26 Oct 2010
The New Zealand School of Dance is offering something unique for their Graduation Season in 2010 - two complete programmes of dance, Kylián and Kiwi, which include works by some of the best choreographers to emerge from New Zealand and Europe.
The two programmes will be performed at Te Whaea: National Dance & Drama Centre in Wellington on alternate nights over three weeks from 17 November. Graduation Season is the opportunity to see the latest students of the New Zealand School of Dance (NZSD) on the threshold of professional careers.
In a coup for the School, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands has sponsored a complete programme of works by Jirí Kylián for the Kylián programme. Kylián is a significant figure in the modern dance world and his name has gone hand-in-hand with that of the Nederlands Dans Theater for three decades. This choreographer of some 100 works is described as a humanist and a master of the neo-classic.
Two repetiteurs have come from Holland to teach Kyliáns choreography to the NZSD students. Arlette van Boven and Ken Ossola both danced for many years with Nederlands Dans Theatre and worked closely with Kylián when he was crafting the works that will be presented in Wellington - Evening Songs, Un Ballo, Songs of a Wayfarer and Stoolgame.
Arlette van Boven is clearly delighted with the dance talent she has found here. "It is a great pleasure to be working again with the young dancers of the New Zealand School of Dance. I am convinced that with their talent and commitment, they will do justice to the work of Jirí Kylián."
The Kiwi programme is no less impressive, it brings together five of New Zealands foremost choreographic talents into one programme. Highlights of the Kiwi programme include two world premieres, by Craig Bary and Sarah Foster, as well as a work by the artistic director of WOW Malia Johnston, Dance for Sixteen by Raewyn Hill and Michael Parmenters Rhapsody.
Michael created the captivating solo Rhapsody for the New Zealand School of Dance Graduation Season in 1998. It was performed by, and created on, one of the graduating dancers of that year - Craig Bary. Craig, now based in Australia and a renowned dance-maker himself, has returned to create his own work for the NZSD Graduation Season. Craig has worked with numerous dance companies and has recently choreographed for Sydney Dance Company.
Sarah Foster created one of last years most popular works for the NZSD Graduation Season, Crossed Fingers, so anticipation is high for the new work she is currently creating. Known for her sense of humour and inventive movement motifs, Sarah has choreographed in New Zealand and London and has performed with Raewyn Hill and in Michael Parmenters 2008 tour of TENT.
Four of the choreographers for the Kiwi programme are graduates of the New Zealand School of Dance - testament to the contribution this School, over its 44 years, has made to the dance fabric of New Zealand.
Tickets can be booked online at www.nzschoolofdance.ac.nz
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