Night Journey

Night Journey, the dance, had its premiere only two and a half years after Appalachian Spring, and it is a close cousin. It too has a stream-of-consciousness narration: Jocasta, as she is about to kill herself, remembering what has happened to her. It too contains soul-delving solos, broken up by ensemble dances. Here, however, the ensemble is a darker element. As the story was taken from Greek tragedy, so the corps is the equivalent of Greek tragedy’s chorus. They tell us how to feel: afraid mostly. In this piece Graham pushed her habitual economy to its limits.

Cast

Martha Graham Queen Jocasta Bertram Ross King Oedipus

Paul Taylor Tiresias

Helen McGehee Chorus Leader

Mary Hinkson Chorus

Akiko Kanda Chorus

Ethel Winter Chorus

Linda Hodes Chorus

Carol Payne Chorus

Bette Shaler Chorus

Metadata from the source database.