Landscape With Moving Figures: A Decade on Dance (1)

by Laura Jacobs

In Landscape with Moving Figures, Ms. Jacobs reflects on the art form during the ten-year period from 1994-24 when dancers, choreographers and dance lovers were challenged by AIDS and the loss of the last of the founding giants of American dance. Grounded by her vast knowledge of the form and guided by her own sensitive gifts of perception, Ms. Jacobs ponders the very purpose of the art as she encounters it in landmark performances of the decade. She describes her multi-layered experiences watching performances by Bill T. Jones, New York City Ballet, Baryshnikov’s White Oak Project, the Royal Ballet, Merce Cunningham, Paul Taylor, Twyla Tharp and others.

162 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2006

About the author

Laura Jacobs is an American novelist, journalist, and cultural critic whose work spans fashion, design, dance, and the performing arts. Raised in Chicago, she earned a degree in English literature from Northwestern University and began her career as a dance critic before moving into national arts journalism. From 1995 to 2018, she was a staff writer at Vanity Fair, where she produced widely praised essays and profiles on iconic designers, performers, and American cultural figures. She is also a longtime contributor to The Wall Street Journal, reviewing museum fashion exhibitions, and writes regularly for other leading publications. In 2019, she became Arts Intel Report editor at AIR MAIL, the international digital newsletter co-edited by Graydon Carter. Jacobs is the author of several books, including the novels Women About Town and The Bird Catcher, and the acclaimed nonfiction work Celestial Bodies: How to Look at Ballet.

Reviews

[Siobhan Burns · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful and clear-eyed essays on dance -- perhaps one of the most difficult art forms to write about!