If you believe that everything happens for a reason, then a disappointing dance performance back in 1957 served its purpose for choreographer Paul Taylor.
The night is famously remembered for The New York Times' review of the Paul Taylor Dance Company's "7 New Dances." In the performance, Taylor stood motionless above a still dancer seated on the floor for the entire four-minute piece.
There were literally no words to describe the event in the Times review. A gaping white space on the page said it all for the critic.
"I was very naive," Taylor, 78, recalled recently by phone. "The motionless part was just one of the seven segments. I remember looking out [at the audience] and there was hardly anybody left."
Taylor was disappointed, but the experience paved the way for "Esplanade," the New York choreographer's signature work, which has been performed all over the world.
The Paul Taylor Dance Company will perform "Esplanade" and two other works at the Rialto Center for the Arts on Saturday.
"Esplanade never could have been done if I hadn't done that first one," said Taylor, who is now heralded as one of the best modern dance choreographer's on the planet.
"When it was done, it seemed very different from anything people had seen in modern dance. It seemed controversial for a while," he said.
In contrast to the motionless segment of that early work, "Esplanade" is a flurry of explosive natural movements.
"He's created this little community amongst the dancers on stage and because the movements are so natural-based, it's not like it takes a lot of thought [to perform]," said dancer Michael Trusnovec. "It's never really the same performance twice.
"The fact that he keeps challenging me makes me want to stay," said the 34-year-old who's been with the company for more than 10 years. "The range of styles is so incredible. He throws you these sort of odd character things. In one instance he had me portray an older man at the end of his life, and every gesture had to be so subtle. And the next dance he created, he had me wearing antlers and portraying a deer warrior dancer."
After creating 127 different dances during more than 50 years in the business, it would seem that Taylor, the subject of the 1998 Academy Award-nominated documentary "Dancemaker," had always been destined for the dance world.
But he attended Syracuse University on a swimming scholarship and intended to become a painter.
"I got a little frustrated with the paint," he recalled. "You don't get to move. You just move the brush around a little bit. That's no kind of exercise. And I like being around people."
With no dance training, he moved to New York City to study the craft and caught the eye of Martha Graham. He joined the legendary choreographer's company and danced for other greats, such as George Balanchine. He started the Paul Taylor Dance Company in 1954 while still with Graham.
"I didn't intend to be a choreographer at all," he said. "I just wanted to be a performer. But in between [dance shows] I wanted to keep working."
Within a few years, the dance company was global and has now performed in 62 countries.
"I just believe in dance and its immediacy, potency and universality," Taylor said. "It doesn't depend on language. It's visual."
IF YOU GO
The Paul Taylor Dance Company performs at 8 p.m. Saturday. $36-$62. Rialto Center for the Arts. 80 Forsyth St. N.W., Atlanta. 404-413-9819, www.rialtocenter.org.
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