Amazing news from the Dance Umbrella team:

Dear Dance Umbrella supporter

The Dance Umbrella 2004 festival starts on Tuesday 5 October with Merce Cunningham Dance Company at the Barbican and ends on Saturday 27 November following a 2 1/2 week run of Mark Morris' The Hard Nut at Sadler's Wells.

<small>[ 28 September 2004, 10:02 AM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

I have always wanted to see "The Hard Nut" and now we have the chance. I wonder how this famous (infamous?) work will go down in London. As far as I am aware this is the first outing of the work in the UK. It was made during the Company's tenure in Brussels and is the last of the major works from that period to be brought to London:

Some images for those who can't wait:

<img src="http://www.ballet-dance.com/200401/mmdggallery/images/HardNutFlowers.jpg" alt="" />

<small>Mark Morris Dance Group in "Hard Nut"
Photo by Tom Brazil, courtesy of MMDG</small>

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<img src="http://www.ballet-dance.com/200401/mmdggallery/images/HardNutLaurenDavid.jpg" alt="" />

<small>Mark Morris Dance Group in "Hard Nut"
Photo by Ken Friedman, courtesy of MMDG</small>

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<img src="http://www.ballet-dance.com/200401/mmdggallery/images/HardNutPartyScene2.jpg" alt="" />

<small>Mark Morris Dance Group in "Hard Nut"
Photo by Ken Friedman, courtesy of MMDG</small>

<small>[ 06 March 2004, 09:48 AM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

<img src="http://www.markmorrisdancegroup.org/images/gallery/HN3LG.jpg" alt="" />

<small>Mark Morris Dance Group in "Hard Nut"
Photo by C. Ashmore, courtesy of MMDG</small>

PRESS RELEASE: May 2004

<big>2004 marks the 26th Dance Umbrella, the

UK’s leading annual festival of contemporary

dance (5 Oct – 27 Nov)</big>


The New York based Mark Morris Dance Group makes a dramatic return to Dance Umbrella with its critically acclaimed The Hard Nut. This zany and sensational modern take on Tchaikovsky’s time-honoured classic, The Nutcracker, is choreographed by one of the world’s most prolific and renowned modern dancemakers, Mark Morris. The Hard Nut makes its English premiere at Sadler’s Wells (12–27 Nov) as part of Dance Umbrella 2004.

“Proof of genius: the ability to create a new, old chestnut. Mark Morris' ‘Hard Nut’ hoses all the sugar off the ‘Nutcracker Ballet’ and transforms it into a thing of grace and beauty, but also of camp humour, bare feet and drag” San Francisco Chronicle

Another highlight of this year’s Dance Umbrella festival is the UK premiere of Merce Cunningham Dance Company’s Split Sides at The Barbican Theatre (5–9 Oct) as part of BITE:04. This follows last year’s sell-out success of Merce Cunningham Dance Company’s Anniversary Events, a Dance Umbrella commission at Tate Modern. Split Sides features music by Radiohead and Sigur Ros.

“The world’s greatest living choreographer” The Wall Street Journal

Following its London season, the Merce Company Dance Company will embark on it’s first ever UK tour, presented and managed by Dance Umbrella. Full details, venues, dates and repertory to be announced as soon as possible.

Also at the Barbican (in The Pit) Dance Umbrella presents the world premiere of NewYork based Pick Up Performance Company’s Chairs (2-4 Nov), choreographed by David Gordon.

British dance icon Michael Clark launched his company from Riverside Studios during Dance Umbrella 1984. Following the huge success of Oh My Goddess at Sadler’s Wells as part of Dance Umbrella 2003, he returns to Riverside to celebrate his company’s 20th anniversary with the premiere of Why must the show go on? (6-10 Oct).

At Sadler’s Wells Dance Umbrella presents the festival debuts of Canada’s Fondation Jean-Pierre Perreault (15 & 16 Oct) and Chinese born New York-based Shen Wei Dance Arts (12 & 13 Oct), whilst at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Les Ballets C. De La B./Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui (15 & 16 Oct) perform new work as part of its Dance Umbrella debut. Also at the QEH, there are festival returns for Canada’s O Vertigo (18 & 19 Oct) with the UK premiere of Passare and Saburo Teshigawara’s reprised solo Bones in Pages (22 & 23 Oct).

