An Analysis of Martha Graham’s Dance in Lamentation

An Analysis of Martha Graham’s Dance in Lamentation
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Dancing is a form of expression, and specific movement types convey the performer’s message. One of the well-known dancers in the world is Martha Graham, who was named the “Dancer of the Century” by Time Magazine in the twentieth century. She was a professional dancer, and her versatility opened new horizons in the field of dancing. Her innovative movements were combined with theatrical approaches to form modern yet authentic dancing, influencing the dancers globally (MarthaGraham.org, n.d.). One of her best performances is “Lamentation,” one of Graham’s masterpieces. This performance allowed the audience to view grief as a destructive yet beautiful emotion experienced by all, and we shall analyze this in the eye of the five stages of grief.
Morrow (2020) discussed that the five stages of grief include denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. These are often experienced by people who faced loss, chronic illnesses, or impending death. Each stage is connected to the next, but it does not necessarily mean that a person will experience all the stages. It may be incomplete or not in chronological order in some.
All of these stages were illustrated by Graham in the said dance. It was a solo performance with the central theme of grief. She provided a stunning performance that touched the mourning heart of the audience. At the beginning of the dance, she was wearing a moss green costume that covered her from head to just above the ankles, only exposing her bare feet, while sitting on the bench, as if she were in a sumo squat position and moving side to side (Martha Graham Dance Company, 2016). It symbolizes anxiety derived from her anguish, and this was particularly evident as she plunges her hands to her clothes, crumpling the piece of fabric as if she were attempting to loosen her clothes due to the exasperating emotions that suffocate her inner soul.
The movements were initially minute, smooth-flowing, and relatively slow, illustrating that the person inflicted by sorrow has yet to feel its full-blown impact. This signifies that, like in real life, when we lose someone, not everyone can abruptly digest the situation, and sorrow comes to them as a slow process. Graham showed that in the beginning, the grief does not have a massive effect on her.
However, as the music progressed and hinted a sound of a “turning point,” Graham began to exemplify more significant side-to-side movements accompanied by hand gestures as if she were trying to welcome a situation at one side and abruptly reject it at the other (Martha...