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| postmodern dance | |
|---|---|
| Name | postmodern dance |
| Cultural origin | 1960s–1970s United States |
postmodern dance is an experimental movement form that emerged in the late 1960s and early 1970s, challenging prevailing norms established by Martha Graham's techniques and Merce Cunningham's collaborations. It reframed performance practice through interdisciplinary links with Robert Rauschenberg, John Cage, Philip Glass, Allan Kaprow and the broader Fluxus network, fostering institutional shifts at venues such as Judson Memorial Church and festivals like the Jacques d'Amboise-era New York City Center programs. The movement intersected with visual art, music, and theater via figures associated with Guggenheim Museum, MoMA PS1, and Whitney Museum of American Art.
Postmodern roots grew from reactions to the established canons of Alvin Ailey, Paul Taylor, Jose Limon, Isadora Duncan legacy and modernist institutions including School of American Ballet and The Juilliard School. Early gatherings at Judson Memorial Church connected choreographers like Yvonne Rainer, Trisha Brown, Steve Paxton, David Gordon, and Lucinda Childs with artists linked to Yayoi Kusama, Robert Morris, Dorothea Rockburne, Sol LeWitt and composers such as Steve Reich and Terry Riley. Critical frameworks drew on texts and debates involving Susan Sontag, Clement Greenberg, Roland Barthes, Theodor Adorno, and platforms like The Village Voice and Artforum; funding and presentation shifted through National Endowment for the Arts, Guggenheim Fellowship, and university programs at New York University, Rutgers University, and Cornell University.
Central figures included choreographers and institutions: Yvonne Rainer, Trisha Brown, Steve Paxton, Meredith Monk, Simone Forti, Lucinda Childs, David Gordon, Paul Taylor Dance Company (as a critical foil), Grand Union, Judson Dance Theater, Twyla Tharp, Sylvia Schlossman-affiliated practitioners, and companies like Trisha Brown Company, Merce Cunningham Dance Company, Alwin Nikolais, Mark Morris Dance Group (later dialogue), Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company, Martha Graham Dance Company (as antecedent), and regional ensembles connected to Jacob's Pillow, American Dance Festival, and Dance Theater Workshop. Collaborations involved visual artists Robert Rauschenberg, Claes Oldenburg, Bruce Nauman, and musicians John Cage, La Monte Young, Philip Glass, Liza Lim.
Practices foregrounded pedestrian movement, improvisation, chance operations, site-specificity, and task-based scores inspired by artists like Allan Kaprow and composers like John Cage and Morton Feldman. Workshop methods were shared in settings such as N.Y.U. Tisch School of the Arts, Columbia University, Bennington College, and Sarah Lawrence College. Aesthetics engaged minimalism associated with Donald Judd, Robert Morris, and choreography that paralleled writings by Rosalind Krauss and Arthur Danto. Performance strategies included contact improvisation developed by Steve Paxton and ensemble techniques explored by Trisha Brown and Yvonne Rainer; music collaborations referenced Steve Reich, Terry Riley, Philip Glass, John Adams, and sound artists tied to The Kitchen.
Notable works and presentations included pieces premiered at Judson Memorial Church and venues such as Dance Theater Workshop, Brooklyn Academy of Music, The Kitchen, Whitney Biennial, Carnegie Hall multidisciplinary events, and festivals like Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival and American Dance Festival. Landmark pieces—while avoiding singular attribution in this overview—were presented by companies associated with Trisha Brown Company, Grand Union, Merce Cunningham Dance Company, Yvonne Rainer, and Meredith Monk at programs curated by Mikhail Baryshnikov at White Oak and exhibitions at Museum of Modern Art and Guggenheim Museum. Cross-disciplinary performances involved artists from Fluxus and composers appearing on Columbia Records and at New Music America.
Training pathways evolved through university conservatories, experimental workshops, and community studios including N.Y.U. Tisch School of the Arts, The Juilliard School, Barnard College, Bennington College, Sarah Lawrence College, Purchase College SUNY, and informal labs at Judson Memorial Church and The Kitchen. Pedagogical models emphasized somatic work linked to practitioners coming from Martha Graham School backgrounds as well as alternative somatic lineages tied to Feldenkrais Method and Alexander Technique teachers. Residencies and fellowships from National Endowment for the Arts, Guggenheim Fellowship, MacArthur Fellows Program, and artist-run spaces like PS1 supported training, mentorships, and exchange with institutions such as Harvard University, Yale School of Drama, and Princeton University.
Critical reception spanned praise in outlets like The New York Times, Village Voice, and Artforum and skepticism from established critics aligned with Clement Greenberg-style modernism. Debates appeared in panels at Lincoln Center and conferences hosted by Dance/USA and College Art Association, with scrutiny of aesthetic claims by figures connected to Martha Graham and Alvin Ailey traditions. Funding controversies involved agencies such as National Endowment for the Arts and institutional gatekeeping at venues including Brooklyn Academy of Music and Carnegie Hall; scholarly critique engaged academics publishing in journals tied to Rutgers University Press and Oxford University Press.
The movement influenced subsequent generations in companies like Merce Cunningham Dance Company, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company, Mark Morris Dance Group, Judson Legacy Project, and international festivals at Sadler's Wells Theatre, Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Venice Biennale, Berlin International Festival and institutions like Tate Modern and Centre Pompidou. Contemporary choreographers trained in postmodern lineages appear in programs at New York City Ballet schools, Royal Ballet School exchanges, and university departments across United States, United Kingdom, and Europe, shaping practices seen at ImPulsTanz, Helsinki Festival, and biennials supported by European Cultural Foundation. The aesthetics continue to inform interdisciplinary collaborations with visual artists, composers, and theater makers represented in collections of Museum of Modern Art and programming at PS1.
Category:Dance