At The Place there are festival debuts for Philippe Decouflé from France with an autobiographical solo (28-30 Oct), Japan’s Ikuyo Kuroda and her company Batik (19 & 20 Oct) and for both Nigeria’s Ijodee Dance Company and Raiz Di Polon from Cape Verde, forming a double-bill of emerging work from Africa (10 & 11 Nov).

Also at The Place there are festival returns by Yolande Snaith (25 & 26 Oct) and by Spain’s Mal Pelo (22 & 23 Oct), both with choreography new to London. Siobhan Davies brings her company to The Linbury Studio (20-24 Oct) for the London premiere of Bird Song and Carol Brown presents her latest work, The Changing Room, at Greenwich Dance Agency (4-6 Nov).


Dance Umbrella 2004 runs from 5 October to 27 November at venues across London.


Dance Umbrella was founded in 1978 with the aim of reflecting and encouraging the burgeoning interest in contemporary dance in Britain. From modest beginnings as a showcase for emerging choreographers, Dance Umbrella’s annual London festival now ranks highly among Europe’s leading international dance festivals and the organisation is recognised as one of Britain’s most adventurous dance promoters presenting a year round programme of work in London and across the UK.

Under Val Bourne’s artistic direction, Dance Umbrella has been responsible for introducing into this country some of the greatest international contemporary dance companies as well as nurturing, promoting and sponsoring some of the best of British modern dance.

“Every performance I've given in England has been with her and because of her. Long Live Val Bourne! Hail Dance Umbrella!” Mark Morris

“I wouldn’t be where I am today without Dance Umbrella” Michael Clark

Dance Umbrella Enquiry Line: 020 8741 5881

or visit www.danceumbrella.co.uk

<small>[ 29 May 2004, 07:25 AM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

BTW Fern Potter who was the very nice, friendly and helpful Development Manager for GPD will be taking the position of Head of Development for DanceUmbrella in June.

<img src="http://www.ballet-dance.com/200403/imagegallery/images/image07.jpg" alt="" />

Love that image!

The Spring issue of Dance Umbrella News is out now and to read it online click here.

To read the News you need Adobe Acrobat Reader and click here for a download for this very useful, free software.

Alternatively, why not click here to join the Dance Umbrella mailing list.

<small>[ 04 June 2004, 11:04 AM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

Press Release:

<img src="http://www.ballet-dance.com/200403/imagegallery/images/image17.jpg" alt="" />

<big> Dance Umbrella presents MERCE CUNNINGHAM DANCE COMPANY

UK Tour: Tues 5 to Sat 30 Oct 2004</big>


Dance Umbrella is celebrating 26 years of successfully promoting adventurous contemporary dance by presenting the first ever UK tour of the New York based Merce Cunningham Dance Company.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>This UK tour kicks-off with the UK premiere of Split Sides at the Barbican, as part of Dance Umbrella 2004, and closes with a world premiere in Edinburgh by the most accomplished and revered contemporary dance choreographer of our time.

“the world’s greatest living choreographer”

Wall Street Journal

The Barbican Season (Tues 5 – Sat 9 Oct)

Merce Cunningham Dance Company returns to Dance Umbrella with three pieces of work in two programmes including the British premiere of the internationally acclaimed Split Sides. The Barbican programmes demonstrate the extraordinary range of Merce Cunningham’s work which continues to push at the boundaries of inventive choreography.

Split Sides is a collaborative project bringing together the choreography of Merce Cunningham and the music of alternative rock band Radiohead and experimental Icelandic group Sigur Ros. Continuing Cunningham's life-long fascination with chance, the actual presentation of the work – the choreography; the order of the backdrops; costumes; lighting and the order of the music - is determined by the roll of a dice, making 32 different possible versions of Split Sides. Sets are by acclaimed UK artist Catherine Yass and Robert Heishman. Costume design is by James Hall and lighting design is by James F Ingalls.

