How Did Martha Graham Contribute To Dance

“I wanted to begin not with characters or ideas, but with movements. I wanted significant movement. I did not want it to be beautiful or fluid. I wanted it to be fraught with inner meaning, with excitement and surge” (Martha Graham). Martha Graham is considered the inventor of modern dance, her impact on dance was staggering. Throughout her career, Graham choreographed 181 masterpiece dance compositions and many new age choreographers are challenged to be as great as Martha herself. At the time, her contributions transformed the art form, and still continue to challenge the younger and also middle aged generation of dancers. Graham’s choreography and style of dance grew from her experimentation with the elemental movements that include contracting and releasing. Her sharp, angular and direct movement in her technique were seen to be a huge …show more content…
Her performance(s) of Lamentation takes the audience through many different emotions including; grief, anger, depression and confusion. Martha’s choreography expresses many different emotions, but dependant on each individual performing this dance the emotions can be interpreted and expressed through different elements. Dancers of the current century can still connect and relate to Graham’s choreography of the contemporary style through the emotions behind their dancing and the feelings they are trying to express through the different dance elements of the performance. The body is the mobile figure and shape, felt by the dancer and seen by the audience. Throughout the choreography and performance of Lamentation Martha pushes her body to express the feelings and emotions in a clear message to the audience, so they gain a full understanding of the performance. Today, dancers can still relate to this dance through the emotion that is being