An ever-growing collection of dance videos filmed at Jacob’s Pillow from the 1930s to today,
plus multi-media essays and a related podcast.
Most Recent Playlist - Groups of Guys
When Pillow founder Ted Shawn began his career in the early 20th century, it was a generally accepted premise that “men don’t dance” and he set out to disprove this assumption with his company of men dancers. The multiplicity of examples in this playlist demonstrate how far we have come, with an entirely different sampling of performances collected in a playlist entitled Men Dancers.
Warwick Gombey Troupe, 2022
This company traveled all the way from Bermuda to share their traditional dance style, reuniting these artists with a geographic area where similar dances would have been practiced by Indigenous peoples in centuries past.
Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui's Eastman
Fractus V, 2018
This remarkable choreographer of Belgian/Moroccan descent crafted a work for six men called Fractus V, performing himself as part of the ensemble.
Dancing Crane Georgian Ensemble
Lost Legends – Dances from Georgia, 2018
One of the most distinctive aspects of the technique practiced by this Brooklyn-based company is the traditional tseruli, or men dancing on their toes.
Roy Assaf Dance
The Hill, 2017
This Israeli company made its U.S. debut in the performance seen here, with a dance that takes its name and inspiration from one of the fiercest battles of the Six-Day War in 1967.
Che Malambo, 2016
These Argentinian dancers proudly display their roots in West African dance, Irish step dance, tango, and flamenco.
Compagnie Hervé Koubi
Ce que le jour doit à la nuit (What the Day Owes to the Night), 2016
After he learned of his own Algerian ancestry, French choreographer Hervé Koubi began developing a dance style that explores his roots.
Luna Negra Dance Theater
Bate, 2012
This dance by Brazilian choreographer Fernando Melo was inspired by the spirit of Brazilian soap operas and the masculine world of Samba, where men express not only their love and devotion to women, but also their troubles and melancholy.
Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo
Le Lac des Cygnes (Swan Lake, Act II), 2010
Dancing en travesti is a time-honored tradition, though this popular all-male company is not the kind that Ted Shawn had in mind when he launched his crusade for men in dance.
Rennie Harris Puremovement
P-Funk, 2005
Rennie Harris himself can be seen in this dance, which has been described as “a paean to the redemptive power of movement joined to rhythm.”
Dayton Contemporary Dance Company
Rainbow 'Round My Shoulder, 1990
Choreographer Donald McKayle’s own company performed his iconic work here in both 1961 and 1963, and he staged this revival for DCDC.
Ted Shawn's Men Dancers
Kinetic Molpai, 1937
Often recognized as Shawn’s most significant work for the Men Dancers, Kinetic Molpai was notably restaged for a hand-picked group headed by Norman Walker in 1962.
Ted Shawn's Men Dancers
Finale from The New World, 1936
This excerpt from an early Ted Shawn work represents a genre that he referred to as a music visualization; pure movement that was motivated by a desire to “illustrate” a musical score.
Get the Latest in Your Inbox
Receive a monthly email with new and featured Jacob’s Pillow Dance Interactive videos, curated by Director of Preservation Norton Owen.
Playlists
Trending
Archives
Explore Jacob’s Pillow history in our extensive online resource. Discover photos, programs, exhibits, and more.
Jacob’s Pillow is a National Historic Landmark, National Medal of Arts recipient, and home to America’s longest running dance festival. Learn more about the international festival, educational programs, archives, and more.
Podcast
Connect with notable dance artists throughout history brought to life by current thought-leaders and scholars in PillowVoices: Dance Through Time.