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Collection Martha Graham at the Library of Congress

C

From "Cants Magics" to "Course" (13 works)

Cants Magics
1928

Performed to music by Fédérico Mompou, Cants Magics contained two sections, "Farewell" and "Greeting." It premiered on January 20, 1928, at New York's Booth Theatre. In reviewing the concert, Billboard (February 2, 1928) noted that Graham "gave a highly interesting dance recital at the Booth Theatre…her program embracing wide variation and a new departure from the usual things which she has been known for." The review also noted that the second half of the program was marked with "psychological depression."

Cave of the Heart
1946

Performed to music by Samuel Barber, Cave of the Heart premiered on May 10, 1946, at Columbia University's McMillin Theater, New York City. Originally called Serpent Heart, the work was revised in 1947 as Cave of the Heart. Costumes were designed by Edythe Gilfond and the set was created by Isamu Noguchi. The original cast list included Graham, Erick Hawkins, Yuriko, May O'Donnell, and other members of the Martha Graham Dance Company. Harriet Johnson, writing for the New York Post (May 11, 1946) said, "'Serpent Heart' should be seen many times before it can be truly absorbed as a work of art."

Celebration
1934

Performed to music by Louis Horst, Celebration premiered on February 18, 1934, at New York's Guild Theatre. The work was danced by Graham's Group. The New York Post (November 11, 1935) noted of a later performance "It is significant that the simple athleticism of the group dance… [was received with the most genuine show of understanding and enthusiasm."

Ceremonial
1932

Performed to music by Imre Weisshaus, Ceremonial premiered on November 15, 1932, at Philadelphia's Broad Street Theatre. The solo work was danced by Martha Graham. Ceremonial was the first section of another work, Dance Songs, which premiered five days later in New York. See Dance Songs, 1932. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (November 21, 1932) noted that the work "had something so unwholesomely made about it that one can find no reason for its being."

Ceremonials
1932

Performed to music by Lehman Engle, Ceremonials was divided into three sections, "Vigil," "Song of Approach," and "Fun Dance." The work premiered on February 28, 1932, at New York's Guild Theatre and was danced by Martha Graham and Group.

NOTE: there are no documents in the collections pertaining to this dance.

Chinese Poem
1926

Performed to music by Louis Horst, Chinese Poem was danced to the first section of the 1926 work, Three Poems of the East ("On listening to a flute by moonlight"). In 1927, the work became Two Poems from the East. Another section from the 1926 version, retitled East Indian Poem, was also performed on the February 12 program, when Chinese Poem premiered at New York's Civic Repertory Theatre. This solo work was danced by Martha Graham.

In his first review of Graham, the New York Times critic John Martin commented, "The program, said to be in the nature of a farewell to Miss Graham's familiar style of dancing before she goes over whole-heartedly to the new German technique was, generally speaking, a résumé of her work for the last several seasons. It ranged from the earlier numbers, which show a strong influence of the Denishawn tradition, such as the Tangara, the Chinese and the East Indian dances, to the modernistic Revolt."

See also the entries for Three Poems of the East, November 28, 1926, and Two Poems of the East, October 16, 1927.

Chorale
1926

Performed to music by César Franck, Chorale premiered on April 18, 1926, at New York's 48thStreet Theater, Graham's first independent concert. The original cast included Graham, Thelma Biracree, Evelyn Sabin, and Betty Macdonald. The Democrat (Rochester, NY) of May 29, 1926, said the work suggested a "dark emotional mood."

Choric Dance for an Antique Greek Tragedy
1932

Choric Dance for an Antique Greek Tragedy, performed to music by Louis Horst, was choreographed by Graham for the inaugural program of New York's Radio City Music Hall on December 27, 1932. It was performed by Martha Graham and Group. See Tragic Patterns, 1933. Other artists on the program included ballerina Patricia Bowman, the Tuskegee Choir, the tap-dancing Berry Brothers, the modern German dancer Harald Kreutzberg, Ray Bolger, and the Radio City Music Hall Roxyettes.

Chorus of Youth—Companions
1932

Performed to music by Louis Horst, Chorus of Youth—Companions premiered on November 20, 1932, at New York's Guild Theatre. The solo work was danced by Martha Graham. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (November 21, 1932) noted that in this choreography "youth seems to have lost its youthfulness."

Chronicle
1936

Performed to music by Wallingford Riegger, Chronicle premiered on December 20, 1936, at New York's Guild Theatre. The work was divided into three major sections: "Dances Before Catastrophe," which included two subsections called "Spectre--1914" and Masque"; "Dances After Catastrophe," which included two subsections called Steps in the Street and Tragic Holiday--In Memoriam; and "Prelude to Action." Each section occasionally was danced as an independent work. The set was designed by Isamu Noguchi and the original production was danced by Martha Graham and Group. Dance Observer (January 1937) wrote of a later performance, "It is an ambitious undertaking, a composition on a grand scale, making enormous demands on both the soloist and her group…." The critic for the Christian Science Monitor (January 5, 1937) noted, "I found it deeply moving…and only seldom disappointing." He continued, "The technical performance of this work, by both Miss Graham and the group, leaves you gasping."

Clair de Lune
1926

Performed to music by Claude Debussy, Clair de Lune premiered on April 18, 1926, at New York's 48th Street Theater, Graham's first independent concert. The original cast included Graham with Thelma Biracree, Evelyn Sabin, and Betty Macdonald. The April 20, 1926, Democrat (Rochester, NY) said, "Miss Graham revealed a versatility and freshness of viewpoint which delighted her spectators."

Columbiad
1939

Performed to music by Louis Horst, Columbiad premiered on December 27, 1939, at New York's St. James Theatre with a costume designed by Edythe Gilfond and a set created by Philip Stapp. The solo work was performed by Graham. John Martin, writing for the New York Times (December 28, 1939) noted, "The dance is extremely simple, basically a slow, heroic march, touched with passages of various colors of elevation and lyricism. Though there is nothing in any way new about the vocabulary in which it is couched, a familiar idiom is given fresh values by the beautiful dignity that illuminates it. It is the kind of dance nobody but Martha Graham could possibly make substantial or moving, but she succeeds notably in both directions."

Course
1935

Performed to music by George Antheil, Course (also called Course: One in Red; Three in Green; Two in Blue; Two in Red) premiered on February 10, 1935, at New York's Guild Theatre. The work was performed by Martha Graham and Group. A year after the premier, the New York Times (November 11, 1935) noted that it "has somewhat never recaptured the tremendous lift and excitement of its first performance."