Martha Graham Dance Company celebrates 100th anniversary with a performance in Aspen

Though the Martha Graham Dance Company doesn’t officially turn 100 years old until 2026, it has so much repertoire to share with the world that it’s beginning its 100-year-anniversary, three-year celebration this year.

Tuesday, it performs at the Aspen District Theater after a long hiatus from Aspen.

“They haven’t been in Aspen for decades for many reasons,” said Jean-Philippe Malaty, executive director of Aspen Santa Fe Ballet (ASFB), which is bringing the company to the area. “We’re thrilled they agreed to come to Aspen, which is a small theater for them. On the heel of the gala, we are bringing the oldest dance company to Aspen. We like that diversity and that contrast because that’s what a well-balanced season should be.”

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Martha Graham literally defined contemporary dance as a unique American art form; before that, traditional ballet dominated the dance world. Her innovative style stemmed from focusing on the basic movements of the human form and raw emotion. Her sharp, angular, and direct movements, which some call choppy, dramatically contrasted ballet’s emphasis on flow and grace. For example, she experimented with contraction and release — something all humans experience.

“She really wanted to speak to what happens in our life — getting grounded and contraction and release. Everything starts from the pelvis in her technique. You can feel that. Everybody contracts when they cry or when they laugh really hard. For me, that’s really where I connect first to it — knowing it’s coming from a visceral, organic place. It’s coming from a place everybody can initiate from — you feel it in your body. Her work is very visceral. It feels very organic. It speaks to the human experience,” said Llyod Knight, who is performing with Martha Graham Dance Company for the 19^th year. “She takes you somewhere deep emotionally, and you have this technique you’re taking to the max.”

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Graham partnered with, and commissioned work from, leading visual artists and musicians of her day, including Aaron Copland, which the company dances to Tuesday in “Suite from Appalachian Spring.” Copland originally named the composition “Ballet for Martha,” but Graham, who choreographed the piece, humbly changed the name to “Appalachian Spring.”

In addition to influencing countless choreographers, dancers, and even actors — like Bette Davis, Kirk Douglas, and Liza Minnelli — to use the body as an emotionally expressive instrument, Graham earned the nation’s highest civilian honor, the Medal of Freedom. She created 181 dance compositions during her career and was the first dancer to perform at the White House and to act as a cultural ambassador throughout the world. TIME magazine named her the Dancer of the Century.

The internationally-acclaimed Martha Graham Dance Company is the oldest in the nation, as well as the oldest integrated dance company. But that doesn’t mean it’s stuck in the past. Today, the company both showcases Graham’s masterpieces and also premieres commissioned works by leading contemporary artists and choreographers. It challenges expectations just like Graham did.

The company’s dancers hail from around the world. They masterfully combine technical brilliance with artistic nuance. The Washington Post described them as “some of the most skilled and powerful dancers you can ever hope to see,” while the Los Angeles Times wrote: “They seem able to do anything and to make it look easy, as well as poetic.”

Tuesday’s Americana-themed program, which includes three of Graham’s masterworks and one new piece created in 2022, begins with “Errand into the Maze.” Choreographed by Graham to music by Gian Carlo Menotti, it debuted in 1947 in New York City. In it, the heroine depicts the theme of conquering inner fear as she enters a labyrinth to slay the minotaur.

“It is a beautiful, dynamic duet,” Knight said.

The current, stripped-down version was created after Hurricane Sandy damaged original sets and costumes. It is meant “to intensify our focus on the dramatic, physical journey of the choreography itself,” according to program notes.

“Dark Meadow Suite” features highlights from Graham’s much longer work, “Dark Meadow.” Though the latter premiered in 1946, the suite wasn’t created until 2016, when it debuted in Washington D.C. The unison dancing and partnering showcase some of Graham’s most architectural, ritualistic and profound creations, according to the company’s website.

“They are clearly inspired by Graham’s love of the rituals of the natives of the American Southwest and Mexico, which she observed as a young woman,” the website states.

The abstract work, set to music created by Mexican composer Carlos Chavez, features dancers often working in counterpoint to the score using foot stomps and other body percussion effects. It explores life’s journey and the search for connection with self and community.

“It’s a beautiful showcase of the human experience of discovering yourself as a woman or man and discovering each other,” Knight said.

After intermission, “Appalachian Spring Suite” showcases one of Graham’s most iconic works, which premiered in 1944 in Washington D.C. Its introductory narration borrows from Graham’s letters to Copland as she described the characters, setting and atmosphere of the Americans, which include a young couple beginning a new life by building a house with joy and prayer, a pioneering woman dreaming of the Promised Land, and a preacher who “warns about troubles in life and being rooted in American faith,” Knight said.

The evening ends with “Cave,” a high-energy work choreographed by Hofesh Shechter. Creative producer and international dance star Daniil Simkin wanted to transform dances within the techno club scene into a cathartic rave-style event designed for the stage. It premiered in 2022 at New York City Center.

“It has reflections of a party vibe,” Knight said. “(There’s) pounding music, and you just move as one, as a community. You’re taken to this height, and you go higher and higher until the whole thing just explodes.”

“‘Cave’ is a surprise because some people think that Martha Graham is dated, and they’re going to see how the Martha Graham Dance Company has (evolved),” Malaty said.

“We’re excited to bring the company to Aspen and for them to witness a full scale of (top) Graham works and also see how the company moves today and its new works and where we’re going,” Knight said. “We’re always staying true to our legacy and what she built and showcasing dancers of today. They really can do anything. We can move in new ways, and that’s exciting.”