Martha Graham began her life in Alleghany, Pennsylvania on May 11, 1894. She would be the eldest of three girls of Jane and George Graham. His father was an “alienist” specializing in nervous disorders; a modern psychologist.1 Although his Presbyterian beliefs were conservative, Dr. Graham's unusual methods of diagnosing through physical movement and his ideas about the body's unique way of expressing its inner senses influenced his eldest daughter Martha. She would later quote her slogan, "Movement never lies."2 The idea of ​​body movement expressing emotion and feeling would become Martha Graham's vocabulary, language, and passion through a dance form she would develop and perfected over the course of his life. Her father unknowingly turned a key on Graham when he took her to see Ruth St. Denis perform at the Mason Opera House in 1911. She was immediately interested in dancing but her parents did not approve due to their religious beliefs. He later enrolled at Cummock College, an arts-related junior college. However, only after her father's death and her graduation did she feel free to pursue her dream of dancing. In 1916, at the age of 22, Graham enrolled in the Dennishawn School founded by his idol, Ruth St. Denis and her husband Ted Shawn. She was much older, heavier, and more inexperienced than most of the students. St. Denis's first impression was, "Totally hopeless... what can I do with this?" 3What she lacked in experience she made up for in determination and perseverance. He soon showed his talent for performance and ability to show emotion. Two years later he was teaching students at Dennishawn. Shawn choreographed the “Xochitl” dance production specifically for Graham. She did not disappoint in the role of a girl raped while she was......the center of the card......enberg. Bird's-eye view: Dancing with Martha Graham and on Broadway. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1997.Dalzell, Jenny. "Martha Graham." Dance Teacher 35, n. 1 (01, 2013): 52-52,54. http://search.proquest.com/docview/1272090071?accountid=27372."The history of modern dance." Ballet Austin. http://www.balletaustin.org/education/documents/HistoryofModernDanceStudentHandout.pdf (accessed April 2, 2014).Mille, Agnes. Martha: The Life and Work of Martha Graham. New York: Random House, 1991. "Martha Graham." Encyclopedia of World Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Biography in context. Network. 14 April 2014. "Modern dancers". University of Pittsburgh. http://www.pitt.edu/~gillis/dance/martha.html (accessed March 30, 2014).PBS. "." PBS. http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/martha-graham/about-the-dancer/497/ (accessed March 28, 2014).