Artsource - Donald McKayle

DANCE

Artsource

®

The Music Center’s Study Guide to the Performing Arts

TRANSFORMATION

ENDURING VALUES

CLASSICAL

1. CREATING (Cr)

CONTEMPORARY

2. PERFORMING, PRESENTING, PRODUCING (Pr)

EXPERIMENTAL

3. RESPONDING (Re)

MULTI-MEDIA

4. CONNECTING (Cn)

FREEDOM & OPPRESSION

Title of Work: Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder (1959) performed by The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

Creators: Choreographer: Donald McKayle (1930-2018) Music: Traditional African American, arranged by Robert De Cormier and Milton Okun from the collection of John and Alan Lomax

Background Information: Born in New York, Donald McKayle’s impressive career encompasses both modern and theatrical dance styles.

His early interest in dance was intensified at seventeen when he was electrified by seeing Pearl Primus, a young, energetic black dance artist who combined modern with authentic African dance. The friend who had invited him to her concert was a student of Miss Primus. After the performance McKayle felt such a strong chemistry with Pearl Primus and her work, he insisted that his friend teach him everything she knew that very night.

However, without technical dance training it seemed doubtful that he would be allowed to study at The New Dance Group where Ms. Primus taught. He insisted that if they would only audition him, they would know he was a dancer. His audition won him a scholarship to the school and marked the beginning of his legendary dance career. From the beginning he choreographed and danced, never feeling that he was limited to only one of these roles. Mr. McKayle believes that having all the senses open throughout life is very important for him as an artist. This openness has also helped him change the minds of others. In 1955 he was the first black male selected to join the Martha Graham Dance Company and he toured with them on their historic tour of Asia, sponsored by the U.S. State Department. He has also

ARTISTIC PROCESSES

TRADITIONAL

THE HUMAN FAMILY

THE POWER OF NATURE

choreographed many Broadway shows, including Raisin. He is on the dance faculty at the University of California, Irvine.

About The Artwork: Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder was born in a moment of inspiration when Mr. McKayle met musician Leon Bibb.

Performing one weekend at a resort in the Catskills, they collaborated on a prison song, Told My Captain, which reflects the hardship and rhythms of Southern chain gangs. McKayle actually chained himself to Bibb, improvising ideas through dance movement. Their performance, intended to be a one-time happening, so affected the audience that they repeated it throughout that weekend.

McKayle realized that this idea needed to be developed into a full length piece. It took two years to complete.

Creative Process of the Artist or Culture: “The more specific and truthful you can be, the more universal your work will be,” states Mr. McKayle. He has a profound interest in African American heritage and has based this work on themes and styles drawn from this culture. Fascinated and moved by the strong, pulsing, repetitive rhythms of work and prison songs, he based Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder on the concept of being a prisoner with a dream of freedom.

New York, NY

“What is beautiful about mankind are the differences, and that is a thing to celebrate.”

Donald McKayle Los Angeles, CA

Discussion Questions:

Multidisciplinary Options:

After the video has been viewed: • What is the mood at the beginning of the dance?

• Why do you think the choreographer selected Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder as the title for the dance?

• What movements were used to show the agony of the men on the chain gang? Can you show any?

• How did the movement and music work together?

• What was the hope of the men? Which dancer do you think represented hope and freedom? Why? • Describe your feelings from seeing the dance.

• Learn a traditional work song, such as the Hammer Song. Find a recording of it. The important pulse is on the “off beat” rather than the main beat. Clap the off beat rhythm and discuss the reason for the strong, compelling rhythm. Listen to the lyrics, then think of other tools or instruments which fit the song. Add new verses.

• List words which describe the feelings of imprisonment and freedom. Think of an everyday object and, incorporating some of these words, write a poem or short story based on its response to freedom or imprisonment.

Examples of objects: pencil, towel, cup, brush, shoe, box, curtain.

Summary of the Dance Scenario: Until recently it was a common practice in the South to chain convicts together at their ankles as they worked at road construction, stone quarrying and bridge building. In this dance, Donald McKayle shows the frustration and anger the men felt, as well as their dreams of freedom. The stage lighting creates the ‘crack of dawn’ as five convicts enter, performing strong, stark and full-bodied movements. Their twisting actions are interrupted at times as if they are reacting to being whipped. Although the movements of the men are forceful, they become weighted and weary as the day evolves. A woman appears, but is really a vision representing freedom. Three duets follow, connected by choral transitions, representing the memory and desire of a man for his sweetheart, mother and wife. All the female roles, originally performed by Mary Hinkson, are danced by the same woman. The dance, set to the compelling rhythms of traditional African American folk songs, is scripted to build emotional tension towards an explosive, sad ending.

