Blending Butoh, Cunningham and Her Own Enigmatic Style: Mina Nishimura

Mina Nishimura crawls inchworm style across weathered wood panels. Then, as she cycles through a series of gestural phrases, her facial muscles transform along with her body. Wearing loose sweatpants and brightly colored sneakers, her movement is at once whimsical and structured, playful and abstract. As the five-minute film set to Miles Davis’ “Black Satin” […]

Are We Too Precious With Classic Dance Works?

Choreographer Natascha Greenwalt loves the music of Swan Lake, but she has a few problems with the ballet itself. “I don’t see this love story,” Greenwalt says. “I see—there isn’t consent.” To her, Siegfried seems predatory, Odette seems far too apologetic, and the Odette/Odile duality reinforces toxic tropes about women who are either dangerously sexy […]

How to Live-Stream Merce Cunningham's Night of 100 Solos

One night. Three cities. Seventy-five dancers. And three unique sets of 100 solos, all choreographed by Merce Cunningham. This incredible evening of dance will honor Cunningham’s 100th birthday on April 16. The Merce Cunningham Trust has teamed up with The Barbican in London, the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York City and the Center […]

A 3-D Cunningham Movie? Yes, Please!

What would it be like to view a Merce Cunningham piece from the inside? CUNNINGHAM, a new dance film utilizing 3-D video technology, will allow audiences to find out, putting them in the midst of numerous dances ranging from iconic classics such as Summerspace (1958) and RainForest (1968) to early works like Totem Ancestor (1942). […]

Crazy for Cunningham

When Robert Swinston brought his French company to New York City’s Joyce Theater last year, they were met with near euphoria. It had been more than three years since New Yorkers had seen a Merce Cunningham evening (Cunningham’s company ended its Legacy Tour in 2011), and the young French dancers of Compagnie CNDC-Angers/Robert Swinston bristled […]