20th Century Dance History Study Guide

Jane Comfort

UNDERGROUND RIVER, winner of a 1998 BESSIE Award as a "risk-taking and profound theatrical tour de force," is an exploration of the rich fantasy life of a girl who appears to the outside world to be unconscious. Singing a cappella songs by Toshi Reagon and interacting with the magical visual creations of master puppeteer Basil Twist, the dancers dwell in a world of magic realism and eccentric beauty unseen by those who wish to make her "well."

Divine Tasinda

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Noh

· Noh is a classical Japanese performance that developed into its present form during the 14th and 15th centuries, which combines elements of dance, drama, music and poetry into one highly aesthetic stage art. Largely based in the cities, it is performed throughout the country by professional artists, mainly men, who have passed down the art among family members for numerous generations. · It is the "theatrical" or narrative form of theater (the closest akin to Western theatrical plays) or "classical theater" - - lots of storytelling, characters, text, etc. · Noh cannot be described as a popular art among the Japanese people as a whole. Still has followers who practice the artform. Segue to Butoh... There is a link between Japanese Noh drama and Wigman on many levels -- the crouching, stillnesses, and sharply angled movements Kabuki techniques were available to Wigman and it is likely that she was exposed to this type of movement or theater

Busby Berkely

· Worked in the Zeigfeld Follies · From 1930 - 1963, he made over 60 films · Used the camera to crete images WITH the dancers and choreographed specifically for the camera · Camera jumps to high above the dancers or uses side angles, etc to create an altogether new kind of cinematic image · The first time we see the camera being used as the choreographer to reveal the power of fim as both a creative and choreographic tool

Equipment Pieces Trisha

"Equipment Pieces" By recognizing non-traditional spaces and disregarding traditional choreographic structures, this allowed for new movements to be created and new designs to be explored This was facilitated by her work on walls, sides of buildings, rooftops, trees, etc. including floating down the Hudson River - - Raft Piece This changes the audience's 'gaze' The illusion of natural movement against the forces of gravity and weight (as though suspended in perpetual pedestrian) Usually performed without music, and no "costumes"

Rudolf von Laban

(1879 - 1958) Interest in mysticism and ritual, deep love of art and theatre Creation of "dance-plays": means of communicative expression He did not make his mark as a choreographer (not his forte) Use of pedestrian activities, gestures Movement should be expressive without the aid of emotionally-tinged music Development of principle system for analyzing movement = he concluded that all movement correlated to effort/shape (indicative of states of harmony or disharmony) He analyzed how people moved and what body parts initiated certain movements and how these corresponded to emotional intention The cube, tetrahedron, octahedron: points on these could correspond to movement origins/initiations and design to two or more points in space Rising with lightness Sinking with strength Slicing/slashing, punching Deep analysis of human movement : dance as an activity should be for ALL people Our detachment as a human race from one another was inked to urbanization/mechanization The "movement choirs": masses of people (amateur and professional) as a means of communicating a kind of communal solidarity while investigating issues of population and socialization

Mary Wigman

(1886 - 1973) Elements/themes of her work Life, death, fate and eternity Highly individualized Assembled her solos into cycles or suites, which she placed against one another in a kind of contrast: could also "excerpt" them She had an off-and-on company depending on finances Drawn to apocalyptic themes and the mystical Severe features (face, eyes, body): costumes accentuated that sense of body drama *Hexentanz (1926) Early on: was already working with the idea of the "witch" (as early as 1914) Sense of a malevolent character that crosses the boundaries of the physical and the mystical, the pagan and the earthly, ritual and ecstatic Evilness as unrestrained and naked "Beast and woman at the same time" Sense of being "earthbound": crouching, stamping, crawling, clawing Her dance ideas were leading to "a restlessness...and some kind of evil greed I felt in my hands, which pressed themselves claw like into the ground as if they had wanted to take root." Tightly structured: adds to its already sinister/sharp nature Based loosely on German myth Her use of the mask: · An investigation of the grotesque · She described the mask as "a demonic translation of her own features" · She was initially frightened by what it unleashed in her · Mask use is associated with German Expressionist painters (like Nolde) for their distortion of human figures to convey strong emotion · Remove the dancers' "real face" (or is it?)

Nora Chipaumire

(b. 1965 in what was then known as Umtali, Rhodesia, now: Mutare, Zimbabwe) "She is a product of colonial education for black native Africans - known as group B schooling. She has pursued other studies at the university of Zimbabwe (studied law) and Mills College in California (studied dance) . As African knowledge acquisition does not come with baccalaureates it is impossible to quantify what the African body holds. Chipaumire acknowledges these knowledges in addition to the western forms branded into her since 1965." Her long-term research project "nhaka," a technology-based practice and process to herartistic work, instigates and investigates the nature of black bodies and the products of their imaginations. Deals with coding and decoding cultural codes associated with black/African presence. Major works: · #PUNK 100% POP *N-GGA (verbalized as "HashtagPunk, One Hundred Percent Pop and Star N-GGA") · portrait of myself as my ​father​ (2016) · RITE RIOT (2012) · Miriam (2012)

Agnes DeMille

(1909 - 1993) Brief biographical information Born in Harlem Privileged childhood From a family of great and wealthy artists Niece of Cecil B. Granddaughter of economist Henry George Daughter of playwright William de Mille Attraction to nature from a very early age: the summer house at Merriwold Very much like Duncan and St. Denis Domineering mother ("all the movability of Gibraltar"), absent father Belief in one's "civic duty" Their passion for civil justice and noblesse oblige (like Humphrey? - - duty to society to make art as something good) Found dance: inspired by Pavlova at a young age Enrolled immediately to the ballet studio A society that saw dance differently in those days Major commercial success as a Broadway choreographer A woman of great humor and extraordinary intellect During the 1940's and 50's she was considered the most well-known choreographer in the United States She maintained a great intellect and was a prolific writer publishing several autobiographies including one on her mentor and friend Martha Graham A series of debilitating strokes beginning in 1975 and again in 1984 diminished her somewhat, but she was an extraordinarily tenacious woman Kennedy Center Honor in 1980 Her European years and early work Despite the privilege of her family status, she struggled through poverty and obscurity to find recognition as a solo choreographer (set out on her own - - very independent spirit) Europe and NYC recitals Much of her early work was pantomimic (became kind of a signature throughout her choreography) 1932: studied with Marie Rambert in London (from the Cecchetti and Russian traditions - - very "clean") Her early character dances: authentic theatricals/acting and humor because she described herself as not "a real dancer": it was also a commercial vehicle to invite the audien

Gene Kelly

(1912 - 1996) Dancer, actor, singer, director, producer, and choreographer Kelly was a major exponent of 20th century filmed dance Known for his energetic and athletic dancing style, his good looks and the likeable characters that he played on screen Dominated the Hollywood musical film from the mid 1940s until its demise in the late 1950s. Experimented with lighting, camera techniques and special effects in order to achieve true integration of dance with film, and was one of the first to use split screens, double images, live action with animation and is credited as the person who made the ballet form commercially acceptable to film audiences Clear progression in his development: from an early concentration on tap and musical comedy style to greater complexity using ballet and modern dance forms Kelly himself, refused to categorize his style: "I don't have a name for my style of dancing...It's certainly hybrid...I've borrowed from the modern dance, from the classical, and certainly from the American folk dance - tap-dancing, jitterbugging...But I have tried to develop a style which is indigenous to the environment in which I was reared." Athleticism gave his moves a distinctive broad, muscular quality: "There's a strong link between sports and dancing, and my own dancing springs from my early days as an athlete...I think dancing is a man's game and if he does it well, he does it better than a woman". Railed against what he saw as the widespread effeminacy in male dancing which, in his opinion, "tragically" stigmatized the genre, alienating boys from entering the field. Sought to break from the class conscious conventions of the 1930s and early 40s, when top hat and tails or tuxedos were the norm, by dancing in casual or everyday work clothes, so as to make his dancing more relevant to the cinema-going public: sa

