the Egyptian-born composer Halim El-Dabh. Halim El-Dabh (b. ...

Graham's mother died in Santa Barbara in 1958. Her oldest friend and musical collaborator Louis Horst died in 1964. She said of Horst "His sympathy and understanding, but primarily his faith, gave me a landscape to move in. Without it, I should certainly have been lost." Graham's lighting designer Jean Rosenthal died of cancer in 1967.

Graham actually despised the term "modern dance" and preferred "contemporary dance." She thought the concept of what was "modern" was constantly changing and was thus inexact as a definition.

For a majority of her life Graham resisted the recording of her dances and would not allow them to be filmed or photographed. She believed the performances should exist only live on the stage and in no other form. At one point she even burned volumes of her diaries and notes to prevent them from being seen. There were a few notable exceptions, such as when she worked on a limited basis with still photograhers, Imogen Cunningham in the 1930s and Barbara Morgan in the 1940s. Graham considered Philippe Halsman's photographs of "Dark Meadows" the most complete photographic record of any of her dances. Halsman also photographed in the 1940s: "Letter to the World", "Cave of the Heart", "Night Journey" and "Every Soul is a Circus." In later years her thinking on the matter evolved and others convinced her to let them recreate some of what was lost. Imogen Cunningham (April 12, 1883 - June 24, 1976) was one of the best-known American female photographers. ... For other persons named Barbara Morgan, see Barbara Morgan (disambiguation). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Philippe Halsman (1906 - 1979) was a Latvian-born American photographer. ...

Graham started her career at an age that was considered late for a dancer. She was still dancing by the late 1960s, and turned increasingly to alcohol to soothe her own despair at her declining body. A younger generation who had heard of her legend went to her later performances and were confused about what all the fuss was about. Her works from this era included roles for herself which were more acted than danced and relied on the movement of the company dancing around her. Graham's love of dance was so profound that she refused to leave the stage despite critics who said she was past her prime. When the chorus of critics grew too loud, Graham finally left the stage. The 1960s decade refers to the years from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1969, inclusive. ...

In her biography Martha Agnes De Mille cites Graham's last performance as the evening of May 25, 1968 in a 'Time of Snow'. But in A Dancer's Life biographer Russell Freedman lists the year of Graham's final performance as 1969. In her 1991 autobiography Blood Memory Graham herself lists her final performance as her 1970 appearance in "Cortege of Eagles" when she was 76 years old. is the 145th day of the year (146th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1968 (MCMLXVIII) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Those who had the privilege of seeing her perform in her prime have attested to her precision, form and mesmerizing brilliance as a dancer on stage. Though she is arguably one of the most important choreographers in the history of dance (and perhaps one of the most important artists of the 20th century) she always said that she perferred to be known and remembered as a dancer. In the years that followed her departure from the stage Graham sunk into a deep depression fueled by watching from the wings as young dancers performed many of the dances she had choreographed for herself and her former husband Erick Hawkins. Graham's health declined precipitously as she abused alcohol to numb her pain. In Blood Memory she wrote: This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

"It wasn't until years after I had relinquished a ballet that I could bear to watch some else dance it. I believe in never looking back, never indulging in nostalgia, or reminiscing. Yet how can you avoid it when you look onstage and see a dancer made up to look as you did thirty years ago, dancing a ballet you created with someone you were then deeply in love with, your husband? I think that is a circle of hell Dante omitted." DANTE is also a digital audio network. ...

"[When I stopped dancing] I had lost my will to live. I stayed home alone, ate very little, and drank too much and brooded. Finally my system just gave in. I was in the hospital for a long time, much of it in a coma."

Graham not only survived her hospital stay but she rallied. In 1972 she quit drinking, returned to her studio, reorganized her company and when on to choreograph ten new ballets and many revivals. She worked until her death from pneumonia in 1991 at the age of 96. Her last completed ballet was 1990's Maple Leaf Rag.

