[1] It was first performed on May 10, 1946, with the title Serpent Heart, at the second annual Festival of Contemporary American Music in the McMillin Theater of Columbia University.
[6] The dance is part of Graham's “Greek Cycle,” which also includes Night Journey, a retelling of the Oedipus story, Errand into the Maze, and Clytemnestra, a ballet based on the Oresteia.
There is almost too much wrath and passion here for so usual a denouement.” Martin deemed the music “brilliant” and the set “remarkable.”[2] The ballet was revised and renamed by Graham for the following season.
[11] Despite the anti-heroine's dark and brutal nature, the piece is ultimately a tale of transformation, as The Sorceress, cleansed by fire, returns to her father the Sun.
[7] The documentary film An Evening of Conversation and Dance with Martha Graham includes Cave of the Heart, as well as Errand into the Maze (1947) and Acts of Light (1981).