Michael Kidd

(1915 - 2007) · Kidd was an innovator in what came to be known as the "integrated musical," in which dance movements are integral to the plot. · Kidd, who was strongly influenced by Charlie Chaplin and Léonide Massine, was unusually well-respected, and his judgment was granted deference by the leading dancers of his era

Jerome Robbins

(1918 - 1998) 1938 - 1940: mostly B'way dancing 1940: Joined ABT as a soloist and choreographer *Fancy Free (1944) Music by Leonard Bernstein About three sailors on shore leave Adapted later into the musical On The Town (1944) featuring a fusion of classical and modern dance combined with jazz and vernacular moves, often in the creation of sharp and witty contemporary characters By combining these forms there is the desire to devise a "new style" of moving and making dances - - combining different forms/genres What do there movements look like? Sense of nostalgia in the work The shift into more "acting" in the dancing...or is it pantomiming, like we see in a lot of de Mille's work? 1949: joined up with Balanchine at NYCB as Associate Director, creating nine new works Choreography/Technique Used lots of dancing that was popular in its day - influence of social dancing and contemporary "American folkloric" stylized dancing The double tour en l'air a la seconde Flexed feet Use of hands Lots of exaggerated use of the back (the cambree) Witty use of pantomime and gesture West Side Story (1957, film 1961) Conceived and directed it Music by Bernstein again His extraordinary work with ensembles Appropriation of styles ("Latin dancing" - - stylized salsa, merengue, mambo in "America" and "Dance at the Gym" Very reluctant to let other companies (aside from NYCB) to do his work After his death, his personal dance archive was donated to the NY Public Library for the Performing Arts (which was renamed after him)

Bob Fosse

(1927 - 1987) Musical theater choreographer and director. Won an unprecedented eight Tony Awards for choreography Took a great deal of inspiration from the "father of theatrical jazz dance," Jack Cole, as well as Jerome Robbins Said that he had perfected his technique as a performer, choreographer, and director while serving his tour of duty when he toured naval bases in the Pacific 1953: screen appearances included Give A Girl A Break, The Affairs of Dobie Gillis and Kiss Me, Kate short sequence that he choreographed in Kiss Me Kate that brought him to the attention of Broadway producers 1954: he choreographed his first musical The Pajama Game 1955: Damn Yankees - meets Gwen Verdon Fosse's jazz dance style: A stylized, cynical sexuality Inward (knocked) knees Rounded shoulders Quirky body isolations Flexed hands Use of props such as bowler hats, canes and chairs (influence of Fred Astaire) Trademark use of hats was influenced by his own self-consciousness balding and used gloves in his performances because he did not like his hands Dance routines were intense and specific, yet had a simplicity to them Examples of his signature style: "Steam Heat" from The Pajama Game and "Big Spender" from Sweet Charity, the "Rich Man's Frug" scene in "Sweet Charity" Contributed innovative ideas to the world of Broadway choreography Used the idea of subtext and gave his dancers something to think about during their numbers Used lighting to add a dramatic context to the dancing

Maurice Béjart

(1927 - 2007) · As a young dancer, he danced all over Europe with several classical ballet companies · 1960: Created the "Ballet of the 20th Century" in Brussels at the Theatre de la Monnaie (The Opera House) · The Company would become one of the most popular and widely touring companies in the world · Attracted an increasingly younger audience to ballet because of the spectacle nature of his work Choreographic invention: · "The Expressionistic Ballet Choreographer" · Things went from pure dance to text-driven spectacle · Very flamboyant, ambitious ballets · One of the first ballet choreographers to use electronic music · Picked up on the hippie era preoccupation with Eastern mysticism · Used a wide range of music to underlie his work (from Mozart to Queen) · Symphonie pour un homme seul (1955): The first ballet choreographed to "musique concrete" or recorded sounds not made from musical instruments. · Bolero (1961) to the music of Maurice Ravel: exploration of sex/sexuality, the objectification and sexualization and adoration of the soloist (sometimes a woman, sometimes a man): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rQwof50VsA 1970: Created the Mudra School, which became a major training ground for young people in the performing arts 1990's: worked extensively with French ballerina Sylvie Guillem

Tatsujimi Hijikata

(1928 - 1986) § He was founder and chief rebel against the Japanese traditional theater and Western modern dance German expressionist dance was studied in Japan pre-1950 He concluded that US dancing was not suitable for the Japanese body 1950's: He was booted from the modern dance society so he was into rebellion and fragmentation Reach back into ancient Japanese culture (kabuki dancing) to appreciate the changes that had occurred (sound familiar? German myth for solutions to contemporary disillusionment) Kinjinki: 1959, first Butoh dance (based on issues of homosexuality from Jean Genet's work) A lot of his early work was inspired by the work of Mishima: heroic and homoerotic 1960's: avant-garde movement in Japanese Dance (like in US) - - Butoh Anti-dance, anti-form Use of traditional Japanese themes and folklore Hijikata eventually went back to looking at how people in the fields moved and worked (carrying, stooping, stillness) Use of the low posture (Japan is a floor culture): center of gravity close to the earth Emphasis on the Japanese physique: flexible spine, low center of gravity, standing on the outside of the legs Created vocabulary of postures and gestures based on the Japanese physique Fascination w/the grotesque (images) Physical appearance Painted white faces Vampire-like showing of the teeth Rolling eyes Slow moving forms/shapes/bodies Shaved heads Naked performers Contorted bodies Themes Man is nature Balance of transformation Narrative of nature images The shadowy parts of the soul Exploration of the unknown or the imagined Body covered in white make-up (creation of a blank canvas) Erasing oneself to transform into nature imagery Sense of timelessness The fetal body as a model for how the body develops No fixed form, but the body always making forms Focus and non-focus

Alvin Ailey

(1931 - 1989) Brief biographical information Born in rural East Texas where people were severely segregated and solace was found inside the community of the Baptist Church Deep sense of traditional values Ritual in religion (as a guiding force in all aspects of one's life) The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is considered one of the most well-toured dance companies in the history of dance Broke form with a lot of choreographers: His company became a repository of the work of primarily black choreographers, giving black dance a new mouthpiece from which to speak Displaced Ailey as the "soloist" from which the audience should focus The evolution of the Ailey technique the African tradition is explored from a very theatrical, narrative way with strong technique that derived from Haitian/Afro-Caribbean movement via Dunham technique: The suppleness of the torso The fluidity of the spine Graham technique: the expressive/dramatic vehicle of the contraction Lester Horton technique: use of the lateral movement of the pelvis - balance - strength of legs Dunham, Horton and Graham became the foundational tools for training an Ailey dancer (Ailey School) His was the first company that required dancers to be trained in ballet and modern Narrative nature of the Ailey Repertory § Ailey would draw upon his experiences in childhood for the bulk of his early work The "narrative" of the black experience Juke joints in Blues Suite Sassy ladies of The Mooch A gospel revival in Revelations The black experience is not a mythic one, but an experiential (real) one Sense of "reclamation" of the black experience, but an "American one" unlike Dunham's more exotic forays The Ailey Dancer Sleek bodies with highly refined technique A "Black company," but it has always had a very eclectic, multi-racial group of da

Rodeo

(1942) Ballet Russes de Monte Carlo commission a piece from her reflecting a truly "American style" Became her signature work Music by Aaron Copeland 22 curtain calls at its premiere The shedding of the ballet aesthetic in the mid-century Exploration into the movements of 'cowboys' (but we have women on stage!) Riding in the saddle Masculine postures: power, strength and domination in poses Giddy up moves The "coughing": the spasm of the diaphragm as the initiator of movement The carefree quality American folklore: attempt at defining a 'vernacular' movement Appealed to the American sense of nostalgia She said about Rodeo "it was ballet dancing but they (the audience) didn't know it" Her rejection of people's constant expectations and pre-conceived notions as to how genders should be configured De Mille's ability to express different parts of the American psyche: pain, passion, humor, warmth, romance, patriotism and freedom through gestures and movement that though pantomimic, have a deeply expressive quality Rodeo along with Three Virgins and a Devil is in the repertory of ABT, which has become a huge receptacle for her work.

