In 1930, a dancer named Ted Shawn bought an abandoned farm in western Massachusetts, hoping to create a retreat where he could choreograph, rehearse, teach and prepare for touring. Shawn’s dream was to legitimize modern dance for men, as male dancers at that time were often dismissed as effeminate and dainty. To battle this assumption, Shawn rounded up an all-male dance company, some of whom were athletes with no dance experience, and together they toured the United States, where they were both ridiculed and revered.
“He had to take the heat that many pioneers have to take,” said Ella Baff, the executive and artistic director of Jacob’s Pillow Dance, which Shawn founded at the farm in 1932. “It’s very interesting to read some of the reviews of the dances. They say things like ‘The audience was amazed by the masculinity and athletic ability of the men.’ There are so many male dancers today who feel very indebted to Shawn.”
The farm had a long history. It was dubbed Jacob’s Pillow when it was first settled in 1790, an allusion to the Book of Genesis, and it was a stop on the Underground Railroad in the mid-1800s.
Today, the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, which includes both male and female dancers, runs from June through August, attracts 400 to 500 artists each summer, and includes a school. Dance legends such as Merce Cunningham, Bill T. Jones, Alvin Ailey, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Mark Morris and Twyla Tharp are among the many artists who have presented work and performed at the Pillow.
“The first time I went to Jacob’s Pillow was in 1980,” said renowned choreographer Trisha Brown, whose New York-based company will be returning to the Pillow in August. “I remember going there with everyone in a big yellow station wagon. It’s a beautiful environment for a dance, in the middle of the countryside and encircled by nature. For our rehearsals, we had to move displays and tools so that we could dance. It was rustic and real.”
The setting is unparalleled, with converted barns that hold state-of-the-art performance spaces and studios, as well as an open stage that offers the audience a stunning view across the Berkshire Mountains. The unique location draws audience members who both are very knowledgeable about dance, as well as those who may have never attended a dance performance before.
“I think there are ideas and mythologies around dance that make some people feel like there’s a secret code to getting it,” said Baff, who presents work that is edgy and quirky along with more traditional modern dance. “But you’re looking at beautiful young people doing impossible things with their bodies. There are no words, you’re dealing with the body moving in space, relationships that happen in space, it can be unpredictable, and you can be surprised. There’s a lot to enjoy.”
The Pillow offers creative development residencies to select choreographers that provide rehearsal space and an informal performance with audience feedback.
“I love the open dialogue,” said Kyle Abraham, a choreographer who completed a residency last year and will be presenting a world premiere with choreographer Camille A. Brown this summer. “It doesn’t matter if the person knows dance or not, you need that variety to get the honest response.”
“When I was at the Pillow with my company we never made a schedule, we just danced until we dropped,” said Abraham. “There’s so much inspiration available there. If we get tired or need to step away from the process, we can go into the archives and do research. We’re constantly inspired.”
The archives at the Pillow include footage of almost every performance from the past 30 years, as well as films that go all the way back to Ted Shawn and his dancers.
In March, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Interactive (danceinteractive.jacobspillow.org) was launched, an online video collection of more than 100 dance highlights from the Pillow, dating back to 1937. The videos can be easily sorted by genre, artist or decade.
Modern dance pioneer Lar Lubovitch, who first came to the Pillow in the early ’70s and will be presenting two works this summer, felt the strong pull of history when he first arrived.
“I think even as early as 1971, we knew that we were part of a legacy,” Lubovitch said. “Ted Shawn was still alive then and I met Ted at that time. Today the legacy has deepened and expanded and is still being passed down. Even though there are records, films and DVDs of dance, none of that will ever replace the handing down of information from person to person.”
The Pillow’s strong mission and its willingness to take artistic risks has helped it weather financial difficulties over the decades, Baff said. The Pillow was named a National Historical Landmark in 2003 and was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2010.
Today, the festival boasts a strong international element, with several dance companies making their U.S. premieres, including Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève, Mimulus from Brazil and Carte Blanche from Norway. This summer the calendar includes more than 120 ticketed performances as well as 200 free performances, talks and exhibits.
