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Choreographer Cunningham secures his dance legacy
2009-06-17
NEW YORK (AFP) - Legendary choreographer Merce Cunningham, one of the towering figures of modern dance, reached the age of 90 this year still at the pinnacle of America's dance scene and firmly at the helm of his company. Now moving towards the end of his life and wheelchair bound, he is planning for his artistic legacy to continue long after his own demise. Last week his Merce Cunningham Dance Foundation, at the dancer's Greenwich Village studio, announced the "Living Legacy Plan". Drafted by the choreographer and board members, the plan aims to preserve Cunningham's artistic legacy. "My idea has always been to explore human physical movement. I attempt to teach students and dancers about my technique, but in a way that allows room for individuality," said Cunningham, describing his choreographic vision. Now he has set up a special trust tasked with overseeing the integrity of that kinetic vision once he is gone. He said he set up the Merce Cunningham Trust "because dancing is a process that never stops, and should not stop if it is to stay alive and fresh." The creation of the trust is part of a detailed program he wishes his company to proceed following his death or incapacitation. He and the company fellows have determined that after his death, there is to be a two-year world tour by his company. After the tour, his foundation will formally close and the dance company will disband, but the trust will live on to manage his works which are to be digitally preserved for posterity. Cunningham is said to be among the greatest surviving early modern dance choreographers. He was also renowned for his decades-long collaboration with the composer John Cage, with whom he worked closely until Cage's death in 1992. His eponymously named company was founded in 1953 as a laboratory of movement, open to innovation and experimentation. The choreographer's unique, some would say idiosyncratic, dance vocabulary, rooted in the here and now, incorporates every day movement into his works for the stage. At the beginning of his career, he danced with the great doyenne of American modern dance, Martha Graham, as a soloist for five years before striking out on his own and forming his own troupe. But Graham's death in 1991 at the age of 96 unleashed a long period of bitter warfare among her disciples. Cunningham's cohorts said the creation of the trust, among other benefits, will help prevent such internecine squabbling. It also will ensure that the choreographer's unique vision remains intact for future generations of dancers. "Merce's career is distinguished by a constant desire to expand creative boundaries and explore new ideas," said Trevor Carlson, executive director of the newly created Cunningham Dance Foundation. By offering a clear vision of how Cunningham's works are to be staged going forward "it offers a new model for dance companies and other artist-led organizations transitioning to a post-founder existence," Carlson said. "The Living Legacy Plan is comprehensive, multifaceted," he added "and like Merce himself, precedent-setting."
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