Remarkable. A single pure idea, perfectly expressed in dance and in film.

Dance in the Sun (Short. 4 & a half stars) 1953 (Part of the Shirley Clarke Early Works (I) retrospective) Although she would go on to make her name as one of the most influential of experimental filmmakers, Shirley Clarke first studied as a dancer. Her style was the Martha Graham School. Clarke would go on to make other shorts, but it is in this, her Dance in the Sun, that she best expresses the spirit of dance  rather than focussing primarily on film-making.

The dance in question (choreographed and performed by Daniel Negrin) is a piece expressive of the forces of nature. Clarke edits the film in such a way that we repeatedly cut from a studio performance to an outdoor one. As Negrin performs a certain movement in the studio, the same movement is picked up as he dances on the sea shore. The effect is to lead the viewer into an appreciation of the vision within the dancer.

Graham was one of a small number of dancers - that also numbered Isadora Duncan - who changed the face of modern dance forever. Dance became an expression of something from within, rather than an adornment to something else (such as music, film or theatre). In Dance in the Sun, Negrin's movements have a fluidity, using curves more than the angular shapes of classical ballet. The dance materialises as an expression of the power of nature coming from within the human spirit. The dancer is at one with his surroundings. (The mimicking of dance movement and the movement of nature is taught more specifically in Duncan Dance. Serious readers may wish to refer to photographer Hal Eastman's outstanding collection, "Natural Dance" for a continuation of the ideas in this film.) In her later shorts, Bullfight and A Moment in Love, Clarke had subsumed the supremacy of dance to her own work for the camera. Dance in the Sun, while less complex than these, uses the camera merely to help communicate aspects of the dance through another medium. Dance in the Sun would prove a building block for Clarke. In an interview with Lauren Rabinovitz, she would go on to say, "All these kind of things I discovered about the choreography of editing and the choreography of space/time came from making that very first film." Parallels to her other editing techniques abound (described in Rome Burns: A Portrait of Shirley Clarke), such as the use of spontaneous soft focus.

While many of Shirley Clarke's early experiments contain flaws as well as triumphs, Dance in the Sun has a single-pointedness of intention, perfectly executed.

Its major shortcoming, as with much of Clarke's work, is that it is aimed at an educated audience already in tune with this artist's aspirations. Without sufficient clues, like many refinements in the art world, it could leave the newcomer feeling blank.

The music genre features stories showcasing musical performances, music-related documentaries and recordings of live concerts and music festivals.

Prince and Apollonia Kotero in Purple Rain (1984)

The short form refers to creative works characterized by their brevity and concise storytelling. Unlike full-length feature films, short films have a running time of less than 45 minutes, while TV shorts have a running time of less than 22 minutes.

Benedict Cumberbatch in The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (2023)

A man dancing in a studio is inter-cut with the same dance in a setting on a beach and in the dunes.

The Biggest Movies and TV Coming in September

See which big screen releases you can watch from the comfort of your couch.

Theatrical Releases Coming to Streaming

See who dazzled on the red carpet and took home gold at the 78th Primetime Creative Emmy Awards.

Primetime Creative Arts Emmys: Photos We Love

Jules Berry, Florelle, and René Lefèvre in The Crime of Monsieur Lange (1936)

Joan Fontaine, Ida Lupino, and Edmond O'Brien in The Bigamist (1953)

Dance in the Sun

Photos

Top Cast2

User reviews2

More like this

Related interests

Storyline

Top picks

Details

Tech specs

Contribute to this page

More to explore

Recently viewed