FIRE IN THE SKY, TE DEUM Re-Staging Set for RIOULT Dance NY's 2017 Season

Pascal Rioult's renowned Dance Company, RIOULT Dance NY, the American modern Dance Company with a European sensibility, announces its 2017 season at The Joyce Theater, May 31 - June 4. This year, Rioult unveils two groundbreaking dances: the world premiere of Fire in the Sky and a re-staging of the classic Te Deum.

"The new work [Fire in the Sky], my first rock and roll piece, is set to the music of Deep Purple. This is the music that I danced to in the 70s in clubs, music that I really loved. The journey to becoming a professional dancer and choreographer and artistic director really started in those clubs." - Pascal Rioult on Fire in the Sky. Costumes will be designed by Patricia Field and David Dalrymple.

Fire in the Sky is a life's work in dance. A nostalgic homage to the whimsy of youth, Fire in the Sky recalls a life lived in constant motion. Set to Deep Purple's dynamic songs "Smoke on the Water" (1973), "Child in Time," (1970), "Lazy," (1972), and "Highway Star" (1972), the new performance captures the spirit of an artist fully realizing his craft.

Shortly after the premiere of Te Deum in 1996, Rioult told the Los Angeles Times, "It's a piece I feel in a way I'll be working on my whole life." Now, one of his most acclaimed pieces is performed for the first time by a dancer other than Rioult himself. Set to Arvo Pa?rt's score of the same name, Te Deum is resurrected in a new re-staging, elegiacally evoking forms from the Crucifixion in a mysterious, spiritually charged performance. Richly saturated with the religious atmosphere of Rioult's home city Caen, Te Deum was originally choreographed in 1995 when Rioult was transitioning from dancer to choreographer. Now, he revisits the piece through the lens of a more mature artist. Costumes will be designed by Mondo.

Tickets start at $10. Call 212-242-0800. All other tickets can be purchased at www.joyce.org.

Born in Caen, France, Mr. Rioult came to the United States on a fellowship from the French Ministry of Culture to study modern dance in 1981. After performing with the companies of May O'Donnell and Paul Sanasardo he was invited to join the Martha Graham Dance Company. He interpreted many of the most prestigious roles in the Graham repertory as a principal dancer, and in 1990, Ms. Graham created the central role (Death Figure) in her ballet Eye of the Goddess for him. Mr. Rioult performed opposite Mikhail Baryshnikov and Joyce Herring in El Penitente and was featured in two television specials: "Martha Graham in Japan" and "Five Dances by Martha Graham," filmed at the Paris Opera.

Since starting his own company, RIOULT Dance NY in 1994, Mr. Rioult has dedicated his energies to developing his own choreographic style and nurturing a robust ensemble of dancers. Of his work, Black Diamond, Anna Kisselgoff of The New York Times wrote, "...he has met the challenge of comparison with George Balanchine."

Mr. Rioult's works have been commissioned by the American Dance Festival; Cal Performances Zellerbach Hall in Berkeley, CA; the Ballet du Nord in Roubaix, France; the GenEva Ballet, Switzerland; The Orchestra of St. Luke's; the Gordon & Harriet Greenfield Foundation; the Grand Marnier Foundation; the The?a?tre de Saint Quentin en Yvelines France; Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA; and Marymount Manhattan College; among others. He is a two-time recipient of the Choo-San Goh Award for Choreography.

Founded in 1994, RIOULT Dance NY fast became an established name in modern dance with a reputation for presenting the sensual, articulate, and exquisitely musical works of Pascal Rioult. The New York City-based Dance Company presents an annual New York season, tours nationally and internationally, conducts extensive in-school arts education and community outreach programs, and offers dance training to the public through classes, workshops, and intensives.

Extraordinary for an organization its size, RIOULT Dance NY is highly committed to its dancers, providing steady employment and year-round health insurance. Each dancer's creative development is fostered through training classes, teaching opportunities, and challenging repertory while maintaining comprehensive rehearsal and performance schedules. The company is fortunate to have welcomed new dancers over the years and retained many, some of whom have danced with the company for over a decade.

RIOULT Dance NY has performed in theaters and festivals throughout North America including New York City Center Fall for Dance (New York, NY), Lincoln Center Out-of- Doors (New York, NY), American Dance Festival (Raleigh NC), the Annenberg Center (Philadelphia, PA), the Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts (West Palm Beach, FL), and Zellerbach Hall (Berkeley, CA), among others. Widespread international touring has brought the company to Pascal Rioult's homeland of France for the Cannes International Festival, Danse a? Aix, Festival du Val du Marne, Temps le Danse Festival, Paris Opera Bastille, and La Maison de la Danse, as well as to the Bermuda Festival of thePerforming Arts (Bermuda), the Tamaulipas International Festival (Mexico), Le Grand The?a?tre De Que?bec (Canada), and the stages of Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, and others worldwide.

Patricia Field is a native Manhattanite, made a name for herself styling HBO's Sex and The City (Emmy Award) from 1998-2004, and raising the standards in the world of television and film glamour through her costume designs. Past film and television projects include: The Devil Wears Prada (Oscar nomination), Ugly Betty, and Hope and Faith, among others. Ms. Fields has worked with international fashion and beauty brands, both as designer and stylist, such as Crocs, Maybelline, MAC, Vidal Sassoon, Diet Coke, Marks & Spencer, HSN, W Hotels, Candie's Shoes, Smacky Glam (Japan), Shangpin (China), and Buckaroo Jeans (Korea). Her eponymous downtown boutique remained a fashion landmark for 50 years. Through her current project ARTFASHION, she acts as a curator to a host of artists in applying their unique aesthetics to hand painted one-of-kind clothing found at www.patriciafield.com.

David Dalrymple received his formal training at the Fashion Institute of Technology and became part of the rough and tumble world of 1980s New York nightlife. He came to the attention of Patricia Field in 1993 and a long collaboration was borne. Mr. Dalrymple is known for building clothing for the world's most talked about women with a client list that reads like a who's who of the entertainment industry, dressing Bette Midler, Brittney Spears, Jennifer Lopez, Madonna, Nikki Minaj, Rupaul, and others. Today he is committed to creating handmade unique fashion in the historic garment district.

Mondo is a graduate of Marymount Manhattan College. His background in both dance and styling merges urban fashion with contemporary dance-wear. He has costumed The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Marymount Manhattan College, Jennifer Archibald, The Fosse Foundation, Hope Boykin, Earl Mosley, Sonia Dawkins, and Jeremy McQueen, among others. Mondo was Alvin Ailey School's Costume Coordinator/Wardrobe Supervisor from 2012-2015 and is currently on faculty at Marymount Manhattan College as their Costume Coordinator.