At the beginning of the 20th century, dance underwent a great revolution. Previously, dance, especially ballet, was very rigid and structured. With the turn of the century, however, many choreographers began to experiment with techniques and styles that transcended the traditional norms of dance of the time, such as the legendary Merce Cunningham. Known for works such as Variations and Nearly Ninety, Merce Cunningham made his mark on the world of modern dance with his use of random operations, his collaboration with various artists and musicians, and, later in his life, with technology. A student of Martha Graham, Merce went on to teach famous dancers, such as Paul Taylor, who would leave their mark on dance history. Born April 16, 1919, in Centralia, Washington, Mercier Philip Cunningham was the second of three children. His father, Clifford D. Cunningham, was a lawyer in their small town and his mother, Mayme Joach Cunningham, an adventurous mother, who loved to travel the world, and Merce described having "tremendous energy and a fairly independent spirit ( Merce Cunningham: A Life of Dance).” Early in her journey, Merce ignited her passion for dance under the studio of Maude Barrett, a retired circus performer and vaudevillian (vaudeville was a form of theatrical entertainment in the late 19th and early of the 20th century, which uses pantomime, dance, dialogue, and song, and is usually comic (Merriam-Webster)). Barrett was a parishioner and neighbor of Cunningham, who ran the local Barrett School of Dance in Centralia couple with Barrett's daughter and learn the basics: tap dancing. Eventually ballroom dancing would be added to his repertoire. Looking back over time, Merce would note that Barrett's energy and passion shaped his vision of dance stating, “It was a kind of theatrical energy and devotion