Merce Cunningham Dance Company: Robert Rauschenberg Collaborations

Choreographer Merce Cunningham (1919–2009)—an incredibly influential figure in the development of modern dance who established his own company in 1953—liked to collaborate with avant-garde artists from other fields. Presented by the Cunningham Dance Foundation, this set spotlights works Cunningham created using costumes and décor by painter-sculptor Robert Rauschenberg coupled with scores by minimalist composers Morton Feldman and John Cage (Cunningham's longtime partner). The pieces included are Suite for Five (1956), Summerspace (1958), and Interscape (2000): the first two, backed with music by Cage and Feldman, respectively, are revivals of the original performances; the third, scored by Cage, features the original cast. Each of the works demonstrates Cunningham's command of unusual solo and ensemble movement, while all are performed with obvious dedication by the members of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company. Beautifully filmed by video artist Charles Atlas (another longtime collaborator of Cunningham's), who makes expert use of varying perspective, the set also features an accompanying booklet. Highly recommended. (F. Swietek)