Program: Set & Reset by Trisha Brown, 3 Epitaphs by Paul Taylor, Tracer by Paul Taylor, Travelogue by Merce Cunningham
Running time: 88 minutes, including a pause and one intermission
Tickets: $38–$70
Tickets are purchased through Duke University’s Box Office.
Trisha Brown Dance Company Website: www.trishabrowncompany.org
Paul Taylor Dance Company Website: www.paultaylordance.org
Trisha Brown Dance Company will showcase the works of iconic 20th-century artists in an evening of dance featuring Rauschenberg’s visual designs, including Brown’s Set and Reset and Cunningham’s Travelogue, a comedic masterpiece rarely seen since 1979. 3 Epitaphs by Paul Taylor features a parade of faceless, gray-leotarded dancers set to early New Orleans jazz, creating a humorous yet brilliant exploration of posture and gesture. In Tracer, Paul Taylor combines refined elegance with simplicity, while Rauschenberg’s spinning bicycle wheel adds an amusing touch of anti-utilitarian art. The piece is an austere, experimental work where movement unfolds independently of the wheel’s presence, showcasing a playful yet thoughtful blend of gesture and décor.
Thursday, June 12 at 7:00 pm
Friday, June 13 at 7:30 pm *Post-Performance Discussion
Photo Credit: Alix Jeffry & Mark Hanauer
For nine decades, ADF has been a premier destination where dancers perform, create, research, and build lifelong connections, shaping them into leaders in the dance field. This program highlights the dedication of our alumni, with Trisha Brown, Paul Taylor, and Merce Cunningham all having trained at the ADF school. Merce Cunningham was an ADF student in 1939. By the following year, he was performing at Bennington as a member of Martha Graham’s company and would perform again as a solo artist in 1942 and 1950. He formed his own company in 1953, which went on to appear at ADF 16 times between 1958 and 2001. He received the second ever Samuel H. Scripps/American Dance Festival Award for Lifetime Achievement in Choreography in 1982, presented by Joan Mondale.
Paul Taylor first came to ADF as a student in 1952, taking classes under a stage apprenticeship. Less than ten years after being a student, Taylor and the Paul Taylor Dance Company appeared at ADF in 1961. He would receive the third Scripps/ADF Award in 1983, presented by Terry Sanford. This year’s appearance is the company’s 55th visit to ADF. Trisha Brown attended the ADF school four times, in 1956, 1959, 1961, and 1967. Her plea for financial assistance in a letter was rewarded with two scholarships in 1961, one in the publicity office and one in the dining room. Within five years of her last visit, her company would be performing at ADF. She received the Scripps/ADF Award, presented to her by Robert Rauschenberg, in 1994, and her company’s performance this year marks their 11th appearance at the festival.
1994 Presentation of the Scripps/ADF Award to Trisha Brown by Robert Rauschenberg
