Merce Cunningham

1 7.6

An American dancer and choreographer who helped change modern dance by working with other artists

proper noun
/mɜrs ˈkʌnɪŋhəm/

: Merce Cunningham

The legendary dancer Merce Cunningham revolutionized modern dance.

Examples

Many contemporary choreographers cite Merce Cunningham as a major influence on their work.
The documentary explored the legacy of Merce Cunningham and his dance company.
Merce Cunningham revolutionized modern dance with his unconventional choreography.
Many consider Merce Cunningham a pioneer in the dance world.
Merce Cunningham revolutionized modern dance with his unconventional choreography.
Many contemporary choreographers cite Merce Cunningham as a major influence on their work.
The documentary explored the legacy of Merce Cunningham and his dance company.

Surface Forms

Merce Cunningham main

Morphology

Merce + Cunningham

This is a proper name referring to a specific individual; the constituent tokens are personal names with no independent lexical meanings for a learner to compose into the definition 'American dancer and choreographer.' Personal names are arbitrary and do not transparently convey the referent's profession or biography, so a B1 learner who knows the name parts would not be able to infer the MWE meaning.

Etymology

Merce Cunningham was an American dancer who often used 'chance' to choose steps, like rolling dice to decide a movement. He worked with composer John Cage so music and dance were made separately, and that's why people remember him for 'innovative' modern dance and bold collaborations.