Martha Graham Center of Contemporary Dance

Coordinates: 40°45′45″N 73°57′43″W / 40.762588°N 73.961902°W / 40.762588; -73.961902

Martha Graham School headquarters as of 1994, at 316 East 63rd Street, New York. Though the school has since moved from this location, this is the last studio that Martha Graham herself taught in.

Martha Graham Center of Contemporary Dance is located in New York City and is the headquarters to the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance and the Martha Graham Dance Company, which is the oldest continually performing dance company in the world. The School is focused on teaching Graham's technique; some of its faculty were trained by Graham herself.^[1]

The center was founded in 1926 by Martha Graham. Its first headquarters consisted of a small dance studio on Broadway. The center later moved to a two-story building at 316 East 63rd Street, New York.

After Martha Graham's death in 1991, the center's leadership was debated. In her will, Martha Graham left Ron Protas as heir to her estate. Protas claimed ownership of the rights to Graham's name and choreographic oeuvre, and sued the Martha Graham Dance Company for trademark infringement. After years of legal battles, the Martha Graham Dance Company was ruled the owner of the Graham name and almost all of her repertoire.^[2]^[3] During the dispute, Protas was voted out of his position as artistic director of the company.^[4]

In 2005, the center was among 406 New York City arts and social service institutions to receive part of a $20 million grant from the Carnegie Corporation, which was made possible through a donation that was given by the New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg.^[5]

References[]

^ "Martha Graham School". marthagraham.org. Martha Graham School. Archived from the original on 12 March 2015. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
^ Dunning, Jennifer (8 August 2001). "Federal Judge Allows Martha Graham Center to Use Her Name and Methods". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
^ Dunning`, Jennifer (24 August 2002). "Martha Graham Center Wins Rights to the Dances". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
^ Dunning, Jennifer (25 March 2000). "Martha Graham Board Seeks to Remove Director". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
^ Roberts, Sam (6 July 2006). "City Groups Get Bloomberg Gift of $20 Million". The New York Times. Retrieved 13 March 2015.