National Choreographers Initiative Announces Premiere of New Ballets, Today

Be there for the birth of, not one, but four new ballets created as part of the intensive 3-week process of the National Choreographers Initiative (NCI). Artistic Director, Molly Lynch has invited four choreographers - Tom Gold, Nicole Haskins,Stephanie Martinez and Ben Needham-Wood − as well as sixteen professional dancers from ballet companies across the country, to participate.

The 13th annual National Choreographers Initiative will take place this summer from July 11 to July 30. During the three weeks of intense creative effort at the dance studios of University of California, Irvine, four choreographers and sixteen professional dancers will produce new dance works culminating in a public performance at Irvine Barclay Theatre on Saturday, July 30 at 8pm. The evening will include a question and answer session, moderated by Artistic Director, Molly Lynch, giving the audience the opportunity to discuss the production with the four choreographers.

Each choreographer is given complete freedom to choose the style and theme of the work. This is a laboratory for the choreographers to develop their movement and thematic ideas. The choreographers retain the right to promote and license the works they have created to other companies.

National Choreographers Initiative is a southern California project with national influence. Since 2004, NCI has hosted 48 choreographers, 107 dancers from 41 different companies, and has produced 48 new works − 25 of which have been produced by companies throughout the United States.

Artistic Director, Molly Lynch: "NCI is different from other choreography projects . The choreographers enter the rehearsal studio and know they have the ultimate freedom to create and experiment with different genres and styles of movement. And the non-commissioned setting encourages them to grow as artists and further develop their artistic vision. The dancers also benefit greatly from this creative process. They are free to improvise and hone their technique. It's a unique collaboration; it's stimulating and exciting; it changes daily. At the end, there is a dance creation that's not predetermined - it's the heart of their artistic expression; and it is energizing."