Michelle Dorrance News

The School at Jacob's Pillow, a world-renowned center for professional advancement in artistic excellence, announces 2019 programs in Contemporary Ballet, Flamenco, Contemporary, Tap, Choreography, and Dance Photography. Situated in the heart of Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, the longest-running dance festival in the United States, The School has been instrumental to the careers of dance artists for over 80 years, connecting them to highly-acclaimed choreographers of the day in a curriculum made current by one of the most influential international dance networks in the field-a network dancers join as School alumni.  

On the evening of October 17th, American Ballet Theatre kicked of its much-anticipated fall season at the David H. Koch Theater. Dedicated to celebrating the power and innovation of female choreography, the night welcomed a bevy of audience goers, from everyday ballet enthusiasts to arts advocates to well-known celebrities. With the mood in the air being electric, sparkling with the promise of anticipation, the program had to deliver with bold excitement.

Works & Process will present a Dorrance Dance Rotunda Project Revivalwith two free special demonstrations and a performance for middle and high school students on November 1, 2018.

American Ballet Theatre announced the formation of the ABT Women's Movement, a multi-year initiative to support the creation, exploration and staging of new works by female choreographers for ABT and the ABT Studio Company.  The initiative was announced today by ABT Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie.

On Tuesday, October 16, the Princess Grace Foundation-USA (PGF-USA) celebrated the 2018 Princess Grace Awards Gala at Cipriani 25 Broadway in New York. Held in the presence of Her Serene Highness Princess Charlene of Monaco, the Awards Gala honored actor, director, producer, and philanthropist Tim Daly, Tony Award-winning director Sam Gold, and founder of the dance company A.I.M (Abraham.In.Motion) Kyle Abraham. Emmy and Tony Award-winning actress Bebe Neuwirth served as mistress of ceremonies for the event.

May 13, 2019 marks the 25th year the Herb Alpert Award in the Arts (HAAIA) will be presented to five risk-taking, mid-career artists who use their talent, vision, and labor to make something that matters within and potentially beyond their field.

Works & Process, the performing arts series at the Guggenheim, presents a dance commission preview, Caleb Teicher & Co with Conrad Tao: More Forever on Sunday, October 28, 2018 at 7:30pm.

Park City Institute announced its 21st season of Main Stage shows at the George S. and Dolores Dore Eccles Center for the Performing Arts. The 2018-19 Season continues the Institute's mission to entertain, educate and illuminate, with a lineup of world-renowned dance companies, musicians, authors, thinkers, adventurers and leaders-both legendary and emerging.

Due to popular demand, second performances have been added for Private Peaceful, Songs of Freedom, and Teatro Linea de Sombra's Amarillo. Tickets and subscriptions for Essential Series performances are available at texasperformingarts.org.

Juilliard President Damian Woetzel announced several key initiatives and new projects aimed to advance Juilliard's excellence and impact in his first address to the Juilliard community, on September 4. During the convocation ceremony, which also featured performances by Juilliard students, faculty, alumni, and some of the newly announced Creative Associates, Woetzel outlined his plans to build on Juilliard's tradition of excellence while also focusing on creative enterprise and inclusivity in the arts.

Jacob's Pillow announces the second season of residencies offered through the Pillow Lab, a year-round incubator of new work that encompasses a robust series of customized artist residencies. Built from the Jacob's Pillow mission as an integral component of Vision '22-the organization's five-year strategic plan which drives the Pillow's transition into a year-round institution-the Pillow Lab strengthens the artistic core of Jacob's Pillow by increasing resources that nurture the process of choreography and proactively investing in the development of new work.

Due to popular demand, TITAS Presents has added a third show for DIAVOLO (Saturday, September 15; 2pm matinee) at Moody Performance Hall.

