Wesleyan University Press The Grand Union: Accidental Anarchists of Downtown Dance, 1970-76

Product Description The Grand Union was a leaderless improvisation group in SoHo in the 1970s that included people who became some of the biggest names in postmodern dance: Yvonne Rainer, Trisha Brown, Steve Paxton, Barbara Dilley, David Gordon, and Douglas Dunn. Together they unleashed a range of improvised forms from peaceful movement explorations to wildly imaginative collective fantasies. This book delves into the "collective genius" of Grand Union and explores their process of deep play. Drawing on hours of archival videotapes, Wendy Perron seeks to understand the ebb and flow of the performances. Includes 65 photographs. Review "Anyone struggling to teach young dance artists in this difficult time should share this volume with them; it's not merely a history, but also a collection of ways of knowing, full of resources that bring to life a period of great change in the life of New York City and the country as a whole."-- arts meme "In her detailed, intimate narration of the archival videos, Ms. Perron creates a sort of dance-theater of the mind--a trippy experience that seems all the more potent now that live dance has been put on hold. In some ways, the book, with its multiple voices and context-providing interludes, feels a bit like choreography. And throughout, it's a story about peopleoverflowing with imagination."--Gia Kourlas About the Author Wendy Perron is a former dancer/choreographer and current writer and teacher. A former editor-in-chief of Dance Magazine, she is the author of Through the Eyes of a Dancer: Selected Writings.