Anthony Tudor; Doris Humphrey Technique: The Creative Potential

Filmed just a couple of years before his death in 1987, Anthony Tudor is an interesting portrait of the dancer/choreographer who arguably revolutionized the art of ballet by enlarging the range of characters (not merely aristocrats and mythological figures) and introducing human emotion in its myriad complexity to his works. Comprised of interviews with Tudor, himself, as well as contemporaries and protégées (Agnes de Mille, Nora Kaye, Sallie Wilson, Margaret Craske, and Martha Hill), the program also features excerpts from Tudor's greatest works, including Dark Elegies, Pillar of Fire, Jardin aux Lilas, Judgment of Paris, Undertow, and his swan song, the lovely Leaves Are Fading. In fusing the ideas of modern dance with ballet, Tudor virtually redefined contemporary ballet, and watching the man working with dancers and students, one can see both a keen intelligence at work and a striking empathy with the universal human emotions of ordinary people. Doris Humphrey Technique, although containing some biographical information, is meant more as an aid to aspiring dancers. Hosted by former Humphrey dancer Ernestine Stodelle, the program offers seven studies of Humphrey techniques such as falls, leaps, successional flow, circular swings, etc. These "techniques" were created by Humphrey and her partner Charles Weidman during the late 1920s and early 1930s. Interested in the tension between the pull of gravity and the balance of standing, walking, etc. Humphrey and Weidman created a series of striking dances which incorporated their experiments. In addition to the techniques shown, the video includes reconstructions from Humphrey's Quasi-Valise, Two Ecstatic Themes, and Etude Patetico, as well as historical footage of Humphrey dancing Air For the G String in a 1934 clip. Both Anthony Tudor and Doris Humphrey Technique are recommended for larger collections emphasizing dance and ballet. (Available from: Princeton Book Company, P.O. Box 57, Pennington, NJ 08534-0057; (609) 737-8177.)