Programming for American Ballet Theatre's 2018 Fall season, October 17-28 at the David H. Koch Theater, was announced today by Artistic Director Kevin McKenzie. The season will feature World Premieres by Michelle Dorrance and Jessica Lang, as well as centennial tribute performances of Jerome Robbins's and Leonard Bernstein's Fancy Free. Check out a video preview of the season below!

Bringing together some of today's most remarkable ballet talents, Daniel Ulbricht's Stars of American Ballet returns to Jacob's Pillow, appearing in the Ted Shawn Theatre August 22-26. A principal dancer with New York City Ballet since 2007, Ulbricht is lauded as "one of the best male ballet dancers in New York" (Dance Magazine). As Artistic Director, curator, and performer, Ulbricht brings a unique vision and perspective to performance. With a cast highlighting 14 powerhouse dancers of New York City Ballet, this collective celebrates the legacy of choreographic legend Jerome Robbins with a program of his masterpieces on the occasion of his centennial, augmented by two Robbins-related PillowTalks.

The Princess Grace Foundation-USA (PGF-USA) has announced the winners of the 2018 Princess Grace Awards. The Awards will be presented at the annual Princess Grace Awards Gala and continue the legacy of Princess Grace (Kelly) of Monaco, who helped emerging artists pursue their artistic goals during Her lifetime. In total, the Foundation is awarding over $1 million to artists in theater, dance, and film. In the presence of Her Serene Highness The Princess of Monaco, this year's Gala will be held at Cipriani 25 Broadway on October 16, 2018. The evening will be co-chaired by Dennis and Phyllis Washington and Anne Sweeney and Phillip Miller.

The Peace Center has added five dance events to the schedule:

BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival, now in its 40th season, presents The Blues Project, combining the exceptional dance company Dorrance Dance with the elemental musical force that is Toshi Reagon & BIGLovely. Created by Michelle Dorrance, Derick K. Grant, Toshi Reagon, and Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards, The Blues Project brings together today's best tap artists, musicians, and choreographers in an innovative evening of rhythm, original live music, explosive energy, and raw emotion. The work reveals 'a deep merging of forms: As Ms. Reagon's music envelops the dancing, the dancing seeps through to the last chord and sometimes even beyond it' (The New York Times). The performance, which takes place at the Prospect Park Bandshell (9th St. & Prospect Park West) is free to the public (with a suggested $5 contribution at the gate) and begins at 8:00pm on June 28.

The American Tap Dance Foundation's TAP CITY, THE NEW YORK CITY TAP FESTIVAL will return for its 18th year from Saturday, July 7 through Friday, July 13 with local and international tap dance artists, master classes, a tap dance boat tour around Manhattan,Tap Dance Awards, Rhythm in Motion Concert Performance and "Tap it Out," a free outdoor tap dance event in the middle of Times Square. *Lineup below.

The American Dance Festival (ADF) kicks off week #4 with the return of Tere O'Connor Dance performing the ADF-commissioned Long Run. The North Carolina Museum of Art once again partners with ADF to present Dana Ruttenberg Dance Group's witty, interactive Naba 2.0. The Carolina Theater stage will be the scene of five spectacular solos by Michelle Dorrance, Rhapsody James, Yabin Wang, Aparna Ramaswamy, and Camille A. Brown in the Wondrous Women program. The talented ADF faculty will present work at Reynolds Industries Theater. ADF's Movies by Movers continues its summer screenings, and ADF School Tours offer a glimpse into the world of dancers-in-training.

In a short film released today by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, the foundation's president and CEO, Edward P. Henry, was joined by several previous Doris Duke Artist Award winners in announcing the 2018 recipients of the $275,000 award. The new awardees include Dee Dee Bridgewater, Regina Carter and Stefon Harris for their continuing contributions to jazz; Michelle Dorrance and Okwui Okpokwasili for contemporary dance; and Muriel Miguel and Rosalba Rolon for theater. Each 2018 Doris Duke Artist is receiving $250,000 in flexible funding, along with up to an additional $25,000 to encourage contributions to retirement savings.