All That Jazz

(1979) Fosse believed that, "The time to sing is when your emotional level is too high to just speak anymore, and the time to dance is when your emotions are just too strong to only sing about how you feel."

The Nicholas Brothers

(Fayard 1914 - 2006, Harold 1921 - 2000) Considered two of the greatest tap dancers that ever lived. Brief biographical information Grew up in Philly w/musical parents They grew up seeing the vaudeville shows and imitating what it is they saw. Eventually signed to vaudeville and radio shows of their own Played the Cotton Club and eventually to a series of Hollywood films Broadway debut with Zeigfeld Follies in 1936 with a host of Broadway stars of the time (Fannie Brice, Bob Hope, Josephine Baker) Worked w/Balanchine on the Broadway production of Babes in Arms Did the nightclub circuit in addition to a slew of Hollywood films in the '30's and '40's They taught Michael Jackson, Debbie Allen and Janet Jackson all how to tap Their choreographic invention Spins, twist, flips, and tapping to jumping jazz rhythms Lots of pantomiming (early) A sense of extraordinary athleticism, acrobatics, daring and finesse in their performance Their work looks "new" - - as though it had never been done before An extraordinary looseness in their joints which translated to this kind of unique "flow" to their dancing Toured England and saw a lot of European ballet companies Impressed and absorbed much of the techniques that facilitated movement Incorporated some ballet movements into their jazz patterns Sense of balance (long balances) and line through ballet One of their signature moves was a "no-hands" splits, where they went into the splits and returned to their feet without using their hands

Yvonne Rainer

(b. 1934) Rainer embodied the radical notions of dance in the post-Romantic revivalism of the 1960's and challenged outright the notions of dance and what is permissible as "Dance" and questioned them outright. Rainer's investigation of "the everyday" was the basis for her choreography. Rainer's choreographic invention Strip movements of their expressive qualities by using: Game structure Task oriented movements Manipulation of objects Rainer's concept of the "natural" Meant "unstylized" to Rainer (Isadora: natural = of nature) A reduction of dance down to its essentials Use of objects altered both the types of movements and the manner of performance Objects removed the drama from dance performance, substituting a purposive, directed concentration The performance/theater space (Judson Church): the ridding of any connection to the "produced" No need to probe for a "deeper meaning" which was an absolute antidote for dance of the day which had been steeped in a psychological drama (which we will see) Stripping of theatrical trappings, so nobody is telling you what to think, but one does construct something for themselves (the redefinition/reconfiguration of the narrative) Suggested that if anyone can do these movements, then it is "natural?"

Matts Ek

(b. 1945 in Sweden) Born in Sweden into an artistic family (father was an actor, brother became a dancer) - mother was Birgit Cullberg, who started Sweden's first state-funded ballet company, Cullberg Ballet 1973: joined Cullberg Ballet after years of study · Company eventually became Mats Ek/Cullberg Ballet Choreographic invention: · Became well-known for re-working ballet masterpieces and "updating" them for a contemporary audience and to accommodate the new dance language/vocabulary · Extended the ballet vocabulary (like Bejart) to incorporate more physical movement, as well as the new stylistic innovations from modern dance · Fusing classical ballet with folk dance and modern dance · Famous quote: "A fairytale is like a pretty little cottage with a sign on the door saying Mined Area'" · He is our "psychological" ballet choreographer - plumbing the depths of late 20th century repression, expression and the inner psyche · Mixture of surreal imagery, humor and often, violence · Captures a lot of the "absurdity" of contemporary European Tanztheater 1982: Giselle · Giselle is presented as a simple peasant girl where the action revolves around the two poles of sexuality and death, and she is eventually sent off to a lunatic asylum 1996: Sleeping Beauty · The heroine (Princess Aurora) rebels against her parents, becomes a drug addict and enters into a world of emptiness and superficial excess

Jiri Kylian

(b. 1947 in Prague, Czech Republic) · Studied ballet in Prague and then at the Royal Ballet School (Ashton training) and Stuttgart Ballet (John Cranko) · 1973: Makes his first work with Nederlands Dans Theater · 1977: becomes artistic director · Makes over 70 works for the company · 1999: resigns as artistic director but becomes the "house choreographer" and artistic advisor Choreographic Invention: · Fusing the fleetness and precision of classical ballet with the weight and muscularity of modern dance · Seamless connection with music · Individual dancers knit into the large groups · Lyrically sculpted duets - new and interesting partnering possibilities · Lots of duets and pas de trois · Not overtly narrative · Since the mid-80's, his work has included more abstraction and surrealistic images · Use of SHAPE - Kylián sees the dancer as an expression of art. He is always exploring shape in the human body and the meaning behind shape. · Use of SPACE - Kylián is always exploring the limitations and capabilities of the performance space physically, as well as exploring the use of space in his dance. · Use of ISOLATION - The ability to focus on body parts. · Use of ENTRANCES and EXITS - Kylián's choreography often focused on how dancers entered and left a performance space. This is designed to create different impressions on the audience. · Use of CONTRAST - Kylián uses dynamics as a choreography device. Lyrical flowing movements passages are contasted with staccato-like sharp movements. · Use of HUMOUR - Kylián often uses humor in movement and gesture, as well as facial expression. His dance movements are often unpredictable due to this humor.

William Forsythe

(b. 1949, New York City) Former Artistic Director of the Frankfurt Ballet Heir apparent to the musical ballet choreography legacy of Balanchine Interested early on by modern dance, rock and musical comedy Studied at the Joffrey Ballet School, and the School of American Ballet 1970: joined the Joffrey Ballet II and later Joffrey Ballet 1973 by John Cranko to join the Stuttgart Ballet, an important center of European dance. Marcia Haydée, who succeeded Cranko after the director's death in the same year, encouraged him to choreograph During this time, William Forsythe discovered Pina Bausch, forged links with Jirí Kylian, and returned regularly to New York, where he remained in touch with intellectual and marginal movements 1980, Forsythe left the Stuttgart Ballet to pursue an independent career, making works that intrigued and often scandalized audiences - provocative themes, putting dancers in awkward poses 1984 - 2004: Appointed Artistic Director of the Frankfurt Ballet His audacious style, with its breaks and accelerations, brought new audiences to ballet 2005 - 2015: his own private company: The Forsythe Company He uses technology as a way of linking movements and finding new spatial patterns, but also occasionally adds text. Trademarks: Silkiness of the work Free-flowing arms and broken wrists Incredibly articulate partnering Geometric structures and how they are articulated through the joints In the Middle Somewhat Elevated (1987) Made on the Paris Opera Ballet His distinctive deconstructing of the language of classical ballet takes definitive shape

Penny Arcade

(b. 1950, USA) · A difficult childhood (ran away from home at an early age) and adopted the name "Penny Arcade" after an LSD trip with her mentor Jamie Andrews. · She became part of the underground arts scene emerging in the 1970's along with Andy Warhol, which explored the extreme edges of what was "allowable" on stage in terms of subject matter, performance, fashion, scenic design and music. · She is known for her comedic wit, forthright delivery, and stage presence. Her performances explore topics such as gentrification, gender/womanhood, LGBT culture, censorship, family histories, and being an outsider. · The more the political pendulum swings conservatively, Arcade instead centers the political and cultural outsider.

