Editing Appalachian Spring (section)

=== Production ===
[[File:Set of Appalachian Spring.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|[[Isamu Noguchi]]'s set|alt=A stage. People sit under the outline of a house on the left; a figure in a black cloak stands atop a stump]]
Shortly before the premiere, Graham decided upon the title "Appalachian Spring".{{Efn|Copland turned "Ballet for Martha" into the subtitle of the work.{{sfn|Oja|Tick|2005|p=140}}}} It was taken from the cycle of poems ''[[The Bridge (poem)|The Bridge]]''{{Efn|The bridge in question is the [[Brooklyn Bridge]] in New York.{{sfn|Rutkoff|Scott|1995|p=211}}}} by [[Hart Crane]], an American poet also seeking to create unique American art;{{Sfn|Ross|2007|p=330}}{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=401}} one of the poems, titled ''Powhatan's Daughter'', contained the line "O Appalachian Spring!"{{Sfn|Ross|2007|p=330}}{{Sfn|Rutkoff|Scott|1995|pp=216–217}} Crane's work was a great inspiration to Graham while she wrote the various scripts.{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=401}}{{Sfn|Rutkoff|Scott|1995|p=216}}

To construct the set, Graham hired [[Isamu Noguchi]], a sculptor and common collaborator with the company. While planning, she took Noguchi to the [[Museum of Modern Art]] and showed him [[Alberto Giacometti]]'s sculpture ''The Palace at 4 a.m.''{{Efn|See a picture of the statue at the [https://www.moma.org/collection/works/80928 Museum of Modern Art's website].}} as a reference for what she wanted:{{Sfn|Graham|1991|p=223}} something depicting the inside and outside of a house without actually dividing it, a sort of blurred mix. Noguchi's use of an outline of a house served as a metaphor for the general idea of the work being about "the bone structure of a people's living".{{Sfn|Franko|2012|p=47}}{{Sfn|Thomas|1995|pp=154–155}} The set featured the outline of a house, part of a porch with a ledge, a rocking chair, a small fence, and a tree stump (serving as the Revivalist's [[pulpit]]).{{Sfn|Stodelle|1984|p=125}}{{Sfn|Stodelle|1984|pp=154–155}} Edythe Gilfond created the costumes and [[Jean Rosenthal]] designed the lighting.<ref name=":6">{{Cite encyclopedia |year=1998 |title=''Appalachian Spring'' |encyclopedia=International Encyclopedia of Dance |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=New York |url=https://archive.org/details/internationalenc0000unse_r8u1/mode/2up |access-date=August 17, 2023 |last=Jowitt |first=Deborah |author-link=Deborah Jowitt |editor-last=Cohen |editor-first=Selma Jeanne |editor-link=Selma Jeanne Cohen |volume=1 |pages=96–97 |isbn=978-0-19-512305-0}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Simmons |first=Patricia |date=January 24, 1945 |title=Second Concert of Season for Graham Group |pages=15 |work=[[The Washington Star|Evening Star]] |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/evening-star-second-concert-of-season-fo/130755027/ |access-date=August 17, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=August 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230827201906/https://www.newspapers.com/article/evening-star-second-concert-of-season-fo/130755027/ |url-status=live }}</ref>{{Sfn|Rutkoff|Scott|1995|p=221}}

Many changes were made to the scenario after the score was finished. The Younger Sister, the Two Children, and the Neighbors were all cut, and the rest of the cast was renamed: the Daughter to the Bride; the Citizen to the Husbandman; the Mother to the Pioneer Woman; and the Fugitive to the [[Revivalist movement|Revivalist]].{{Efn|For the sake of consistency, this article will use these new names from now on.}}{{Sfn|Philip|2018|p=183}}{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=402}} Four Followers of the Revivalist were added to the cast for a total of nine dancers in the ballet.{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=402}} The choreography often deviated from both the final scenario and Copland's annotations in the score; for example, the closing love duet between the Bride and the Husbandman became a dance between the Revivalist and his four Followers.{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|pp=402–403}} Regardless, Copland was not irritated by this, later commenting, "That kind of decision is the choreographer's, and it doesn't bother me a bit, especially when it works."<ref>{{Harvtxt|Philip|2018|p=183}} quoting {{Harvtxt|Pollack|1999|p=393}}.</ref> The cast at the premiere starred Graham as the Bride, Hawkins as the Husbandman, [[May O'Donnell]] as the Pioneer Woman, and [[Merce Cunningham]] as the Revivalist.{{Sfn|Pollack|1999|p=404}} [[Yuriko (dancer)|Yuriko]], [[Pearl Lang]], Nina Fonaroff, and [[Marjorie Mazia]] danced the Revivalist's followers.{{Sfn|Oja|Tick|2005|p=137}}<ref>{{Cite news |last=Simmons |first=Patricia |date=October 31, 1944 |title=Graham Group Dances Trio of New Works |pages=25 |work=[[The Washington Star|Evening Star]] |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/evening-star-graham-group-dances-trio-of/130755195/ |url-status=live |access-date=August 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230815222623/https://www.newspapers.com/image/868074064/ |archive-date=August 15, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>

