GRAHAM’S DANCE DYNASTY DESCENDS
ON THE AUDITORIUM THEATRE

Martha Graham Dance Company pairs signature
works with a Bernstein-inspired Chicago premiere.

On January 24, The Auditorium Theatre will host the living legacy of a pioneering genius. As part of its celebratory 100th anniversary international tour, the Martha Graham Dance Company will commemorate this unmatched milestone with a program that includes two classics epitomizing the company’s distinctive aesthetic. With an eye on balance, this one-night-only performance will also feature the Chicago premiere of a new work that promises to reveal yet another facet of the legendary company’s rich history.

Martha Graham (photo by Arnold Eagle)

Born in 1894—six years before the 20th century had even begun—Martha Graham revolutionized what we once understood dance to be. Before her rise to mastery and prominence, dance existed almost solely in the realm of classical ballet, where detached perfection was the standard of beauty and virtuosity. Inspired by influences both personal and artistic, and encouraged by a growing understanding of movement as its own expressive language, Graham introduced a new vocabulary: dance that could convey emotion. From despair’s pathos to joy’s exultation, she used motion to mirror human experience. As she often said when speaking about her approach, “My dance is not an interpretation of life, it’s an affirmation of life through movement.”

Xin Ying and Anne Souder in Martha Graham’s Chronicle (photo Melissa Sherwood)

It’s that awareness and intent that can be felt across all 181 dances Graham choreographed over her more than seven-decade career—decades in which she was as often a peerless performer as she was a visionary choreographer.

In her dances, every gesture holds meaning, and every motion is expected to be executed precisely each time it is presented. The company’s success in meeting that imposing demand is part of what gives its performances their unmistakable distinctiveness. To accomplish that unwavering feat, “endless training, sorrow, joy and infinite weariness” were required to ensure it happened. The commitment and focus needed to reach that level of rigor helps explain why Graham was so often quoted saying, “It takes 10 years to make a dancer.”

Marzia Memoli and Martha Graham Dance Company in Martha
Graham’s Diversion of Angels (photo by Melissa Sherwood)

From art, books, music, sculpture, and sometimes even world affairs, Graham drew from a sweeping assortment of inspirations. Chronicle, scheduled for the second portion of the January 24 performance, is a rare example of one of her openly political works, stemming from her refusal to take part in the 1936 Olympics hosted by Nazi Germany.

At a time when women were demanding equal status during the Suffrage movement, Graham was modeling dances around formidable women who filled prominent roles in both history and mythology. These works spotlight women’s contributions to culture and underscore the reality of their strength and resilience—attributes that translate vividly through her choreography.

Jacob Larsen in Martha Graham’s Diversion of Angels (photo David Bazemore)

Another Graham classic featured in the first part of the program, Diversion of Angels, offers an entirely different lens, profiling three couples experiencing love at different stages of life. Lyrical in structure and intentionally without a concrete plot, the ballet is tailored to express the “infinite aspects of love.” Norman Dello Joio’s intimate, undulating score provides a beautiful backdrop to this ageless work, which premiered under its current title in Chicago 77 years ago. The year before, in 1948, it premiered as Wilderness Stair.

Like the entirety of the dances she created, Graham envisioned every aspect of production. She not only conceived and composed the choreography—she oversaw costume design, envisioned the set, and selected the music that would envelop and propel her ballets. Artist Wassily Kandinsky’s use of color inspired the costumes in Angels. Accomplished creatives across disciplines eagerly collaborated with her. Often called the Dean of American Music, Aaron Copland joined forces with Graham to develop her seminal masterwork, Appalachian Spring.

The Martha Graham Dance Company in En Masse (photo by Luque Photography)

Great admirers of one another’s artistic gifts, Graham and renowned composer Leonard Bernstein often spoke of collaborating, but never had the opportunity—primarily due to Bernstein’s rigorous conducting schedule.

The happenstance of time has changed that. A found shard of Bernstein’s music forms the basis for En Masse, choreographed by Alvin Ailey alum Hope Boykin. The work debuted last year in New York and will enjoy its Chicago premiere during this centennial Auditorium engagement. Several pages of Bernstein sketches—titled Vivace, Italian for lively or full of life—were discovered and, according to the Leonard Bernstein Office, are believed to have been composed for Graham. It’s this material that composer Christopher Rountree incorporated into his score for Boykin’s En Masse.

The Martha Graham Dance Company in En Masse (photo by Luque Photography)

This “posthumous” collaboration of two creative giants—paired with the opportunity to experience a preeminent dance company in full flower—makes the upcoming 100th anniversary performance of the Martha Graham Dance Company tantalizing to the hilt.

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Martha Graham Dance Company
The Auditorium Theatre, Chicago
50 E. Ida B. Wells Drive
one night only: Saturday, January 24, 2026 at 7:30 p.m.
tickets start at $35; call 312.341.2300 or visit Auditorium Theatre

for more Graham Dance programs on tour, visit Martha Graham

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