Among the many important dance artist of the 20th and 21st century, Anna Halprin is often considered one of the most significant pioneers of post-modern dance. As a self-proclaimed “breaker of modern dance,” Halprin developed many techniques that are relevant and widely used in 21st century dance. In particular, Halprin, along with other dancers, founded the San Francisco Dancers Workshop in 1959, which was one of the early steps in the move away from modern dance. In doing so, Halprin and other notable dancers such as Trisha Brown, Yvonne Rainer, Simone Forti, John Cage and Robert Morris sought to challenge the technical rigidity of modern dance and shift the focus on a pure and abstract manner of dancing that was based on movement. This was an incredibly significant step that greatly …show more content…
This allowed her to cope with her disease and, according to her, was essential in her personal healing process. It is also important to note that she helped countless other terminally ill people who took her classes to find at least a few moments of peace and solace while facing life-threatening diseases. This idea of using the arts in association with modern medicine is important for a few reasons. First, this reinforces the positive effects of dance on one’s outlook in life. In fact, while it may be difficult to prove experimentally, the use of dance to affect one’s emotional and physical state can change their physiological response to medication and treatments. Also, by using terminally ill performers with AIDS and Cancer, Halprin was able not only help their healing processes but integrate their life experiences into her performances. This made her dances much more dynamic and perhaps contributed to the fact that emotion is a central part of her