Limon Dance Company Returns to Joyce Theater For One Week, 5/2-7

The Limón Dance Company returns to The Joyce with two programs of works by José Limón, all staged by former principal dancers with the Company, as well as new dances Kate Weare and company artistic director Colin Connor, May 2-7.

In a program highlighted by musicality, athleticism, and drama, the contemporary emerges out of the classics in the Company's first Joyce season under its new artistic director. Limón's legendary works will be performed alongside the dramatically luminous and sharply etched Night Light, created for ten dancers by Kate Weare, and Connor's driving sextet Corvidae, inspired by the ferocity of crows and ravens.

The innovative Connor will present two distinct productions of Limón's The Exiles, a haunting duet that uses the biblical story of Adam and Eve thrust out of the Garden of Eden, evoking today's experiences of immigrants and refugees forced to leave their homelands. On May 2 & 3, the haunting duet will be danced to the original music by Schoenberg, while the May 6 & 7 performances will be performed to a new commissioned score for The Exiles by Aleksandra Vrebalov, performed live by six vocalists.

PROGRAMS

PROGRAM A - Concerto Grosso, Corvidae, The Exiles, Suite from A Choreographic Offering, Night Light

May 2, 3 (7:30 PM), May 6 (8 PM), May 7 (2 PM)

PROGRAM B - Concerto Grosso, Corvidae, Chaconne, Suite from A Choreographic Offering, Night Light

May 4, 5 (8 PM), May 6 (2 PM)

CONCERTO GROSSO - Limón/Vivaldi. Staging and direction by Risa Steinberg

To Vivaldi's great Concerto #11 in D Minor, Opus 3, the majesty and formal beauty of the high baroque is evoked in this three-part choreographic invention. Concerto Grosso was first performed May 19, 1945 at the Humphrey-Weidman Studio in New York City.

CORVIDAE - Connor/Phillip Glass, Violin Concerto #1, 1st movement

Considered the most intelligent of birds, Corvids, especially ravens and crows, have been seen as messengers throughout the ages.

THE EXILES - Limón/Schoenberg - Limón/Vrebalov. Staging and direction by Colin Connor

"they, looking back, all the eastern side beheld of paradise, so late their happy seat." PARADISE LOST, John Milton

The Company presents the duet to the original music by Schoenberg on Tuesday and Wednesday, and, for the first time, to a new score for six singers by composer Aleksandra Vrebalov at the Saturday and Sundayperformances. The Exiles was first performed August 11, 1950 at the American Dance Festival in New London, Connecticut.

CHACONNE - Limón/J.S. Bach, Chaconne from Partita #2 in D Minor for Unaccompanied Violin. Staging and direction by Gary Masters

The Chaconne as a dance form originated in New Spain, now Mexico. Bach employed the strict musical form of the Chaconne but enriched it with powerful emotional implications. Limón captured in his dance both the formal austerity and the profound feeling of the music. Chaconne was first performed December 27, 1942 at the Humphrey-Weidman Studio Theater, New York City.

Suite from A CHOREOGRAPHIC OFFERING, For Doris Humphrey - Limón/JS Bach. Staging and Direction by Kurt Douglas

This work, in memory of Doris Humphrey, is based on variations, paraphrases, and motifs from her dances. A Choreographic Offering premiered August 15, 1964 at the American Dance Festival.

NIGHT LIGHT - Kate Weare/from album Victoire-Cathedral City

The work was originally commissioned by The Juilliard School in 2014 and premiered December 10, 2014. The Limón Company premiere took place in September 2016 at Hope College, Michigan.

The Limón Dance Company has been at the vanguard of dance since its inception in 1946, distinguishing itself as the first dance group to tour internationally under the auspices of the State Department and the first modern dance company to perform at Lincoln Center in New York, as well as performing twice at The White House. José Limón possessed a social awareness that transcended distinct groups to address how we all search for commonality, earning him a special place in American culture. With their arresting visual clarity, theatricality, and rhythmic and musical life, his works continue to influence the evolution of the art form more than 40 years after his passing. The Company has developed a repertory of unparalleled breadth to complement the classics by its founders Doris Humphrey and Limón, including works by such luminaries as Ji?i Kylián, Doug Varone, Lar Lubovitch, Donald McKayle, Murray Louis, Susanne Linke, Meredith Monk, and now Kate Weare. The José Limón Dance Foundation, encompassing the Company and the educational and licensing Institute, was awarded a 2008 National Medal of the Arts, the nation's highest honor for artistic excellence.

The Limón Dance foundation is supported with public funds from the NEA, NYSCA with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the NY Legislature; and the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. Additional support is generously provided by the following institutions: Ambrosia Investments; LLC; Bloomberg Philanthropies; Capezio Dance Foundation; d'exposito & Partners; Dubose and Dorothy Heyward Memorial Fund; The Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuel Foundation, Inc.; Jody and John Arnhold; The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation; Google Ad Grants; The Harkness Foundation for Dance; Henry and Lucy Moses Fund; HOMEX; The Howard Gilman Foundation; The Jerome Robbins Foundation; Material for the Arts; Mesonix Investments Ltd; Mex-Am Cultural Council; Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation; Miriam and Arthur Diamond Charitable Trust; New England Foundation for the Arts; The O'Donnell-Green Music and Dance Foundation; The Pierre and Tana Matisse Foundation; Ronald McDonald House Charities - NYTSA; Staples; U.S. Department of State; Withers Bergman LLP.