“Rock gods composed and performed the music tonight, but there was only one true legend in the house: 84-year-old choreographer Merce Cunningham, a titanic figure in modern American dance. Radiohead and Sigur Ros were lucky, and happy, to be at his service”

MOJO Music Magazine reviewing the world premiere of Split Sides

“Rolling the dice gives a moment of wonder, the imagination conjuring. A split-second later, the dice at rest, the mind becomes active. Take a chance”. Merce Cunningham


How to Pass, Kick, Fall and Run (1965) is a light-hearted piece for eight dancers. The performances will include readings by Cunningham and Company archivist David Vaughan of stories by John Cage, the former Musical Director of MCDC and the late partner of Merce Cunningham.

Ground Level Overlay (1995) is dedicated to the memory of John Cage who was deeply moved by composer Stuart Dempster’s work. Dempster’s score for this work, Underground Overlays, was recorded in a two million gallon former water tank. The major instrumentation is for ten trombone players who were distributed around the tank’s circumference, as Dempster slowly spun in the centre spot. Other sound-making devices used were conches, Tibetan cymbals, a digeridoo and a garden hose. The dance element of Ground Level Overlay utilises the software programme DanceForms (formerly LifeForms).

“The company is superb. Everyone shines, either glowing or brilliant, heroic one moment, celestially playful the next”

New York Times


Over the last 50 years of dance making, Merce Cunningham has remained one of the most contemporary and progressive creative artists of our day, consistently expanding audience perception of dance and its relationship to music and the visual arts. The Merce Cunningham Dance Company first appeared in Dance Umbrella in 1989 and has been a regular visitor ever since.

The UK Tour (12 – Sat 30 Oct)

London (5-9 Oct), Sheffield (12 Oct), Salford (15 & 16 Oct), Warwick (19 & 20), Oxford (22 & 23 Oct), Brighton (26 Oct) and Edinburgh (29 & 30 Oct).


Following the presentation of repertory work at the Barbican as part of Dance Umbrella 2004, the Merce Cunningham Dance Company will, for the first time in its 51 year history, embark on a tour to six UK cities, presenting a unique dance experience at each venue. At the final leg of the tour, in Edinburgh, the company will perform the world premiere of Merce Cunningham’s latest work. This new work will unveil, for the first time in their totally, all of the design elements that will have been singuarly premiered at the preceding five city venues. In Oxford, for example, and only at Oxford, the costumes designs will be revealed.

These design elements include a score written by John Cage and performed live by the company musicians; décor by Brazilian installation artist Ernesto Neto, costumes by James Hall and lighting design by MCDC Lighting Director Josh Johnson.

“Each Event is unique and arranged specifically for the space it will occupy, to allow for, not so much an evening of dances, as the experience of "dance". Merce Cunningham



UK Tour schedule

5 - 9 Oct Barbican Theatre, London 020 7638 8891



5 & 6 Oct Split Sides & How to Pass, Kick Fall and Run

7 – 9 Oct Split Sides & Ground Level Overlay



The Barbican season is presented as part of BITE:04

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12 Oct Sheffield Lyceum (The Lyceum Event) 0114 249 6000

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15 & 16 Oct The Lowry, Salford 0870 787 5790

(The Lowry Event & BIPED *)

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19 & 20 Oct Warwick Arts Centre (The Warwick Event) 024 7652 4524

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22 & 23 Oct Oxford Playhouse (The Playhouse Event) 01865 305305

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26 Oct Brighton Dome (The Dome Event) 01273 709709

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29 & 30 Oct Edinburgh Festival Theatre 0131 529 6000

(World Premiere & BIPED *)

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* The performances at The Lowry, Salford and at the Edinburgh Festival Theatre will also include BIPED, created By Cunningham in 1999 using the software programme LifeForms. The score for BIPED was written by British musician and composer Gavin Bryars. Designers Paul Kaiser and Shelley Eshkar used Motion Capture technology in their design for the décor of BIPED. The costumes were designed by Suzanne Gallo and lighting is by Aaron Copp.

