Forty-seven weeks of performances featuring at least 50 premieres by dance companies ranging from the wild escapades of MOMIX to the quick feet of Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana to The Joyce debut of Israel’s fantastical Inbal Pinto Dance Company and the first New York performances by France’s Ballet Biarritz…that’s part of what’s in store for 2002/03 at The Joyce Theater, once again assuring it has the most lighted dance marquee in the world.
It will be a season brimming with dance of every kind. Take Ballet Biarritz for instance, whose repertory features radical re-inventions of Ballets Russes classics such as “Le spectre de la rose,” “Pulcinella” and “L’après-midi d’un faune” whose witty faun leaps into a box of tissues, November 5-10. A walk on the wild side can be taken through the hallucinatory dream gardens of Moses Pendelton’s fertile imagination in works such as “Opus Cactus,” September 24-October 13. The orchestral sounds and visual rhythms of Los Angeles’s Jazz Tap Ensemble return to The Joyce, November 26-December 1.
The premiere of Broadway/film star Ann Reinking’s second work for Ballet Hispanico, “Slices” set to music by Philip Hamilton, Santana and Israel Kamakawiwo’ole will be among the highlights of the effervescent troupe’s annual Joyce season, December 3-15. Also be on the lookout for another new work, “Cecilia” by company principal dancer Pedro Ruiz.
Stephen Petronio will present the “City of Twist,” a powerful and visceral look at New York set to an original score by another downtown darling, Laurie Anderson during Stephen Petronio Company’s one week season, October 15-20. Also of special note: Petronio will present his first solo for himself in six years. Premieres by former Paul Taylor Dance Company principal Lila York (“Gloria”) and David Parsons (“Too Many Cooks”) are planned for the Parsons Dance Company’s return to the theater, October 22-November 3. The Parsons Company’s repertory will also feature Parsons’s hit from last year “Kind of Blue,” among others.
Another annual returnee is the Rochester-based Garth Fagan Dance. The galvanizing troupe of dancers, which performs November 12-24, promises a spectacular world premiere by its artistic director, the Tony-winning choreographer Garth Fagan. Ballet Tech will take over The Joyce during the holiday season, December 17-29, where it will present a world premiere (information to come), as well as a series of Feld favorites including “Simon Sez,” “Straw Hearts,” “Pacific Dances,” and “Papillon.”
At The Joyce, the New Year is traditionally celebrated untraditionally, with its annual three week Altogether Different Festival, which this year begins on January 3. The 2003 recruits are an imaginative mix of returning alumni and Joyce debuts, all of who promise at least one world premiere. The guest list includes The Joyce debut of Keely Garfield Sinister Slapstick, whose signature dark humor infiltrates “Free Drinks for Ladies with Nuts.” Her Fellini-esque wit again surfaces in ”Rub Me the Wrong Way.” Also on the boards is a world premiere.
Be on the look out for the whimsical wit of the Doug Elkins Dance Company, which will present “The Look of Love,” a poignant urban take on loving and losing. Other returnees include Zvi Gotheiner, whose company ZviDance, will present two premieres, “Concrete” and “Clearing” that once again celebrate Gotheiner’s uncanny mix of folk and modern dance. Donna Uchizono Company will be back at The Joyce with the premiere of “Low,” inspired by Uchizono’s month in Argentina, where tango stimulated new ideas and opened new choreographic possibilities.
Also returning to The Joyce will be Sara Pearson/Patrick Widrig and Company, which will present the premiere “The Return of L .W.,” a full evening work that uses Sufi mysticism and Hollywood/Bollywood pop cultures as prisms to explore the Biblical theme presented in the story of Lot. The work is set to an original score by Carter Burwell. The program entitled “Philip Hamilton Vocalscapes” pairs the sought-after composer/vocalist with choreographers Andrea Wood and Kevin Wynn, each of whom will present new works to original music by Hamilton. “Peter Boal Solos” offer an unusual chance to see the well-known New York City Ballet principal in a series of solo works by modern dance choreographers Wendy Perron and Molissa Fenley, as well as by NYCB principal Albert Evans.
FUTURE SIGHTS: In addition to some of New York City’s major companies such as the Martha Graham Dance Company (barring an unexpected court decision), the Limón Dance Company, Elisa Monte Dance, David Gordon Pick-Up Company, and Ballet Tech, spring at The Joyce will feature a geographically diverse group of dance companies such as Taiwan’s Tai-Gu Tales, San Francisico’s Joe Goode Performance Group, Israel’s Inbal Pinto Dance Company, Philadelphia’s Rennie Harris Puremovement and DanceBrazil.
SUMMER 2003 will be headlined by engagements by Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, Pilobolus Dance Theatre and Jazzdance by Danny Buraczeski. Ballet Tech closes the season.
In addition to its regular performances, The Joyce offers Family Matinees specially designed for children on selected Saturday afternoons, as well as a Humanities Series, featuring talks by the artistic directors following Wednesday or Thursday evening performances.
One of the few theaters in the world designed for dance, The Joyce opened its doors in 1982 only to rapidly become the most active dance house in the world. Over 230 dance companies have performed on its stage since that time. In October 1996, The Joyce Theater Foundation acquired an additional informal performance venue at 155 Mercer Street. Named Joyce SoHo, it offers dance artists subsidized rehearsal space, as well as provides an annual series of performances by smaller dance companies.