Feeling The Movement in the Dance Films of Marian Van Tuyl

Jane Fries, a journalist who writes a regular column for The Dance Journal in Philadelphia, gained a 2022 Short-Term Research Fellowship at the Jerome Robbins Dance Division. She used the fellowship to pursue her research at the Library for the Performing Arts for a biography of Marian Van Tuyl, a pioneering modern dancer and a key figure in the development of dance scholarship in the United States.

In the summer of 1940, choreographer Marian Van Tuyl and composer John Cage collaborated on a madcap new dance, Fads and Fancies in the Academy—gleefully poking fun at the history of dance in the US, from traditional ballet to then present-day modern dance. The spirited partnership between the two artists took place over the course of two years, from 1940 to 1941, when Van Tuyl led the dance program at Mills College in California and Cage was employed there as a musical accompanist.

Indeed, much of Cage’s early work was written as accompaniment for modern dance—compelling him to focus on percussion and leading to his infamous “noise” revolution.  While numerous books have been written about Cage, none have been written celebrating the exciting creative work of Van Tuyl, who has never been recognized for the vital role she played in Cage’s early career and as his artistic counterpart.

My book in progress, Marian Van Tuyl: A Life in Dance, will be the first full-length biography of Van Tuyl, who lived from 1907 to 1987, and will spotlight her talents as a performer and choreographer. Van Tuyl trained at the Bennington School of the Dance, was a leading dance artist in the Midwest in the 1930s, and a catalyst of avant-garde dance, music, and filmmaking in California in the 1940s. A visionary educator as well as a performing artist, she headed the dance program at the University of Chicago for a decade, and then went on to found one of the first independent dance departments in the United States at Mills College. 

In the 1930s and 40s, lauded musicians Henry Cowell, Lou Harrison, and John Cage were employed as dance accompanists at Mills—a rarely noted fact. They composed original scores for Marian’s dances, working hand-in-hand with her as they experimented with various rhythmic patterns and variations. My book will be the first to give due credit to Van Tuyl’s equal partnership in these collaborations.

Fortunately, Van Tuyl made films of many of her dances during this period, which she later donated to the Jerome Robbins Dance Division at the Library for the Performing Arts. With the support of a Short-Term Research Fellowship, I was able to spend two weeks in August at the Library studying these films intensively—affording me the opportunity to feel the movement, discern the patterns, and absorb the rhythms in the choreography. My goal is to bring Van Tuyl’s artistry back to life for readers, and my descriptions of her dances will be at the heart of my book. 

The dances that I studied during my fellowship term included Uneasy Rapture, Chaconne, and Fads and Fancies at the Academy. 

Uneasy Rapture (1939)

Lou Harrison composed a score in mixed meter for piano and percussion for Van Tuyl’s 1939 solo, Uneasy Rapture. Van Tuyl designed and constructed her own costume, and it hangs beautifully on her sculptured figure. The dance was filmed and photographed by Imogen Cunningham outdoors in the Greek Theatre at Mills College.

Van Tuyl covers a lot of ground in Uneasy Rapture: she runs in quick triplets and leaps vigorously from side to side. In powerful command of her body, she employs her sharp, angular arms in dynamic opposition to her rounded, shrugging shoulders. The composition is rigorous yet joyful—a forceful expression of the dichotomy inherent in the dance’s title.

Chaconne (1939)

Van Tuyl teamed up with Henry Cowell in the fall of 1939 to create Chaconne. At the time, he was in prison at San Quentin (a separate and disturbing story). Van Tuyl and Harrison visited Cowell there, and she outlined her idea for the dance. He enthusiastically agreed to write the music, asking for Harrison’s assistance in making adjustments as necessary in rehearsals with Van Tuyl.

Chaconne is a formal, social dance that is pleasing to look at—yet the structure is far more complex than it appears on the surface. The piece begins with the whole group performing the thematic movement in unison: a series of measured rond de jambes, and steps up to half toe, out to the side, moving backward, and turning around. 

Variations on the basic theme ensue—first Van Tuyl in solo, then duos and a trio—with added turns, traveling steps, repetitions, and sweeping legs. These sections are connected by “free-form walk-arounds,” where the dancers stride confidently, taking up all the space on the stage. In the end, the ensemble reprises the theme, dancing in robust unison to the final measures of Cowell’s musical score.

Fads and Fancies at the Academy (1940)

During the 1940 Mills summer session, Cage composed a satirical work for piano and percussion for a dance by Van Tuyl entitled Fads and Fancies at the Academy. The pair worked closely together, with Van Tuyl first choreographing a section, and then Cage composing the music to fit the dance. The production features numerous short sections and multiple costume and set changes—adding up to 15 minutes of non-stop action. 

The final section, “Vistas of the Future,” contrasts pessimistic and optimistic visions of the future of education. In “The Pessimist,” Van Tuyl portrays a stern teacher. Wearing a long, black dress, she runs across the stage in clipped steps, arms rigidly glued to her sides, making a beeline for a lectern placed in a downstage corner. She settles with her chin propped in her hand and turns to watch her discouraged students as they trudge back and forth in a regimented manner.

The drudgery is overturned in “The Optimist,” as Van Tuyl sheds her austere black dress to reveal a swirling skirt in vivid colors. She becomes a newly energized, enthusiastic teacher, buoyantly springing up and down behind the lectern. Van Tuyl leads her now eager students, as they kick their legs high, swirl their arms overhead, and pitch their torsos into daring sideways tilts. In the dance’s final moments, Van Tuyl remains onstage after her group of students departs. She takes confident steps that grow into happy leaps—and the future of dance education looks optimistic indeed as the curtain comes down.