Merce had quite a different background than most modern dancers. He was born in Centralia, Washington where he grew up studying tap, folk and ballroom dancing. He enrolled in the Cornish School of Fine and Applied Arts in Seattle in 1937. There he studied with Bonnie Bird and met John Cage, the musician he would eventually collaborate with. He went on to join Martha Graham's company in 1940 and danced with her for five years. During this time, Merce studied at The School of American Ballet, something most modern dancers never did. John Cage moved to New York and collaborated with Cunningham to produce some solos. His first solo performance was in 1944 with Cage on stage playing piano

Merce created the dance in his studio in New York. He used his standard choreographic method and used a viewfinder to help him see what the movements would look like on video. He created a 25 minute long dance utilizing 14 dancers from his company and himself. They rehearsed for four weeks before traveling to England for recording.

Cunningham's dances were not a theatrical production like the dances of Martha Graham. He felt that the dance, the music and the set all existed as separate entities. His work was based on human rhythms instead of musical rhythms. The steps were not constructed to fit music. Traditionally dances were created to a score of music. Martha Graham had composers write music specifically for her dance. Cunningham did neither; he commissioned a composer to write a piece of music that had nothing to do with the dance. The same idea was used in set design, he had no control or authority over what the music or set would look like. He believed that each artist should have free creative license. Therefore, his dancers rehearsed in silence or to him counting. Many times, the first performance was the first time the performers ever heard the music.

Because Merce studied different dance styles, this opened the magnitude of movements he created. His company's dance style is lucid and flows like ballet. He also opened his creative boundaries by choreographing for the Ballet Society, the Paris Opera Ballet and staged work for American Ballet Theatre and New York City Ballet.

Cunningham's choreographic style is what set him apart from other modern dancers. He used theories of chance while creating his choreography. With Merce, movement was the main subject matter. He removed all that was considered essential to dance. His dances contained no story line, no narrative. There was no conflict, no resolution, no climax, and no romance. He was primarily concerned with the moment itself. Simply put, the movement was important f

Some topics in this essay:
Cunningham Cage's, Martha Graham, Ballet Cunningham's, Voiceless Essay, Prime Movers, Paul Sartre, John Cage, Caplan Merce, Modern Dance, Graham Company, modern dancers, martha graham, modern dance, john cage, movement pure, cunningham's dances, wore leotards, prime movers, ideas dance, pure movement,