Dance as a Timeless Art

After attending Lori Belilove's speech and performance on the Parthenon, I began thinking deeply about dance as a timeless art. In the question and answer section, an audience member asked, "How do you keep the historical work accessible to contemporary audiences?" Belilove commented, "Isadora's work is timeless." 

Her response took my breath away. Of course, the Duncan work is timeless with its deep roots in nature and femininity, which both remain topics of current media today. I believe that Belilove holds a deep understanding of historical work that we are slowly losing today in the dance community. A strong presence in the dance community, The Martha Graham Dance Company, continues to commission new works to attract audiences to the theater. However, have they not questioned the power and essence of Graham's work? 

When I witnessed Lamentation for the first time, my body wept with the soloist. The dance community must not sacrifice history for spectacle. The community must take on the task to educate the masses. Our audiences must understand and appreciate history first and foremost. After a deep understanding, the audience can appreciate more contemporary work. For example, the commission for Lamentation Variations showcases the original solo before any of the contemporary work. The Graham Company knows the importance of chronology in this particular work. However, I believe a betrayal of Martha Graham lie within Graham Company works that do not come from her essence. 

Dance History is a rich and rebellious world that the dance community and consequently the world is losing its grip on. We must preserve the memory of the people and places that birthed us. We must go back to our Parthenon.