Kabinet K

(dance company from Belgium) · Joke Laureyns and Kwint Manshoven (artistic directors) - their backgrounds are not in dance, but in philosophy and design · Use both professional dancers and children · dances are based on concrete daily actions and small gestures interwoven with playful elements · The children contribute the movements and the dance grows from there · Children have very few pre-conceived notions and very little dance training, so there are "clean slates" · The work deals with large themes and doesn't patronize the children who are seen as intelligent/intuitive · The creation of a dance language that is contemplative, minimalistic, visual, and then switches to raw, brutal and exuberant · Typically the works are developed around a specific theme · Invisible is about "purification" (according to Kabinet K)

Art Nouveau

(highly stylized art with brilliant colors, curlicues and a celebration of the natural world) in Europe (1890 - 1914) was a physical one: artists could only render a static image of what she was creating through movement: these artists could only attempt at capturing what she was doing through artificial design

Minstrelsy

-African slave dances were adapted theatrically in The United States around 1828 in the first blackface minstrel show, in the dancing of Thomas "Daddy" Rice. In the late 19th-century minstrel shows and showboat routines, two techniques were popularized: a fast style in wooden-sole shoes, also called "buck-and-wing", exemplified by the duo of Jimmy Doyle and Harland Dixon; and soft-shoe, a smooth, leather-sole style made famous by George Primrose. -The "minstrel tradition" in American entertainment culture lasted for nearly a decade (1830 - 1920) and was incorporated into vaudeville acts. -· Are there vestiges of minstrelsy/blackface in the 21st Century and what does it look like? o We see comedians adopting blackface as both provocation and "humor" o There are vestiges of blackface in commercial J-pop and K-pop although it is hidden within other racial stereotypes.

Tap Dance

-Tap Dance, style of American theatrical dance, distinguished by percussive footwork, that marks out precise rhythmic patterns on the floor. -Sources of tap dancing Irish solo step dance English clog dance African dance movements (including gumbooting)

The Black Crook

-The Black Crook (1866): spectacle with the dancing as secondary to the plot: these did spawn an interest in "organized dancing," but not the kind of seriousness of form we see in Europe video: -Considered the prototype of modern musical - Performed 1866 at Niplos -Consisted of unrelated songs and singing -The only song of interest in the play was called tararabomdean -Final performance was on March 23, 1895

Exoticism

-The iconography of Ms. Baartman has transcended the Western mentality through the exotification of the African body, specifically that of its women. This exotification took hold in Europe for decades and is still evident in popular entertainment today

Appropriation vs. Appreciation

-the thin line between taking someone else's culture and exploiting it and using someone else's culture as an influence

Oskar Schlemmer

1888 - 1943) and the Bauhaus Bauhaus (1919 - 1933) § Strip things down (movement and the stage) to the bare essentials (not the decoration) § "Man in Space" - - the dynamic space § Not an imitation of reality, but an interest in the pastiche and the abstract § Lots of use of mask (and puppets) - - the loss of the performers identity § Patterns can be very geometric and highly imagistic

Stormy Weather

1943 the film Stormy Weather The breathtaking staircase routine No performers dared to appear in the film after their staircase number Use of weight and balance and illusion The disguising of effort Tension vs. release Elegance Fayard claims the famous splits down the staircase were "unrehearsed": what does that say about their sense of trust and skills of improvisation? Last appearance on film as a duet routine

Ecstatic Dance

Ecstatic dance · a free form of dance with the goal to achieve an ecstatic state, where the individual's awareness shifts into a more meditative and "happy" state of mind through improvised movements · Ecstatic dancing may/not be accompanied with music but there are three primary rules in ecstatic dance for purists: o No alcohol/drugs allowed (either before or during the dancing) o No talking between the participants o No judgement (of self or other participants) The ecstatic dance community is very concerned about the individual mental & physical health, which extends to the health of the planet.

Dancers/Makers from the First Nations

??? Ann Halprin (b.1920) · She was exploring the concept of the natural in the 1960's when she was considered one of the main leaders of the "west coast" style of dance · She was an especially gregarious teacher and students flocked to her classes and workshops, which disseminated her ideas about dance and the body. · She considered that the body was a "mass" (a physical body, like the Earth is a physical mass): the body was a weighted form and moved in relationship to gravity (influenced people like Trisha Brown and many contact improvisers) · The "West Coast School": foundations for using improvisation/task as a tool for exploring movement possibilities (fodder for choreography) · "Violent Contact": interrupting flow and movement full throttle (leading to contact improvisation) · She defies traditional notions of dance and extended its boundaries to address social issues, build community, foster both physical and emotional healing, and connect people to nature · Ceremony of Us: In response to the racial unrest of the 1960s, she brought together a group of all-black and a group of all-white dancers in a collaborative performance · formed the first multiracial dance company and increasingly focused on social justice themes · With her husband, the landscape architect Lawrence Halprin, she developed methods of generating collective creativity. During the late 1960s and early 70s, they led a series of workshops called "Experiments in the Environment," bringing dancers, architects, and other artists together and exploring group creativity in relation to awareness of the environment, in both rural and urban settings. Increasingly, · She was diagnosed with cancer in the early 1970s -- used dance as part of her healing process and subsequently created innovative dance programs for cancer and A

Camille A. Brown

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Justin Peck

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Denishawn (1915 - 1932)

America's first great center for modern dance, which would nurture a host of dancer/choreographers that would change the landscape of dance history: Humphrey, Weidman, and Graham. The school thrived in the 1920's. Ruth was the aesthete (not a good teacher per se, but "I can inspire like hell.") and Ted was the businessman Legacy: the trend for educating dancers in what would become known as "modern dance" Established a formal education for dance in America Elevated dance as an independent art form The school was in a rustic estate on a hilltop outside of Los Angeles (the idyllic) where students took classes in ballet, Denishawn-style (modern) dance, dance history, art, music, philosophy and non-Western dance techniques · The purpose was to educate the individual in aesthetics, thus elevating him to a noble status (and in turn, dance itself) Denishawn technique classes · Started off with stretching at the barre, which was ballet based · Center floor exercises accentuating the torso and arms · Swings, turns, releasing, looping and dropping · Infused with "Oriental/Spanish/Gypsy/Greek" movements The business of Denishawn Ruth made much of the movement and Ted booked the company Mail-order dances Brought modern dance to anyone who was willing to buy it, and in turn brought dance to more rural areas of the country Extensive touring to fund the school (15-month long Asian tour - first U.S. company to tour the Orient) Use of the vaudeville circuit (audiences and money) 1924: New York Denishawn School (and others around the country) This move helped to spur the movement of the major center for dance from California to New York, where it has remained *Denishawn was a physical/geographical location for finding and developing movement ideas and choreography - the first of its kind, really · The phy

Erasure

Erasure of black culture in America should be "reclaimed"

Bauhaus

Bauhaus (1919 - 1933) § Strip things down (movement and the stage) to the bare essentials (not the decoration) § "Man in Space" - - the dynamic space § Not an imitation of reality, but an interest in the pastiche and the abstract § Lots of use of mask (and puppets) - - the loss of the performers identity § Patterns can be very geometric and highly imagistic

Loie Fuller (1862-1928)

