 GRAB YOUR 2003/2004 CALENDAR! TWYLA
BY TWILIGHT A
dull moment in Twyla Tharp’s career? Never. Even when she
goes back she goes fast forward. At Battery Park, for instance,
the 2003 Tony Award-winning choreographer will augment her company’s
performance of her 1970 classic "The One Hundreds" with
a stellar cast of 100 performers drawn from the worlds of politics,
entertainment, ballet, literature, visual arts, (and from God knows
where else.) Anyone can dance, if the shoe fits, according to Tharp.
2
X 20 Bill
T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, whose dances veer between intimate
and grand scale, will celebrate its first two decades in two dramatically
different New York City venues this season: The Kitchen and BAM’s
Howard Gilman Opera House. Entitled "The Phantom Project,"
the anniversary year, which looks backward and forward, begins at
The Kitchen, September 9–20, where Jones and his late partner
Arnie Zane kicked off their ground-breaking careers. The two weeks
feature early solos and duets ("Blauvelt Mountain," "Continuous
Replay" and "Duet x 2," among others) by the duo,
whose radical partnering, and combined dance and talk drew immediate
attention to the pair of innovators. (For BAM information, please
see February listing.)
One
of Britain’s most talked-about young artists, 28-year-old
Akram Khan makes his New York City debut at The Joyce Theater with
"Kaash" (Hindi for if), inspired by "Hindu Gods,
black holes, Indian time cycles, tablas, and themes of creation
and destruction." Performed by an international cast at a dizzying
pace with razor-sharp precision, "Kaash" combines contemporary
dance with the classical Indian dance form, Kathak, which the choreographer
studied from an early age. Khan’s collaborators are both major
award-winning artists in their own right: The sculptor Anish Kapoor
designed the set, and composer Nitin Sawhney created the original
score with additional music by John Oswald.
PHYSICALLY
SPIRITUAL Ronald
K. Brown/Evidence, whose highly physical choreography resonates
with compelling spirituality, returns to The Joyce Theater with
the premiere of Brown’s "Come Ye," a celebration
of the powerful voice and life of Nina Simone. Reflecting Ronald
K. Brown’s African and African American musical, spiritual,
and cultural influences, the season also includes two recent Brown
works: "Walking Out the Dark," created in 2002 to original
music by Philip Hamilton and "High Life," created in 2000
and set to a score that includes music by Oscar J. Brown Jr., the
JB’s, Fela Anikulapo Kuti and original compositions by Wunmi
Olaiya. As part of the company’s Repertory Project, Evidence
will also present premieres by four young choreographers, Lamine
Thiam, Maria Basse Wiles, Wilhemina Taylor and Richard Gonzales.
NEW
STAGE FOR FLAMENCO Flamenco,
whose earthy elegance, irresistibly contradictory rhythms and mysterious
history has made it one of the world’s most compelling dance
forms, will take center stage when Noche Flamenca’s 16 musicians
and dancers return to New York for its first performances at the
Lucille Lortel Theater, November 1–30. (Previews are October
29 & 30). The company is directed by its American-born founder,
Martin Santangelo.
The
visionary genius of Alwin Nikolais (1910–1993) will be celebrated
at The Joyce Theater, October 28–November 2, with a retrospective
that reflects the range of the groundbreaking choreographer’s
innovative imagination. Performed by the Ririe Woodbury Dance Company,
which makes its Joyce Theater debut with these performances, the
season will feature: "Crucible" (1985), "Lythic"
(1956), "Blank on Blank" (1987), "Liturgies Finale"
(1983), "Noumenon Mobilus" (1953), "Mechanical Organ"
(1982) and "Tensile Involvement" (1955).
New
Yorkers will have yet another look at contemporary British wave-makers
when The Joyce Theater curtain goes up on George Piper Dances, November
4–9. The two-year-old company of six was created by former
Royal Ballet principals William Trevitt and Michael Nunn, who also
co-filmed and directed two critically acclaimed BBC films, "Ballet
Boyz" and "Ballet Boyz 2." At The Joyce, the company
will present the premiere of "Mesmeric" by fellow Royal
Ballet alum Christopher Wheeldon, as well as the premiere of "Torsion"
by Russell Maliphant and William Forsythe’s "Steptext."
HOT
NIGHTS Ballet
Hispanico is taking its show downtown this season. The troupe will
inaugurate the Skirball Center, the newly created 900-seat theater
at New York University, with the New York premiere of "Nightclub,"
a saucy and sizzling triptych of dances by Graciela Daniele, Alexandre
Magno and Sergio Trujillo. Performed live, the music is comprised
of the distinctive rhythms of the tango, Latin ballroom dance and
today’s Latin DJ driven beats that together with the dance
resonate with the energy of 20th century Latin American dance and
culture.
Ask
Garth Fagan what his plans are for his company’s Joyce season
this year. Good luck. Very charming. But too busy to talk right
now. We did, however, manage to extract the following from the master:
The troupe will bring back last year’s hit, "Translation
Transition," set to traditional Jamaican music, as well as
"Music of the Line/Words in the Shape" from 2001 and Fagan’s
classic "Prelude-Discipline is Freedom." Expect a premiere,
of course. Which is what he’s working on. More to follow.