She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1976 by President Gerald Ford (the First Lady Betty Ford had danced with Graham in her youth). The Presidential Medal of Freedom The Presidential Medal of Freedom is one of the two highest civilian awards in the United States and is bestowed by the President of the United States (the other award which is considered its equivalent is the Congressional Gold Medal, which is bestowed by an... For other persons named Gerald Ford, see Gerald Ford (disambiguation). ... This article is about the use of the term first lady internationally. ... Betty Fords official White House portrait, painted in 1977 by Felix de Cossio Elizabeth Anne Bloomer Warren Ford (born April 8, 1918) is the widow of former United States President Gerald R. Ford and was the First Lady from 1974 to 1977. ...

In 1998, Time listed her as the "Dancer of the Century" and as one of the most important people of the 20th century. Martha Graham's dance life came to a rest in 1991. Time (whose trademark is capitalized TIME) is a weekly American newsmagazine, similar to Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report. ...

Quotes

According to Agnes de Mille: "I was bewildered and worried that my entire scale of values was untrustworthy. ... I confessed that I had a burning desire to be excellent, but no faith that I could be. Martha said to me, very quietly,"

'"There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all of time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and it will be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is nor how valuable nor how it compares with other expressions. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open. You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep yourself open and aware to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open. ... No artist is pleased. [There is] no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is only a queer divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others"'

from The Life and Work of Martha Graham ^[1]

"It was [Robert Edmond] Jones who used to say to his classes, Some of you are doomed to be artists. Martha picked up this phrase and used it many times thereafter. She also borrowed from him the phrase doom-eager, which he had borrowed from Ibsen."

from The Life and Work of Martha Graham ^[2]

Quotes from the Public

"Dancer of the Century"

1998,TIME Magazine

Named as one of the Female "Icons of the Century"

1998, People Magazine

"Brilliant, young dancer"

1920, Unknown

"A National Treasure"

1976, President Gerald R. Ford

Dances

1929 - Heretic.
1930 - Lamentation.
1931 - Primitive Mysteries.
1936 - Steps in the Street.
1936- Chronicle.
1937 - Deep Song.
1940 - El Penitente.
1940 - Letter to the World. Music by Hunter Johnson.
1943 - Deaths and Entrances. Music by Hunter Johnson.
1944 - Appalachian Spring. Music by Aaron Copland.
1946 - Cave of the Heart. Music by Samuel Barber.
1947 - Errand into the Maze. Music by Gian Carlo Menotti.
1947 - Night Journey. Music by William Schuman.
1948 - Diversion of Angels. Music by Norman Dello Joio.
1950 - Judith. Music by William Schuman.
1955 - Seraphic Dialogue. Music by Norman Dello Joio.
1958 - Clytemnestra. Music by Halim El-Dabh.
1958 - Embattled Garden. Music by Carlos Surinach.
1960 - Acrobats of God. Music by Carlos Surinach.
1960 - Alcestis. Music by Vivian Fine.
1961 - One More Gaudy Night. Music by Halim El-Dabh.
1962 - A Look at Lightning. Music by Halim El-Dabh.
1962 - Phaedra.
1963 - Circe. Music by Alan Hovhaness.
1967 - Cortege of Eagles. Music by Eugene Lester.
1969 - The Archaic Hours. Music by Eugene Lester.
1973 - Myth of a Voyage. Music by Alan Hovhaness.
1975 - Lucifer. Music by Halim El-Dabh.
1978 - Frescoes.
1981 - Acts of Light.
1984 - The Rite of Spring. Music by Igor Stravinsky.
1986 - Temptations of the Moon.
1990 - Maple Leaf Rag.

Music of Hunter Johnson album cover Hunter Johnson (April 14, 1906 - August 27, 1998) was an American composer. ... Aaron Copland Aaron Copland (November 14, 1900 â€“ December 2, 1990) was an American composer of concert and film music, as well as an accomplished pianist. ... Samuel Barber, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1944 Samuel Osborne Barber II (March 9, 1910 â€“ January 23, 1981) was an American composer of classical music ranging from orchestral, to opera, choral, and piano music. ... Gian Carlo Menotti, photographed by Carl Van Vechten, 1944 Gian Carlo Menotti (July 7, 1911 â€“ February 1, 2007) was an Italian-born American composer and librettist who wrote the classic Christmas opera Amahl and the Night Visitors among about two dozen other operas intended to appeal to popular taste. ... William Howard Schuman (August 4, 1910â€“February 15, 1992) was an American composer and music administrator. ... Norman Dello Joio (born January 24, 1913) is an American composer. ... Halim El-Dabh (b. ... Carlos Surinach (b. ... Vivian Fine (28 September 1913 in Chicago, IL - 20 March 2000 in Bennington, VT) was a composer, pianist, and teacher. ... Alan Hovhaness with an Indonesian rebab Alan Hovhaness (March 8, 1911 â€“ June 21, 2000) was an American composer of Armenian and Scottish descent. ... Igor Stravinsky. ...