Brief biography · Born Marie Louise Fuller in Fullersville, IL · Came out of the "American Dance School" trend of the 1880's/90's · Began as a vaudeville dancer and actress, but went to Europe and danced with the Follies Bèrgères, among other cabaret-style shows · Paris became a launching pad for her career as a soloist Fuller's choreographic invention: Use of costuming and lighting to create a theatrical illusion The body becomes secondary to the choreographic effect She explores rhythm in her dances, but they are defined more by the movements of the costume than the action of the body Costumes with long sleeves, dyed outrageous colors which could be transformed and dilated by the change in body movements or lights reflected upon them Extremely imagistic: everything stems from "the image" rather than a clear narrative Female body transformed into butterflies, flowers, air, fire, etc. Relied more on "effect" than on "choreography" per se (something 'magical') Image vs. narrative: the essence of the Modernist tradition Fuller's discovery of contemporary technology · No longer just the costume as transportative vehicle, but the manipulation of colored lights · Her "radium dances": iridescent colors/slides projected onto her dancing body, glowing colors painted on her costumes · The "machine" becomes more central to the overall theatricality than the body · Body is displaced Fuller described her dancers as "instruments of light" as though her dancers were not merely dancing, but were in effect merely conduits of some theatrical concept. The dyes, fabrics and movement became interpretations of both the music and the emotion Fuller's art was very pre-intellectual: symbols and images, longing for simplicity and primal instincts, elemental understanding (like Isadora Duncan)

Trisha Brown (b. 1936)

Childhood in Aberdeen, WA Her studies with Ann Halprin in the summer of 1960 The "West Coast School": foundations for using improvisation/task as a tool for exploring movement possibilities (fodder for choreography) "Violent Contact": interrupting flow and movement full throttle (leading to contact improvisation) Composition exercises that emphasized "non logical" explorations of space and time "Emphasis on the invention of forms, and the use of non-evaluative criticism": get out of your own way of doing things Maximized creative potential while minimizing the value judgments choreographers usually place upon their material ("permission") A founding member with The Judson Dance Theater in 1962 and later with Grand Union in 1970, when she also formed her own company. Brown's early exploration of choreographic structures: Late 60's: the "Equipment Pieces" By recognizing non-traditional spaces and disregarding traditional choreographic structures, this allowed for new movements to be created and new designs to be explored This was facilitated by her work on walls, sides of buildings, rooftops, trees, etc. including floating down the Hudson River - - Raft Piece This changes the audience's 'gaze' The illusion of natural movement against the forces of gravity and weight (as though suspended in perpetual pedestrian) Usually performed without music, and no "costumes The technique What does gravity do to bones and how do they work against/in correlation to the pull of gravity or in opposition and how do those movement relationships create altogether new movements for choreography: invention!!! Released-based forms of techniques Early 70's: the "Accumulation Pieces" "Deep structures": correspond to an almost mathematical way of the way things stack up (logical)? The gestures strin

Twyla Tharp

Choreographed by Aquarious for Hair

Beyoncé Anne Teresa de Keersmaeke

Countdown video copied Teresa work

Ausdruckstanz

Expressive dance (not expressionism, necessarily) Expression of the raw personal feelings, as well as lyrical mood-pieces, satire, social/political commentary pieces Emphasis on the dancer's ability to shape space and control time Rejection of realism in favor of distorted lines and revelatory shapes (translation to feelings and desires) The joining together of form and content (not enough to just be emotional) Movement may have come out of an emotional basis and then sculpted into form, and performed without an emotional face Purpose: to convey the essence of people, situations, events and emotions (joy to despair) through vivid colors as well as distortions of "real life"

Nacho Duato

Duato (b. 1957 in Valencia, Spain) · Trained at Mudra, Rambert and Alvin Ailey schools · 1980: debuted with Cullberg Ballet · 1981: joined NDT and becomes resident choreographer until 1988 · 1990: appointed A.D. of Compania Nacional de Danza · at one time a very strong "ballet" company, but Duato followed the lead of Kylian and moved the choreography forward with a more contemporary feel · the company is also firmly rooted in the Spanish tradition and strives to capture that in the ballets · For choreographers like Duato, it is impossible not to embrace the new forms allowed by modern dance, but still appreciating the technical virtuosity and clarity of ballet · The foundation of choreographers like Duato will always remain in the "technique" but it becomes declassified with a move toward the contemporary · Style fuses the lyricism of Kylian with his own distinctive theatrical imagination Arenal (1988) · Evidence of: o Duato's connection to the cultural aspects of his Spanish heritage (the music) o His allegiance to Kylian (the partnering), the dramatic and personal story-telling of Alvin Ailey, and the clarity of technique (Béjart and Rambert)

The Greek Ideal

Duncan from the Greek ideal Revival of the Greek-style at this time historically (architecturally, culturally, fascination, artistically, archeologically) Inspired by the figures on vases (not balletic..."natural", not contrived) Not looking to reproduce Greek dances (use as inspiration) Concept of the human body as something worth celebrating, beautiful Greek statues exhibited a sense of "movement" even though they were static (idealization of what they represented) Reasoning by saying something is "Greek" in artistic origin granted a certain kind of artistic carte blanche to artists like Duncan because it steeped what they were doing into a kind of "high art" (something moral and noble) The "aura" of Greece was symbolic of the synthesis of art, nature and culture ("natural dancing")

Accumulation pieces

Early 70's: the "Accumulation Pieces" "Deep structures": correspond to an almost mathematical way of the way things stack up (logical)? The gestures string together in an almost hypnotic, rhythmic flow The building of a movement relationship: we see/anticipate the connections because we have been hypnotized by the sequence Accumulation (1971) with Talking (1973) plus Watermotor (1977) A piece about spontaneity, fragmentation and remembering Talking and dancing together She cuts back and forth b/w stories as she is dancing Creating movement and textual problems for herself (never the same twice) Brown adds stories about how the dance has evolved: where she interrupts it, virtuosity of the movement Accumulation of gestures, patterns Little injections of humor The "release" of gestures and movement (very joint oriented) Some of the gestures and stories coordinate into a sense of "appropriateness" She almost explains how she is making it ('A' phrase, 'B' phrase) through story and phraseology

Fred Astaire

Fred Astaire (1899 - 1987) · Made over 31 musical films · Social dance and tap dancing to the silver screen · Introduced a kind of class and sophistication to dancing on film that had not been seen before · Most famous for his partnership with Ginger Rogers

Royal Wedding

Fred Astaire and Jane Powell Movies in Technicolor!

Singin' in the Rain

Gene Kelly and Donald O'Connor "Moses Supposes" The Exuberant tap of the movie musical era

Isadora Duncan(1878 - 1927)

Her name is synonymous with the dancing body of the early 20th century. Her image has been celebrated in photographs, art and prose. Her reputation as a "modern woman" is the stuff of gossip and notoriety. She was a woman of infinite paradoxes. When we say "radical," it is in a very radical way she was doing what she was doing, though it may not appear as such today. She has emerged in many ways, as the genesis of the modern dance idiom.She is the ground zero from which all of 20th century contemporary dance originates Biographical information A complicated and extraordinary life Born in California Spent her childhood "dancing" Childhood obsession with her own body, nature and music these would be constant themes in her work throughout her life Moved to Europe where she emerged as an artist of great and controversial acclaim The great tragedies, loves, successes and crippling failures that effected her life Belief in the freedom and "liberation" of women (from clothes, politics, sex, ideologies) Aspects of her art Staunch rejection of ballet in favor of movement that would be initiated by emotion (ballet was "deforming" in its formality) Body parts should relate to one another rather than have a strict placement Purity of movement Inspiration from the rhythms of nature More concerned with feeling than with form Simple locomotive movements: running, skipping, reaching, and pantomimic gestures Bent elbows and wrists Movements derived from nature (the ocean, leaves rustling, flowers) Highly dramatic: use of static poses and pantomime, clarity of gestures, facial gestures to convey a deeper emotion translated from the music Dance as expressive of the inner emotion reflected in the entire body The body Dress reform Revelation of flesh Celebration of the bare foot Corporeal (body, physical) indulgence