JAZZ
TIME The
Joyce Theater will become even jazzier, December 2–7, when
Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal takes over its famous stage. Among
the season highlights will be Patrick Delcroix’s "Sous
le Rythme, Je;" Mia Michaels’s "No Strings Attached"
and Trey McIntyre’s "Blue Until June." A series
of premieres are also expected. WELCOME TO 2004 ALTOGETHER
DIFFERENT AT THE JOYCE THEATER, It
couldn’t be a more different group of artists participating
in this year’s festival: Canadian choreographer and performer
Margie Gillis, renowned for her passionate solo work; John Kelly,
whose wild theatrical works are signaturely "downtown;"
Peter Pucci will present a full-evening solo work, "To Begin
Again;" and then there is Rebecca Stenn and former Doug Elkins
dancer Ben Munisteri, each of whom promises new dances. Rebecca Stenn: Wednesday, January 7 & Saturday, January 10 at 8pm; Sunday, January 11 at 2pm Peter Pucci: Friday, January 9 & Friday, January 16 at 8pm; Saturday, January 17 at 2pm Margie Gillis: Tuesday, January 13, Thursday, January 15, & Saturday, January 17 at 8pm; Sunday, January 18 at 2pm Ben
Munisteri: Wednesday, January 13 at 8pm; Sunday, January 18 at 7:30pm
Judith
Fugate and Medhi Bahiri’s gem of a chamber ballet group will
present a slew of new and unexpected dances at Symphony Space, January
8–10. Among the highlights are Antony Tudor’s rarely
performed "Continuo" set to music by Pachelbel and Balanchine’s
"Valse Fantaisie" to Glinka, as well as new ballets by
Thaddeus Davis ("Vivaldial Chat" to Bobby McFerrin’s
recording of Vivaldi and Bach); Anne Marie DeAngelo’s "Glimpse"
to music by Enigma; and Peter Martins’ "Reflections,"
which he choreographed for the troupe in 2001. More information
to come.
SHHH
(NO MORE) One
of the dance world’s best-kept secrets is James Sewell Ballet.
The Minneapolis-based company of eight dancers will make its Joyce
Theater debut, January 20–25, where it is bound to inspire
tongues to wag. To celebrate, the 13-year-old company plans to perform
two New York premieres ("Barrage," the other, to be titled).
The season will also include "Moving Works," which was
seen in New York in 2001 and "Improvisation #56-63" which
is completely improvised on stage by the dancers.
MASTER
IN PROCESS Considered
one of the great masters of his generation, Doug Varone will present
two new dances as part of Doug Varone and Dancers’ Joyce Theater
season, February 3–8. The company will also present "Ballet
Mécanique," set to George Antheil’s 1926 groundbreaking
score of the same name, part I of "The Bottomland," and
the 2003 "Of the Earth Far Below."
At
BAM, February 4–7, where Jones and Zane transformed the Opera
House stage with spectacular full-length works, the Jones/Zane Company
will present "The Phantom Project: Still/Here Looking On"
(2003), a work that both evokes the spirit of the original landmark
production while placing it in the context of thirty years of Jones/Zane
work. The BAM season also features the New York premieres of "Reading,
Mercy and the Artificial Nigger," based on the classic Flannery
O’Connor short story, "The "Artificial Nigger;"
"Mercy 10 x 8 on a Circle" and "Chaconne," a
new solo to be performed by Jones set to Bach’s Chaconne from
the "Partita in D-minor."
UP
FROM DOWN UNDER The
Sydney Dance Company will return to New York City with the premiere
of Graeme Murphy’s "Ellipse," a full-evening work
set to an original score by the young Australian composer, Matthew
Hindson. Add to that costumes by one of Australia’s most fashionable
designers, Akira Isogawa, the lighting designer Damien Cooper and
a set by Australian painter Gerard Manion, and you have one of the
season’s most spectacular collaborations.
SHE’S
BACK Karole
Armitage, once reigning "punk ballerina," will bring her
company, Armitage Gone! Dance, to The Joyce Theater for a weeklong
engagement, March 2–7, where she will present "The Five
Boroughs of Dance," a collaboration of dancers of different
social, aesthetic and racial backgrounds.
Peter
Boal, one of New York City Ballet’s premier dancers, will
join two other City Ballet dancers, principal Wendy Whelan and corps
dancer Sean Suozzi. The repertory will include "Pergolesi,"
a stunning solo choreographed by Twyla Tharp, and a new dance by
Marco Goecke, among other works.
The
Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) is located at 30 Lafayette Avenue,
in Brooklyn, New York. Tickets may be purchased at the box office
by calling 718-636-4100 or online at www.bam.org.
The
Kitchen is located at 512 West 19th Street between 10th and 11th
Avenue. Tickets may be purchased at the box office, by calling 212-255-5793
or online at www.thekitchen.org. The
Lucille Lortel Theatre is located at 121 Christopher Street. Tickets
may be purchased at the box office, by calling 212-239-6200 or online
at www.lortel.org. The
Theater at the Skirball Center is located at 566 La Guardia Place
at Washington Square South. For more information, please call 212-992-8484
or visit www.skirballcenter.nyu.edu. Symphony Space is located at 2537 Broadway. Tickets may be purchased at the box office by calling 212-864-5400 or online at www.symphonyspace.org. 071803 250 West 57th Street Suite
2318 New York NY 10107 USA
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