When the American modern dancers Isadora Duncan (1877-1928) and Martha Graham (1894-1991) read Nietzsche, they were inspired by the way in which he uses images of dance to figure an alternative to Christian values. They each came to describe their visions for dance in Nietzschean terms. This book investigates the role Nietzsche's dance images play in his project of 'revaluing all values' and does so alongside the religious rhetoric and subject matter evident in the dancing, teaching, and writing of Duncan and Graham. It concludes that these modern dancers found justification and guidance in Nietzsche's texts for developing dance as a medium of religious experience and expression.

This book investigates the role Nietzsche's dance images play in his project of "revaluing all values" alongside the religious rhetoric and subject matter evident in the work of Isadora Duncan and Martha Graham, who found justification and guidance in Nietzsche's texts for developing dance as a medium of religious expression.

Nietzsche uses images of dance throughout his work to represent the process and the fruits of his "revaluation of all values." American modern dancers Isadora Duncan and Martha Graham were inspired by his work as they created their respective visions for what dance can and should be. This book examines the relationships among these three figures, arguing that the techniques of dance practice, choreography, and performances developed by Duncan and Graham critically advance Nietzsche's revaluation of Christian values.