Martha Graham: A Dancer's Life

184 Pages·1998·19.13 MB·English

by  Russell Freedman

A DANCER'S BY RUSSELL FREEDM
LIFE
$18.00
artha Graham, the American
dancer, teacher, and choreo-
grapher, revolutionized the world of
modern dance. An electrifying perfor-
mer and a major artist of the twentieth
century, she possessed a great gift for
revealing emotion through the dances
she created, expressing beliefs and
telling stories in a way utterly new to
the world ofdance.
Newbery Medalist Russell Freed-
man documents Martha Graham's life
from her birth in Pittsburgh in 1894 to
her final dance performance at the age
ofseventy-five and her continued career
as a choreographer until her death in
1991- Graham's own recollections as
well as those of her dancers, students,
close friends, and lovers reveal her
unwavering dedication to her art despite
the difficult choices it presented.
Although Martha Graham had many
critics, her extraordinary sense of
artistry and the intensity of her pres-
ence left an impression on all who saw
her perform.
A
stunning collection of photo-
graphs, many not widely reproduced,
complements this rare look at the life of
a great American artist.
Front jacket photographs: Top left and right: Barbara Morgan;
Morgan Press, courtesy of Lloyd Morgan. Bottom left: Dance
Collection, theNewYork Public Libraryforthe Performing Arts,
Asior, Lenox, and Tilden Foundations. Bottom right: SonIn
Sunami. Dance Collection, the New York Public Library for the
Performing Arts, Astor, Lenox, and Tilden Foundation!; courtesy
nt Rciko Kopelton. Back jacket photograph: N ' ' Miiray;
DanteCollection,theNewYork Public Libraryfol
Arts, Astor, Lenox,andTilden lociml.iturns
Jackii design:Sylvia Frezzolin
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BrodartCo. Cat.#55 137001 PrintedinUSA

martha (Graham
DANCER'S
A
LIFE

MARTHA RAHAM
DANCER'S
A
LIFE
FREEDMAN
BY RUSSELL
CLARION BOOKS
NEW YORK
— —
CLARION BOOKS
a Houghton Mifflin Company imprint
215 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10003
Copyright © 1998 by Russell Freedman
Text is 12.5/17-point Garamond # 3.
Book design by Sylvia Frezzolini Severance.
All rights reserved.
For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book,
write to Permissions, Houghton Mifflin Company, 215 Park Avenue South,
New York, NY 10003.
Printed in the USA
LIBRARYOFCONGRESSCATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATIONDATA
Freedman, Russell.
Martha Graham: a dancer's life / by Russell Freedman.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 164) and index.
Summary: a photobiography ofthe American dancer, teacher, and choreographer
who was born in Pittsburgh in 1895 and who became a leading figure in the
world ofmodern dance.
ISBN 0-395-74655-8
1. Graham,—Martha—Juvenile literature. 2. Women—dancers—Unit—ed States
Biography Juvenile lirerature. 3. Choreographers United States Biography
—
Juvenile literature. 4. Modern dance Juvenile literature. [—1. Graham, Martha.
2. Dancers. 3- Choreographers. 4. Modern dance. 5. Women Biography.]
I. Title.
GV1785.G7F474 1998
792.8'028'092—dc21
[B] 97-15832
CIP
AC
987654321
CRW
10
Frontis: Martha Graham in Frontier, 1935.
Photograph by Barbara Morgan.
For Carolyn
Who
understands a dancer's life
And for Maya and Deanna, who understand Carolyn