How to pass, kick, fall, and run

Description

Cunningham's How to Pass, Kick, Fall and Run (1965) had an athletic theme - a flavor of the sportif, as David Vaughan put it - but without any references to specific sports or games. The choreography, performed before the unadorned back wall of the stage, kept the dancers constantly in motion, with two or three things simultaneously occurring on stage at all times. For this fun and lively dance the dancers wore tights and sweaters that they chose themselves. The sound consisted of stories written by John Cage and read by both Cage and David Vaughan that were each read in one minute regardless of length. The stories originally came from Cage's lecture Indeterminacy, first given in Brussels in 1958. Later, other stories were added from various writings of Cage's. Each of the two readers independently created their own selection of stories, wherein they read for eleven minutes total and were silent for eleven minutes total. This created a sound score of simultaneous narrations, a single reader's voice, and silence. The film, shot and broadcast live during the Festival of the Arts Today held at SUNY Buffalo, is part of a program that included Scramble (1967) and Place (1966), as well as How to Pass, Kick, Fall, and Run. It is the only known motion picture to capture the entire dance with the original cast. It opens with composer and Festival organizer Allen Sapp interviewing John Cage and, later, conductor Lukas Foss. During the performance that follows Cage and the company's archivist David Vaughan can be seen popping bottles of champagne, which they then sip while reading their parts.

Runtime

40 minutes

Contributor

Genre

Database

Alexander Street

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