Martha graham's legacy still echoes: a dance company's centennial
One hundred years after her debut on a New York stage, Martha Graham’s revolutionary choreography continues to ignite audiences and inspire a new generation of dancers. A new documentary, We Are Our Time, premiering on PBS, offers an intimate glimpse into the Martha Graham Dance Company's enduring power, proving that her vision—and her rigorous technique—remain startlingly relevant.
A pioneer rooted in the past, eyes on the future
Graham, a figure who straddled the 20th century, wasn't merely a choreographer; she was an archaeologist of the human psyche. Her works delved into primal themes like the Oedipal complex and the creeping dread of fascism, often visualized through stark, arresting sets designed by Isamu Noguchi and later, costumes by fashion icons like Halston and Calvin Klein. Yet, despite her modernist sensibilities, she insisted on a deep connection to the past, famously writing to composer Aaron Copland, “Certain things are alive for all of us, although far in the actual past.” This sentiment, reflected in her optimistic ballet Appalachian Spring (1944), speaks to a core tenet of her Art: the enduring resonance of history.
Beyond the icon: a look inside the company
The documentary avoids the trap of simply venerating the legendary Graham, instead focusing on the company's vibrant present. Directors Peter Schnall and Cyndee Readdean spent over two years embedded with the dancers, capturing the grueling rehearsals, the camaraderie on tour buses, and the electric energy of the stage. A particularly poignant moment comes when Meryl Streep, lending her voice to Graham’s words, recounts the choreographer’s belief: “No artist is ahead of his time. He is his time; it is just that others are behind the times.”
The film expertly juxtaposes archival footage—including a split-screen comparison of Graham and Leslie Andrea Williams performing Lamentation—with scenes of contemporary dancers grappling with Graham’s demanding technique. A highlight is the emergence of Jamar Roberts, a former Alvin Ailey star, as the company’s choreographer. Roberts’s work, We the People (2024), set to the spirited music of Rhiannon Giddens, embodies Graham’s spirit of innovation. Lloyd Knight’s powerful solo in We the People—a silent descent to the ground with hands crossed behind his back—is a testament to the dancers’ physical and emotional depth.
A century of movement, a future in flux
Janet Eilber, the artistic director since 2005, is steering the company into its second century with a refreshing perspective. “We’re not making a sacred altar to Martha Graham,” she states in the film, “we’re honoring her appetite for the new.” This ethos extends to the company’s global tours, most recently to China, where Xin Ying reunited with her mother while her young daughter navigated the complexities of cultural identity. Even the company’s headquarters—currently housed on the top floor of Westbeth—are temporary, slated to relocate within a Midtown building that also boasts a pickleball court, a detail Eilber wryly notes as a potential funding strategy.
The documentary doesn’t shy away from the ephemeral nature of dance and the passage of time. As Peter London, a long-time Graham dancer and teacher, instructs, “Draw inside that sweet sacred place of your soul—that was Martha’s directive.