Martha Graham Dance Company Announces 2019–20 Studio Series

The Martha Graham Dance Company announces the 2019-20 season of its popular Studio Series, which offers audiences a behind-the-scenes look at the work of the Company in the intimate setting of the Martha Graham Studio Theater. The events in the Studio Series revolve around The EVE Project, the Company's season theme celebrating female empowerment and the 100th anniversary in 2020 of women's right to vote.

Two GrahamDeconstructed events will feature Steps in the Street and Circe. These evenings offer an opportunity to view the Graham dances up-close and to hear about the artistic and historical context of their creation from Artistic Director Janet Eilber. Two NEW@Graham programs-one with Troy Schumacher and another with Andrea Miller-provide a look inside the creative process of new works being created for the Company. The Studio Series also includes a special holiday event featuring Graham 2 in Martha Graham's magical The Owl and the Pussycat, a Merce Cunningham and Martha Graham event presenting the relationship of the physical techniques each developed, and the fourth annual NEXT@Graham festival, which showcases the work of emerging choreographers. Audiences are invited to come early and enjoy a glass of wine before each event.

Single tickets for Studio Series events start at $25/$15 for students. Full-Season and Half-Season subscription packages are also available. Tickets and subscriptions can be purchased at www.marthagraham.org/studioseries. The Martha Graham Studio Theater is located at 55 Bethune Street (11th Floor), in Manhattan.

2019-20 Studio Series Schedule

GrahamDeconstructed: Steps in the Street

Tuesday, September 24 and Wednesday, September 25, 7pm

The Studio Series opens with Steps in the Street (1936), a stark, powerful dance for 12 women from Graham's antiwar masterwork, Chronicle. For this event, artist SoHyun Bae will create charcoal sketches of the Graham moves, which will be projected so that the audience can experience the collaboration as it happens.

NEW@Graham - New Work by Troy Schumacher

Tuesday, November 5 and Wednesday, November 6, 7pm

Learn about the creative process behind this brand-new work commissioned by Montclair/Peak Performances just one week before its world premiere. The Graham dancers will perform short excerpts of the work and choreographer Troy Schumacher and Peak Performances' Executive Director Jed Wheeler will discuss the evolution of the collaboration, which includes an original score by Augusta Read Thomas.

Graham 2 Holiday Event

Saturday, December 7, 3pm and 7pm

The Company's acclaimed junior troupe will perform Graham's rarely seen The Owl and the Pussycat. The event will feature a full performance of the work including costumes and lighting, and pieces from the set by Ming Cho Lee. At the family matinee there will be crafts, snacks, and family-friendly beverages for the younger set, as well as a chance to try some of the moves from the dance and be photographed with the dancers.

CunningGraham Technique Comparison

Featuring Graham 2 and Cunningham Workshop participants

Tuesday, February 4 and Wednesday, February 5, 7pm

Merce Cunningham began his career in Martha Graham's company. Was his new style a complete revolt from Graham or is there more in common between these two geniuses than we think? See a comparison of the two physical systems-the classroom techniques-they invented to serve their visions for the stage. The evening will include technique demonstrations and excerpts from a Cunningham work and a Graham work.

GrahamDeconstructed: Noguchi/Graham and Circe

Tuesday, February 25 and Wednesday, February 26, 7pm

A look at the newly reconstructed Circe, Graham's 1963 celebration of the goddess who turned sailors into animals. Circe, which features a sublime set by Isamu Noguchi, has not been seen onstage in over 15 years. Audience members will learn about the backstory of the work from Artistic Director Janet Eilber and will have a chance to photograph the Noguchi sets.

NEW@Graham with Andrea Miller

Tuesday, March 24 and Wednesday, March 25, 7pm

A work-in-progress showing of Andrea Miller's new work for the Company. A discussion with Miller and the dancers to follow. The piece will have its world premiere at New York City Center in April 2020.

NEXT@Graham

Tuesday, May 12 and Wednesday, May 13, 7pm

The fourth annual festival of works by emerging choreographers selected through a competitive application process. Curated by Amanda Hameline with Janet Eilber, works presented in this year's showcase will relate thematically to The EVE Project. Artists TBA.

The Martha Graham Dance Company has been a world leader in the evolving art form of modern dance since its founding in 1926. Today, the Company is embracing a new programming vision that showcases masterpieces by Graham alongside newly commissioned works by contemporary artists. With programs that offer a rich thematic narrative, the Company creates new platforms for contemporary dance and multiple points of access for audiences.

Since its inception, the Martha Graham Dance Company has received international acclaim from audiences in more than 50 countries throughout North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. The Company has performed at the Metropolitan Opera House, Carnegie Hall, the Paris Opera House, Covent Garden, and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, as well as at the base of the Great Pyramids in Egypt and in the ancient Odeon of Herodes Atticus theater on the Acropolis in Athens. In addition, the Company has also produced several award-winning films broadcast on PBS and around the world. For more information about the Company, visit www.marthagraham.org.

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