INTERVIEW: ‘If the Dancer Dances’ preserves beauty of Merce Cunningham
Photo: If the Dancer Dances features the work of Nicholas Sciscione and Davalois Fearon as they recreate RainForest by Merce Cunningham. Photo courtesy of Monument Releasing / Provided by Emma Griffiths PR with permission.
If the Dancer Dances is a new documentary that celebrates and preserves the choreographic genius of Merce Cunningham, one of the most important dance-makers of the 20th century. By following Stephen Petronio and his company throughout their reconstruction of Cunningham’s 1968 classic RainForest, director Maia Wechsler is able to capture stunning movement, determined interpretation and beauty incarnate.
Helping Wechsler on her journey to better understand the late Cunningham is co-producer Lise Friedman.
“Lise and I met in our neighborhood in Brooklyn,” Wechsler said in a recent phone interview. “Our conversation expanded to what happens to six decades of groundbreaking work.”
Cunningham had been extremely active for his 90-year life, and when he died in 2009, his legacy continued on. In fact, this year is the centennial of his birth, and many events, including the release of If the Dancer Dances, are planned around the globe.
Wechsler relied on her co-producer because Friedman was a member of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company and knew many of the routines. They both were struck by the analogy that one can still see the past work of artists in museums, but when it comes to dance, sometimes so much can be lost. They were determined to change that and wanted to know “what does it take to bring a masterpiece back to life,” as Wechsler put it.
Petronio and his company selected RainForest for this resurrection project, and it’s a powerful piece that saw Cunningham working with artists Jasper Johns and Andy Warhol.
Friedman said all of the elements came together for this “golden situation” to document Petronio’s exploration of Cunningham’s work. They remained true to what they were trying to capture, giving the dancers space to create, experiment and learn.
“Maia and I worked intimately together,” Friedman said. “Maia had such sensitivity to the material. … We were in synergy with each other.”
Wechsler added: “I had no preconceived notions of what we would find in the studio. … We were surprised by the process. We were really trying to record, to capture what was going on.”
Petronio’s project to look back at Cunningham’s seminal work, and the dances of other postmodern choreographers, has been dubbed Bloodlines. In fact, the project continues to attract audience members, and Petronio’s company recently staged the famed choreographer’s Tread, in addition to Coverage by Rudy Perez.
Friedman and Wechsler were able to witness Bloodlines from its early days. “We were very fortunate because we were in the room at the beginning of Bloodlines,” Friedman said. “The dancers were incredibly courageous.”
Wechsler found that Petronio was immediately interested in the documentary project. “Stephen is just a wonderful, warm, welcoming man,” Wechsler said. “He welcomed us with open arms and put no restrictions on us. We knew as dancers we had to stay out of the way. … The dancers said they soon forgot about us.”
When Friedman worked with Cunningham, she was struck by his demeanor and dedication to the dance aspects of body, space and time. She said his dancers had an innate feeling of what it was like to be on stage with the choreographer’s work.
“The strength of Merce’s choreography is that it’s incredibly beautiful,” Friedman said. “As it becomes more and more distant from the source, it will change. One hopes the work will retain its integrity.”
Wechsler added: “We made a film about dance. … The point was to bring dance to people. We hope their understanding of dance will heighten, and they will seek out live dance.”
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
If the Dancer Dances, directed by Maia Wechsler, recently opened in New York City. It opens in Los Angeles May 3. Click here for more information.
