[1] The piece was created in response to the Spanish Civil War and rising fascism as Francisco Franco gained control of the country.
[2] In particular, Graham was inspired by tales of La Pasionaria, real name Dolores Ibárruri, a fervent communist and champion of the Spanish Republic.
At the outbreak of war in 1936, Ibárruri roused Republican forces with Emiliano Zapata's words, "It is better to die on your feet than to live on your knees."
[4] Although largely disengaged from the era's politics, Graham herself had taken an anti-fascist stance when she joined labor-related causes of the Popular Front against Fascism in 1935.
John Martin of The New York Times wrote, "Not since the eloquent and beautiful Frontier, first presented three seasons ago, has she given us anything half so fine as Immediate Tragedy."
"[7] Years later, Dorothy Bird expressed surprise the work had not become as popular as Graham's solo Lamentation, a 1930 study of profound grief.