February 3, 2026
Tuesday, February 3, 7:30PM
Martha Graham Dance Company: A Double Centennial Event!
Celebrate 100 years of the 'grandest small-town theater in America', and the oldest dance company in America with this double centennial event! This program, which features iconic works of Graham's alongside newly commissioned dances by some of the most dynamic choreographers working today, celebrates our cultural heritage and looks to the future as part of a nation-wide celebration of America 250.
Martha Graham (1894-1991) is recognized as a primal artistic force of the 20th century, alongside Picasso, James Joyce, Stravinsky, and Frank Lloyd Wright, single-handedly defining contemporary dance as a uniquely American art form. The Martha Graham Dance Company has been a leader in evolving that art form since its founding in 1926. It is both the oldest dance company in the United States and one of the most celebrated on the planet.
This program includes Appalachian Spring (1944), Immediate Tragedy (1937/2020), We the People (2024), and a new work commissioned by MGDC as part of America 250.
Appalachian Spring, Graham's beloved masterpiece that won Aaron Copland the Pulitzer Prize for the score, takes place in a 19thCentury Pennsylvania Settlement and captures a sense of American optimism and folk culture.
Immediate Tragedy was originally created as a solo for Graham in 1937 as a reaction to the atrocities of the Spanish Civil War and the rise of Fascism. Recreated in 2020 from historic photographs and new music by Christopher Roundtree, Immediate Tragedy remains a powerful work and testament to determination and resilience.
We the People is a powerful new work by acclaimed choreographer, Jamar Roberts set to music written by the Grammy, Pulitzer, and MacArthur prize winning folk musician, Riannon Giddens.
The evening will conclude with a newly commissioned work in celebration of America 250. Details to follow.
This performance is made possible in part by the J. William Warehime Fund of the Majestic Theater Centennial Endowment, a special gift from the J. William Warehime Foundation, and the Lydia Ziegler Clare Fund.