For more information visit www.danceumbrella.co.uk

<small>[ 31 July 2004, 11:37 AM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

PRESS RELEASE: July 2004

<img src="http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/pages/festival04/image1.jpg" alt="" />
<small>Siobhan Davies Dance Company</small>


2004 marks the 26th Dance Umbrella, the

UK’s leading annual festival of contemporary

dance (Tues 5 Oct – Sat 27 Nov)

Highlights of this year’s Dance Umbrella festival include the the UK premiere of Merce Cunningham’s Split Sides at The Barbican Theatre (5 – 9 Oct) and the English premiere of Mark Morris’ critically acclaimed The Hard Nut at Sadler’s Wells

(12 – 27 Nov).

Merce Cunningham Dance Company returns to Dance Umbrella at the Barbican (Box Office 0845 120 7553) with three pieces of work in two programmes which demonstrate the extraordinary range of Merce Cunningham’s work. The Barbican season features the UK premiere of Split Sides with music by Radiohead and Sigur Ros, the light-hearted How to Pass, Kick, Fall and Run and Ground Level Overlay, dedicated to the memory of John Cage. Also at the Barbican (in The Pit) Dance Umbrella presents the world premiere of Pick Up Performance Company’s new adaptation of Eugene Ionesco’s The Chairs (2 - 4 Nov) choreographed by New Yorker David Gordon.

At Sadler’s Wells (Box Office 0870 737 7737) Dance Umbrella presents the festival debuts of Canada’s Fondation Jean-Pierre Perreault with the English premiere of Joe, Perreault’s riveting and witty ode to the working man (15 & 16 Oct) and New York based Shen Wei Dance Arts (12 & 13 Oct) making its long overdue UK debut with the UK premieres of Folding and a new adaptation of Rite of Spring from chinese born choreographer Shen Wei. Dance Umbrella 2004 concludes at Sadler’s Wells with the English premiere of a Mark Morris Dance Group “masterwork” (Time Magazine), The Hard Nut (12 – 27 Nov). Featuring 33 dancers, the 45-piece Royal Ballet Symphonia and full staging, this zany and sensational modern take on ETA Hoffman’s / Tchaikovsky’s time-honoured classic, The Nutcracker, is choreographed by one of the world’s most prolific and renowned modern dancemakers, Mark Morris.
<img src="http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/pages/festival04/image3.jpg" alt="" />
<small>Arc Dance Company</small>

At the Queen Elizabeth Hall (Box Office 08703 800 400) Les Ballets C. De La B./Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui (15 & 16 Oct) perform Tempus Fugit, Sidi Larbi’s latest work and his Dance Umbrella debut. Also at the QEH, there are festival returns for Canada’s O Vertigo (18 & 19 Oct) with the UK premiere of Ginette Laurin’s Passare and Saburo Teshigawara’s reprised solo Bones in Pages (22 & 23 Oct) re-worked as a trio featuring a set that comprises one thousand books, one thousand shoes and a crow.

Meanwhile at The Place (Box Office 0207 387 0031), there are festival debuts for Philippe Decouflé from France with his autobiographical and enigmatic Solo (28 - 30 Oct), Japan’s Ikuyo Kuroda presenting a double-bill with her company Batik (19 & 20 Oct) and for both Nigeria’s Ijodee Dance Company and Raiz Di Polon from Cape Verde, forming a double-bill of emerging work from Africa (10 & 11 Nov). Also at The Place there are festival returns by Yolande Snaith Theatredance with the London premiere of Jardin Blanc (25 & 26 Oct) and by Spain’s Mal Pelo (22 & 23 Oct) with the UK premiere of artistic director’s Pep Ramis and María Muñoz latest multi-media creation, An (el silenci).

At the Linbury Studio Theatre, Royal Opera House (Box Office 020 7304 4000) Siobhan Davies Dance Company presents the London premiere of choreographer Siobhan Davies’ latest work Bird Song (20 - 24 Oct) and the world premiere of Kim Brandstrup’s The Anatomy of a Storyteller, choreographed for and performed by ARC Dance Company (3 – 6 Nov). Danish born Brandstrup has created Anatomy of a Storyteller to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Hans Christian Andersen.