Audio-Visual Materials: • Artsource® video excerpt: Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder, courtesy of The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and Donald McKayle.

• Photos: courtesy of The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

Additional References: • American Dance Festival. The Black Tradition in Modern Dance, American Dance Festival. www.americandancefestival.org.

Sample Experiences: LEVEL I • Working alone, find how it feels to walk in the following ways: heavy, light, dragging, bouncy. Then, work on these ways of walking with a partner, copying each other’s movement choices. Discuss the differences you felt when moving in these different ways. * • Think of group work movements which can be explored, such as hauling, dragging, pushing, pulling, lifting and carrying. Create variations for each.

LEVEL II • In small groups, have leaders call out work commands for others to do as they travel along a straight path in 30 seconds. Contrast this experience by having each student move along a curved path, doing movements of their own choice for 30 seconds. Compare the experiences. * • First with a partner, then in small groups, have a leader create slow, strong, clear movements which are mirrored or shadowed by the partner or group. Work for smooth flow of motion and transitions.

LEVEL III * • Working in partners, have one partner mime a strong whipping (slashing quality) action to which the other responds in dance movement. Repeat this several times working on action/reaction variations. Try in slow motion, then fast motion. Change roles. Discuss the experience and how the movements differed. How did each role feel when you performed it?

• Select an African American spiritual or work song and create small group studies which are inspired by the rhythm. Combine sections to create a whole work. * Indicates sample lessons

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DANCE

RHYTHMS OF WORK ENDURING VALUES

LEVEL I Sample Lesson INTRODUCTION: In many cultures, people work together to lighten tedious, repetitive jobs. To quote The Fireside Book of Folk Songs, “The principle of ‘music while you work’ was discovered long ago when men first saw that rhythm and unity of action helped to perform a task with greater swiftness and efficiency. Music, more than anything else, gave their actions the combined effort that was needed.”

In the past, sailors would sing sea chanties as they hoisted the sails, pulled in the lines and loaded cargo.

Working on the railroad, the men would sing as they dragged the ties into place and drove in the spikes.

As workers still do in Africa, slaves in America would provide a rhythm for their work by singing, giving them the will and energy to endure long hours of hard labor. Even during World Wars I and II, factory workers in many countries incorporated work songs to make their jobs easier. Soldiers who had to march great distances kept their spirits high by singing songs which kept them in step and lifted their morale.

In this unit, we are focusing on the work which prisoners had to do, as a forced member of a chain gang; however this lesson can highlight any type of work which people have done throughout history.

OBJECTIVES: (Student Outcomes) Students will be able to: • Move with unity and rhythm with others. (Responding & Connecting & Performing) • Express individual interpretation of dance movements based on work movements. (Creating & Connecting) • Discuss the historical and cultural use of music and rhythm to support and channel the energy of people who perform repetitious work movements. (Responding & Connecting) • Describe, discuss, analyze and connect information and experiences based on this lesson. Refer to Assessment at the end of this lesson. (Responding & Connecting)

MATERIALS: • Audio recording of the Hammer Song or other works songs such as sea shanties, railroad songs or prison songs.

• Artsource® video excerpt of Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder, danced by The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

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PROGRESSION: • Introduce the idea of people creating a rhythmic pattern while working together to get hard jobs done.

Sometimes people get paid for this type of work and sometimes they are forced to work against their will.

• Give a brief introduction to Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder and give some history of the chain gangs. Refer to the unit pages for this information. Have the students view at least the first part of the video, where the men are showing the idea of the chain gang. Focus on the unison movement and the energy and mood of the men.

• After the students have viewed the video and discussed the historical and cultural aspects of the piece, have them focus on the unison movement. Have them explore ways to do repetitive movement as they explore the following work ideas: chopping, sawing, sledge hammering, pushing, pulling, lifting, carrying, dragging, hauling, digging, swinging a pick axe, etc.

• Select different students to become the leader, performing their movement ideas with everyone else following them. Choose several leaders, each with a different idea. Stress the idea of doing the movement together rhythmically, and repeating the action several times.