Graham's performance was young and lively, which critics praised.{{Sfn|de Mille|1991|p=261}}<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Robinson |first=Emily |date=April 8, 2019 |title=When Autumn in D.C. Felt Like an Appalachian Spring |url=https://boundarystones.weta.org/2019/04/08/when-autumn-dc-felt-appalachian-spring |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230812214126/https://boundarystones.weta.org/2019/04/08/when-autumn-dc-felt-appalachian-spring |archive-date=August 12, 2023 |access-date=August 12, 2023 |website=Boundary Stones |publisher=WETA |language=en}}</ref> On the contrary, Hawkins was stiffer and exhibited the masculinity of the role, but later performers were more supple with movements. Cunningham, who choreographed his own solo during "Fear of the Night", was instructed to display great anger; Graham later described the role to a new dancer as being "ninety-nine percent sex and one percent religion: a real popular spellbinder, a magnetic man who had power over women."{{Sfn|de Mille|1991|p=261}} Graham's vision for the four Followers was spontaneity; they would remain perfectly still until their time came, and when they did dance, it would be with energy and focus. [[Agnes de Mille]], fellow choreographer and close friend of Graham's, pointed out that many subsequent productions featured cute and perky Followers, but that this was not Graham's original intention.{{Sfn|de Mille|1991|pp=262, 510}} Much of the contrast between female and male characters was intentional. While the female characters remained bouncy and light, the male characters were stiff and took up much space.{{Sfn|Franko|2012|pp=62–63}}

The press described the choreography as simple and precise.<ref name=":5" /><ref name=":7">{{Cite news |last=Evans |first=Lee |date=May 20, 1945 |title=Vivid Impressions Are Made By Latest Graham Dances |pages=35 |work=[[The Cincinnati Enquirer]] |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-cincinnati-enquirer-vivid-impression/130755522/ |access-date=August 17, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=August 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230827201817/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-cincinnati-enquirer-vivid-impression/130755522/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":9">{{Cite news |last=Martin |first=John |date=May 15, 1941 |title=Graham Dancers Open at National: ''Appalachian Spring'' Premiere Feature of First of Seven Programs by Troupe |pages=23 |work=[[The New York Times]] |id={{ProQuest|107299477}}}}</ref> Despite being set during such a scenario, the choreography does not explicitly depict a wedding; rather, the dance expresses the emotions of individual characters.<ref name=":6" /> This non-literal plot allowed for free emotional interpretation by the audience.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kastendieck |first=Miles |date=May 15, 1945 |title=Martha Graham Introduces ''Appalachian Spring'' in Opening at the National |pages=15 |work=[[The Brooklyn Daily Eagle]] |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-brooklyn-daily-eagle-martha-graham-i/130755593/ |access-date=August 17, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=August 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230827201817/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-brooklyn-daily-eagle-martha-graham-i/130755593/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The Bride's movements featured quick patterns that stayed within an imaginary box around her. This contrasted with the Revivalist's strict posture and the flowing movements of the Pioneer Woman.<ref>{{Cite news |last=W. |first=P. |date=January 28, 1945 |title=The Dance |pages=12 |work=[[The Boston Globe]] |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-the-dance/130755655/ |access-date=August 17, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=August 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230827201832/https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-the-dance/130755655/ |url-status=live }}</ref> One reviewer pointed out the solitude of the characters and its manifestation in their movements, writing, "The separateness of still figures... which their poses emphasize, suggests that people who live in these hills are accustomed to spending much of their time alone."<ref>{{Cite news |date=June 10, 1945 |title=Martha Graham in New Triumphs in New York |pages=8 |work=[[Santa Barbara News-Press]] |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/santa-barbara-news-press-martha-graham-i/130755743/ |access-date=August 17, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=August 27, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230827202346/https://www.newspapers.com/article/santa-barbara-news-press-martha-graham-i/130755743/ |url-status=live }}</ref>