Greenwich Dance Agency (Box Office 020 8293 9741) hosts the London/UK premiere of The Changing Room, (4 – 6 Nov) the lastest work from Jerwood Choreography Award winner Carol Brown, created in collaboration with architect Mette Ramsgard Thomsen and performed by Carol Brown Dances.

Jerwood Proms: ‘Stand Up For Dance’ is back!

For the third year running, Dance Umbrella presents the Jerwood Proms as part of Dance Umbrella 2004, London’s annual festival of contemporary dance. Over the last two years, generously supported by the Jerwood Charitable Foundation, Dance Umbrella’s Stand Up For Dance initiative has allowed thousands of people to enjoy the world’s best contemporary dance companies at Sadler’s Wells, for just £5 per standing place. The Jerwood Proms return to Sadler’s Wells this year with Shen Wei Dance Arts (12 & 13 Oct) and Fondation Jean-Pierre Perreault (15 & 16 Oct).

Dance Umbrella 2004 runs from Tues 5 October to Sat 27 November at venues across London.

To join the Dance Umbrella mailing list call 020 8741 5881 or visit www.danceumbrella.co.uk

<small>[ 01 August 2004, 04:37 AM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

Performance Schedule

Dance Umbrella 2004

Tues 5 October to Sat 27 November


BARBICAN THEATRE, Silk Street, London, EC2 @ 7.45pm. 0845 120 7553
5 – 9 Oct MERCE CUNNINGHAM DANCE COMPANY (USA)

5 - 7 Oct Split Sides & How to Pass, Kick Fall and Run

8 & 9 Oct Split Sides & Ground Level Overlay

THE PIT, The Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London, EC2 @ 7.45pm. 0845 120 7553

2 - 4 Nov PICK UP PERFORMANCE COMPANY (USA) The Chairs


SADLER'S WELLS, Rosebery Avenue, London EC1R @ 7.30pm. 0870 737 7737
12 & 13 Oct SHEN WEI DANCE ARTS (USA) Folding / Rite of Spring

15 & 16 Oct FONDATION JEAN-PIERRE PERREAULT (Canada) Joe

12 - 27 Nov MARK MORRIS DANCE GROUP (USA) The Hard Nut



QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL, South Bank, London, SE1 @ 7.45pm. 08703 800 400

15 & 16 Oct LES BALLETS C. DE LA B./ Tempus Fugit

SIDI LARBI CHERKAOUI (Belgium/Morocco)

18 & 19 Oct O VERTIGO (Canada) Passare

22 & 23 Oct TESHIGAWARA / KARAS (Japan) Bones in Pages



LINBURY STUDIO, Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, London, WC2 @ 8pm. 020 7304 4000

20 - 24 Oct SIOBHAN DAVIES DANCE COMPANY Bird Song

Also 3pm Matinee performance on Sun 24 Oct

3 - 6 Nov ARC DANCE COMPANY The Anatomy of a Storyteller



THE PLACE: Robin Howard Dance Theatre, 17 Dukes Road, London, WC1 @ 8pm. 0207 387 0031

19 & 20 Oct BATIK (Japan) Side B / Shoku

22 & 23 Oct MAL PELO (Spain) AN (el silence)

25 & 26 Oct YOLANDE SNAITH THEATREDANCE Jardin Blanc

28 – 30 Oct DCA / PHILIPPE DECOUFLẾ (France) Solo

10 & 11 Nov IJODEE DANCE COMPANY (Nigeria) & Ori / Duas Sem Três

RAIZ DI POLON (Cape Verde)


GREENWICH DANCE AGENCY, The Borough Hall, Royal Hill, London, SE10 @ 7.45pm. 020 8293 9741

4 - 6 Nov CAROL BROWN DANCES The Changing Room

Join the Dance Umbrella mailing at www.danceumbrella.co.uk

My Dance Umbrella 2004 programme came through the door today chock-full of goodies.

