Because of the formidable technical demands, the ballet had ceased to be an accessible means of expression for many aspiring dancers. Furthermore, the traditional adherence to a classically defined vocabulary of movement served to impose limitations on the expressive possibilities of dance as a creative art form. While there is no evidence that GrahamÆs innovations were brought about as an intentional response to those limitations, she was simply not a classically trained dancer, her creative output did serve to create a powerful alternative to the ballet as the dominant form of artistic dance.

Like all great artists, Graham did not create in a cultural vacuum. Although the ballet had long been dominant, it was not the only genre of artistic dance. There were some important precursors to the modern dance movement Graham started. In the late 1800s Loie Fuller began to lay the basic ground work for a genre that would become modern dance by performing popular dances in a high art setting. She established two of the essential elements of modern dance: freedom of movement and the solo form (Bates, 1980, p. 1). Around the turn of the century

McDonagh, D. (1973). Martha Graham: A biography. New York: Praeger Publishers.

In the third episode, the lead dancer continues her side kick while the rest parade from upstage right to downstage left. The file marches in unison. Each individual dancer, however, strikes and maintains a different, awkward pose with their upper body. The effect is one of watching a parade of wounded people.

There were many who did not like her performance, however. Shawn and St. Denis sent her messages that were almost abusive. Shawn collected newspaper clippings that harshly criticized GrahamÆs performance, he sent them to her with a letter stating that she was wasting her talents and that her departure from his school had been a big mistake. St. Denis replied simply that her pieces were dreadful. A large crowd had turned out for the show, however, and to the surprise of many, when the receipts were counted, Graham had earned enough to repay Steloff. Overall, it was an auspicious beginning to a promising career.

Banes, S. (1980). Terpsichore in sneakers: Post-modern dance. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Based on the power of GrahamÆs performance, ôXochitlö was scheduled to tour on the Pantages vaudeville circuit. She had previously played only small roles in local concerts with the Denishawn group. The tour, which included performances in cities all along the West Coast, was successful and it gave Graham her first taste of stardom. Upon returning to Santa Barbara at the conclusion of the tour, Graham gave