Harris Theater Sets 2014-15 Dance Season

The Harris Theater for Music and Dance today unveiled the world-class dance performances of its 2014-2015 season-a sublime lineup of Chicago debuts and Harris Theater premieres from four national and international sensations, all presented as part of the acclaimed Harris Theater Presents series.

The Theater's second decade of dance features two companies entirely new to Chicago audiences, elevating the city's status as a premier touring destination for performing artists from around the world: the Chicago debut of Scottish Ballet in the company's staging of A Streetcar Named Desire and the Chicago debut of the Beijing Dance Theater, widely recognized as China's leading contemporary dance ensemble.

The Harris is thrilled to have been able to reschedule the much-anticipated Chicago premiere of Restless Creature, a new collaborative work from New York City Ballet's Wendy Whelan, featuring highly sought-after choreographers Kyle Abraham, Joshua Beamish, Brian Brooks, and Hubbard Street Dance Chicago Resident Choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo. In recognition of the remarkable support from the Chicago community, following a fire that occurred at the Theater on February 19, 2014, the Harris is also pleased to announce that Alonzo King LINES Ballet's celebrated return to the Harris has also been rescheduled with two distinct programs featuring live musical accompaniment: the collaboration between LINES Ballet and Israeli mezzo-soprano Maya Lahyani, and a new work pairing the neoclassical dancers with double bassist and composer Edgar Meyer.

"We're proud to present a diverse range of artists and companies, some of which have yet to be seen in Chicago," said Harris Theater President and Managing Director Michael Tiknis. "The dance performances of the Theater's 2014-2015 season welcome a tremendous range of cutting-edge works from contemporary icons to rising international stars, from Alonzo King to Wang Yuanyuan of Beijing Dance Theater. As part of our multifaceted mission, the Harris Theater remains committed to bringing the best of the world to our patrons and the city of Chicago."

Additionally, the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, in partnership with Millennium Park and the City of Chicago, will launch the Outdoor Simulcast Series, a new annual addition to the city's popular slate of summer programming, completely free and open to the public. Select performances at the Harris Theater will be broadcast onto an LED screen in the Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park. This follows the success of the Harris Theater's simulcast presentation of Giselle by the Paris Opéra Ballet in 2012, a performance that drew more than 11,000 people to the Pritzker Pavilion. This new summer series begins with two previously announced performances: Hubbard Street Dance Chicago's Summer Series on Friday, June 6, and opening night of the Chicago Dancing Festival on Wednesday, August 20.

See a full listing of Harris Theater Presents 2014-15 dance performances below.

Beijing Dance Theater
Wild Grass
Tuesday and Wednesday, October 28 + 29, 2014, 7:30PM
Chicago debut

The Harris Theater, in association with The Dance Center of Columbia College Chicago, presents Beijing Dance Theater in the Chicago debut of the company's powerful Wild Grass, the newest work from company Artistic Director Wang Yuanyuan. Wang became a household name in China following her collaboration with film director Zhang Yimou for the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. She founded Beijing Dance Theater in 2008, earning widespread praise for her innovative approach to contemporary dance. In Wild Grass, Wang takes inspiration from the poems of Chinese writer and literary giant Lu Xun, a three-part performance of profound intelligence rooted in ideas of spirituality and individuality. This intricate medley of masterful imagery-titled Dead Fire, Farewell of the Shadow, and Dance of Extremity-is anything but ordinary.

Wendy Whelan
Restless Creature
Wednesday, January 21, 2015, 7:30PM
Chicago premiere

New York City Ballet's Wendy Whelan embarks on a new dance adventure with four of today's leading choreographers. Whelan, together with her collaborators, will present Restless Creature, an evening of four duets created by and danced with Kyle Abraham, Joshua Beamish, Brian Brooks, and Hubbard Street Dance Chicago Resident Choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo. Restless Creature received its world premiere in August 2013 at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival.

Alonzo King LINES Ballet
Wednesday and Thursday, March 4 + 5, 2015, 7:30PM
Return visit to the Harris Theater
Three Chicago premieres

Alonzo King LINES Ballet brings two distinct programs of rich invention to Chicago, hand-picked by the company's founder and choreographer, Alonzo King. On March 4, LINES Ballet performs Constellation, King's groundbreaking collaboration with Chicago-born visual artist and MIT alumnus Jim Campbell, featuring a live performance by Israeli mezzo-soprano Maya Lahyani and a set designed by Academy Award-winning designer Jim Doyle. The second night's program on March 5 features two Chicago premieres: Meyer, a new piece with music composed by Grammy Award winner Edgar Meyer and performed live by Meyer, Rob Moose, and Gabriel Cabezas, paired with the Chicago premiere of King's intricate Writing Ground.

Scottish Ballet
A Streetcar Named Desire
Thursday-Saturday, May 7-9, 2015, 7:30PM
Chicago debut

Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning American drama by Tennessee Williams, Scottish Ballet's 2012 contemporary adaptation of A Streetcar Named Desire-created in conjunction with the play's 65th anniversary year-is considered a modern gem of contemporary dance. The impressionable Blanche DuBois and the temperamental Stanley Kowalski find themselves in constant turmoil in this suspenseful take on a story of lust, desire, and betrayal as only dance can inspire. Conceptualized by theater and film director Nancy Meckler, and choreographed by international dance star and National Dance Award (UK) winner Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, A Streetcar Named Desire delights in its cross-disciplinary style. Scottish Ballet brings this one-of-a-kind take on an American classic to Chicago for the first time, presented as part of the company's Chicago debut.

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago
Summer Series
Friday, June 6, 2014, 8PM

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago presents Nacho Duato's Gnawa, created exclusively for Hubbard Street in 2005; the "entirely mesmerizing" (Chicago Music) Falling Angels (1989) by Ji?í Kylián, for eight women and set to phased percussion by Steve Reich; Cerrudo's PACOPEPEPLUTO (2011), seven minutes of solo dancing for men to three songs popularized by "the king of Cool," Dean Martin, in the '50s and '60s; and a world premiere from Cerrudo, his 13th for the company.

Chicago Dancing Festival
Opening Night
Wednesday, August 20, 2014, 7PM

The eighth annual Chicago Dancing Festival opens on August 20 at the Harris Theater with a world premiere, CDF commission from New York-based choreographer Kyle Abraham, danced by Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. The evening also includes performances by The Juilliard School, Martha Graham Dance Company, and "Stars of American Ballet" featuring dancers from New York City Ballet and American Ballet Theatre.

All programs, prices, and dates are subject to change.

The Harris Theater's mission is to partner with an array of Chicago's emerging and midsize performing arts organizations to help them build infrastructure and achieve artistic growth and long-term organizational sustainability. Opened on November 8, 2003, the Harris Theater for Music and Dance was the first multi-use performing arts venue to be built in the Chicago downtown area since 1929. Today the Theater continues to host the most diverse offerings of any venue in Chicago, featuring the city's world-renowned music and dance institutions and the Harris Theater Presents series of acclaimed national and international artists and ensembles.

To learn more about the Harris Theater, visit HarrisTheaterChicago.org. Call the Box Office at 312.334.7777 to request a brochure or additional information.

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