The Alwin Nikolais Centennial

The magic of these productions can delight theatregoers of all ages. Lovers of Harry Potter's wizardry will be enchanted by that of Alwin Nikolais." The New York Times

The New Orleans Ballet Association and The NOCCA Institute join in the international celebration of the centennial of a trailblazing choreographer and the father of multi-media dance theatre in the Alwin Nikolais Centennial on November 19 and 20 in three performances at NOCCA's Freda Lupin Memorial Hall. Co-presented by the New Orleans Ballet Association and The NOCCA Institute, the event features a program by one of the most versatile, innovative and influential artists of the twentieth century, performed by Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company with a special guest appearance by Tulane University's Newcomb Dance Company. "We are privileged to be a part of this community-wide collaboration that honors such a revolutionary artist." said Jenny Hamilton, Executive Director of the New Orleans Ballet Association. "This project is the perfect opportunity for us to work with Tulane University's Department of Theater and Dance, who have provided constant support of our programming for decades. Following Katrina when the Mahalia Jackson Theater was not available, they generously and without hesitation opened the doors of Dixon Hall and made it possible for NOBA to continue our Main Stage Season. We are indeed honored to partner with two of the communities most esteemed organizations as we pay tribute to one of America's true dance masters." Under the direction of Murray Louis and Alberto Del Saz, Artistic Director of the Nikolais Louis Foundation for Dance, Ririe-Woodbury will perform five legendary masterworks by this pioneer of modern dance. A forerunner of such popular companies as Pilobolus and Momix, Nikolais was known for his startling imagination, bold originality, legendary choreography, and groundbreaking use of multi-media effects. His work focuses on visual illusion, and lights, props and sound are equally as important as the dancers. Nikolais was the first to create a total dance theatre, composing his own music, inventing the costumes, and experimenting with imaginative lighting effects. In a career that spanned five decades, he left his imprint on every theatrical medium, from Broadway to television. His lighting creations, sound scores, choreography, and costumes have influenced the contemporary stage and a generation of choreographers. "The testament to a true artist and genius is that his work is always current and contemporary," said Del Saz. "Nikolais' work is as relevant today as it was 60 years ago. His dances really are master works." Included in the program is the world premiere of the restored mix-media spectacleTemple (1974), made possible through a nationally competitive grant process of the National Endowment for the Arts as part of American Masterpieces.  "We try to bring in new pieces every year, and Temple made sense because it had the look we needed to balance things out and show the true range of Nikolais's work," said Del Saz. "There are some amazing multi-media pieces, such as Water Studies and Crucible, on the program, but Temple has a much simpler structure. It's about the use of movement and variation and the relation to the music.  The purity of movement and interplay of shapes and colors enhances the use of the costumes." In addition, special guest dancers from the Newcomb Dance Company will performWater Studies (1964), which has been recreated for this student company as part of a residency activity this fall under the direction of Del Saz, who was also a long-time soloist with the Nikolais Dance Theatre.  Because of his intimate knowledge of Nikolais technique, theory and choreography, Del Saz brings first-hand knowledge to Newcomb Dance Company students through master classes and intensive rehearsal process. "This project is special because it allows our students to be part of this once in a lifetime celebration and to have the rare opportunity to study, learn and perform the choreography of Nikolais." said Professor Barbara Hayley, Newcomb Dance Program, Tulane University Department of Theatre and Dance. "We are honored to perform work by modern dance legend, Alwin Nikolais, to work with Alberto Del Saz for the reconstruction of Nik's work, and to dance with the Ririe-Woodbury Company." In Water Studies, Nikolais transforms an empty space by using the costume material as a canvas for the light, which features slide images emitted by a combination of 8 projectors. According to Del Saz, Nikolais spent countless hours and dozens of techniques to create hand-painted slides for his works, and between four-thousand and five-thousand slides, which are still being used today, were created. In addition, most of the works employ between 10 and 12 projectors at one time, which, when combined with the hand-painted slides, lend a certain aesthetic to Nikolais' vision of dance. "The dancers become a vehicle for his shapes, and the beauty of his work is that very bright moment...that very organic point of view," said Del Saz.   Ririe-Woodbury will also perform Tensile Involvement (1955), one of Nikolais' best-known pieces, featuring dancers tethered to long elastic bands, which create a cat's cradle of crisscrossing lines as they run on and off the stage.  First performed at the Henry Street Playhouse in New York City in 1953, Tensile Involvment was one of Nikolais' first major works and gave America's modern dance a totally new look.  It has since become a classic and continues enchanting audiences around the world, having recently been featured in the opening sequence of Robert Altman's ballet film, The Company (2003). Other works on the program include Crucible (1985), Liturgies (1983), and Neumenon(1953). Crucible, a Samuel H. Scripps American Dance Festival Award winner, is actually Del Saz's favorite Nikolais piece because it was the first dance the legendary choreographer set on him when he joined the company. In the work, the hands, arms and legs of ten dancers are reflected by angled mirrors to create abstract forms and doubled reflections. Liturgies features one dancer as a menacing Sorcerer who uncovers the frailties of humankind, while another moves carefully, giving clarity to the quickest of movements.  