Abstract
This creative work is situated in the tradition begun by New York City’s New Dance Group in the 1930’s. The works of those choreographers expressed dissatisfaction and outrage with situations that were not fair or equal. They did not always encourage social change but sometimes focused on battles waged internally. This tradition has evolved over decades through the works of such choreographers as Talley Beatty, Eleo Pomare, Donald Byrd and David Dorffman. This research is guided by the following questions: How can a choreographic work raise consciousness about social injustice? What strategies employable from those identified in works of choreographers who have effectively done so?
In this ensemble work performed to the 1975 Ebony Concerto by Igor Stravinsky knowledge gained from research is applied to discover a movement vocabulary and choreographic structure that will reveal my outrage at social inequalities in American culture in this century. The notion of resistance is explored as a form of power and dance as a medium for this power.
