His Romeo and Juliet based on music by Prokofiev is probably the only one on the theme in modern dance. The list of his creations is long and remarkable for its variety. His version of the Nutcracker with the music of Tchaikovsky, The Hard Nut, is an all time favourite with audiences. Morris became famous for dancing as both Dido and the Sorceress in the dance version of the opera Dido and Aeneas. His early masterpiece, “L’Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato” based on Milton’s poetry and using the music of Handel, which I witnessed at one of the Kennedy Center shows, swept me off my feet. Each work of his from the 1980s onwards has been amazing for the sheer originality of his choreography and the intensity of his involvement with music. Over the past two decades, I have had the distinct privilege of knowing him, his work, his dancers, and his dance centre in Brooklyn New York.

After blazing a successful trail as the Director of Dance at the Theatre Royal de la Monnaie in Brussels, he returned to New York to present his choreography and his company in prestigious institutions, received many awards, and earned the accolades he richly deserved.

His early training in many dance disciplines including ballet moulded his special approach to choreography. The New York Times has described him as “the most successful and influential choreographer alive, and indisputably the most musical.” He was born in Seattle in 1956 and formed the Mark Morris Dance Group in 1980 and has since created more than 160 works for the company. In the big wide world of modern dance, opera and ballet, Mark Morris is a towering figure.

Mark Morris by Joan Acocella