Early dancers

So many important dancers appeared in Graham's company that any listing involves editorial decisions that leave out deserving performers. Some lists made by scholars include:

"Graham's original girls were superb - Bessie Schonberg, Evelyn Sabin, Martha Hill, Gertrude Shurr, Anna Sokolov, Nelle Fisher, Dorothy Bird, Bonnie Bird, Sophie Maslow, May O'Donnell, Jane Dudley, Anita Alvarez, Pearl Lang - as were the second group - Yuriko, Ethel Butler, Ethel Winter, Jean Erdman, Patricia Birch, Nina Fonaroff, Matt Turney, Mary Hinkson. And the group of men - Erick Hawkins, and after him Merce Cunningham, David Campbell, John Butler, Stuart Hodes, Glen Tetley, Betrtam Ross, Paul Taylor, Mark Ryder, William Carter." ^[3] Pearl Lang is a modern dance teacher and choreographer who worked with dance legend Martha Graham. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Merce Cunningham (born April 16, 1919 in Centralia, Washington, United States) is an American dancer and choreographer. ...

Graham also taught movement classes to actors including Woody Allen. Madonna was also a pupil of Graham's in the 1980s. Woody Allen (born Allen Stewart KÃ¶nigsberg on December 1, 1935) is a three-time Academy Award-winning American film director, writer, actor, jazz musician, comedian, and playwright. ... Madonna Louise Ciccone Ritchie (born August 16, 1958), better known as simply Madonna, is a six-time Grammy[1] and one-time Golden Globe award winning American pop singer, songwriter, record and film producer, dancer, actress, author and fashion icon. ... The 1980s refers to the years from 1980 to 1989. ...

Later former dancers

Elisa Monte, Takako Asakawa, Lyndon Branaugh, Christine Dakin, Peggy Lyman, Terese Capucilli, Maxine Sherman, Joyce Herring, Jacqulyn Buglisi, Dudley Williams, Tim Wengerd, Dan Wagoner, Donlin Foreman, Peter Sparling, Pascal Rioult, Kenneth Topping, Steve Rooks and Larry White. Terese Capucilli is an American modern dancer best known for her work with the Martha Graham Dance Company. ...

External links

Time Magazine: 100 Most Important People of the Century
PBS:American Masters biography
Kennedy Centery biography
Martha Graham at the Internet Movie Database
MarthaGraham.org - Martha Graham Center of Contemporary Dance
University of Pittsburgh online text
MySpace.com/marthagrahamdancecompany - "MySpace site run by dancers of the Martha Graham Dance Company"

The Internet Movie Database (IMDb) is an online database of information about movies, actors, television shows, production crew personnel, and video games. ...

Footnotes

^ *de Mille, Agnes (1991). Martha: The Life and Work of Martha Graham. NYC: Random House, p. 264. ISBN 0-394-55643-7. de Mille preceeds the Graham quotation with: "The greatest thing she ever said to me was in 1943 after the opening of Oklahoma!, when I suddenly had unexpected, flamboyant success for a work I thought was only fairly good, after years of neglect for work I thought was fine. I was bewildered and worried that my entire scale of values was untrustworthy. I talked to Martha. I remember the conversation well. It was in a Schrafft's restaurant over a soda. I confessed that I had a burning desire to be excellent, but no faith that I could be. Martha said to me, very quietly, ... "
^ Ibid.(de Mille, 1991), p. 115
^ Ibid. (de Mille, 1991), p. 417

Schraffts was a candy and chocolate company based in Sullivan Square, Charlestown, Massachusetts. ...

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