influences

Question 1

Walter Gore

Answer 1

Walter Gore: Bruce briefly performed with Walter Gore’s company, London Ballet, in 1963, whilst a student at the Ballet
Rambert School in London. Gore was a pupil of Massine and Marie Rambert in the 1930s before becoming one of Ballet
Rambert’s earliest significant classical choreographers. His influence on Bruce is seen less in classical technique and more in the
abstract presentation of social and psychological realism. This can of course be a characteristic of Rambert Ballet’s ‘house
style’, post-1966.

Question 2

Norman Morrice

Answer 2

Norman Morrice: As Associate Artistic Director of Ballet Rambert in 1966, Morrice was interested in exploring contemporary
themes and social comment. He was responsible for the company’s change in direction to a modern dance company as he
introduced Graham technique to be taught alongside ballet.

Question 3

Glen Tetley

Answer 3

Glen Tetley: Glen Tetley drew on balletic and Graham vocabulary in his pieces, teaching Bruce that ‘the motive for the
movement comes from the centre of the body … from this base we use classical ballet as an extension to give wider range and
variety of movement’. Tetley’s collaborative approach, particularly with Nadine Baylis and John B Read, also influenced Bruce.
His early work Living Space (1969) used the same designers. Bruce’s preference for minimal stage settings, distinctive costume
design and atmospheric lighting can be traced back to this.

Question 4

Anna Sokolow

Answer 4

Anna Sokolow: Anna Sokolow danced for the Martha Graham Company and established a career as a dancer and
choreographer starting in the 1930s until her death in 2000. She was a guest choreographer for Ballet Rambert in 1967 and
1970. Her works were socially and politically aware, and often used popular music.

Question 5

Marie Rambert

Answer 5

Marie Rambert: Marie Rambert instilled in Bruce high standards and emphasised the need for theatricality.