For nearly 50 years, the Paul Taylor Dance Company has shared quirky and innovative dance routines with the world. But the troupe — commanded by modern choreography master and former professional dancer Paul Taylor — limits their performances to high-end venues. Taylor wanted to spread his art form to all dance enthusiasts, and thus his second company, Taylor 2, was born in 1993.
Taylor 2 arrives on campus Monday for a two-day residency program. Although Paul Taylor himself will not accompany the group, six dancers will present four of his classic pieces, some of which date back to the 1950s and 1960s. Prior to performing, they will teach two master classes for University dance students and lead an open forum, where they will discuss aspects of a career in professional dance.
“Taylor had a specific goal to get his work to audiences all over the world without the economic restraints that the big company presents,” Dance Department Chairwoman Jenifer Craig said. “He wanted a company that could not only perform, but could send out teachings, lecture demonstrations and community outreach.”
Taylor’s background is marked by experimentation and rebellion. While a swimmer and art student at Syracuse University, he fell upon the art of dance, and he then transferred to Juilliard to study his passion. Aside from creating his company, he danced with the Martha Graham Dance Company and ballet master George Balanchine and received prestigious awards, including being knighted by the French government.
“He performed both ballet and modern, which makes him versatile,” Craig said. “He created dances with humor and athleticism, and was very commanding on stage.”
On Tuesday, April 27, Taylor 2 will perform one of Taylor’s early pieces, “3 Epitaphs,” which was considered a risky leap when it was first choreographed in 1956. In the routine, dancers are completely covered in black, including their faces. Masked identities are paired with odd movements to create an interesting show.
“There is a story about a showing of ‘3 Epitaphs’ (when Taylor was a member of the Martha Graham Dance Company), where Martha Graham said to him, ‘Naughty boy, we don’t cover our faces,’” dance professor
Walter Kennedy said. “He rebelled against the standards of dance.”
The Taylor 2 show will include a work from 1962, “Aureole,” which Kennedy calls “a classic in modern dance history with lyrical, beautiful, spacious movement,” and a tango-inspired number from 1997, “Piazzolla Caldera,” which is set to fiery music by Argentine composer Astor Piazzolla.
Graduate dance student Sarah Ebert said she is looking forward to watching and learning Taylor’s style because she enjoys the unknowns that modern dance presents.
“Modern can be anything and everything; it includes every movement that the human body can make,” she said. “Other forms of dance, such as ballet and tap, have a set vocabulary. In modern, the experience is richer because it’s not limited by a vocabulary. It’s sort of a mystery.”
While modern performances are often abstract and confusing, Kennedy said Taylor’s work is easy to grasp, even for novice fans of dance.
“His work is accessible and easy to digest,” he said. “It’s not so hard on the mind.”
Taylor 2’s open forum will take place at 2 p.m. on Monday in 353 Gerlinger Annex and is free and open to the public. They will also perform at 8 p.m. on Tuesday in the Dougherty Dance Theatre, located on the third floor of the Gerlinger Annex. Tickets are available in the dance office in 161 Gerlinger Annex and at the door. Tickets are $20 for general admission and $10 for students and seniors.