Upload
laurette-m-backer
View
216
Download
0
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
7/31/2019 Press Release - Compagnie de Danse Jean-Ren Delsoin - USA TOUR : October 14th to November 11th , 2012
1/4
Press Release - Compagnie de Danse Jean-Ren Delsoin Page 1
The Compagnie de Danse Jean-Ren Delsoin, like its founder and mastermind,moves through the many worlds that intersect in Haiti: the rough-edged andvivacious rural dances and ceremonies, the refined social dance of the cities, and
the vivid yet stark lines of contemporary global dance.
Bold swaths of color alternate
with somber, focused intensity.The earthy, expressive voices oftraditional drums interweavewith the precise grace ofclassical ballet. Modern danceaesthetics and a deep love of
popular moves meet beats thatmigrated from West Africa toHaiti: They all come togethereffortlessly in bold, emotionallyresonant moments that will
open doors to a better, morenuanced interaction andunderstanding betweenAmericans and Haitians,between the artists and their
American viewers and counterparts.
Dance is my prayer, Delsoin explains. I want everyone in the audience to betouched by the colors and the rhythms, and to feel the energy and spirit of the
company. I cant imagine a more powerful way to promote understanding betweenus.
Impeccable performers and evocative artists, the company of four dancers andthree musicians has cultivated a distinctively nuanced, sophisticated view ofHaitian culture and movement traditions, drawing on ballet and modern dance
techniques in dialogue with Haitis plethora of traditional rhythms and sounds.
7/31/2019 Press Release - Compagnie de Danse Jean-Ren Delsoin - USA TOUR : October 14th to November 11th , 2012
2/4
Press Release - Compagnie de Danse Jean-Ren Delsoin Page 2
In October and November 2012, they will move through the U.S. as partofCenter StageSM(www.centerstageUS.org).
An initiative of the U.S.Department of States Bureau of Educational andCultural Affairs, Center Stage brings compelling contemporary artists from Haiti,
Indonesia, and Pakistan to the United States to engage the American people incultural diplomacy as a way to create opportunities for greater understanding.Administered by the New England Foundation for the Arts, with funding fromthe Asian Cultural Council, the Robert Sterling Clark Foundation, andthe Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art,this public-private partnership isthe largest public diplomacy effortto bring foreign artists to American stagesin recent history.
I started dancing withmy first breath, reflectsDelsoin.
The young Delsoin couldeffortlessly reproduceevery movement he saw
around him, and wasoften found stagingsmall performances orsimply dancing for hisown and his familyspleasure on the front
porch. When a local
dance teacher insistedhe take a ballet class,she was shocked: Theboy with the perfect pli
had never taken a singleballet lesson.
Ability met profound passion and curiosity, and took Delsoin to the worlds dancecapitals. He toured the world as a dancer, watched every performance he could,and studied at the schools of contemporary dances leading lights, from Alvin Aileyto Jos Limn.
Though an established figure on the contemporary dance scene, Delsoin dedicates
himself to promoting creativity and technique in his community, as a teacher andchoreographer. And he finds profound inspiration everywhere, in abstract notionsand in the concrete details of everyday Haitian life: It could be a concept, an idea,some movement I want to explore and sometimes its just a sound, a passage ofmusic that sparks a million images in my head and my body
http://www.centerstageus.org/http://www.centerstageus.org/7/31/2019 Press Release - Compagnie de Danse Jean-Ren Delsoin - USA TOUR : October 14th to November 11th , 2012
3/4
Press Release - Compagnie de Danse Jean-Ren Delsoin Page 3
Delsoins images, shaped by Haitis movements, colors, sounds, and history,emerge through a conversation between drums and voices, between musicians
and dancers on stage. Haiti is a source of great inspiration for me, he notes.Traditional dances are extremely rich; the rhythms are sensational, as well as the
history behind them. My work, in part, explores how drums are vitally important
to Haitian life, how each beat, each rhythm speaks to us, fortifies us, moves usalong.
With the companys highly disciplined, engagingly lithe dancers, Delsointransforms the pulse of African-origin rhythms like the wave-like yanvalouor thebright ibointo athletic, riveting movements, and makes Haitian history do a
bittersweet, utterly contemporary dance. As we work together and when weperform, everybody becomes one, Delsoin says. The dancers, the musicians, andmyself. We all bring our experiences, skills, and ideas to a lifelong melody thatleaves its impression on the audience.
Center StageSM will bring 10 ensembles from Haiti, Indonesia and Pakistan to theU.S. for month-long tours from June-December 2012, connecting artists with diverse
communities across the country. Residencies will include performances, workshops,discussions, people-to-people exchanges, and community gatherings. Keep up with
Center Stage by liking the program on Facebook(http://www.facebook.com/CenterStagePage) and following us on Twitter(@centerstageus).
Center StageSMis a public diplomacy initiative of the U.S. Department of StatesBureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. It is administered by the New EnglandFoundation for the Arts in cooperation with the U.S. Regional Arts Organizations,
and with additional support from the Robert Sterling Clark Foundation, the AsianCultural Council, and the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art. Generalmanagement for Center StageSM is provided by Lisa Booth Management.
http://www.rockpaperscissors.biz/index.cfm/fuseaction/current.press_release/project_id/594.cfm
http://www.facebook.com/CenterStagePagehttp://www.rockpaperscissors.biz/index.cfm/fuseaction/current.press_release/project_id/594.cfmhttp://www.rockpaperscissors.biz/index.cfm/fuseaction/current.press_release/project_id/594.cfmhttp://www.rockpaperscissors.biz/index.cfm/fuseaction/current.press_release/project_id/594.cfmhttp://www.facebook.com/CenterStagePage7/31/2019 Press Release - Compagnie de Danse Jean-Ren Delsoin - USA TOUR : October 14th to November 11th , 2012
4/4
Press Release - Compagnie de Danse Jean-Ren Delsoin Page 4
10/16/2012, Tue Millennium Stage @ The Kennedy Center, 2700 F Street
NW Washington,DC Ph. 800.444.1324
10/20/2012, SatSouth Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center, 10950 Southwest 211thStreet
Miami, FL
Ph. 305.375.3584
10/24/2012, Wed Coker College
Hartsville, SC
11/02/2012, Fri University of North Carolina-Wilmington
Wilmington, NC
11/07/2012, Wed
University of Nebraska @ Hixson-Lied College of Fine and PerformingArts, 102 Woods Art Building
Lincoln, NE
Ph. 402.472.9339
11/10/2012, Sat Johnson County Community College @ Yardley Hall - Show: 8PM
Overland Park, KS Ph. 913.469.4445
http://www.rockpaperscissors.biz/index.cfm/fuseaction/current.tour/project_id/594.cfm
http://www.kennedy-center.org/programs/millennium/http://www.rockpaperscissors.biz/index.cfm/fuseaction/current.tour/project_id/594.cfmhttp://www.rockpaperscissors.biz/index.cfm/fuseaction/current.tour/project_id/594.cfmhttp://www.rockpaperscissors.biz/index.cfm/fuseaction/current.tour/project_id/594.cfmhttp://www.kennedy-center.org/programs/millennium/