Kyle Abraham Dances Into Jacob's Pillow, 8/11-15

Dancer/choreographer Kyle Abraham brings his company Abraham.In.Motion to Jacob's Pillow, America's longest-running international dance festival, August 11-15. Abraham, called a dancer of "equal parts power and grace" by Steve Sucato of Dance Magazine, has performed with David Dorfman Dance, Nathan Trice/Rituals, and the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company. He founded Abraham.In.Motion in 2005 to focus on his own choreography, which deals with issues of personal and global importance. The company will perform excerpts from The Radio Show, which explores the function of radio and memory in urban history, culture, and community; Inventing Pookie Jenkins, a solo for Abraham that deals with perceptions of masculinity and identity; and Op. 1, a world premiere inspired by the photography of Eadweard Muybridge, co-commissioned by Jacob's Pillow and created in part during a Pillow Creative Development Residency.

The Princess Grace Foundation recently announced that Kyle Abraham will soon be honored with a 2010 Princess Grace Award for Choreography. The Foundation presents awards each year to artists in the fields of Theatre and Playwriting, Dance and Choreography, and Film. This year Choreography Fellowships were awarded to Abraham and to Victor Quijada, Artistic Director of Rubberbandance. These fellowships allow for the development of new work and recognize excellence and promise in choreography.

Kyle Abraham's first evening-length work for his company, The Radio Show, has been making waves on the contemporary dance scene since it premiered in February of this year. Called "smart and self-aware, and luscious too" by Claudia La Rocco of The New York Times and "so life-like, so compelling in the seesaw of human emotion" by Jane Vranish of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Radio Show explores the effects on an urban community of the cancellation of a radio station, based on a similar event in Abraham's hometown of Pittsburgh. In creating the score for Radio Show, Abraham paired songs from pop artists such as Lady Gaga and Beyoncé with classic tunes by Al Green and Gladys Knight & The Pips, as well as contemporary compositions by Alva Noto and Ryoji Ikeda.

Inventing Pookie Jenkins, which Abraham performed at Jacob's Pillow's Season Opening Gala, is a fluid, powerful solo in which the norms of masculinity are questioned. Executing sharp, hip-hop flavored movements set to music by Dizzee Rascal while wearing a floor-length white tulle skirt, Abraham defies expectations.

Op. 1 is a world premiere co-commissioned by Jacob's Pillow and created in part during Kyle Abraham's weeklong Creative Development Residency at the Pillow in November of 2009. This work was inspired by the photography of Eadweard Muybridge, best known for his Animal Locomotion studies, which many identify as the basis of modern animation and cinematography.

Kyle Abraham's engagement at Jacob's Pillow will also serve as part of "A Weekend OUT at the Pillow," August 13-15, which will give LGBTQ families, couples, and individuals the opportunity to take advantage of all the Pillow has to offer, and to spend time with old and new friends. Jacob's Pillow will host a multitude of regularly scheduled weekend events in addition to an artist mixer at the Pillow Pub on Friday, August 13, where everyone is welcome to stay after the performances and chat with the dancers. "A Weekend OUT" will also feature a special walking tour of Jacob's Pillow on Sunday, August 15 at noon, led by Jacob's Pillow Director of Preservation Norton Owen, focusing on Pillow-founder Ted Shawn and his Men Dancers. Visit www.jacobspillow.org/festival/2010/08/a-weekend-out-at-the-pillow/ for additional details.

Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Kyle Abraham brings together an ensemble from diverse personal and professional backgrounds to perform work rooted in his own life experiences. As a choreographer, Abraham uses his training in ballet, modern and hip hop dance as well as classical music to create investigations of human behavior and emotion through sleek, athletic movement. His work often focuses on provocative themes such as race, gender identity, and sexuality, and is often very personal in nature. Amsterdam News notes that "his esthetic is about art...and the result is that his work has a very strong identity and is not race dependent." He has been heralded by OUT Magazine as one of the "best and brightest creative talents to emerge in New York City in the age of Obama."

Just prior to his Pillow engagement, Kyle Abraham will participate in a PillowTalk with photographer Lois Greenfield, focusing on the relationship between dance and photography. This free event will take place on Saturday, August 7 at 4:00pm in Blake's Barn. While at Jacob's Pillow, Kyle Abraham will lead a Master Class on Sunday, August 15, 10-11:30am. Sunday Master Classes are open to intermediate/advanced dancers and pre-registration is required (call 413.243.9919 x5). Master Classes are $15 per class or $8 for dance instructors with proper identification. Observation is free and open to the public.

The Creative Development Residency Program is part of Jacob's Pillow's core mission to support artists and their development. The program serves as a signature of the Pillow's artistic point of view and underscores its commitment to expand horizons, both of choreographers and audiences. During Creative Development Residencies, artists are invited to spend one to three weeks at the Pillow creating or rehearsing new work, with free housing for the company, unlimited use of studio space, and access to the Archives and other Pillow resources. In the quiet off-season atmosphere of Jacob's Pillow, the residencies are rare opportunities for artists to focus on the creative process without distraction. Each Creative Development Residency concludes with an invitation-only work-in-progress showing during which artists receive valuable creative feedback from audience members.

Following a residency with his company, choreographer Stephen Petronio observed "dancing at the Pillow was like being marooned in heaven." Work created at the Pillow includes that of Bill T. Jones, with Last Supper at Uncle Tom's Cabin/The Promised Land; Mark Morris' collaboration with cellist Yo-Yo Ma, Falling Down Stairs; Joanna Haigood's site-specific Invisible Wings; The Other Here, by Annie B-Parson and Paul Lazar, Artistic Directors of Big Dance Theater; and Kate Weare's 2008 Bridge of Sighs.

Performance and Ticket Information

Wednesday, August 11 - Saturday, August 14, 8:15pm

Saturday, August 14 & Sunday, August 15, 2:15pm

* Free Pre-Show Talks with Jacob's Pillow Scholars-in-Residence are offered on the porch of the Doris Duke Theatre 30 minutes before every performance.
* Tickets range from $30-36.

* Tickets on sale now online at www.jacobspillow.org, via phone at 413.243.0745, or in person at Jacob's Pillow.

Jacob's Pillow is located at 358 George Carter Road in Becket, MA, 01223 (10 minutes east on Route 20 from Mass Pike Exit 2). The Jacob's Pillow campus and theaters are handicapped-accessible.

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