Spring is Afoot

Isadora Duncan has been dead for more than 80 years, but the modern dance that she invented – a lyrical invocation of Nature expressed through free, flowing motions, often performed barefoot – lives on. The Isadora Duncan International Institute trains teachers in the dance techniques of Duncan and traces a direct lineage back to the maestro herself: It was founded in 1977 by Maria-Theresa Duncan, one of the adopted “Isadorables” who studied at the school in Germany founded by Isadora and subsequently run by her sister. Current artistic director Jeanne Bresciani took over the reins upon Maria-Theresa’s death in 1987, and has preserved the company’s mission of keeping alive both the actual dances that Duncan choreographed and the spirit and style of her movements.

The company returns to the Kaatsbaan International Dance Center on May 14 and 15 with the performance of three dances titled Isadora in the Time of Spring. The blooming season itself will be the background for the first piece, which is choreographed by Bresciani and will be performed outdoors. (Bresciani, who also serves as the school’s director of education, noted that as part of the training program she takes her students to mountaintops, the seashore and wooded groves at sites near and far, from the Mohonk Preserve to Sicily and Greece.) The next two pieces, performed indoors, were choreographed by Duncan and will be accompanied by music by Franz Schubert.

Despite the historic interest of these dances, Bresciani said that there’s nothing at all antiquated or academic about the performances. “This dance speaks,” said the director, who has been based in High Falls for the past 25 years. “When it’s performed with tremendous aliveness, it’s as relevant or more relevant than anything else going on. It has an eternal quality.”

Bresciani said that the Duncan dances performed at Kaatsbaan incorporate elements of Greek myth, including maenads who dance “very modernistically wild.” Twenty-two dancers will perform, along with actress Arlene Sterne and guest artist Mary DeSanto-Rose. Also appearing will be the company’s first male, who was “homegrown in the Duncan world. He’s a protégé,” said Bresciani.

Bresciani said that the freeness of the forms perfectly complements the upwelling forces of the season. “There’s no such thing as a straight line. It’s like you’re rebounding from the Earth,” said Bresciani, “and yet it’s a very distinct form. A lot of the dancers are extremely highly trained. Some of them have been with me since the age of three. There’s a purity to them.”

Isadora Duncan in the Time of Spring will be performed at Kaatsbaan on Saturday, May 14 at 7:30 p.m. and on Sunday, May 15 at 2:30 p.m. Tickets are $25 reserved, with student rush tickets at the door priced at $10. Kaatsbaan is located at 120 Broadway in Tivoli. For more information about the Isadora Duncan International Institute, visit www.idii.org.