Description
Book SynopsisMartha Graham's Cold War frames the story of Martha Graham and her particular brand of dance modernism as pro-Western Cold War propaganda used by the United States government to promote American democracy.
Trade ReviewThen there were the Cold War modernists. As Victoria Phillips demonstrates in her gracefully written, analytically powerful of study of modernism in dance, Martha Graham's Cold War, the U.S. government promoted modern dance as pro-Western Cold War propaganda, supposedly symbolizing the values of democracy, freedom and individualism. * Steven Mintz, Inside Higher Education *
The strength of this superbly researched book lies in the voice it gives to the many diplomats, journalists, and cultural figures with first-hand knowledge of Martha Graham's four decades of cultural diplomacy. Grounded in interviews and primary documents, this is practitioner-oriented diplomatic history at its best. * Institute for Public Diplomacy and Global Communication, George Washington University *
Meticulously researched and impassioned, Martha Graham's Cold War is essential reading for scholars of cultural diplomacy, the Cold War, and the history of dance. * Laura A. Belmonte, Dean, College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences, Virginia Tech *
This fascinating study shows how Martha Graham wedded the art of modern dance to America's Cold War 'cultural offensive.' In a highly readable and well researched narrative, it contributes to scholarship on mid-century modernism, gender and race in Cold War politics, and the strategic and personal dilemmas presented by propaganda campaigns based on supposedly apolitical cultural messaging. Scholars and general readers alike will appreciate how Victoria Phillips focuses on the era's most innovative dancer to craft her rich history of the Cold War. Highly recommended! * Emily S. Rosenberg, co-editor of Body and Nation: The Global Realm of U.S. Body Politics in the Twentieth Century *
While the book focuses on a single performer, the analysis of Graham serves to brilliantly reveal some essential questions about the complexities, contradictions, and meaning of US cultural diplomacy during the Cold War. * Diplomatica *
Martha Graham's Cold War is a book not to be missed. * H-Diplo *
An ambitious...book that will interest history buffs and dance aficionados. * Kirkus Reviews *
Phillips' book makes an important contribution by studying a prolific choreographer in detail and developing a well-documented, thorough account of her relationship with politics. * Gretchen McLaine, Journal Of Dance Education *
Table of ContentsPrologue: An American Ambassador on the Tarmac Introduction: "That's What We Call Cultural Exchange" Chapter One: How Martha Graham Became a Cultural Ambassador: Modernist on the Frontier Chapter Two: "The New Home of Men": Modern Americana Goes to Asia and the Middle East Chapter Three: "Dedicated to Freedom": Martha Graham in Berlin, 1957 Chapter Four: The Aging of a Star in Camelot: Israel, Europe, and "Behind the Iron Curtain," 1962 Chapter Five: Triumphing Over "Exhaustion," 1963-1974 Chapter Six: "Forever Modern": From Ashes to Ambassador in Asia, 1974 Chapter Seven: "Grahamized and Americanized": The Defector Joins the First Lady on the Global Stage Chapter Eight: "And Martha Knew How to Play That": From Détente to Disco in Jimmy Carter's Middle East, 1979 Chapter Nine: Dancing Along the Wall: Graham, Reagan, and the Reunification of Berlin, 1987-1989 Coda: American Document and American Icons: "Grahamizing and Americanizing" the Russians for the Soviet Stage
