Martha Graham said that “Movement never lies”, well, neither do a dancer’s eyes. Watching Janet Eilber’s portrayal of the all-seeing, but cursed Cassandra on the PBS version of Clytemnestra, confirmed the importance of the facial muscles, especially the eyes, in revealing one’s inner psyche onstage. Peter Sparling commented after the showing that the facial muscles are an important part of the whole neuromuscular moving self. As an example he mentioned that Martha noticed that the movement of the jaw directly correlates to the movement of the pelvis. Sometimes Graham dancers will even clench the jaw to give a certain line to the face–one aspect of the physical expression of the character.
As an audience member though, I find myself particularly drawn to the eyes, which can reveal so much. In watching “Clytemnestra” rehearsal it was obvious that company members were using their eyes in specific ways to create their different characters: Blakely’s ‘Electra’, Sadira’s ‘Cassandra’, and Katherine’s ‘Helen’ were all entrancing in different ways.
