Merce Cunningham
In the age of conformity, Merce Cunningham has resisted the temptation to remain aligned with his peers. Cunningham has pioneered a new school of thought in dance, and has set the standard for future pioneers. He is passionate about what he does and it has been evident in his works as a dancer and a choreographer.Cunningham was born on April 16, 1919, in Centralia, Washington. At the age of twelve, Cunningham became interested in dance and started informal instruction. Upon graduation from high school, Cunningham began his formal dance instruction at the Cornish School of Fine and Applied Arts. After two years at the Cornish School, he studied at Mills College and at Bennington College; this is where he was invited to join Martha Graham's dance company in 1939. Graham was an incredible dancer who also choreographed during her career. While dancing for Graham, Cunningham began to make a name for himself in the dancing community. It was with Graham's encouragement that Cunningham started to choreograph on his own. His decision to start choreographing can be looked at as one of the most important decisions in the history of dance.With the encouragement of John Cage, a composer,
On the night of April 6, 1944, at the Humphrey Weidman Studio, Cunningham and Cage performed their first solo recital. Cunningham's new style of dance "embraced an extraordinarily wide spectrum, from natural, everyday actions such as sitting down and walking to virtuosic dance movements"(Britannica Online). Since the Renaissance Period, the center of the stage had always been the "center of gravity"(Klosty 12). This performance consisted of a 1995 work called "Windows", "Sounddance", "Occasion Piece. It was a very dim atmosphere with a soft score from Emanuel Dimas de Melo. The best spot on the floor could be anywhere at any given time. Cunningham's first performance captured Denby from the very beginning with Cunningham's amazing steps, runs, and knee bends and he described them as "brilliant in lightness and speed. In 1953, Cunningham began the Merce Cunningham Dance Company at Black Mountain College. Traditional stage space was even something that Cunningham had abandoned. Cunningham "continues to travel inquisitively across time and space by creating dances for big casts and small" (Anderson). Cage would help out in all facets of the dance company ranging from program designer to fund raiser. This dance was the first major dance where almost everything was to put together by chance. At eighty years old, Merce Cunningham continues to be on the pioneering edge of dance. "When he was actively reviewing, Edwin Denby was this country's most respected critic of the dance"(Klosty 215). Denby ended his review of Cunningham's first solo performance by saying "I have never seen a first solo recital that combined such taste, such technical finish, such originality of dance material, and so sure a manner of presentation.
Common topics in this essay:
Edwin Denby,
Merce Cunningham,
Renaissance Period,
Suite Chance,
Cunningham Cage,
Dance Company,
Melo Melo,
Online Using,
Merce Biography,
Graham Cunningham,
merce cunningham,
dance company,
cunningham dance,
modern dance,
merce cunningham dance,
cunningham dance company,
suite chance,
graham's dance company,
'choreography chance',
dance started,
cunningham cage,
cunningham's style,
solo recital,
martha graham's dance,
|
Acceptance Essays