Sankai Juku

Japanese butoh company founded in 1975 by Ushio Amagatsu Lots of tenets of Butoh · Bodies dabbed in white rice flower · Slow moving · Not as confrontational as traditional butoh · Use of a lot of "technical advances" in the theater (dramatic lighting, stage machinery - - the dripping sand, etc.) · Sometimes accompanied by rock or jazz music · Very Zen-like · Often some risk-taking stunts (moving down a large wall)

Petit Mort

La Petite Mort (1991) · Music: Mozart · "the little death" · The sense of a continuous flow within all of the movement - he disguises the transition · A lot of choreographic risk-taking with the partnering · The "under the arm" turn during the pas de deux

Vaudeville

Light entertainment popular in the U.S. in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It consisted of 10-15 unrelated acts featuring magicians, acrobats, comedians, trained animals, singers, and dancers. The form developed from the coarse variety shows held in the beer halls for primarily male audience. Tony Pastor established a successful " clean variety show" at his New York City theater in 1881 and influenced other managers to follow suit. By 1900 chains of vaudeville theaters around the country included Martin Beck's Orpheum Circuit, of which New York's Palace Theatre was the most famous.

Oklahoma

Oklahoma (1943) Music and lyrics by Rodgers and Hammerstein Marked an historical turning point in American Musical Theater history The first musical to incorporate choreographic numbers into its plot in a way that furthered the story "The dream ballet": a dance to express a character's inner monologue Laurey loves Curly, but afraid Judd will kill him Oklahoma led to a series of career hits in the Musical Theater · Carousel (1945) · Brigadoon (1947) - - but not the movie (mostly Gene Kelly) · Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1949) - but not the movie (Jack Cole) · Paint Your Wagon (1951)

Ted Shawn (1891 - 1972)

Ramsay Burt argues that although Shawn accomplished his goal of bringing men to the concert dance stage and achieving a kind of respectability for the dancing male figure in America, his dances were primarily about male representation in other cultures, but not America itself. Yet he claims to be working in the American Aesthetic, indeed, creating a uniquely American art form. Brief biographical information Started taking dance lessons after a debilitating injury Worked a bit in film Met Ruth St. Denis and eventually became her dance partner and husband He created about 190 dances for Denishawn (incredibly prolific) Formed "Ted Shawn and His Men Dancers" in 1933 Rehearsed them at a farm called Jacob's Pillow which would become eventually become the home of one of the most well-respected summer festivals and producing organization for dance in the United States Wrote many books including his autobiography One Thousand and One Night Stands in 1960 Kinetic Molpai (1936) Posturing/posing Music visualization: steps to the music (very musical - like they are pounding the piano with their bodies) Sense of aggression: fists, always charging at one another Protocol to the spatial order Menacing The industrial male at work (in the factories or in the fields) Shawn is always at the center of the work (a heroic figure) Uses both the ballet lexicon (classical sautés and assembles) of movement as well as a mix of some Eastern poses The movement are all very direct with very little subtlety to them A kind of fear of "softening": always a demonstration of power and strength even when the tempo is very legato Very sculptural The latent homosexual imagery in his work The semi-nude forms: reminiscent of the "physique" magazines of early and mid-century American culture (acceptable masculine images that were clearly h

Revelations Cry

Revelations(1960) Black/Negro spiritual music as its atmospheric backdrop and inspiration for movement Three sections: "Pilgrim of Sorrow" (meditation and prayer), "Take Me to the Water" (baptism), and "Move Members Move" (the sins and joys of Christian temperament, chastisement and joy) Initiations of movement deep in the center of the body The strained and stretched muscles accentuating the length and strength of the body A kind of religious journey from baptism ("Wade in the Water") to repentance ("Fix Me Jesus") Contrition ("Sinnerman") to salvation ("Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham") Cry watch video

The Nautch pieces

Secular dances that were intended to seduce Are these really about the East or are they more about Western ideas/stereotypes about the East and used to commodify Eastern culture? Sex, Art, Religion, Myth, Lore, Spectacle all in One A "total theater" as envisioned by Fuller, but inspired by dance-based rituals of Duncan Character inspires costuming, set construction (an ordered spectacle - very Petipa) St. Denis' dances are more character driven than Isadora's "pure dances" Her narrative dances were cloaked in rich costuming and exotic storytelling

Katherine Dunham (1912 - 2006)

She is the great anthropologist of dance. Brief biographical information Trained at a young age in ballet and modern dance First professional dance role in Ruth Page's La Guiablesse (1933), which was based on West Indian themes She opened a school in Chicago to help pay for her anthropological studies while at the University of Chicago Given a scholarship by the Rosenwald Foundation to study dance in the West Indies Performed some impromptu "Voodoo" dances for the board and convinced them to give her the money 1930's and 40's: extensive anthropological fieldwork in the Caribbean Worked on Cabin in the Sky on Broadway with Balanchine - led to Hollywood Success on Broadway and film Trained and influenced some of the great dancers of the modern era Lived in East St. Louis and directed a cultural center for dance and has served as a cultural ambassador for the bulk of her later life Brought dance and dance education to a lot of underserved populations A source of critical and anthropological information for dance and dance culture Forever an activist: civil rights, segregation, cultural programs in schools to foster interest in dance and theater Ailey and DTH have become repositories for her choreography and technique 1936: Dunham traveled to the Caribbean on her grant money (Trinidad, Jamaica, and especially Haiti) Purpose: to conduct anthropological research in dance for the first time This was a major achievement for anyone in the dance field, but particularly for a black woman! An intense fascination of indigenous and immigrant culture and the relationship between anthropology and dance Haiti: major caste system in place (mulattos on top) Dunham was able to transcend the caste system and male-centered Haitian dance society to a degree because of her physicality, her beauty and her sensitivity to what she w

Sweet Charity

Sweet Charity (1966) · Choreographed and directed it for Broadway, starring his wife Gwen Verdon · Later adapted into a film starring Shirley MacLaine and Chita Rivera · It feels incredible, in hindsight, that it took so long for Chita Rivera to be cast in a movie. After playing the title role during the first national tour of "Sweet Charity" in 1967, she was not entirely happy to be cast in the supporting role of Nickie for the Bob Fosse adaptation two years later. But it was something, and she even got to lead a big rooftop number ("Something Better Than This"). In this classic barnstormer, the best friends Charity (Shirley MacLaine), Helene (Paula Kelly) and Nickie dance up their dreams of escaping their current reality as taxi dancers. The number is so exhilaratingly that by the end you are convinced that absolutely nothing could stand in their way. And, of course, it's Rivera who is leading the charge.

