BWW Dance Interview: Paul Lightfoot

Nederlands Dans Theater 1 returns to New York with a 2016 season that includes four U.S. premieres by Sol León and Paul Lightfoot, Crystal Pite and Marco Goecke, running November 16 - 19, 2016 at New York City Center. Nederlands Dans Theater, under the Artistic Direction of choreographer Paul Lightfoot, is recognized as one of the world's most prolific and creative contemporary dance companies.The season features the U.S. premieres of Safe as Houses (2001) and Stop-Motion (2014), choreographed by Sol León and Paul Lightfoot; The Statement (2016), choreographed by Crystal Pite; and Woke up Blind (2016), choreographed by Marco Goecke.

Broadlwayworld Dance recently sat down to interview Paul Lightfoot

Q. When did you first become interested in dance?

A. I was not interested so much in dance when I was young. I wanted to be an actor. I thought that was where my creative output should appear. I was an extremely hyperactive child, born in the countryside, where there were not many artistic outlets for my family, maybe singing, but nothing professional. I was at school and saw children on the field doing the maypole. I was very taken by the beauty of it and thought I'd really like to try some dancing.

Q. Where did you study dance?

A. I started in the village where I was born. My family then moved to a town in the north of England, where I studied at Port Chester. At 15 I got the opportunity to go to the Royal Ballet School in London, and that's where everything began to change. I had been dancing and quite enjoying it, but was not completely sure if it was something I wanted to pursue. But when I went to the School I saw something that was missing in myself. I wanted so much to understand technique, the real criteria for being a dancer.

Q. What brought you to Nederlands Dans Theater?

A. At 18, by sheer accident, I ended up in an audition class. Jiri Killian was there and offered me a job an 8-week contract with the Company. That was my first contract, my first work experience, and I actually didn't want to go. I didn't know enough about the Company at all. I thought it was a classical company that presented his dance works. So I was extremely confused when I first went over there. As soon as I arrived at NDT I walked through the doors of the old studios and saw a photograph of Kylian's Symphony of Psalms. It had been on television without my realization that this was the company where it was created. Then I absolutely knew that this was the place for me The environment was so mad in lots of ways, quite chaotic, yet at the same time focused on creativity. Everybody had amazing personalities. I loved it, being given an opportunity at such a young age.

Q. Before joining NDT, did you dance with any company in England?

A. I just was at the Royal Ballet School. I did some extras for the Royal, and they offered me a contract which I ultimately turned down, due to those 8 weeks in Holland. I knew then that I wasn't meant to be that kind of classical dancer I dreamed of, princes and the like.

Q. Any early influences?

A. Hans Van Manen was an amazing influence on the early part of my career. He gave me a lot of big opportunities very early on for me alone, and with Sol Leon. He liked to work with couples and said we had very interesting chemistry. He wasn't afraid to bring us into the studio. Other choreographers would never put us together because we could be too noisy, too much trouble. But he thrived on it. I learned so much about partnering from Hans. It isn't just standing there and being nice. There's a real participation. I feel that partnering is sometimes a lost art form these days, and I think a lot of my earlier work and the roles I received were because I was interested in partnering, to be with someone on stage creating a relationship.

Q. Describe your early years at NDT

A. Pretty crazy, since I was only classically trained. Of course, you need much more than good classical technique behind you at NDT. It was a vibrant time. There were the works of Jiri, but there were so many choreographers coming through: Ohad Naharin, Mats Ek - and Hans Van Manen. I loved the possibility of being in an international company, traveling the world and sharing the works. That influenced me so much - the passion and the drive, the mix of people who had their own stories and cultural backgrounds. They were so united in what they were saying together, yet kept their own identities.

Q. When you joined NDT had you ever choreographed or had the desire to choreograph?

I had thought about choreography. It was the first conversation I ever had with Jiri. I was at the Royal Ballet School, and he said, "I heard that you were interested in choreographing." He thought it was a good sign, that I was the kind of dancer that he wanted in his company. Someone who is thinking along with creators. So yes, I did have a desire.

Q. Describe your first attempts at choreography. Were you happy with the results?

A. In 1985 we established the Workshop at NDT, which is where the dancers took over the theater for the night and produced their own works. This was a huge success within the group because there were no limits. You didn't have to seriously want to be a choreographer, you could just have a bash and go for it. We could all let out our own creativity and make a start

Q. What was your first breakthrough as a choreographer?

A. Immediately after that first workshop, Jiri approached me and asked if I would be interested in choreographing something for NDT II, the younger company. I was absolutely thrilled. Sol and I weren't officially choreographing together, but we were a couple and always going over ideas and working in the studio together. Slowly our creative relationship was being forged, so that was a wonderful period. I mean, 21 was incredibly young to make a work for NDT. The first piece was an absolute disaster. I think that many young choreographers try way too hard to put everything in there but the kitchen sink. After the premiere, I was convinced that I had blown my chance. But Jiri just said to try again. There was no judgment. it was fantastic to have that kind of protection, knowing that there was room to make mistakes. That's the great thing about NDT. There is no wrong or right. It's what I love about art-it's all subjective.

