Joffrey Academy's Winning Works Returns To Museum Of Contemporary Art, Features Four World Premieres

The Joffrey Academy of Dance, Official School of The Joffrey Ballet, presents four world premieres in the culmination of Joffrey's national call for ALAANA (African, Latinx, Asian, Arab and Native American) artists to submit applications for the Joffrey Academy's Winning Works Choreographic Competition.

This year's Competition winners-Natasha Adorlee, Christian D'Ariano, Kameron N. Saunders, and Mike Tyus (Recipient of the Zach Lazar Winning Works Fellowship)-each have choreographed an original work created for the Joffrey Academy Trainees and Studio Company to a commissioned score by a chosen composer collaborator.

With an additional performance added this year due to popular demand, Winning Works will be presented at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago's Edlis Neeson Theater (220 E. Chicago Avenue) Thursday and Friday, March 16 and 17 at 7:30 PM, Saturday, March 18 at 2:00 PM and 7:30 PM, Sunday, March 19 at 2:00 PM. Tickets for Winning Works are $30 and are currently on sale at joffrey.org/winningworks. The world premiere works will also be available to view virtually following the in-person performances.

"The Joffrey Ballet's Winning Works program exemplifies a 'Joffrey for All' and our steadfast commitment to ALAANA artists," says Greg Cameron, The Joffrey Ballet President and CEO. "Winning Works creates more than what we see on stage; it opens an opportunity. This program is integral to the Joffrey's commitment to uplifting emerging choreographers and our Academy dancers. Since Winning Works' inception, it has become one of the most impactful components of our organization."

"Winning Works is actively shaping the future of dance, with an exceptional track record of launching professional dance careers," says The Mary B. Galvin Artistic Director Ashley Wheater MBE. "Over its 13-year history, I have seen the best and brightest in the next generation of artists soar to new heights. This year's choreographers particularly share a form of storytelling in their works. Natasha, Christopher Kameron, and Mike, bring pieces to the MCA that not only pushes the envelope of dance, but also convey unique narratives through profound artistic expression."

ABOUT THE PROGRAM

Natasha Adorlee will present Momoda (Kiss, Kiss) with a score by Michael Wall. Momoda is Chinese slang for 'mwah.' It expresses endearing affection, not just with lovers, but with all people who come into our life. The work will explore impermanence and the sweetness that exists through states we inhabit through life.

Adorlee is a choreographer and multi-disciplinary artist from San Francisco. Originally from Overland Park, Kansas, Adorlee attended UC Berkeley before becoming a full-time professional dancer in the Bay Area. Over the last 15 years, she has danced with Robert Moses' Kin, Kate Weare Company (New York), and ODC/Dance, where she was an Isadora Duncan Dance Award Recipient for her performance in Two If By Sea. Off the stage, Adorlee has created several works for the screen through her non-profit Concept o4. Her short film Take Your Time (2017) was awarded "Best Short" at the San Francisco Dance Film Festival, and she received a Regional Emmy Award for her performance and music composition in the TV Special Baseballet: Into the Game (2018). She continues producing, directing, and expanding her vision of sharing dance through film shorts, live stage, and immersive dance works. In 2022, Adorlee became an Artistic Fellow with Amy Seiwert's Imagery, where she premiered her original dance work Liminal Space for the Sketch 12 Series. In addition to her dance endeavors, Adorlee currently serves as the Director of Film at Ubisoft in San Francisco.

Christopher D'Ariano will present Overture No.7: Inter Nos with a score by Thomas Nickell and Fiona Stocks-Lyons that explores the relationship between the conductor and symphony musicians.

D'Ariano is from the Bronx, New York. He studied at Ballet Tech, the School of American Ballet, and Pacific Northwest Ballet School, and he attended summer courses at Ballet Tech, Boston Ballet, Nederlands Dans Theater, and Pacific Northwest Ballet. At the School of American Ballet, D'Ariano became the recipient of the Mae L. Wien Award for Outstanding Promise. He joined Pacific Northwest Ballet as an apprentice in 2017 and was promoted to corps de ballet in 2018 and soloist in 2022. D'Ariano has danced as a guest artist at Fire Island Dance Festival, Jacob's Pillow, Hudson Valley Dance Festival, and Chop Shop Contemporary Dance Festival. He has choreographed three works for Pacific Northwest Ballet's NEXT STEP, along with creating a work for Pacific Northwest Ballet School's annual School Performance. In 2021, D'Ariano choreographed for you for PNB's digital Season Encore. He has been commissioned to create works for the Seattle AIDS Memorial Pathway, Seattle International Dance Festival, The Seattle Project, and the Seattle Art Museum.

