MODERN DANCE TURKEY Modern Dance Turkey was formed in late 1992 when the country was crying out for a new mode of self expression. Beyhan Murphy, (graduate of London School of Contemporary Dance) Artistic Director and cofounder, was invited back to her native land to begin the company as part of the State Opera and Ballet. After seventeen years in England as a free-lance dancer/teacher and choreographer. Her challenge was to introduce true contemporary dance to a civil State system and an audience that was not only vastly unacquainted with the art but also instinctively wary of adopting anything quite so beyond their conventions and has attempted paradoxically to forge an artistically independent company within this institution. Ms. Murphy and her dancers-who had bravely and somewhat controversially defected from the State's well-established ballet company, had no room for trial and error: if they did not succeed at once, they would have no second chance. Six years on and with the addition of a crop of new dancers, the result is a troupe fiercely proud and committed to its own aspirations, one that exudes a vitality and willingness to break new ground. Their success has been astounding and remarkable. After a mere six years, the ensemble has developed a colourful, varied and ground breaking repertoire. Half of it is by Turkish choreographers, the other half by international guests; including such distinguished choreographers as Ashley Page, Richard Alston, Amanda Miller, Matthew Hawkins, Mark Baldwin, Michael Popper , Samuel Wuersten & Reinhild Hoffmann. The eighteen dancers have toured considerably and have been passionately received throughout Turkey...performing to the metropolitan audiences of the large cities, as well as to the uncharted territory of Turkey's far eastern post, the town of Van. On an international level they have toured Bulgaria, France, Israel, USA, Egypt, Germany, and in 1996 they were the first modern dance group to visit the republic of Georgia. In a nation where the intellectual and spiritual expression often have been frustrated due to a variety of socio-political factors, MDT has found that it plays a new and vital role in the cultural development of the nation, and since broadening its audience with European and North American tours, has cleverly taken what is considered a 'western' art form and created a truly Turkish expression through it; communicating universal themes from its own cultural and unique rhetoric. The reaction of its foreign audience such as the standing ovations in France and its captivated and delighted German reception has only served at once to underline the contemporary post modern relevance of the company outside of its own national confines whilst retaining its national identity unreliant on westward looking plagiarism. The company's artistic conscience takes pains to portray elements of east -west tensions within Turkish society; of its uncertain future and of the sometimes humorous co-existence of Islamic tradition and modernity - - all aspects of a powerfully emotive culture. With the support of the British Council, and several embassies, MDT has become an inspiration of resourcefulness and persistence for the arts. The result has been not only an accomplished modern dance company but also a new Turkish paradigm. About POST MDT's first full-length dance theatre 'POST' has been causing great sensation and filling out houses since its premiere in April 1996. Beyhan Murphy's satirical masterpiece has gained critical acclaim making audiences both in Turkey and abroad, reflect upon core issues in Turkish culture. Moving from dance into theatre, 'POST' is a vivid and passionate expression of Turkish socio-political and cultural life; traveling from harems to men's tea - houses, from family life to the military, from the Ottoman Empire to the Republic......and to the urban modern times.... .....Accompanied live by a Turkish traditional music trio ( ney flute, lute & kemenche ) as well as taped music of some of the greats of Turkish classic-traditional music, 'POST' is first of its kind to have been staged in Turkey. It has become a platform on which east and west can meet and where finally Turkish art communicates with the West.   The Press about POST Daily News 'It was a complex performance...with one scene dovetailing seamlessly into the next & nobody put a foot wrong' 'a multi-faceted commentary on the Turkish past and the Turkish present, an exuberant mixture of dance, mime and tableau vivant held together by the elastic theme suggested by the title' Sunday Post '..this show must be taken to the world stage.' HRH. C. R. Giray 'For the first time possibly in Turkish Culture, someone has been able to sensitively & successfully give voice to all the contradictions and tensions of a rich and impressive heritage without the meaningless plagiarism of Western stereotypes.... for those looking for deeper meanings it is esoteric but familiar. Even people who are not acquainted with Sufi ideas will find a cultural familiarity in the sounds of the music, the highly communicative movements and gestures...' HURRIYET '...displaying a striking combination of modern dance and Turkish traditional music, 'POST' caused a great stir among audiences when it was first staged in Ankara.' NEWS | TOURDATES | TOUR NOTES | BIO | PHOTOS | MERCHANDISE | MAILING LIST | LINKS