A selection of videos of Appalachian Spring, danced by different generations of the Martha Graham Dance Company.
c.1947
Sometime before Merce Cunningham left the Graham Company in early 1947, a silent film was made in rehearsal or performance of Appalachian Spring danced by the original cast. Known only from excerpts for many years, the complete film has recently been discovered in the Graham archives, and it appears here matched up with the soundtrack from the 1958 film.
The Bride: Martha Graham
The Husbandman: Erick Hawkins
The Revivalist: Merce Cunningham
The Pioneering Woman: May O’Donnell
The Followers: Nina Fonoroff, Pearl Lang, Marjorie Mazia, Yuriko [Kikuchi]
1958
The 1958 film produced by Nathan Kroll, with Martha Graham dancing the role of the Bride, is the source for the stills used in the MUSA edition. It is available on DVD from Criterion and can also be found, in four segments, on YouTube. (The YouTube videos are a little jumpy.)
The Bride: Martha Graham
The Husbandman: Stuart Hodes
The Revivalist: Bertram Ross
The Pioneering Woman: Matt Turney
The Followers: Miriam Cole, Helen McGehee, Ethel Winter, Yuriko
2019
The present-day Graham Company performs the ballet at Jacob’s Pillow.
The Bride: Anne O’Donnell
The Husbandman: Lloyd Mayor
The Revivalist: Lloyd Knight
The Pioneering Woman: Natasha Diamond-Walker
The Followers: So Young An, Lauren Dalley Smith, Marzia Memoli, Anne Souder