Dancing with Bob at ADF Is a Grand Evening, and
a Grand Celebration of Robert Rauschenberg

The centennial celebration of the birth of artist Robert Rauschenberg (1925-2008) is worldwide, and the American Dance Festival's presentation of pieces that incorporate Rauschenberg's designs is the perfect way to celebrate! Dancing with Bob: Rauschenberg, Brown and Cunningham Onstage, with special guest Paul Taylor Dance Company, is the ADF's opening performance of the season, running on Thursday and Friday, June 12th and 13th, in the R.J. Reynolds Industries Theater on Duke University's West Campus.

Rauschenberg was born in Port Arthur, TX, and attended Black Mountain College in Black Mountain, NC, and the Art Students League of New York . Early in his career, he developed creative relationships with choreographer Merce Cunningham and American composer John Cage. Those collaborations with Cage and Cunningham spurred Rauschenberg to add performance art to his palette. He designed costumes and sets for choreographers Trisha Brown and Paul Taylor, along with the Judson Dance Theater, an experimental collective. Throughout his career, Rauschenberg sought collaborations with a broad range of disciplines -- performing arts, music, photography, and digital technology -- pushing the boundaries of the conventional.

For those unfamiliar with Rauschenberg's scope of work and legacy, the Rauschenberg100 website is worth visiting.

At a talk by Roger Copeland on June 2nd at ADF's Samuel H. Scripps Studio on the campus of Duke University, Copeland proposes that "Cunningham and Rauschenberg spearheaded one of the great paradigm shifts in twentieth century art." Copeland's lecture can be found here.

Trisha Oesterling, Trisha Brown, and Wil Swanson perform "Set and Reset," in 1983 (photo © by Mark Hanauer)

The evening began with "Set and Reset," presented by the Trisha Brown Dance Company The ground-breaking postmodern dance by Trisha Brown (1936-2017) is staged by Carolyn Lucas, with Cecily Campbell, Marc Crousillat, and Jamie Scott.

Brown premiered "Set and Reset" in 1983 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. At the time, this piece was considered a big change from Brown's flowy, idiosyncratic early work. "Set and Reset" was developed by having the dancers improvise movement, memorize it, and present it -- leading to choreography with a multilayered structure.

Brown collaborated with composer Laurie Anderson for music ("Long Time No See"). In the spirit of improvisation, the gestures of the dancers shift to the pulsing beats and changes in time registers.

Robert Rauschenberg's set and costume designs feature photographic imagery, not unlike some of the techniques that he incorporated into his paintings. Projected black-and-white film clips on a floating sculpture called "Elastic Carrier (Shiner)" provide a key element.

Dancers Savannah Gaillard, Burr Johnson, Catherine Kirk, Ashley Merker, Patrick Needham, Jennifer Payán, and Spencer Weidie show us not only deftly performed phrases and gestures, but also relationships that create moments of surprise that connect to the human experience.

Dancing with Bob includes "3 Epitaphs," a 1956 work by the Paul Taylor Dance Company (photo © by Paul B. Goode)

Paul Taylor Dance Company's "3 Epitaphs" (1956) features three New Orleans dirges, performed by the Laneville-Johnson Union Brass Band. The brilliant choreography by Paul Taylor (1930-2018) begins with dark silhouettes slumping onto the stage, falling onto the floor or into a broken boogie or sliding into a humorous encounter.

Robert Rauschenberg'scostumes completely cover the dancers in dark fabric from head to toe. Small round mirrors are attached to the dancers' heads and palms, and are used to catch the stage lighting, throwing sharp spikes of bright light onto the backdrop, the floor, and into the audience.

Dancers Lee Duveneck, Lisa Borres Casey, Jada Pearman, Austin Kelly, and Emmy Wildermuth perform the piece with complete commitment to the outlandish sashays and ghoulish cavorts, timed comically to French Quarter funeral music.

Dancing with Bob at ADF includes "Tracer," choreographed in 1962 by Paul Taylor (photo © by Steven Pisano)

In "Tracer" (1962), Paul Taylor choreographs circular and arching poses as an ode to Rauschenberg's famous spinning bicycle wheel sculpture, which is placed on the stage amid the dancers.

Dancers Lee Duveneck, Kristin Draucker, Jessica Ferretti, and Payton Primer move through the environment with athleticism and grace.

The piece is a playful and thoughtful experimental work where much of the movement is independent of the wheel's presence. Yet, in Taylor's hands, the décor and the motion complement each other perfectly, as does composer James Tenney's score.

The costume designs are also Rauschenberg's: ice blue leotards with tracks of a darker color running across the fabric in random patterns.

"Travelogue" (1977) by choreographer Merce Cunningham (1919-2009) is considered a comedic masterpiece. And it's rarely been seen since its original performance.

Cunningham's choreography is staged by Marcie Munnerlyn and Andrea Weber.

Rauschenberg designed both the set and costumes for this piece, bringing in a rainbow of colorful leotards, swags, scarves, and banners.

Dancers Savannah Gaillard, Burr Johnson, Claude Johnson, Catherine Kirk, Ashley Merker, Patrick Needham, Jennifer Payán, and Spencer Weidie ride in on a "train" -- a series of chairs sitting on small rolling platforms that is pulled onto the stage by a rope. The dancers engage in a variety of encounters with antics that remind this critic of the way birds vie for attention from a prospective mate. At one point, they don colorful pinwheel skirts which are opened into a fan, reminiscent of a mating dance.

Dancing with Bob: Rauschenberg, Brown and Cunningham Onstage, with special guest Paul Taylor Dance Company is a grand evening, and a grand celebration for the first offering of the 2025 ADF Season!

The American Dance Festival's production of Dancing with Bob: Rauschenberg, Brown and Cunningham Onstage, with special guest
Paul Taylor Dance Company runs June 12th and 13th in Duke University's Reynolds Industries Theater (photo © by Charles Atlas)

Trisha Brown Dance Company and Paul Taylor Dance Company in DANCING WITH BOB: RAUSCHENBERG, BROWN AND CUNNINGHAM ONSTAGE, WITH SPECIAL GUEST PAUL TAYLOR DANCE COMPANY (In Person at 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 13th) (American Dance Festival in the R.J. Reynolds Industries Theater on Duke University's West Campus in Durham). DIGITAL PROGRAM: https://online.flippingbook.com/view/241006325/ FEATURETTES: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaruxdhqDRY and https://vimeo.com/1091209483/1c7f29ed9a. 2025 BROCHURE: https://online.flippingbook.com/view/1073499576/. 2025 SEASON: https://americandancefestival.org/2025-season/. 2025 CALENDAR: https://americandancefestival.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/2025-ADF-Season-Calendar.pdf. PRESENTER: https://americandancefestival.org/, https://www.facebook.com/AmerDanceFest/, https://www.instagram.com/amerdancefest/, https://www.tiktok.com/@americandancefestival, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Dance_Festival, and https://www.youtube.com/user/AmerDanceFest. VENUES/DIRECTIONS/PARKING: https://americandancefestival.org/venues/. ACCESSIBILITY: https://americandancefestival.org/accessibility/. HEALTH & SAFETY POLICIES: https://americandancefestival.org/health-safety/. NOTE: There will be a discussion after the 7:30 p.m. Friday, June 13th, performance. TICKETS: $38 and up, plus taxes and fees. Click here to buy tickets. INFORMATION: 919-684-6402 or adf@americandancefestival.org. PLEASE DONATE TO: American Dance Festival.

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