Paul Taylor News

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, beloved as one of the world's most popular dance companies, will travel coast to coast beginning in February on a 23-city North American tour hitting major markets such as Atlanta, Miami, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Chicago (full schedule below). The 25th season since the passing of legendary founder Alvin Ailey is led by Artistic Director Robert Battle who continues to expand the Company's diverse repertory with a wide range of important choreographic voices. Exciting premieres and new productions give Ailey's 30 extraordinary dancers even more ways to inspire audiences. Highlights of the season, launching in New York in December, include: (tour programming will be announced by January):

Joseph W. Polisi, President of The Juilliard School, today announced the creation of the Kovner Fellowship Program at Juilliard that will be endowed with a gift of $60 million - the largest single one-time gift to the School - from Bruce and Suzie Kovner, long-time supporters of the School.

Killian Donnelly, Sarah O'Connor and Sean Kearns have joined the ensemble for the musical adaptation of Roddy Doyle's novel THE COMMITMENTS, which opened at the Palace Theatre on October 8, 2013.

The cult rock musical BARE will transfer to Greenwich Theatre for a limited run from tonight 9 to Saturday 27 October 2013 (press night Friday 11 October) following its sold-out European Premiere at the Union Theatre. Full listings below, tickets on sale now.

New York City's dance luminaries, rising stars, and fans were out in full force at the fabled Apollo Theater in Harlem on the evening of Monday, October 7th 2013 to attend the 29th annual Bessies Awards. The ceremony, named for contemporary dance legend Bessie Schonberg and produced in partnership with Dance/NYC, recognizes established as well as upcoming artists who have made outstanding contributions to the many disciplines of the liveliest art in the Dance Mecca of the World.

The New York Dance and Performance Awards (The Bessies), NYC's premier dance awards honoring outstanding creative work in the field, announced tonight the complete list of winners for the 2012-13 season. The Bessies, produced in partnership with Dance/NYC, were held at the legendary Apollo Theater at 8:00 p.m., following red carpet interviews and photographs with the nominees in attendance. Former Cunningham dancer Gus Solomons jr. and former American Ballet Theatre principal Martine Van Hamel co-hosted the evening and also performed Paul Taylor's rarely seen 1957 Duet as part of the evening's performances.

The New York Dance and Performance Awards (The Bessies), NYC's premier dance awards honoring outstanding creative work in the field, announces dance innovator Eugene Louis Faccuito, known as 'Luigi,' as the recipient of the 2013 NY Dance and Performance Award for Lifetime Achievement in Dance. The award will be presented at the 29th Annual Bessie Awards ceremony at the legendary Apollo Theater today, October 7th.

Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, the innovative contemporary Dance Company from the American West led by Artistic Director Tom Mossbrucker and Executive Director Jean-Philippe Malaty, returns to the Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph Street, for one performance only tonight, October 5 at 7:30 pm.

Empty Space.....Peter Brook Awards 2013 given by London TheatReviews + V&A Theatre Dept & National Theatre Studio present: 24th Empty Space...Peter Brook Awards 2013. The awards ceremony will take place at the National Theatre Studio on November 5, 2013.

Long celebrated for his unique brand of contemporary choreography that combines powerful athleticism with profound emotional sensitivity, Takehiro (Take) Ueyama did not disappoint his opening night audience on Friday, September 27th at Peter Norton Symphony Space, Broadway at 95th Street. The program, which was repeated on September 28th, treated Take's fans to the world premiere of his 'Dark Mourning' as well as the world premiere of Kazuko Hirabayashi's 'A Baited Soul'. The closing piece was a favorite staple of Take's repertoire, his critically acclaimed 'Flight'.

Curtains up! AIR TWYLA propels Pacific Northwest Ballet into its new season with a trio of works by its first artist-in-residence, renowned choreographer Twyla Tharp. The program includes the world premiere of Waiting at the Station with a commissioned score by New Orleans music legend Allen Toussaint. Sharing the program with Waiting at the Station are the Scottish-inspired Brief Fling (a PNB premiere) and Tharp's homage to Ol' Blue Eyes and ballroom dance, the unforgettable Nine Sinatra Songs. AIR TWYLA runs for only seven performances, tonight, September 27 - October 6 at Seattle Center's Marion Oliver McCaw Hall.

TAKE Dance, the New York City-based contemporary dance troupe led by Artistic Director/Founder Takehiro Ueyama, presents DARK MOURNING - two nights of world premiere works tonight, September 27th and Saturday, September 28th at NYC's Peter Norton Symphony Space. The program will include: the world premieres of the eponymous Dark Mourning by Take Ueyama, and a specially choreographed new work by renowned choreographer/master teacher Kazuko Hirabayashi; along with the fan favorite and critically acclaimed Flight.

Marking both the inaugural performances under newly appointed Artistic Director Kevin Irving and the final season of Principal Dancer Alison Roper, Oregon Ballet Theatre will present their opening program, DREAM, at the grand Keller Auditorium.

Paul Taylor Dance Company returns to Houston for the first time in 10 years on Saturday, Oct. 12, at 8 p.m. in Jones Hall, presented by the Society for the Performing Arts.

In celebration of this extraordinary legacy on the occasion of the series' 40th anniversary on PBS, a stellar roster of diverse alumni gather to share their personal stories of what Great Performances has meant to them, with reminiscences and performances by Julie Andrews, Audra McDonald, Don Henley, David Hyde Pierce, Josh Groban, Itzhak Perlman, Peter Martins, Patti Austin and Take 6, Met Opera star El?na Garan?a and Michael Buble. The evening, taped at Lincoln Center last November, will be televised on Great Performances, Friday, October 18 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings).

Northrop at the University of Minnesota presents Hubbard Dance Street Chicago tonight, Sep 21 at 8:00 pm at the State Theatre as the opening performance in the 2013-14 Northrop dance season.

American Repertory Ballet will kick off its 2013-14 season at Rider University's Bart Luedeke Center Theater in Lawrenceville, NJ today and tomorrow, September 20 and 21 at 7:30pm. ARB's Fall Kick-Off production features Artistic Director Douglas Martin's critically acclaimed Rite of Spring, Patrick Corbin's lyrical Caress, ARB Resident Choreographer Mary Barton's vibrant Five Men and a Concerto, and an excerpt from Martin's Romeo and Juliet. The program presents repertory appealing to a wide variety of tastes, showcasing the diverse range of American Repertory Ballet's dancers and choreographers.

As Houston's leading performing arts presenter, Society for the Performing Arts (SPA) has announced its 2013-2014 season filled with music, dance and family entertainment from the world's best artists and companies.

American Modern Ensemble (AME) and Mazzini Dance Collective (MDC) join forces for a multi-disciplinary collaboration, "Frantic Gnarly Still,"on Wednesday, October 16 (8:00 PM) at Roulette (509 Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn), presented by Ear Heart Music.

Michael Grandage's West End staging of A Midsummer Night's Dream, starring Sheridan Smith and David Walliams, opened at the Noel Coward Theatre and is currently running through November 16, 2013.