• Play the Hammer Song and have the students try several of the ideas again, working within the rhythmic structure. Discuss how they felt. What would they change? What did they learn about repetitive work motions? What did they learn about working together? How do people use the idea of unison to get work done today?

EXTENSIONS: • Divide the students into groups of four. Have them take turns doing work movements of their choice, working in unison. If they wish, they can select a particular type of work idea and make up their own work song or sing traditional ones such as I’ve Been Working on the Railroad, or Yeo, Heave Ho! • Encourage students to explore ways to abstract their movements by: • making them very big (changing the size) • adding a traveling movement such as a slide, skip, gallop or leap • doing the motion with different body parts (isolation) • finding five variations on ways to perform each movement idea • changing the energy (weak, strong, percussive, sustained, swinging, vibrating, etc.)

• Relate the work movements to whatever culture or period of time is being studied in social studies or history.

VOCABULARY: work song, unison, repetition

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ASSESSMENT: (Responding & Connecting) DESCRIBE: Describe one of the work movements you did. Give as much detail about the movement as you can. Discuss what you learned by doing these work movements.

ANALYZE: Talk about why you think Mr. McKayle chose the title, Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder as a title for a dance about prisoners and their dreams of being free? Think of other titles you might use if you were the choreographer.

CONNECT: List words which describe the feelings of imprisonment and freedom. Think of situations when you have felt free and ones when you have felt that your freedom was taken away. Discuss the difference between these two feelings or situations.

Emphasis on: Common Core - CA State Standards for Language - Reading; Writing; Listening; Speaking

The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater A scene from Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder Choreographed by Donald McKayle Photo: Jack Mitchell

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DANCE

LEAD AND FOLLOW ENDURING VALUES

LEVEL II Sample Lesson INTRODUCTION: Learning to work with others has many advantages. One has to take attention off oneself and place it on cooperating with others. Effective participation with others earns one the right to be part of that group.

There must be cooperation and a sense of being connected to something larger than oneself. This activity builds a new type of awareness in students and places attention on following the lead of someone who is in charge. Since each person gets the opportunity to be a leader, this exercise gives each student the chance to play both the one ‘giving orders’ and the one who must ‘follow orders.’

OBJECTIVES: (Student Outcomes) Students will be able to: • Work in unison with a group, being both a leader and a follower. (Responding & Connecting) • Design and perform original movements. (Creating & Performing) • Describe, discuss, analyze and connect information and experiences based on this lesson. Refer to Assessment at the end of this lesson. (Responding & Connecting) MATERIALS: • Artsource® video excerpt of Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder danced by The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

• Music, such as the Hammer Song, I’ve Been working on the Railroad, or other rhythmic work songs.

• A simple drum, woodblock or clap can be used to set a steady beat to support the rhythm of the work movements.

PROGRESSION: • Discuss the opposite concepts of leading and following, and of being an individual and being part of a group.

• Introduce the video, Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder. Give some basic background from the unit page.

• After the video has been viewed, use the ‘Discussion Questions’ on paage 2 to stimulate thinking and give students an opportunity to share their views. Also ask what they noticed about the way the men moved in unison. What does working in unison involve? Was a particular man the leader? How do they know?

• Divide students into three’s or four’s; have each group select a leader. The leader performs movements 6

which are strong, large, simple and precise. Each movement should be repeated several times before going to the next. Give the students a specific amount of time in which to move. For example, give them 15 seconds, 10 seconds, 30 seconds, 5 seconds. Each movement idea should have a clear beginning, middle and ending. Have them change leaders. Establish the following criteria: move in unison, design motion which is smooth and continuous, or do sharp and clear level changes.

• Have several pairs, trios and quartets perform their work movements simultaneously while the others watch. Ask such questions as: • Which groups moved effectively in unison? Why were they able to do this?

• Did any groups change levels? Directions? Energy?

At this point, you may wish to show the first segment of the video again and have them watch the unison movement of the men again. What did they see this time that they didn’t see before? What new ideas did they get for leading? What other types of movement did the men do? Describe these.

• Have the students repeat the above task and find new movements they can use. Let them also add stops (active stillness).

EXTENSIONS: • Form small groups. Each leader should lead, first by facing the group. After they get more experienced, the leaders can turn their backs and have the group ‘shadow’ them, adding locomotor movements, accents (strong movements), stops or pauses, etc. Refer to the Artsource® Dance Addendum, “Tools to Use when Viewing Dance,” to show other possibilities for movement qualities, such as slashing, twisting, pressing, floating, etc. Have the leaders each select two of these qualities and include them.