Finally, in Noumenon, three dancers' bodies are encased from head to toe in stretchable fabric, transforming them from one surreal figure into another. "It's always a pleasure to work on projects with community partners like NOBA, but this is an especially good match," said The NOCCA Institute's Executive Director, Sally Perry. "Dance residencies give NOCCA students the opportunity to work with some of today's most accomplished artists; this goes one step further, incorporating decades of crucial history and giving NOCCA students an added sense of where they fit in the ever-evolving field of dance." According to The Dance Insider, "The Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company has not only delivered Nikolais intact, but sends a dispatch, if you will, from a more contemporary American dance community that is ready to thrill and delight." Directed by Joann Woodbury and Shirley Ririe, the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company is a professional company based in Utah and was selected in 2002 to preserve and present Nikolais' repertoire that spans over sixty years.  All of the pieces are meticulously staged by Del Saz and Nikolais' former partner Murray Louis. In 1949, Nikolais founded the Playhouse Dance Company at the Henry St. Settlement Playhouse on the lower east side of Manhattan. His work has been celebrated around the world, and his company, the Nikolais Dance Theatre, continued to perform for many years until his partner, Murray Louis, disbanded the troupe in 1999, six years after Nikolais' death. Limited tickets are available for the Saturday performances.  The Friday and Saturday evening performances begin at 8pm; the Saturday matinee performance begins at 2pm.  For tickets or information, call the New Orleans Ballet Association Box Office at (504) 522-0996 or visit www.nobadance.com. In addition to performances at NOCCA, Ririe-Woodbury is also presenting a lecture/demonstration for youth at 1:30pm on Friday. The lec/dem is by invitation only to local partner schools.  Alberto Del Saz will conduct a master class on Thursday, November 18 for NOCCA students and on Saturday, November 20 for the NORD/NOBA Center For Dance. There will be pre-performance talks in the Lupin Theater with Barbara Hayley of Newcomb Dance Department and Artistic Director Alberto Del Saz from 7-7:30pm on Friday and Saturday. Plus a special historical exhibit, featuring original Nikolais costumes and archival footage with oral histories of Nikolais dancers, will be on display in the NOCCA lobby throughout the weekend. For more information about master class opportunities call (504) 522-0996 x 203 or emailcmock@nobadance.com. The Alwin Nikolais Centennial project is in partnership with the Newcomb Dance Program, Tulane University Department of Theatre and Dance, and has been made possible by the National Endowment for the Arts as part of American Masterpieces: Three Centuries of Artistic Genius. American Airlines is the official airline of the New Orleans Ballet Association and the Sheraton New Orleans Hotel is the official hotel. About the Alwin Nikolais Centennial In 1949, Alwin Nikolais met a pair of notable young dancers - Murray Louis and Joan Woodbury - while teaching a summer workshop. Both were deeply influenced by Nikolais' ideas about "decentralization," in which costume, lighting and projected images are used to shift attention away from individual dancers in favor of the production's overall effect. Louis soon joined Nikolais' company as a soloist and later became a co-founder of The Nikolais/Louis Foundation for Dance, an umbrella organization that included a school as well as the Nikolais Dance Theatre and the Murray Louis Dance Company. Woodbury, meanwhile, met Shirley Ririe, another Nikolais pupil, in 1952. The two became fast friends and choreographed their first work together. They also began to share teaching duties at the University of Utah and, in the early 1960s, invited Nikolais and Louis to spend a summer working with students. At Nikolais's suggestion, Ririe and Woodbury launched the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company in 1964 with a repertoire of original works as well as pieces given to them by Nikolais and Louis. Following Nikolais' death in 1993, the Nikolais/Louis Foundation began to phase out its two companies, and in 2002, Louis selected Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company to preserve and present Nikolais' works, thus marking the first time an existing U.S. company has absorbed the collection of a past master while still maintaining its own identity. The Alwin Nikolais Centennial, performed by the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, features ten dancers in many of Nikolais' most influential works and is directed by Alberto del Saz, a former dancer with Nikolais and co-artistic director of The Nikolais/Louis Foundation. Mr. del Saz is assisted in this venture by Joan Woodbury, co-founder of Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company. Currently his focus is in preserving the Nikolais/Louis technique, repertory and legacy through his teaching and directing throughout all parts of the world. Alwin Nikolais Choreographer, composer, scenic and costume designer - Alwin Nikolais blended his many talents into a single aesthetic force. In a career that spanned five decades, he left his imprint on every theatrical medium, from Broadway to television. His lighting wonders, sound scores, choreography, and costumes have influenced the contemporary stage and a generation of choreographers. Nikolais has been lauded for his accomplishments and contributions many times over, and, in 1987, he was awarded the National Medal of Arts, bestowed by President Reagan, and the Kennedy Center Honors. Often affectionately referred to as the American Patriarch of French modern dance, Nikolais is a knight of France's Legion of Honor and a commander of the Order of Arts and Letters. His accolades from the world of arts and letters include the Samuel H. Scripps American Dance Festival Award, Emmy Citation Award, and the Dance Magazine Award, among others. He was awarded five honorary doctorate degrees, was twice designated a Guggenheim Fellow, and was the recipient of a three year creativity grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. His work has been featured in numerous films and television programs in the US and abroad. Born in 1910 in Connecticut, Nikolais studied piano at an early age and began his performing career as an organist accompanying silent films. As a young artist, he gained skills in scenic design, acting, puppetry and music composition. It was after attending a performance by the illustrious German dancer Mary Wigman that he was inspired to study dance.  