Martha Graham Dance Company Presents GrahamDeconstructed: Primitive Mysteries

The Martha Graham Dance Company will present a special GrahamDeconstructed event celebrating the 86th anniversary of Primitive Mysteries, one of Graham's most revolutionary works. This stark, ritualistic dance reflects on the purity found in the virgin myths of the Southwest. It was hailed a masterpiece at its premiere and is a prime example of Graham as a leader in the modernist movement. Primitive Mysteries premiered at the Craig Theatre in New York City on February 2, 1931.

GrahamDeconstructed will open with a reading of The Third from the Left, a one-act play written by Jean Colonomos, an award-winning author and former Graham dancer. The action takes place in the dressing room of the Graham studio where the characters are rehearsing a revival of Primitive Mysteries. The evening will also feature the Martha Graham Dance Company in a rehearsal run-through of Primitive Mysteries as it prepares for performances at The Joyce Theater, February 14-26, 2017. Birthday cake will be served.

GrahamDeconstructed offers audiences a unique opportunity to view great Graham works up close and hear about the artistic and historical context of their creation from Artistic Director Janet Eilber. The program offers a glimpse of the artistic labor that goes on every day at the Martha Graham studios to preserve and augment Martha Graham's great legacy.

Tickets are $25 in advance and $30 at the door. Tickets can be purchased online at www.marthagraham.org.

The Martha Graham Studio Theater is located at 55 Bethune Street, 11th Floor (at the corner of Washington Street), in Manhattan.

About the Martha Graham Dance Company

The Martha Graham Dance Company has been a leader in the development of contemporary dance since its founding in 1926. Today, the Company is embracing a new programming vision that showcases masterpieces by Graham alongside newly commissioned works by contemporary artists. With programs that unite the work of choreographers across time within a rich historical and thematic narrative, the Company is actively working to create new platforms for contemporary dance and multiple points of access for audiences.

Since its inception, the Martha Graham Dance Company has received international acclaim from audiences in more than 50 countries throughout North and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, Russia, and the Middle East. The Company has performed at the Metropolitan Opera, Carnegie Hall, the Paris Opera House, Covent Garden, and The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, as well as at the base of the Great Pyramids in Egypt and in the ancient Herod Atticus Theatre on the Acropolis in Athens. In addition, the Company has also produced several award-winning films broadcast on PBS and around the world. www.marthagraham.org.