“We dance all over the country and the world,” said Lubovitch. “But it’s always a keystone moment when you know you’re doing the Pillow because it’s such a dance crossroads. We’re always eager to get back there, it’s a place where dancers meet and exchange ideas. And I think it’s a particularly special place for people to see dance for the first time because you can count on it being the top echelon, the best there is.”
“He had to take the heat that many pioneers have to take,” said Ella Baff, the executive and artistic director of Jacob’s Pillow Dance, which Shawn founded at the farm in 1932. “It’s very interesting to read some of the reviews of the dances. They say things like ‘The audience was amazed by the masculinity and athletic ability of the men.’ There are so many male dancers today who feel very indebted to Shawn.”
The farm had a long history. It was dubbed Jacob’s Pillow when it was first settled in 1790, an allusion to the Book of Genesis, and it was a stop on the Underground Railroad in the mid-1800s.
Today, the Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, which includes both male and female dancers, runs from June through August, attracts 400 to 500 artists each summer, and includes a school. Dance legends such as Merce Cunningham, Bill T. Jones, Alvin Ailey, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Mark Morris and Twyla Tharp are among the many artists who have presented work and performed at the Pillow.
“The first time I went to Jacob’s Pillow was in 1980,” said renowned choreographer Trisha Brown, whose New York-based company will be returning to the Pillow in August. “I remember going there with everyone in a big yellow station wagon. It’s a beautiful environment for a dance, in the middle of the countryside and encircled by nature. For our rehearsals, we had to move displays and tools so that we could dance. It was rustic and real.”
The setting is unparalleled, with converted barns that hold state-of-the-art performance spaces and studios, as well as an open stage that offers the audience a stunning view across the Berkshire Mountains. The unique location draws audience members who both are very knowledgeable about dance, as well as those who may have never attended a dance performance before.
“I think there are ideas and mythologies around dance that make some people feel like there’s a secret code to getting it,” said Baff, who presents work that is edgy and quirky along with more traditional modern dance. “But you’re looking at beautiful young people doing impossible things with their bodies. There are no words, you’re dealing with the body moving in space, relationships that happen in space, it can be unpredictable, and you can be surprised. There’s a lot to enjoy.”
The Pillow offers creative development residencies to select choreographers that provide rehearsal space and an informal performance with audience feedback.
“I love the open dialogue,” said Kyle Abraham, a choreographer who completed a residency last year and will be presenting a world premiere with choreographer Camille A. Brown this summer. “It doesn’t matter if the person knows dance or not, you need that variety to get the honest response.”
“When I was at the Pillow with my company we never made a schedule, we just danced until we dropped,” said Abraham. “There’s so much inspiration available there. If we get tired or need to step away from the process, we can go into the archives and do research. We’re constantly inspired.”
The archives at the Pillow include footage of almost every performance from the past 30 years, as well as films that go all the way back to Ted Shawn and his dancers.
In March, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Interactive (danceinteractive.jacobspillow.org) was launched, an online video collection of more than 100 dance highlights from the Pillow, dating back to 1937. The videos can be easily sorted by genre, artist or decade.
Modern dance pioneer Lar Lubovitch, who first came to the Pillow in the early ’70s and will be presenting two works this summer, felt the strong pull of history when he first arrived.
“I think even as early as 1971, we knew that we were part of a legacy,” Lubovitch said. “Ted Shawn was still alive then and I met Ted at that time. Today the legacy has deepened and expanded and is still being passed down. Even though there are records, films and DVDs of dance, none of that will ever replace the handing down of information from person to person.”
The Pillow’s strong mission and its willingness to take artistic risks has helped it weather financial difficulties over the decades, Baff said. The Pillow was named a National Historical Landmark in 2003 and was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 2010.
Today, the festival boasts a strong international element, with several dance companies making their U.S. premieres, including Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève, Mimulus from Brazil and Carte Blanche from Norway. This summer the calendar includes more than 120 ticketed performances as well as 200 free performances, talks and exhibits.
“We dance all over the country and the world,” said Lubovitch. “But it’s always a keystone moment when you know you’re doing the Pillow because it’s such a dance crossroads. We’re always eager to get back there, it’s a place where dancers meet and exchange ideas. And I think it’s a particularly special place for people to see dance for the first time because you can count on it being the top echelon, the best there is.”
