Twyla Tharp News

Paola Hartley and Astrit Zejnati, principal dancers of Ballet Arizona, will be members of the faculty for the Shreveport Dance Academy's Summer Intensive from July 28-August 1, 2014 in Shreveport, Louisiana.

Charity Hope Valentine is a dancehall girl who dreams of love and believes the man of her dreams is just around the corner. A great score, including the songs 'Hey Big Spender!' and 'If My Friends Could See Me Now,' incredible dancing - originally choreographed by Broadway legend Bob Fosse - and one of the most memorable heroines of the past sixty years combine to make Sweet Charity a must-see show. Never before produced at PTC, Sweet Charity is a razzle-dazzle closer for the 2013-14 season.

John Kander and Twyla Tharp will be special guests at the 2014 Live Design Broadway Master Classes, where they will join in lively discussions with two of the top designers working on Broadway today. Composer John Kander joins sound designer Nevin Steinberg to discuss the essential collaboration between the two roles; while choreographer Twyla Tharp joins lighting designer Don Holder on the subject of light. Conversations like this are not to be missed! Individual tickets to these events are $50 per person and can be purchased by clicking the registration button at www.livedesignmasterclasses.com>.

Ballet San Jose Artistic Director and former star of American Ballet Theatre, English National Ballet and the Royal Ballet José Manuel Carreño will take the stage for the first time in more than a year for his debut in the role of Don José in Roland Petit's Carmen, partnering Ballet San Jose Principal Dancer Alexsandra Meijer in the title role, in two performances: Friday and Saturday, May 9 and 10, at 8 pm. The roles will be performed by Ommi Pipit-Suksun and Rudy Candia for the Sunday, May 11 ,1:30 pm performance, and the program also features the Company premiere of Twyla Tharp's In the Upper Room. All performances of Carmen will feature full orchestral accompaniment by Symphony Silicon Valley under the baton of Paul Polivnick and there will be a pre-performance talk free to all ticket-holders 45-minutes prior to each performance. Tickets are priced $30-$105 and may be purchased at www.balletsj.org or by calling 408-288-2800.

The Chicago Dancing Festival (CDF), co-produced by renowned choreographer and Chicago native Lar Lubovitch and highly esteemed Chicago dancer Jay Franke, returns for its 8th season of free dance performances and events, August 20 - 23, 2014, featuring top ballet, modern and hip-hop dancers from Chicago and across the country.

Young Soon Kim and WHITE WAVE DANCE present the World Premiere of Eternal NOW. An ambitious collaboration reuniting Young Soon Kim's fluid and intertwining dramatic movement with longtime collaborator composer Marco Cappelli, who will perform an original score live, as dancers interact with scenes of lusciously composed images and edited footage by video artist, Kate Freer, playing on widescreen monitors.

Laguna Playhouse will present the return of Rita Rudner who will be performing her award-winning solo comedy, AN EVENING WITH RITA RUDNER and her new dress, for two performances only, Saturday, May 31 and Sunday, June 1 at the Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Road in Laguna Beach.

Birdland Jazz Club has announced its May 2014 schedule, featuring Steve Kuhn Trio, Joey DeFrancesco Organ Quartet, Karrin Allyson, BOSSABRASIL Festival, and more.

Atlanta Ballet board chair Allen Nelson announced today that executive director Arturo Jacobus will remain at the helm of the 85-year-old institution for at least another five years, as he has accepted an extension to his employment agreement.

New dances by Robert La Fosse and Andrea Miller, plus Twyla Tharp's 'Treefrog in Stonehenge'-- each created with the fresh vibrancy of youth in mind -- will be showcased during Barnard/Columbia Dances at Miller 2014, April 25 and 26. The short, but packed season also features 'Lamentation Variations,' a series of new interpretations of Martha Graham's 1930 iconic solo.

Northrop at the University of Minnesota reopens today, April 4, 8:00 pm with its Northrop Inside Out Grand Reopening Gala. The opening night gala features American Ballet Theatre, America's National Ballet Company performing the classic romantic ballet Giselle with live orchestra, a post-performance dessert and champagne reception, and Northrop Inside Out After Dark dance party featuring a live DJ and special performances.

The Way Off Broadway Dinner Theatre's upcoming production of SINGIN' IN THE RAIN runs now through May 31, 2014 and is based on the classic Gene Kelly film. Scroll down for a first look at the cast in action!

What can I say but kudos to the Juilliard Dance Repertory's presentation on March 25, 2014? Yes, there will be a new and exciting generation of dancers. We won't have to worry. My only real concern is with the state of the art: Will there be enough companies for all these dancers to join? And what about the financial resources to sustain them? I wonder.

Wendy Whelan, whom The New York Times has called 'America's greatest contemporary ballerina,' has danced with New York City Ballet for nearly 30 years. With the company, she has mastered Balanchine's neo-classical repertory, dance classics such as Sleeping Beauty and Swan Lake and created works with many of today's leading choreographers. Following hip surgery and a successful recovery period, Whelan, 46, will return to City Ballet this spring season and will dance her final performance with the company on October 18.

Scarsdale Ballet Studio, Westchester's premier destination for classical and contemporary ballet training presents Coppelia this weekend, March 29 and 30 at the Dance Lab at SUNY Purchase College.

Ballet San Jose will conclude its 2014 repertory season—the first under the leadership of new Artistic Director José Manuel Carreño—with Roland Petit's iconic story ballet, Carmen, and Twyla Tharp's masterful In the Upper Room in three performances May 9-11 at the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts. Considered one of Twyla Tharp's most accomplished and striking works, In the Upper Room features a commissioned score by Philip Glass that both propels and liberates the dancers in Tharp's physically demanding choreography. Since its premiere in 1949, Carmen has remained one of inventive French choreographer Roland Petit's most popular ballets for its keen character studies, theatrical staging and soaring dances. Performances will be given Friday and Saturday, May 9 and 10, at 8 pm and Sunday, May 11, at 1:30 pm. For more information about Ballet San Jose, visit www.balletsj.org .

The Way Off Broadway Dinner Theatre's 20th Anniversary Season continues this spring with a new staging of the singing and dancing musical based on the classic MGM film, Singin' in the Rain. Nearly twenty years after the show was last seen on a Frederick stage, Way Off Broadway's production will open tonight, March 28th and run through May 31st.

Carnegie Hall celebrates the 40th anniversary of the groundbreaking contemporary music ensemble Kronos Quartet with a one-night-only concert in Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage featuring collaborations with some of the group's close colleagues and longtime artistic partners tonight, March 28 at 8:00 p.m.

Jessica Lang Dance brings the 2013-2014 Eccles Center season to a close with a stunning collection of ballet-modern performance on Saturday, April 5. Performance begins at 7:30 p.m.