U.S. Dept of State Sponsors Merce Cunningham's Performances in Russia

The Cunningham Dance Foundation announced today that the U.S. Department of State will sponsor Merce Cunningham Dance Company's first-ever engagement in Russia, during its final, two-year Legacy Tour. The performances, to be presented by the International Chekhov Festival in Moscow June 14-16, 2011, are supported by the U.S. Embassy in Moscow under the auspices of the U.S.-Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission, established in 2009 to strengthen ties between the people of Russia and America. In its role as cultural envoy, the Merce Cunningham Dance Company (MCDC) will also host a weeklong educational residency and film festival to introduce Russian audiences to the work of Merce Cunningham, and teach a repertory workshop for dancers on Cunningham Technique at the Summer Dance School TsEKh in Moscow.

In Moscow, MCDC will perform three landmark Cunningham works that showcase his unique creative vision and the artistic collaborations that characterized his career: BIPED (1999), a Cunningham masterpiece that employs motion-capture technology as décor; XOVER (2007), the penultimate collaboration between Cunningham, John Cage, and Robert Rauschenberg; and the world premiere of the revival of RainForest (1968), a piece danced amidst Andy Warhol's installation Silver Clouds. To complement the premiere, the State Department will sponsor a RainForest "Dance Capsule"-a digital package containing complete documentation of a Cunningham work-in the name of the people of Russia, to represent the friendship between the two countries.

"We are honored that the State Department has chosen to support our debut in Russia, just as we have been incredibly grateful to the National Endowment for the Arts for its ongoing support of our performances within the United States," said Trevor Carlson, Executive Director of the Cunningham Dance Foundation. "Merce Cunningham and the Company have been ambassadors for contemporary American culture around the world for nearly sixty years, and we believe the opportunity to share his legacy with the people of Russia firsthand will be a powerful experience for both the Company and our audiences."

The Moscow performances are a highlight of MCDC's final Legacy Tour, developed as part of the Cunningham Dance Foundation's Legacy Plan for the celebration and preservation of Cunningham's artistic legacy. The performances will be enhanced by a series of inter-disciplinary residency activities designed to engage the public in Moscow and enrich their understanding of Merce Cunningham's work and creative process. These include:

Family Day movement workshops for parents and children, inspired by Cunningham Technique and Cunningham's use of chance procedures. Presented by SNOB on June 17 at 4pm and 5:30pm at the Centre for Contemporary Art ("Garage"), www.garageccc.com/eng/;
A Film Series showcasing film dances from the Cunningham archive, including Summerspace (1958) and Interscape (2000) by Charles Atlas, Beach Birds for Camera (1993) by Elliot Caplan, and Merce by Merce by Paik (1973) by Nam June Paik. Presented by the National Centre for Contemporary Arts at the PionerCinema, www.pioner-cinema.ru/;
Classes in Cunningham Technique® and repertory workshops as part of TsEKh's (Centre for Contemporary Dance and Performance in Moscow) Summer Dance School, July 11-30, 2011, www.tsekh.com.

The State Department will also support the documentation of the historic Legacy Tour engagement in Russia by providing funding to film and broadcast of the premiere of the revival of RainForest, and to create a Mondays with Merce "webisode" about the Company's first visit to the country, accessible to all audiences online.

About the Cunningham Dance Foundation and the Legacy Plan
The Cunningham Dance Foundation is dedicated to sustaining and advancing the creative work of Merce Cunningham (1919-2009)-choreographer, teacher and artist-through support of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company and Repertory Understudy Group; the Merce Cunningham Studio, which provides training in Cunningham Technique^TM and oversees the Studio Performance Program for Young Artists and Educational Outreach; and the Merce Cunningham Archives. In 2009, the Foundation launched Mondays with Mercea pioneering web series that provides the public with behind-the-scenes access to Cunningham's creative process.

The Cunningham Dance Foundation's precedent-setting Legacy Plan delineates the future of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company and ensures the preservation of Merce Cunningham's artistic legacy. The multifaceted plan includes the celebratory two-year Legacy Tour, and supports career transition for the dancers, musicians, and staff who have invested their time and creative efforts into the realization of Cunningham's vision. The Plan also provides for the creation of digital "Dance Capsules" that will bring Cunningham's work to life for future generations. The Legacy Plan is supported by an ongoing $8- million capital campaign.

The performances and educational residency of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company in Moscow are presented with the support of the US Embassy in Moscow and under the auspices of the U.S.-Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission. Additional support has been provided by the Trust for Mutual Understanding.

With support of the U.S. Embassy in Russia and under the auspices of the U.S. - Russian Bilateral Presidential Commission of Medvedev-Obama.

Additional information is available at www.merce.org.

 

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