Q. You've collaborated on many works with Sol Leon. Describe your working methods?

A. We've been choreographing together for 27 years, going through many changes in the way we work together. There used to be a lot more talk. Now I feel there is a lot more understanding and respect in the relationship when somebody needs space and somebody doesn't. We try to get to the essence of what this piece might be about, and those ideas are peeled away until we get at the ones we think are important. Very often we are alone in the studio, one in one room and one in another, and we come together at the end of the day and show what we've been up to. We're both so strong in our ideas that it's probably better that we're not in the room at the same time, because otherwise you get a dialogue going, and for a dancer that's quite hard. They might hear two people asking two very different things. I think the beauty of the artists here at NDT is that they can process that and come out with something that we're all able to work with. So chemistry and energy are really important. There always must be a sense of harmony in the way you approach a work.

Q. You were named Artistic Director in 2011. Was that a position you sought?

A. No, it wasn't. I had been approached about 10 years before and asked if it was something I wanted to pursue. I thought about it very much and was advised by people around me not to do it. It wasn't that they didn't think I was capable, but because being a choreographer and being an artistic director are two very different positions. They can work against each other. As a creator and a choreographer, I think it's very important to keep the ability to dream with whatever chaos that might create, at whatever price it is. A director must be able to facilitate and execute that dream, focusing ideas and harnessing creativity. It presents quite a conundrum inside yourself. Now, I wear two hats. I know what it takes from the practical, artistic, and creative sides, which can cause conflicts that are not easy to deal with. So many people don't do it. But when the board approached me in 2011, I said to myself that it's now or never. I had been at the company a long time, 33 years, and waiting for a change. There was something inside me saying to take the challenge.

Q. What did Sol think of this?

A. A great opportunity. Sol is fantastic in keeping my feet on the ground. She provides, metaphorically, a slap across the face when needed. I'm sure she'd like to do that anyway. But she keeps me in tow and reminds me of the things that are important, because an organization has to be focused.

Q. Describe focused?

A. Being on top of the creativity. That's what has not changed at NDT since 1959. I'm determined that under my watch the company will remaIn Focused on diverse creativity. There have been nearly 800 world premieres since the company's creation, which is a staggering amount of works to be brought out by one company in less than 60 years. And we continue, so, yes, it's exhausting, but I embrace it. The days seem never ending and the nights seem to be a moment to catch up on the things you didn't have time to do during the day. I sleep a lot less than I used to. The best things are the days when you are lifted by the energy of your colleagues and the pleasure of seeing process and development happening. It's worth it.

Q. Describe a typical day as the Company's Artistic Director?

A. I try to get to class every day, which is almost an impossibility, because I dedicate my mornings to getting things done on an administrative level - budgets, scheduling, sponsorships and international planning. Interesting duty topics come up daily planning is altered. And we must stay on top of issues relating to the city of The Hague and the central government of Holland that subsidize us. Then there are the dancers themselves. As much as you adore them, they require a great deal of attention. Our dancers really are the best in the world in this field. They are very demanding on themselves, and therefore very demanding on the organization, which I think is necessary. We have our choreographers. I spend most of my days, from 12 - 6, in the studios and then there are the performances. The days are very, very, very long. They are physically tiring and emotionally can be quite draining, But I feel replenished when those uplifting moments come. They can be so fleeting, but they refill me and recapture the reason I am doing all of this.

Q. What do you look for in the works of new choreographers?

A. I look for originality, a message. I think that if choreographers don't know what they are saying, it's omnipresent for an audience. A viewer can immediately get bewildered as to why someone would want to do something that costs so much energy and effort without a strong message or point of view. I'm not interested in people who just emulate others. I think influence is really relevant, but what's important is having an original vocabulary or an original concept, so that when the curtain goes up people have no doubt who the choreographer is. Then you've got my attention. Of course, you can talk about all the other factors: I'm very interested in the musicality of choreographers, and interested in language. I feel that today it's becoming old fashioned, but I miss the exploration of the physical. I think young choreographers today are happy to settle for less on a physical level, but I think that that the balance of technique, focus and lines is still as important as it was. And we must keep pushing and developing it.

Q. What can we expect from you in the future?

A. NDT is very much back in a place where it should be. We are at the top of the dance scene. The world looks to us to see what's going on. Right or wrong, I don't care. But we're there. We're traveling, and I want the company to be global again. that very North America is a great beacon for us, because it's a place, particularly in New York, where the company gained the world's respect. It is also a place where we suffered very much, particularly with the critics. Audiences love us, yet there's been an animosity towards the company from critics over the decades. I don't mind that. It keeps us going. Sometimes it feels unjust, incorrect. But ultimately you must recognize that it's an opinion-there's no book written about taste. But to return with these important works for audiences that appreciate the company is why we're here in New York- to show people who we are today. We have quite a few Americans in the company, and it's a thrill for them to be back on home ground. I want the company to keep pushing forward the relevance of culture in our daily lives. Not to be overshadowed with all the problems of fear-based ethics that seems to be rampant in our world today. I am really keen about our future, that what we are doing now will stay in the future, and that the creative team will keep growing. That the internationalism will keep blooming within and around the world, showing the work that we do and that we keep fighting forward for the passion and the beauty of this magnificent art form.

Photo: (c) Paul Rezavni