Butoh

Tenets of Butoh (a term not coined until 1961 by Tatsumi Hijikata) An exploration of the internal landscape Steeped in religion and philosophy Japanese loss of identity post-WW II Emperor no longer supreme being The rights of the individual: encouragement to find one's artistic voice A reaction to the hierarchical rigidity/aesthetic of Kabuki Lots of tenets of Butoh · Bodies dabbed in white rice flower · Slow moving · Not as confrontational as traditional butoh · Use of a lot of "technical advances" in the theater (dramatic lighting, stage machinery - - the dripping sand, etc.) · Sometimes accompanied by rock or jazz music · Very Zen-like · Often some risk-taking stunts (moving down a large wall)

Dada

The Dadaists (initially in Switzerland) 1916 - 1922 · Sense of betrayal and disillusionment after WW I Dadaist obliterating the old and creating the new Attacked conventional standards of aesthetics and behavior and stressed absurdity and the role of unpredictability in artistic creation Combined music, movement and the multi-media into performance (lots of nonsense poems) inside the Cabaret Voltaire These tenets eventually were suffused and incorporated into the movement known as "surrealism"

Judson Dance Theater

The Judson Dance Theater and The Grand Union Radical group of "new choreographers" challenging the styles and structures of the modernists Emphasis on process rather than product Ordinary actions with ordinary objects Ushering in of the postmodern era through performances at NYC's Judson Theater in Greenwich Village (first performance on July 6, 1962) Rejection of traditional form and technique, of narrative and over theatricality Important to note that many visual artists (Robert Rauschenberg) and composers also made choreography. A very ephemeral time since not a lot of these performances were videotaped and there are few records of the actual dances (ex. Deborah Hay burned all her notes) The Grand Union was founded in 1970 by members of the Judson Dance Theater: Trisha Brown, David Gordon, Yvonne Rainer and Steve Paxton Known primarily for their reliance on improvisation for/in performance Discuss their kinds of performances: even the "non-performance"

The Grand Union

The Judson Dance Theater and The Grand Union Radical group of "new choreographers" challenging the styles and structures of the modernists Emphasis on process rather than product Ordinary actions with ordinary objects Ushering in of the postmodern era through performances at NYC's Judson Theater in Greenwich Village (first performance on July 6, 1962) Rejection of traditional form and technique, of narrative and over theatricality Important to note that many visual artists (Robert Rauschenberg) and composers also made choreography. A very ephemeral time since not a lot of these performances were videotaped and there are few records of the actual dances (ex. Deborah Hay burned all her notes) The Grand Union was founded in 1970 by members of the Judson Dance Theater: Trisha Brown, David Gordon, Yvonne Rainer and Steve Paxton Known primarily for their reliance on improvisation for/in performance Discuss their kinds of performances: even the "non-performance"

Tanztheater/DanceTheater

The capabilities of the theatre · Bertolt Brecht: "theatre of experience" · Tangibility of the theatrical experience to have an exotic communication w/audience · Direct confrontation with the audience - very "in your face" · Exploitation of all things in the theatre (design, dramaturgy, acting techniques, narrative) · Emphasis on improvisation/collaboration · From this is created new gestures, sequences, dialogues, questions · Broadens the concept of "choreography" What is "dance theatre"? A physical and artistic revolt against classical ballet, which is "provincial, formalistic and obsessed with beauty as the ultimate prize" Rejection of the "harmoniousness and aesthetics of dance" opting for expressionism of movement instead

Modernism

The turn of the 20th century: an era of profound ideological and cultural change Ushering in of the era of modernism, specifically in Europe where Americans were finding their inspiration in art, music, philosophy and the theater. An age of intense artistic exploration Post-industrial age, café intellectual Movement to urban locations Electric lights; rigging Embracing the new discoveries rather than shunning them Sense of optimism in American society

Ruth St. Denis (1878 - 1968)

The woman was ruled by her devotion to the spectacular...the sensual world where the dancing body was an exotic, mystical thing. She was the first choreographer to bring modern dance to the masses of the United States. Through what was considered then "mass media" (the traveling theater/vaudeville show circuit), St. Denis would dance her "new kinds of dance" and inspire a revolution in dance teaching and a choreographic design devoted to elevating modern dance in American culture. Brief biographical information Childhood fascination with the sensual world (Duncanesque) St. Denis developed a long relationship to the vaudeville stage: a "kick (or skirt) dancer" from 1899 - 1904 Stage director David Belasco and the "sainting" of St. Denis "Give the audience what they want mentality" of Belasco · A beautiful woman who was highly sexualized, though she has somewhat of a fear of the sexual act · Much of her movement vocabulary was steeped in the teachings of Delsartian movement St. Denis was inspired by the exotic (introduction to "Orientalism" in dance) Inspired by Sadi Yaco in Paris The legendary cigarette ad Long-time fascination with Egypt and India, which led her to conduct major anthropological research on her subjects wherever she was (esp. in Berlin) The elevation of the female character to a noble state (not like ballet, however): empowered American fascination with orientalism in the turn of the century The exotic seen as a kind of "ideal" - - the "Other" The Midway exploits: exotic fantasies for the common man Liberation of the repressed sexuality of Americans Issues! · Her anthropological work was not "field work" at the beginning · The pros and cons of cultural appropriation St. Denis' choreographic invention The need to express the exotic through movement Costumin

Aesthetic Transformation

Viewer seeing something and having their own interpretation (gaze) Physical object is transformed by the viewing Image vs. narrative: interest in creating "the image"

Performance Art

While the terms 'performance' and 'performance art' only became widely used in the 1970s, the history of performance in the visual arts is often traced back to futurist productions and dada cabarets of the 1910s. Throughout the twentieth century performance was often seen as a non-traditional way of making art. Live-ness, physical movement and impermanence offered artists alternatives to the static permanence of painting and sculpture. In the post-war period performance became aligned with conceptual art, because of its often-immaterial nature. Now an accepted part of the visual art world, the term has since been used to also describe film, video, photographic and installation-based artworks through which the actions of artists, performers or the audience are conveyed. More recently, performance has been understood as a way of engaging directly with social reality, the specifics of space and the politics of identity. In 2016, theorist Jonah Westerman remarked 'performance is not (and never was) a medium, not something that an artwork can be but rather a set of questions and concerns about how art relates to people and the wider social world'." Performance Art resulted from a mixture of different artistic forms (among others): · A reaction to very dogmatic ways of making and performing dance, theater, music and visual art · Socio-political upheaval globally · The "happenings" of the 1960's · Tanztheater/Dancetheater in Germany and Europe · Pop Art and Spoken Word Poetry in the USA

Peeping Tom

With For Rent (A Louer), Peeping Tom takes you on a journey through thought. Generated by that moment of boredom when our thoughts suddenly escape and flee to a parallel world. It is this thread that runs throughout reality. This universe of memories, of future intentions, of fears, dreams or nightmares, constantly spoilt by reality. It is also a walk on the edge of a cliff, the dance of a tightrope walker on this red thread between the feeling of possessing something and immediately losing it, the feeling of balance before falling into the void. Everything is ephemeral because everything can be taken away again from one day to the next: a flat, our personal objects, a job, a person or even a life.

No Manifesto"

Yvonne Rainer's infamous "'No' Manifesto": "No to spectacle no to virtuosity no to transformations and magic and make-believe no to glamour and transcendency of the star image no to the heroic no to the anti-heroic no to trash imagery no to involvement of performer or spectator no to style no to camp no to seduction of spectator by the wiles of the performer no to eccentricity no to moving or being moved." A summation of her frustration with the psychological and narrative preoccupation of dance and theater at the time A veritable 'call to arms' for artists to deconstruct their personal notions about what is dance, as well as established conventions for what we have come to accept as viable for performance

Sarah "Saartje" Baartman

b. 1770's in Dutch southwestern Africa - d. 1815 in Paris) -Became known as the "Hottentot Venus" (Hottentots were name the Dutch colonists gave the Khoi native people of southwestern Africa - now part of South Africa) -She was one of two women brought to Europe from the Dutch colony in southwest Africa after Dutch farmers took over her family's land -Originally she was brought to England and Ireland (against her will, obviously) as part of a "freak show "because of her large buttocks In 1814, she was brought to France and was "exhibited" in private salons and eventually to the general(paying) public, and often with a collar around her neck or in a wooden cage - She became an emblematic image of "savage Africa" and her image is associate with the West's excessive exploitation of women based on race -The iconography of Ms. Baartman has transcended the Western mentality through the exotification ofthe African body, specifically that of its women. This exotification took hold in Europe for decades andis still evident in popular entertainment today.

