‘ Michael Clark
erce ('unningham would make a wonderful zulyertisement tor the goyernment's new pensions strategy. Who better to encourage us to deter retirement than a tnan who. at 85. still leaps lrom one project to the next like a ga/elle. llis days of touring America in a VW camper yan. musician .lohn (‘age and artist Robert
Rauschenberg by his side. may be met: but
('unningham is still a dominant force in modern dance. And the 'liyents‘ he and ('age staged for almost 50 years liye on. despite (‘age‘s death in I‘NZ. .\'ow consigned to a wheelchair. and unable to demonstrate the impossibly complex steps he dreams up. (‘unningham labours under a cloud of frustration. llis mind. howeyer. is as sharp as eyer as his l‘orthcoming work. Views ()n Stage. will ably proy'e.
'l’ouring Britain for the first time. the Merce ('unningham l)ance (‘ompany will play six dates. unyeiling a different element of the work at each theatre. So while in Shellield. Views ()1: Stage will feature only choreography. each yenue that follows will incorporate music. set. lighting or costume. until the whole thing comes together for an lidinburgh world premiere. lt's hardly the
kind of innoyatiye idea that one expects
from an octogenarian. But yentures such as this have been (‘unningham's raison d’etre since he lirst began choreographing in l‘)—l4. Last year's Split . Sir/es found him throwing
a dice each alternoon to
see which combination of
costume/set/lighting/ choreography his company would perform that exciting. Music came courtesy of Radiohead. from whom he had commissioned an original score. But then. collaborating with dinosaurs has ney'er been his style. ‘lt‘s always interested tne to work with artists who deal with the ideas of the time.‘ says the dance legend. ‘Not to make something which fits into a known past lrame. but something that possibly had neyer existed bel'ore.'
I‘rom his early days dancing with Martha Graham. (‘unningham has shied away from reiny'enting the wheel. Instead he took what he had learned from his teenage ballet teacher. mixed it with (iraham's dit‘licult. lloor-based technique and created his own blend. The result became the dance equiyalent of wild lire. spreading throughout the world. crossing
MERCE CUNNINGHAM has transformed modern dance, and his influence is evident in two major upcoming performances. Now, the choreographer tells Kelly Apter, he’s building up to his own Edinburgh world premiere.
continents and generations. (‘horeographer Richard Alston. who spent two years training with (‘unningham in New York at the start ol' his career. thinks he knows why: '.-\part l'rom anything else. Merce is an absolute genius as a teacher he says he hates teaching. but hos wonderlul at it. It‘s so clear. so uncluttered that it‘s become the lingua l'ranca for dancers who want to learn skills in contemporary dance.’ Formulating a technique for dancers to t‘ollow was neyer (‘uimingham's intention: he dey iscd a new way of working purely to l'acilitate his own choreography. Bttt when Alston returned to London. his new found skills as a (‘unningham expert were in high demand. ‘I was like a sponge. I just absorbed eyerything l couldf says Alston. ‘So when I went back home. I had a ready made liying. Very l‘ew people knew that kind of work in the 7()s. and I started teaching ('unningham technique ey'ery'where.‘
Alston‘s own choreography. although tinged with ('unningham. has one lundamental dil'l'erence music. ('age and (‘unningham made a beautiful partnership. onstage and oil. but often the music and dance would be performed separately. Alston. howey'er. sees the two as symbiotic: ‘Merce and .lolm turned pc‘l'lttl‘lliillic‘c‘ on its head. and said you don‘t haye to do it in a
‘CUNNINGHAM GAVE GRAHAM TECHNIQUE LEGS AND CLASSICAL BALLET A TORSO'
particular wayf says Alston. ‘But I‘m just so completely besotted with the relationship between music and moyement. that‘s why I dance. so to remoy'e one lrom the other wouldn’t make sense to me.’ His latest creation. (iy'pyy‘ .Iliyrme. testilies to that. Set to a range ol' music. mixed by international l).ls to incorporate Balkan chant. the work is something ol a departure for Alston. ‘lt‘s actually quite liunky‘.‘ says Martin l.awrance. a dancer with Alston for ten years. l.awrance himself also injects an unusual musical choice into the company's upcoming lidinburgh programme. ('lmrge l‘eatures the guitar-heayy sounds of Steye Reich. and took l.awrance to the semi-linals ol‘ the Place l’ri/e earlier this year.
Along with most choretigraphers. Alston and l.awrance took the elements oi (‘unningham that most appealed. and created their own style. l’ormer Rambert dancers turned choreographers Michael (‘lark and Mark Baldwin did the same. The latter is now Rambert's artistic director. while (‘lark is currently rey isiting his Who work. Swamp. lior Rambert's current I'K tottr. ‘(‘unningham technique liberated a whole generation of dancers from just doing classical
ballet or just doing (iraham techniquef says Baldwin. ‘lt gaye (iraham technique legs. and E'AHL‘ L‘lélsslc‘dl thllt‘l ;t lot'so.‘ \Vltlt‘lt Ills Rambert's blend of classical and contemporary to a 'l‘. Inspired by relationships. Sui/mp was originally commissioned by Alston. when he was at the Rambert helm. lzighteen years later. Baldwin (who danced in the original productioni tell it deserx ed another airing.
‘S‘num/i has a wry rich \ocabulary. and as tar as I'm concerned. it's one ol' Michael's best pieces. it not the best] explains Baldwin. 'lt was exciting when we made it in NM», because Michael was the darling ol that time. and now we'ye got a chance to show it to a whole new generation.‘ Despite his bad boy ways. (‘lark slots into the Rambert lineage rather neatly. lts l‘oundcr. Marie Rambert. was a big adyocate ol linrico ('ecceti. the hot ballet teacher of the early lllth century. ('lark too. immersed himsell in the (’ecceti style. mixing it with the traditional training he receiy'ed at the Royal Ballet School. and the (‘unningham technique he learned at Rambert. Baldwin. for one. is keen for (’lark to build up a new relationship with Rambert: ‘I think he‘s just ama/ingly talented. and I hope Scotland gets to see a lot tnore ol' somebody w ho is arguably the best chiireographer it's ey er produced.‘
That such a mountain of creatiyity should stem lrom one man is remarkable. l)id ('unningham eyer imagine his inlluence would extend so tar. change so many liyes'.’ ‘.\'o. I don‘t think so.' he says solilly'. '81” l l'ottlttl the idea ol' tltoy emcnt so attractiye. that to keep doing only what I already knew didn't seem tlselitll to me. so I looked l'ol' another way. And I‘m glad that it's usel'ul to
others l'mjustdelightedf
Merce Cunningham Dance Company, Edinburgh Festival Theatre, Fri 29 & Sat 30 Oct; Rambert Dance Company, Edinburgh Festival Theatre, Wed 10—Fri 12 Nov; Richard Alston Dance Company, Edinburgh Festival Theatre, Tue 16 Nov.
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