The Double Cross

Tom Rawe, Kenneth Rinker, Jennifer Way, Rose Marie Wright

I. Drill

Wright, Rinker, Rawe, Way

II. Lalene (Jarret)

Rinker, Rawe, Way

III. Cold Cold Heart (Williams)

Rinker, Way

VI. Parade of the Wooden Soldiers (Jessel)

Wright

V. Traumerei / Scenes From Childhood (Opus 15 n.7, Schumann)

Rinker, Rawe

VI. On the Trail, From Grand Canyon Suite (Grofe)
Trio: Rinker, Rawe, Way
Quartet: Wright, Rinker, Rawe, Way
Trio: Rinker, Rawe, Way

VII. Jesu, Der Du Meine Seele (Cantata, BWV 78, Bach)

Wright, Rinker

The title The Double Cross symbolizes the close ties Tharp and her company made during their multiple residencies in St. Paul, Minnesota. The knot tying reference was reinforced during the performance as members of the community tied knots in ropes that were hung on the upstage wall. Musicians and actors were brought in as supporting players.

The work also illustrates how a variety of music and dance styles can be woven together to form a single cohesive work. The dance follows a 4-3-2-1-2-3-4 pattern, starting with a quartet, working down to a solo, and back up to a quartet.

Two months after the St. Paul premiere, Tharp presented The Double Cross at Town Hall in New York City. For this performance, Tharp added a new section that combined her company with actors from Andre Gregory’s The Manhattan Project. She created short movement phrases for Gregory and the actors to perform. They executed their choreography while reciting complicated monologues and dodging the arms and legs of Tharp and dancers.

From the original program:  “The Double Cross, with the exception of the “Bach Duet,” was written in St. Paul, Minnesota. The work was produced at the rate of one minute per day in rehearsals open to the St. Paul/Mineapolis community, from February 3 through February 14, 1975. The music is excerpted from the works of Keith Jarrett, Hank Williams, L. Jessel, Robert Schumann, Ferdinand von Grofé and J. S. Bach.

The choreographer wishes to thank Peter Altman for his assistance with The Double Cross text.”