• Have two small groups work in ways which are contrasting or in opposition to each other, still working in unison with a leader.

VOCABULARY: percussive movement, unison, repetitive ASSESSMENT: (Responding & Connecting) DISCUSS: Discuss the differences between leading and following.

ANALYZE: Discuss the movements of the men in the dance and how they expressed their situation.

CONNECT: Discuss other situations where people have lost their freedom and are under the control of a power greater than theirs.

Emphasis on: Common Core - CA State Standards for Language - Reading; Writing; Listening; Speaking

Donald McKayle and Carmen DeLavallade in a scene from Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder Photo: Norman Maxon

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DANCE

FREEDOM AND OPPRESSION ENDURING VALUES

LEVEL III Sample Lesson INTRODUCTION: Freedom and oppression have been themes throughout human existence. It is important to understand the roles of both in order to preserve freedom. Sometimes, individuals get stereotyped playing the bully or the victim and carry on with these roles for the remainder of their lives. Escaping from these roles is made easier if one can first identify and understand them.

This lesson is based on two roles: one is the character who is cruelly controlling another human being and the other is that of the victim, controlled against his or her wishes. There are no answers, only a heightened awareness of what it feels like to be in either position. In a sense, both roles are dependent upon the other and neither really has freedom when either role is being taken. This can be a point of departure for discussion.

OBJECTIVES: (Student Outcomes) The student will be able to: • Work with movement concepts of action and reaction and respond spontaneously. (Responding & Creating & Performing) • Gain a deeper understanding of freedom and oppression.

(Connecting) • Describe, discuss, analyze and connect information and experiences based on this lesson. Refer to Assessment at the end of this lesson. (Responding & Connecting) MATERIALS:

Renee Robinson and Carl Bailey Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Photo: Jack Mitchell

• Artsource® video excerpt of Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder, danced by The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

PROGRESSION: • Introduce and show the video excerpt of Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder. Discuss the position of a prisoner.

How does one become a prisoner? What privileges does a prisoner lose in American society? How would you feel if you were to be in this position? Give some background on the terrible conditions of the chain gangs who were prisoners in earlier times in the South. (See “Summary of the Dance Scenario” on page 2) Have the students notice how the dancers moved to give the impression that they were being whipped.

• After the video is discussed, use some of the ideas in the ‘Discussion Questions’ section on page 2. Have the students work with a partner, one taking on the role of a prison guard and the other taking the role 8

of the prisoner. Explain that this will be a movement study about “action and reaction”. Using exaggerated, miming actions, one partner will stand a distance of a few feet from the other and use strong, whipping motions. After each motion, they must wait until the partner moves in response. Switch roles.

• Look at this exercise in two different ways: from the point of view of how each role felt and how effective the movement ideas were. The focus on the latter should be that the movements are exaggerated, strong and clearly directed. The person being whipped must respond correctly in terms of the direction and body part first receiving the impact.

• Repeat this idea several times, encouraging the students to find movement variations. Stress the strong and controlled energy required. Repeat the idea having the students move in slow motion, then exaggerated fast motion. How did this change the idea or the way it felt?

• Have several pairs of students perform their idea. Guide the discussion and audience comments so that they view the idea in terms of movement action/reaction responses and the elements of dance. Ask how the use of these dance elements helped convey the idea of oppression. Name movements and qualities that would convey the idea of freedom.

• Repeat the idea and change the quality of movement so it is light and playful. Does this alter the way one feels? Why or why not?

• If you wish, view the video again. Discuss the choices choreographer Donald McKayle made in showing the ideas of both freedom and oppression. Why is it sometimes easier to see one idea if it is contrasted with its opposite?

EXTENSION: • In small groups, create a dance that is based on the theme of freedom and oppression. Choose music that will strengthen the idea and complement the dance.

VOCABULARY: freedom, oppression, contrast, quality, action/reaction ASSESSMENT: (Responding & Connecting) DISCUSS: Discuss the differences between being in control and being controlled. Discuss the relationship between the ones being controlled and the one in control.

CONNECT: Discuss other situations in life where you see these concepts happening.

Emphasis on: Common Core - CA State Standards for Language - Reading; Writing; Listening; Speaking

Elizabeth Roxas and Desmond Richardson Rainbow ’Round My Shoulder, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Photo: Jack Mitchell

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