Something has already started in the ’40s. Merce Cunningham seperated dance from music, used dice to make choreography, later introduced dance with computer. In the early 1960s, postmodern dance started with a burst of experimentation by a rag-tag group of rebels called Judson Dance Theater in Greenwich Village. They broke with the expressionism of Martha Graham and the theme-and-variations structure of Doris Humphrey. They walked, they ran, they touched the earth and fell onto each other. They aligned with Minimalist artists and musicians in their wish to strip down to essentials—in fact, many of the musicians and artists made their own dances. They were all influenced by Merce Cunningham and John Cage, but developed their own styles.

Making Dances: Seven Post-Modern Choreographers
Douglas Dunn, Kenneth King, Trisha Brown, Lucinda Childs, David Gordon, Meredith Monk, Sarah Rudner.

In the early 1960’s, the world of dance was experiencing a shift and making room for free and experimental movement. With many people still considering dance to mean solely ballet and other contrived genres, the seven choreographers featured in “Making Dances” faced trials and tribulations when working in the postmodern movement. Showing audiences that dance meant truthful expression of the body as opposed to defined, labeled movements were innovators such as Merce Cunningham and Robert and Judith Dunn. The choreographers we follow in “Making Dances” discuss the inspiration of past artists and the ways in which postmodern dance found its place in the midst of cultural revolution. Through their experimentation with speech and non linear storytelling, choreographers of the postmodern movement introduced a new, breathtaking form of expression. They take us through their creative process and welcome us into the intimate rehearsal space where their concepts are brought to life.