To join their mailing list, visit their website:

http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/

i fond of it~~~`

Hi niro and welcome to CriticalDance. I am looking forward to Shen Wei Dance Arts, featuring the work of this Chinese born choreographer.

<img src="http://www.ballet-dance.com/200409/imagegallery/images/image07.jpg" alt="" />

Dance Umbrella 2004

5th October to 27th November

Only a few weeks to go now and the new Dance Umbrella 2004 website is open for business.

Here is the main website:

http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/

and for the details of the 2004 programme, go here:

http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/2004/

<small>[ 20 September 2004, 08:20 AM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

Dance Umbrella 2004 at the Queen Elizabeth Hall

Dance Umbrella returns to the Queen Elizabeth Hall on the South Bank for another autumn season of high quality, contrasting, international choreography.

LES BALLETS C. DE LA B. / SIDI LARBI CHERKAOUI / WESHM / HANJIB CHERRADI - Fri 15 & Sat 16 October

Merging traditional stories with the dancers’ own experiences and personal memories, Moroccan-Flemish choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui makes his Dance Umbrella debut with the English premiere of Tempus Fugit (Time Flies), his latest work, which dissects cultural notions of time and examines how it is controlled and manipulated.

Larbi focuses on the Mediterranean, alongside the Arab and West African worlds, using original compositions from Najib Cherradi of the group Weshm, as well as traditional regional songs, with themes ranging from religion to love, from lullabies to songs of mourning and from songs of joy to war anthems. At only 28 years old, Larbi is undoubtedly one of Europe's most promising choreographers. In addition to his previous international successes, Rien de Rien and Foi, he won plaudits as a dancer in Alain Platel's lets Op Bach (winner of the Time Out Award for Best Production 1998) and the Edinburgh Festival sell-out Anonymous Society (winner of the Barclays Theatre Award for Best Musical Theatre 1999), which he also choreographed.

O VERTIGO - Mon 18 & Tue 19 Oct

Celebrating her company’s 20th anniversary, Canadian choreographer Ginette Laurin returns to Dance Umbrella with the UK premiere of Passare, her latest piece which explores the relationship between the immense and the infinitesimal. Echoing Luna, the piece she brought to Dance Umbrella 2001, Passare is layered with striking images and poetic movement along with huge perspective-altering video projections. Delving beneath the exterior body of skin and flesh, Laurin examines the essence of being, its fundamental emotions and its place in the universe. Along with her company of nine dancers, Passare was further developed with a creative and technical team including Claude Théoret, an astrophysicist who introduced Laurin to the concepts of infinity, video artist Oana Suteu and composer Peter Scherer

Since forming O Vertigo in 1984, Ginette Lauren, a former gymnast, has created more than 30 works. Originally known for her high-octane aerobic movement, she has replaced the unisex slam dancing of old with a softer, more lyrical approach. Modifying her early, explosive vocabularly, Lauren has given her recent works a more emotional subtlety.

Passare at the QEH is supported by the Counseil des aerts et lettres Quebec, Ministaire des Affaires etrangeres et du Commerce international and the High Commission of Canada.

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TESHIGAWARA/KARAS - Fri 22 & Sat 23 Oct


Saburo Teshigawara returns to Dance Umbrella with the revival of Bones in Pages, first brought to London as a solo in the 1993 festival and now re-worked for a company of three. Originally commissioned as a gallery installation, Bones in Pages uses fine shafts of light reflecting and refracting from broken glass to breathtaking effect. Accompanied by two female dancers, the piece sees Teshigawara performing against the intriguing ‘Dance of Air’ stage installation comprising one thousand books, one thousand shoes and a live crow.

Throughout the 1990s, Saburo Teshigawara established himself as one of the world’s most exciting dance-makers. In 1995 he made White Clouds Under the Heels for Ballett Frankfurt and became the first contemporary Japanese choreographer ever to create a repertory piece for a European ballet company.

For more information on Dance Umbrella at the QEH please contact Tony Shepherd on 020 7383 0496

QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL BOX OFFICE DETAILS

Queen Elizabeth Hall, South Bank, London SE1.
Bookings: 08703 800 400 www.rfh.org.uk