Merce Cunningham

[Alexandra]

A preview piece for the upcoming Cunningham season:

A career that spans Warhol and Radiohead

Merce Cunningham has been pushing the boundaries of contemporary dance for more than 50 years by combining ordinary movements like walking, running, and jumping into elegant stage works.

He's a rebel choreographer who believes in movement for its own sake, rather than to tell a story or evoke emotions, à la Martha Graham.

So it's no surprise that he has chosen experimental rock bands, Radiohead from Britain and Iceland's Sigur Rós, to co-create the score for his next work, "Split Sides," premièring in October at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.