Acclaimed as one of America’s foremost dancemakers, Paul Taylor (1930-2018) created a remarkable repertoire of 147 works for his company, ending with the one seen here. He performed with Martha Graham and Merce Cunningham, but focused his energies on his own company for over sixty years. He first came to Jacob’s Pillow as a dancer in Pearl Lang’s company in 1954, and brought a group of his own dancers (including Twyla Tharp) for the first time ten years later. The Paul Taylor Dance Company has since appeared at the Pillow many times, including a 1982 performance with an early cast of Airs, a 2000 performance of Company B, and his classic Esplanade in 2017. Taylor’s visual artwork was the subject of Pillow exhibitions in 2000 and 2019, and the Pillow commissioned new Taylor dances in 2000 and 2007. His second company, Taylor 2, had its genesis at the Pillow in 1993. Seen in a central role in this final Taylor work is Michael Novak, who was hand-picked by Taylor to succeed him as director.
Read More
