Even the name—Martha Graham—evokes majesty, innovation, brilliance, with all of those qualities on display in a program of four works that spanned more than a century. Under the artistic directorship of erstwhile Graham dancer, Janet Eilber, since 2005, the company opened the concert with “Serenata Morisca,” a solo from 1916 by Ted Shawn. Having received her initial training at the Denishawn School in Los Angeles, Graham danced the work in the City of Angels in 1921. 

Adroitly performed by Marzia Memoli in a gold halter and swirling skirt, this evocation of a Spanish-Moorish dancing girl seduced with filigreed fingers, swaying hips and whirling dervish-like turns, all accented by Mario Tarenghi’s evocative score as played onstage by the outstanding pianist Vicki Ray. 

The live music continued—a rare and most welcome treat these days—with the world premiere of “Rodeo,” co-commissioned by the Soraya and the Graham company. Originally made for the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo to Aaron Copland’s ebullient bespoke score, the work premiered in 1942 at the Metropolitan Opera House, with de Mille performing the lead role of the Cowgirl and reportedly taking 22 curtain calls. 

And while numerous ballet companies have since performed “Rodeo”—the tale of a rambunctious Cowgirl who tries winning a haughty Head Wrangler, only to go for the kindly Lead Roper instead—this staging for Graham is a first for any modern dance troupe.

Featuring a cast of 16, the five-section work, subtitled, “The Courting at Burnt Ranch,” is set to a re-orchestrated score by Gabe Witcher for a bluegrass ensemble—fiddle, mandolin, acoustic guitar, banjo, upright bass, and cello—that highlights the music’s Black origins. Along with the captivatingly plonky sounds are Beowulf Boritt’s Western-themed projections and Oana Botez’s fresh costumes, a sherbet-colored array of shirts, flower-appliqued pants and flounced skirts that add oomph to the already deliriously happy dance set on a ranch in the American Southwest.