Ideas of an Acrobat (1970)
Choreographed by Anna Sokolow

Images of Ella Rosewood in "Ideas of an Acrobat" (1970) choreographed by Anna Sokolow. Photos by Jaqlin Medlock. 

Ideas of an Acrobat (1970)
Choreography by Anna Sokolow
Staged by Jim May with permission of the Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble
Danced by Ella Rosewood
Music by Erik Satie: Gymnopédie No.1 and Gnossiennes No. 3
Text by Paul Eluard, read by Jim May, recorded by Jon Wohl
Costume reconstruction by Cheryl Lovett

Ideas of an Acrobat Film (2022)

Anna Sokolow (1910-2000) began her training at the Neighborhood Playhouse with Martha Graham and Louis Horst. In the 1930’s she was a member of the Martha Graham Dance Company and assisted Horst in his dance composition classes. During this period, in addition to her association with the WPA dance unit, she formed her own company and began choreographing and performing solo concerts and ensemble works. Sokolow’s interest in humanity led her to create works of dramatic contemporary imagery showing both the lyric and stark aspects of the human experience. She was a longtime faculty member of the Juilliard School in both the dance and drama divisions.  Additionally, her work for the Mexican Ministry of Fine Arts grew to become the National Academy of Dance. In 1953 she was invited to Israel to work with Inbal Dance Company. Following that, she choreographed for the major dance companies in Israel including Batsheva, Kibbutz Dance Company, and Lyric Theatre.  Sokolow also choreographed Broadway shows including Street Scene (1947), Camino Real (1953), Candide (1956), and the original Hair (1967).