Dance in America

Library Journal

PBS aired the first Dance in America program in 1976, and its impact was staggering. Five million people watched the TV performance of the Joffrey Ballet in a year when only eleven million people saw a live performance. Each chapter in the book focuses on a dance company that was featured on the series; overviews on the history of dance connect the chapters. Coe's descriptions of the companies, choreographers, repertoires, and technical and artistic aspects of video production vary. Chapters on the Paul Taylor and the Merce Cunningham dance companies and the New York City Ballet are lively and informative; those on the American Ballet Theatre, etc., are only mildly interesting. The photographs, quotes, and vivid decriptions of dances all make the reader want to view the entire series. The book is a primer on the history of contemporary American dance and will be useful in most public and academic libraries. Joan Stahl, Enoch Pratt Free Lib., Baltimore