He received his early dance training at Bennington College from the great figures of the modern dance world: Hanya Holm, Martha Graham, Doris Humphrey, Charles Weidman, Louis Horst, and others. After serving in the American Army during World War II, he relocated to New York City, resumed studying with Holm, and eventually became her assistant. In 1948, he was appointed director of the Henry Street Playhouse, where he formed the Playhouse Dance Company, later known as the Nikolais Dance Theatre.  It was at Henry Street that Nikolais began to develop his own world of abstract dance theatre, and he redefined dance as "the art of motion, which, left on its own merits, becomes the message as well as the medium." In 1956, the Nikolais Dance Theatre was invited to its first of many appearances at the American Dance Festival, where his total dance theatre began to take shape, and the company established itself in the forefront of American contemporary dance. Following the 1968 Paris triumph at the Theatre Des Champs- Elysees, the company began performing at the world's greatest theaters. In 1978, the French National Ministry of Culture invited him to form the Centre Contemporaine, and in 1980, he created Schema for the Paris Opera. At the same time, his choreography for an opera by Gian Carlo Menotti was being staged at the Vienna Staatsoper. His company appeared throughout Europe and subsequent tours to South America and the Far East.  Nikolais was renowned as a master teacher, and his pedagogy is taught in schools and universities throughout the world.  He passed away May 8, 1993, and is buried in Pere La Chaisse cemetery in Paris.    Alberto del Saz, The Nikolais/Louis Foundation for Dance Artistic Director Artistic Director of The Nikolais/Louis Foundation for Dance, former Artistic Director of the Murray Louis and Nikolais Dance Company, and Assistant to Murray Louis, Mr. del Saz is a vital and important link in keeping the Nikolais/Louis repertory active. Born in Bilbao, Spain, Mr. del Saz studied ice-skating at an early age, which later led to his first performing career. His early dance training was received at the Nikolais/Louis Dance Lab from the great teachers of the technique: Hanya Holm, Alwin Nikolais, Murray Louis, Claudia Gitelman, Tandy Beal, Beverly Blossom and others. In 1985 Mr. del Saz made his debut as a lead soloist with the Nikolais Dance Theatre, which was later renamed the Murray Louis and Nikolais Dance Company. As a member of this internationally acclaimed company he has toured to virtually every continent on the globe. Mr. del Saz is the Reconstruction Director of the Nikolais/Louis repertory and has staged the Nikolais/Louis repertory on university and professional dance companies around the world. Mr. del Saz has been with the Nikolais/Louis Foundation for 25 years.                                               Ririe-Woodbury Company History          Founded in 1964, the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company celebrates its 46th Season creating original innovative modern dance.  Founders, Shirley Ririe and Joan Woodbury began dancing together in 1952.  These early performances and collaborations became the foundation for what is now an internationally renown modern dance company having performed in nearly every State in the U.S. as well as the British Isles, Canada, China, Eastern and Western Europe, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, Singapore, South Africa and the Virgin Islands. Located in downtown Salt Lake City, the company performs 4 different local shows annually, at the Capitol Theatre and the Rose Wagner Center for the Performing Arts.  In addition, a normal season consists of 8 to 10 weeks of national and international touring, 15 weeks as resident dance specialists in Utah elementary schools, and 5 weeks conducting extensive summer workshops for professionals.

The New Orleans Center for Creative Arts (NOCCA) is a tuition-free arts conservatory for high school students and an agency of the State of Louisiana. The mission of The NOCCA Institute, a non-profit organization, is to provide support and advocacy for NOCCA. The Institute provides access to excellence in the arts for students, faculty, and the community-at-large. For information about auditions, events, and activities, please visit www.NOCCAInstitute.com. New Orleans Ballet Association is celebrating 41 years of bringing dance to life and is the Central Gulf region's premiere presenting and service organization dedicated solely to the art of dance.  NOBA's dynamic Main Stage season annually features a diverse array of world-class companies and artists.  Each year NOBA provides concerts, classes, workshops and lectures to more than 25,000 area dance enthusiasts of all ages.  In addition, NOBA's nationally recognized award-winning education programs provide the youth of our community access to quality arts programs with 3,000 free dance classes and workshops annually at eleven sites throughout the Greater New Orleans area.  This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), which believes that a great nation deserves great art; a grant from the Louisiana Division of the Arts, Office of Cultural Development, Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, in cooperation with the Louisiana State Arts Council as administered by the Arts Council of New Orleans (ACNO); a Community Arts Grant made possible through the City of New Orleans as administered by ACNO; a grant from the Louisiana State Arts Council through the Louisiana Division of the Arts and the NEA.