Isadora's Legacy
Devoted to the Dance of Isadora Duncan (1877-1927)

RITE OF SPRING

Rite of Spring was choreographed and performed by Roberta Hoffman at Leaps and Bounds  (College Park, MD) in 1996.
Rite of Spring is a dance representing the conflict and struggle as spring emerges from winter.  The white scarf represents winter; the dancer represents the birth of spring.   The running with outstretched arms, arching of the back, lifting of the solar plexus, and looking upward represents spring appealing to the higher powers to prevail.  The stomping is to awaken the earth to the coming of spring.  Part of the beauty of this dance is the length (the full dance is 12 minutes long) which emphasizes the intensity and endurance in the struggle of life.

 ©1996 by Roberta Hoffman


O' raging winter
Where, O' where,  is our promised spring. 
Can it not be far away? 

Beneath the rooted forest bed,
Eternal spring sleeps
Awaiting its grand entrance of new life  

O' raging winter. It is a cold winter day. 
Where O' where is our promised spring?
Raging winter - when will you end?  

Roberta Hoffman (1996)