Martha Graham

Dan Kockott

Background

• Born in Allegheny County, PA 1894

• Athletic from young

• 1911 Ruth St. Denis

• Enrolled in Denishawn

• 1911-1919

Dancing Impact

• Picasso to painting, Stravinsky to music, frank Lloyd

Wright to architecture.

• Martha Graham Dance Company

• Contemporary dance

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHjyW6bJ8R0&featur

e=related

New York

• Graham gets known

• Established reputation

• Primitive Mysteries

• Fame rapidly spread

Career

• 1938

• Many, many dances

• Focused all on expression and tense body movement

• Won many honors for dances

• Soon known as “Picasso”

Later years and company• Still starring in her own dances at age 64

• Started to put famous ones on film

• Appalachian Spring, Night Journey

• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XmgaKGSxQVw

• Established Martha graham dance company to carry on her legacy

• Final work maple leaf rag in 1990

• Died 1991 at age 91

Political

• Lots of dances were infused with political themes

• Dance is a weapon was one of her many politically

themed dances.

• Danced for Franklin Roosevelt and received presidential

medal of freedom

diplomatic

• Received the French legion of honor

Economic

• She became wealthy and had lots of cash money

Social

• Discovered a whole new form of dancing

• First Choreographer to employ both Asian and African-

American dancers

• 20th centuries most influential dancer

Technological

• Performances broadcasted through television in the 50’s

Cultural

• Changed modern / contemporary dance as we know it today

• “mother of modern dance”

Famous quotes

• ”The body says what words cannot.”

”To learn to dance by practicing dancingor to learn to live by practicing living,

the principles are the same.”

”You are unique, and if that is not fulfilled,then something has been lost.”

”Some men have thousands of reasons whythey cannot do what they want to,

when all they need is one reason why they can.”

- Martha Graham

Key terms• Contemporary dance- a genre of concert dance (which is performed

to an audience) that employs compositional philosophy, rather than

choreography, to guide unchoreographed movement. It uses dance

techniques and methods found in ballet, modern dance and

postmodern dance

• Denishawn- founded in 1915 by Ruth St. Denis and Ted Shawn in

Los Angeles, California. The school was especially renowned for its

influence on ballet and experimental Modern dance.

Quiz

Where was Martha Graham born?

A. Canada

B. California

C. Allegheny Pennsylvania

D. Arkansas

E. Doylestown

Quiz

How old was she when she died?

A. 106

B. 59

C. 90

D. 91

E. 87

Quiz

Martha Graham is to dancing as _________

is to painting?

A. Leonardo Da Vinci

B. Michelangelo

C. Andy Warhol

D. Claude Monet

E. Pablo Picasso

Quiz

Martha received the legion of honor from what country?

A. Portugal

B. England

C. Italy

D. France

E. America

Quiz

• What was Marthas final work?

A. Appalachian spring

B. Maple leaf rag

C. Night journey

D. Dance is a weapon

E. Little mermaid