Dimitris Papaioannou

b.1964, Greece) · Started out working as a comic book and graphic novel illustrator/painter/publisher, and then became a choreographer/director whose work blends theatrical elements, movements, lights, and décor. · His early dance training in the 1980's in both Athens, Greece, and New York City was a mixture of classical, modern dance, and postmodern forms. When he decided to work full-time as a choreographer, his interests were in large scale (evening-length) productions, where he would choreograph, direct, and design the lights and sets. This led to opportunities to choreograph the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004, as well as many operas. Influences on/aspects of his work: · His experiences as a gay man in Greece · The nuances of the human body, especially the male nude form · Ideas of "total theater" (very Pina Bausch) where he has a hand in all aspects of the visual presentation · Simplicity, interaction with real materials, and silence — musically-composed silence · He sees his work as a "visual meditation" He became the first artist to create a new, full-length work for Tanztheater Wuppertal/Pina Bausch (following her death) - this links him heavily to aspects of tanztheater.

Kabuki Theater

§ A purely Japanese art form created in a high energy era of Japanese society § Originated in "street theater" (performed in brothels and tea houses, but gained legitimacy as a theatrical art form in the 17/18th century when it was performed in theaters § A deeply expressionistic way of moving and translating narrative Popular themes: § Lovers caught between social obligation (only way out is suicide) § Unifying quality in death The white face: · Erase the actor · Men playing female roles Attendants helping actors change costume in full view of the audience (becomes part of the theatrical spectacle) The delicacy of the gesture, its subtlety, small movements close to the body, the use of the kimono, closeness to the ground

Use of the mask

· An investigation of the grotesque · She described the mask as "a demonic translation of her own features" · She was initially frightened by what it unleashed in her · Mask use is associated with German Expressionist painters (like Nolde) for their distortion of human figures to convey strong emotion · Remove the dancers' "real face" (or is it?)

Ohad Naharin (b. 1952, Israel)

· From a dance family, but did not dance until he was in his early 20's. · Went to Juilliard and ABT in NYC in the mid-1970;s and then joined the Martha Graham Dance Co., as well as making his own work · Returned to Israel in the late 1980's Batsheva Dance Company · Founded by Martha Graham in Tel Aviv, Israel in the mid-1960's and did mostly works featuring her technique until the 1980's. · Naharin was appointed Artistic Director of the company in 1990 · Company tours worldwide and is considered one of the most celebrated modern dance companies working today Gaga · This is the dance "technique" created by Naharin as a way of finding more creative expression in his own movement vocabulary, as well as creating a technique that could serve as a framework for training the dancers of the Batsheva Co. · Naharin developed this movement language after he experienced a particularly painful back injury · There is a lot of improvisation and somatic (mind-body connection) imagery to help facilitate individual movement choices and emphasize sensation as opposed to appearance · Classes are completely directed by a teacher who uses imagery throughout the class, which has very few (if any) pauses · Students are given a framework to explore movement as opposed to fixed steps or precise exercises · Development and encouragement of a performer's movement expressivity by focusing attention on specific body regions. · Mirrors are avoided in Gaga training to facilitate movement so students/performer can "feel" the movement vs. watching themselves do the movement, although kinesthetic suggestions are added throughout the class (grounding the sitz bones, feeling the feet, dropping the weight, etc.) · Students are encouraged to find the "pleasure" in the movement as opposed to precise details · There is also

Set and Reset (1983)

· Music by Laurie Anderson, Set and costumes by Robert Rauschenberg The intricacies of the moving body Sense of collision and reverberation Relationships seem to happen coincidentally There is a random/casual nature to the movement sequences Canons and unisons seem to appear virtually out of nowhere Highly nuanced Full of interruptions and collisions, but they are not hard or aggressive The distillation of gestures into corresponding movements One dancer "catching" the other dancer's phrase to establish an interestingly odd rhythm or flow

Eun Me Ahn

· The almost improvisational way Eun Me is so free/wild with her distorted and violent movements gives the audience a sense that they are feeling something along with her - a very integrated experience. There is also a rejection of realism in favor of distorted lines and revelatory shapes (translating to feelings and desires) like what von Laban did. There are also themes of angst and death here (Wigman-esque). There is a sense of rawness with Eun Me's solo complimented by the driving punk band behind her, the red lights and the overall feel of anarchy in it. · DanceTheater/tanztheater: Ahn certainly blended the multi-elements of the theater's capability from the music to the extravagant use of color throughout. She uses the full capability of the stage devices. She is also being very random with her use of props and lighting and music choices (punk, rock n' roll) which feel thrown together but it gives an overall feeling of anarchy and destruction, at the same time that it feels powerful and deliberate. · Butoh: Evidence use of the low posture, flexible spine, low center of gravity, standing on the outside of the legs/feet. Her fascination w/the grotesque (images where she is twirling the hammers or eating the plastic lizards) and the horrific - the solo looks almost apocalyptic. Her physical appearance is very Butoh-esque: the painted face and body, vampire-like showing of the teeth, rolling eyes, shaved head, naked torso. She contorts her body in painful shapes but injects moments of distilled and/or slow movements throughout the solo. · This is not a feminist piece just because it is a woman dancing (that logic would mean that any female solo is a feminist statement, which is not true). This is a feminist piece because it actively attacks patriarchal forms of dance making. Also, Butoh is a highly male

Gaga

· This is the dance "technique" created by Naharin as a way of finding more creative expression in his own movement vocabulary, as well as creating a technique that could serve as a framework for training the dancers of the Batsheva Co. · Naharin developed this movement language after he experienced a particularly painful back injury · There is a lot of improvisation and somatic (mind-body connection) imagery to help facilitate individual movement choices and emphasize sensation as opposed to appearance · Classes are completely directed by a teacher who uses imagery throughout the class, which has very few (if any) pauses · Students are given a framework to explore movement as opposed to fixed steps or precise exercises · Development and encouragement of a performer's movement expressivity by focusing attention on specific body regions. · Mirrors are avoided in Gaga training to facilitate movement so students/performer can "feel" the movement vs. watching themselves do the movement, although kinesthetic suggestions are added throughout the class (grounding the sitz bones, feeling the feet, dropping the weight, etc.) · Students are encouraged to find the "pleasure" in the movement as opposed to precise details · There is also a connection to musical rhythms, as well as the body's own rhythms throughout the class

Sufism

· This is the mystical branch of Islam, which emphasizes universal love, peace, acceptance of various spiritual paths and a mystical union with the divine. · Sufism is associated with the dancing of whirling dervishes, who originated in the 13th century as followers of the poet and Muslim mystic, Rumi. · Participants practice the ritual of dhikr, which involves recitation of devotional Islamic prayer · This dhikr is coupled with physical exertions of movement, specifically dancing and whirling, in order to reach a state assumed by outsiders to be one of "ecstatic trances" A description of the dervishishing: "In the symbolism of the Sema ritual, the semazen's camel's hair hat (sikke) represents the tombstone of the ego; his wide, white skirt (tennure) represents the ego's shroud. By removing his black cloak (hırka), he is spiritually reborn to the truth. At the beginning of the Sema, by holding his arms crosswise, the semazen appears to represent the number one, thus testifying to god's unity. While whirling, his arms are open: his right arm is directed to the sky, ready to receive god's beneficence; his left hand, upon which his eyes are fastened, is turned toward the earth. The semazen conveys god's spiritual gift to those who are witnessing the Sema. Revolving from right to left around the heart, the semazen embraces