8 Iconic Dance History Moments—As Told Through Lego Bricks

May 17, 2017

We’re not ashamed to admit it: The Dance Magazine staff is a big bunch of dance history nerds. But we also know that, sometimes, learning about our art form’s past via textbook can feel stale. That’s why we completely lost it (in a good way) when Seet Dance, a contemporary school in Sydney, Australia, contacted us about their special take on dance history. As part of their curriculum, they recreate scenes from famous modern and contemporary works with Lego bricks.

Yes. You read that right. With Legos! Who doesn’t love Legos?

And the level of detail—from the figures’ positions to their costumes and the accompanying sets—shows a keen understanding of these iconic moments.

Browse through some of Seet Dance’s set-ups below, and put your own dance history knowledge to the test. How many do you recognize? Scroll to the bottom for the choreographer and name of each work, and links to clips of these memorable performances.

#1

All photos Courtesy Seet Dance

#2

Courtesy Seet Dance

#3

Courtesy Seet Dance

#4

Courtesy Seet Dance

#5

Courtesy Seet Dance

(Get ready for a close-up, Lego men and women. So clever!)

Courtesy Seet Dance

#6

Courtesy Seet Dance

#7

Courtesy Seet Dance

#8

Courtesy Seet Dance

How’d you do?

1. Martha Graham’s Lamentation

2. Merce Cunningham’s RainForest (with Andy Warhol’s “Silver Clouds”)

3. Pina Bausch’s Café Müller

4. Trisha Brown’s Spanish Dance

5. William Forsythe’s One Flat Thing, reproduced

6. Trisha Brown’s “Wall Walk,” from Set and Reset. This short excerpt has been part of the program Trisha Brown: In Plain Site, which places portions of Brown’s older works in unexpected locations.

7. Merce Cunningham’s Summerspace (with set and costumes by Robert Rauschenberg)

8. Yvonne Rainer’s Trio A