Celebrating 20 Years of IP Excellence

Dancing with Intellectual Property

Dancing with Intellectual Property: A Presentation by Dr. Kalyan C. Kankanala

On December 13th, 2019, BananaIP Counsels conducted a seminar titled "Dancing with Intellectual Property" at its office in Bangalore. The event was attended by dancers, performers, and dance instructors, and witnessed active exchanges on the need for IP awareness for those in the field. Dr. Kalyan, Managing Partner of BananaIP Counsels, started the session with a discussion on the different types of intellectual property that could exist in a dance performance, and how each form of IP could be protected. He…

Read more

Can Photographs infringe Dance Choreography Copyright?

Can Photographs infringe Dance Choreography Copyright?

Can you take photographs of a dance performance and publish them in an article or a book? This question came up before a US Court in the 1980s, a few years after choreography was added as a copyrightable work under the US Copyright Law. The case related to a popular choreographic work of George Balanchine, a renowned ballet master. Balanchine choreographed his own version of the ballet The Nutcracker, set to music by Tchaikovsky. The Nutcracker was a very popular…

Read more

The Fight for Martha Graham's Copyrights and Trademarks in Technique, Style, Choreography, Sets, Jewellery, Costumes and Music.

The Fight for Martha Graham’s Copyrights and Trademarks in Technique, Style, Choreography, Sets, Jewellery, Costumes and Music

Martha Graham is well known for her modern dance technique, choreography, sets, costumes, jewellery and other creative work, and she is today a legend in dance circles. Her unique technique and style is referred to as Martha Graham Technique or Graham's Technique after her name. Martha Graham was quite protective of her creative work, and allowed very few dance companies to perform her choreographies during her life time. In her effort to finance her creative work and promote/disseminate her technique/style,…

Read more