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Rating: 
Summary: Slick-haired Martha at her austere best
Review: I really think this video is invaluable because it contains the 30-minute video A DANCER'S WORLD. This video starts out with Martha in the dressing room talking about dance as a profession, and then it switches scenes to show her dancers from the late 1950s performing some of her classic "floor work" as well as bits of choreography from Martha's works, such as, I believe, Diversion of Angels. More than anything, what makes this video valuable in my eyes is that we get to see Martha talk about what she loves: dance. She really was an incredible woman (as if me saying it makes it so - who hasn't said that about Martha?), and I hope her legacy will be preserved. Videos like this will aid in such preservation.
Rating:
Summary: wonderful!
Review: The two dances and one personal account of a dancer's world included in this hour and a half long vido were amazing. Anyone who has heard of Martha Graham's revolutionary dancing but has never seen any of her work should see this- it is truly spectacular.
Rating:
Summary: Martha Graham is always breathtaking
Review: This videotape is a tribute to one of the greatest dancers and choreographers of the 20th century. It is done in black and white and actually, this makes it even better, for it serves to concentrate attention on the dance forms and the many abstractions that so characterize the Graham technique. There are three parts of the tape: 1. "A Dancer's World", which is 30-minutes long and shows Graham and her company demonstrating dance expression and techniques. Viewers can see Graham in the dressing room, in the studio, and dancing herself. 2. "Night Journey", which is my all time favorite piece by Graham. Graham dances the part of Jocasta, Paul Taylor as Tiresais, and Bertram Ross as Oedipus. 3. "Appalachian Spring", which is the most popular of Graham's works, is accompanied by the music of Aaron Copland. All of the parts exemplify the mystery and majesty of this pioneer of modern dance. Graham is unrelenting in her expression, things are never subtle in her dances, and she always (delightfully) comes across with an overabundance of passion. Given the length of time she actually performend on stage, one can only feel a deep sense of respect and awe at this incredible woman.
Rating: 
Summary: Poor DVD transfer!
Review: While it's wonderful to have this document of some of Martha Graham's most famous work available on DVD, something must have gone awry in the digital transfer. There are a number of moments in "Appalachian Spring," for example, where the visual image suddenly slows down for a few seconds, and then slips into a sort of "fast forward" mode to catch back up to the music. I don't believe this can be a flaw in only my copy. These problems didn't exist in the wonderful 1995 Voyager release on laser disc of the same films, "Martha Graham Dance on Film." And unfortunately the added features and commentaries included on the laser disc (audio commentaries, interviews with some of Graham's dancers, and with Aaron Copland, etc.) didn't make it to the DVD. Too bad!
Rating:
Summary: Poor DVD transfer!
Review: While it's wonderful to have this document of some of Martha Graham's most famous work available on DVD, something must have gone awry in the digital transfer. There are a number of moments in "Appalachian Spring," for example, where the visual image suddenly slows down for a few seconds, and then slips into a sort of "fast forward" mode to catch back up to the music. I don't believe this can be a flaw in only my copy. These problems didn't exist in the wonderful 1995 Voyager release on laser disc of the same films, "Martha Graham Dance on Film." And unfortunately the added features and commentaries included on the laser disc (audio commentaries, interviews with some of Graham's dancers, and with Aaron Copland, etc.) didn't make it to the DVD. Too bad!
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