Valerie Bettis: THE DESPERATE HEART (1943)

Choreography: Valerie Bettis 

Music: Bernardo Segal

Poem: John Malcolm Brinnin 

Dancer: Brook Notary 

Reconstructor: Mary Cory 

(from the Labonated score, by agreement with the Dance Notation Bureau, Inc.) 

VALERIE BETTIS, 1920-1982, (The Desperate Heart, 1943), began her performing career with Hanya Holm’s company in the late 1930s and presented her first choreography in a solo concert in 1942. A brilliant dancer and actress, she choreographed A Streetcar Named Desire (1952) for the Slavenska-Franklin Ballet in 1952, including works for her own company, and for musical theater, television and film. Bettis made her debut as a solo artist at Carnegie Hall in November 1941 and received great prominence for her solo The Desperate Heart in March 1943. In 1947, her Virginia Sampler was was premiered by the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo. Bettis died in New York on September 26, 1982. Earlier that year she saw a major revival of her work “A Streetcar Named Desire” by The Dance Theatre of Harlem.

Charles Weidman: LYNCHTOWN, from “ATAVISMS” (1936)

Choreography: Charles Weidman 

Music: Lehman Engel 

Co-artistic directors: Deborah Carr, Beatrice Sackler 

Dancers*: Patricia Ambrose, Lewis Bossing, Deborah Carr, Leticia Coburn, Gail Corbin, Barry Fischer, Roberto Garcia, Samantha Jarasht, Laura Naslund, Rachel Odo 

*Deborah Carr's Theatre Dance Ensemble. This dance was made possible in part by a Space Grant from the Dance Center of the 92nd St. Y and the New Dance Group Arts Center.

CHARLES WEIDMAN, 1901-1975 (Lynchtown, 1936) the foremost male modern dancer of his generation, began his career with the Denishawn Company, where he met the dance pioneer Doris Humphrey with whom he shared a passion to create a uniquely American dance for his time. Together they founded the now legendary Humphrey/Weidman Company for which Mr. Weidman created Opus 51, The Satiric Quest, Daddy Was a Fireman (1943) and A House Divided (1945). For the WPA Dance Project he performed and created Candide. Weidman was at the center of the Modern Revolution expanding technique to rediscover falling and gravity at the center of movement. After the dissolution of the Humphrey/Weidman Company, Mr. Weidman continued performing and creating works for his own company receiving The Heritage Award in 1970. An extremely versatile choreographer, his works range from the comedic Fables for Our Time (after Thurber, 1947) and Flickers to the dramatic Lynchtown, now a classic which has been performed across American and around the world. He later choreographed for New York City Opera and for various drama productions as well as teaching in New York and California. In 1960 he founded the Expression of Two Arts Theater in New York with the sculptor Mikhail Santaro where he taught and gave regular concerts until his death. Limón and Bob Fosse were among his pupils. In a 1985 reconstruction of Lynchtown, NY Times dance critic Jack Anderson called it, “…a portrait of a community consumed by violent passions.”

Pearl Primus: Excerpt from THE NEGRO SPEAKS OF RIVERS (1944)

Choreography: Pearl Primus 

Poem: Langston Hughes, spoken by Pearl Primus 

Music: Onwin Borde 

Dancer: Kim Y. Bears* 

*(Courtesy Philadanco, Joan Myers Brown, Artistic Director)

PEARL PRIMUS, 1919–1994 (The Negro Speaks of Rivers, 1944) Pearl Eileen Primus was an anthropologist, choreographer and dancer, and ambassador of African dance in the Caribbean and United States. In 1941, she received a scholarship at the New Dance Group, becoming its first African American student. Primus was greatly influenced by the faculty – Dudley, Maslow, Nona Schurman, William Bales—for their commitment to using dance as a tool for social reform. She also trained with Martha Graham, Charles Weidman, Doris Humphrey and Louis Horst, from whom she gained an eclectic foundation in modern dance. In 1974, Primus staged Fanga (1949) and The Wedding (1961), theatricalizations of African ritual dances, for the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Throughout her career, she taught at numerous universities, including NYU, Hunter College, the State University of New York at Buffalo, Howard University and Five College Dance Department. In acknowledgement of her immense impact and extraordinary vision, Primus received many honors, including an honorary doctorate from Spelman College, the Distinguished Service Award from the Association of American Anthropologists. In 1991, President Bush presented Dr. Primus with the National Medal of Arts, "for weaving together dance, choreography and anthropology to explore the themes of spirituality and heritage.

Joseph Gifford: THE FLIGHT (1947) (excerpt from "The Pursued”)

Choreography: Joseph Gifford 

Music: Traditional Spanish 

Dancers: Nicole Huggins and Jamie Huggins

JOSEPH GIFFORD, (1920-2017), (The Pursued, 1947), was a teacher, choreographer and boardmember of the New Dance Group. He was in the Humphrey/Weidman Dance Company from 1942-1945 and later assisted Doris Humphrey from 1946-1952. He formed the Joseph Gifford Dance Theater in 1951, which performed for a decade in New York City and toured the USA. Mr. Gifford was on the faculty of Boston University School of Theatre Arts from 1961-1985, retiring as Professor Emeritus. He developed movement workshops for conductors through the League of American Orchestras. He taught extensively in Europe and the Far East and actively practiced meditation and the Radiance Technique for personal growth, working with musicians on body movement awareness. Joe was the subject of a documentary on his life and career as a movement teacher for over 7 decades, The Legacy of Joseph Gifford (2015) as well as an 8 part video series which features his writings on the relationship between living a creative life and performing, The Music of Life (2017). View the film by Jill Uchiyama : https://vimeo.com/131496720

More performances to come.