Overview

This extraordinary film documents the first days of rehearsal for the performance Ceremony of Us, created in response to the Watts riots and staged at the Mark Taper Theatre in Los Angeles in 1969. No final performance film exists, but this film goes far in capturing its spirit. After working separately for months with all-white dancers in San Francisco and all-black dancers in Watts, Anna Halprin brought the two groups together in the politically groundbreaking performance. This film captures how Anna guided the two groups of dancers into experiences that both elicited and challenged racial stereotypes, creating a space where political and personal anger and despair could be expressed, and where reconciliation could be envisioned.