Who is the mother of modern dance? None other than Martha Graham. Many believe that Martha Graham is one of the most influential dancers of the 20th century. Martha Graham was born in what is known as Pittsburgh, PA, on May 11, 1894 to Dr. George Graham and Jane Beers. Dr. Graham had a great deal of influence on Martha’s life. Dr. Graham specialized in nervous disorders who used physical movements to treat his patients. By the age of 14, Martha and her family moved all the way across the United States to Santa Barbara, CA. It was in California that Martha saw a Ruth St. Denis performance. She immediately fell in love with dance and begged her parents to allow her to study dance. However, being devout Presbyterians, they would not
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In order to support herself, Martha began teaching. She later went on and opened her own dance studio, the Martha Graham Company. Martha is known for her works known as the Graham Technique. The Graham Technique consisted of two main movements: strike a pose and contraction. Martha’s dances are full of emotions, theatrics and severity. She fully believes dance’s purpose is to brighten life and its struggles in every human experience with a great deal of emphasis on the inner nature of humans. She creates her dances to reflect the daily conflict between humans and society with the hopes to inspire humanity. She uses the thought that using dance as a purpose of humanity it could enlighten humans’ emotional well-being. Martha is regarded highly for the Graham Technique all over the world. She achieved the highest award possible for a civilian earning the Presidential Medal of freedom from President calling Martha “a national treasure.” “Dancer of the Century” title was awarded to her by ‘Time’ magazine in 1998 and in 1987, Martha was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the “National Museum of Dance’s Mr. & Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney”. Martha lived a long life, living until the age of 96. She continued to dance into her 70s and choreographed until her death. To this day, the Graham Technique is being taught all over the world. The dance company Martha established, The Martha Graham Company, remains one of the oldest performing dance company in the
In order to support herself, Martha began teaching. She later went on and opened her own dance studio, the Martha Graham Company. Martha is known for her works known as the Graham Technique. The Graham Technique consisted of two main movements: strike a pose and contraction. Martha’s dances are full of emotions, theatrics and severity. She fully believes dance’s purpose is to brighten life and its struggles in every human experience with a great deal of emphasis on the inner nature of humans. She creates her dances to reflect the daily conflict between humans and society with the hopes to inspire humanity. She uses the thought that using dance as a purpose of humanity it could enlighten humans’ emotional well-being. Martha is regarded highly for the Graham Technique all over the world. She achieved the highest award possible for a civilian earning the Presidential Medal of freedom from President calling Martha “a national treasure.” “Dancer of the Century” title was awarded to her by ‘Time’ magazine in 1998 and in 1987, Martha was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the “National Museum of Dance’s Mr. & Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt Whitney”. Martha lived a long life, living until the age of 96. She continued to dance into her 70s and choreographed until her death. To this day, the Graham Technique is being taught all over the world. The dance company Martha established, The Martha Graham Company, remains one of the oldest performing dance company in the