Seeing the company rehearse Clytemnestra and seeing it on DVD have really brought Graham technique and repertoire alive for me. I’ve seen many Graham works on video throughout college, but had never seen any performed live. In my first week here, I watched the company rehearse Night Journey, and I was in awe.
First of all, I never realized the costumes were green from the black and white videos I had seen of the piece. Second, the work study students and I got to help assemble the sets. But, lastly the intensity of the dancers was amazing. Seeing the company rehearse Diversions of Angels, I had the same reaction, I was almost in tears watching the dancers. And watching the company rehearse Clytemnestra, I really felt that it came alive for me. I was surprised seeing the dvd later that evening that the same intensity came across the screen.
What I’ve learned in the past weeks is that dancers have to be amazing movers and performers and have great technique, but they also have to be extremely intelligent in approaching their role. Learning Iphigenia’s name-calling from Miki and hearing the other company members talk about their roles, I am amazed by how much they think about their character–their backstory, their emotions, their movement, and how their emotions inform their movement. We are working on this in Panorama, and I think that watching the company rehearse can greatly inform our own performance.
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The Clytemnestra women’s costumes were originally black. They first changed when the ballet was filmed for color television.