Kameron N. Saunders will present Warmer to a score by Brandon Finklea that is inspired by the novel All About Love by bell hooks. The work explores the nuances of relationship, vulnerability, and worth as a love letter to a hopeful, self-actualized, love-filled future.

Saunders is from St. Louis. He began his dance training at the Center of Creative Arts and is a graduate of the University of Missouri-Kansas City with a BFA in Dance. Saunders has worked with renowned artists such as Alonzo King, Matthew Rushing, Chloe Arnold, Ava Bernstine-Mitchell, Sean Bankhead, Fatima Robinson, Ken Page, Danielle Polanco, Martha Nichols, among others. In 2018, Saunders was selected for the Ann & Weston Hicks Choreography Fellowship at Jacob's Pillow, and in 2020, he was awarded the Passion Project Grant from the Jaquel Knight Foundation. Saunders presented a world premiere with Dallas Black Dance Theatre titled Black in Time and choreographed for artist Rashaad Newsome's exhibit and performance ASSEMBLY at the Park Avenue Armory, NYC. Saunders is a featured dancer in "Spirited," a musical film starring Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell; "The Color Purple" musical film; the "Booty" music video with Saucy Santana and Latto; and performed with Lizzo on the BET Awards. Saunders was recently announced as a 2022 Princess Grace Award winner in choreography and is currently on the Special tour with Saucy Santana opening for Lizzo.

Mike Tyus (Recipient of the Zach Lazar Winning Works Fellowship) will present Sweet Science with a score by Luca Renzi. An homage to his great-grandfather Fred Tyus, who was a professional boxer, Sweet Science explores the virtuosity of boxing and its relationship to dance-as well as the battle with our greatest saboteur, ourselves.

Tyus is an award-winning dancer, choreographer, and creative director from Los Angeles, who has been performing and creating dance works for the stage and screen for over 15 years. Tyus toured with Cirque Du Soleil in "IRIS" and "KOOZA," and joined Pilobolus Dance Theater in 2013 performing works by Sidi Larbi Cherkoui, Penn & Teller, and Inbal Pinto and Avshalom Pollack, while also creating company repertory that is still performed today. He is a founding member of Jacob Jonas The Company and an Associate Producer for Films.Dance, a platform focused on dance film creation through unconventional collaboration. Tyus' choreography draws from techniques and styles in circus theater, acrobatics, ballet, and Greco-Roman wrestling. He has created works for dance companies, museums, popstars, and universities, including The Broad Museum, The Wende Museum, Visceral Dance Chicago, Chicago Repertory Ballet, Peridance Contemporary Dance Company, Manhattan Youth Ballet, Ziru Dance, Utah University, Vasser College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, CLI by Teddy Forance, and The Lines Ballet Training Program. In 2020, Tyus created Mike Tyus & Co, a dance company that focuses on the creation of Tyus' work with over 13 films including "Hunger," developed at Orsolina28, and "ELSEWHERE" at Whim W'him Contemporary Dance Company. Tyus choreographed a Facebook commercial directed by FKA Twigs that lives in the Museum of Modern Art archives, in addition to choreographing music videos for Nigerian pop star Adekunle Gold and branded campaigns for Vaara, Anthropologie, Veuve Clicquot, Club Monaco, SONY, Apple, and Abercrombie & Fitch.

Former winners of the Winning Works competition include Jeffrey Cirio (2016), current Lead Principal Dancer with the English National Ballet, Chanel DaSilva (2020) who choreographed a critically-acclaimed world premiere for Joffrey's 2022-23 season opener Beyond Borders, Amy Hall Garner (2011), the choreographer of the free touring work for families Rita Finds Home co-produced by Joffrey and the Miami City Ballet, Stephanie Martinez (2015), a featured choreographer on the Joffrey's winter program The Times Are Racing, and Claudia Schreier (2018), Ballet Master to Juilliard President Damian Woetzel.

The Joffrey Ballet gratefully acknowledges the generous support of Winning Works Sponsors Wilson Garling Foundation, William Blair with Joffrey Board Member Rita Spitz, and National Endowment for the Arts. William Blair is the premier global boutique with expertise in investment banking, investment management, and private wealth management.

Tickets for Winning Works at the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago's Edlis Neeson Theater are $30 and can be purchased at joffrey.org/winningworks. Performances take place on Thursday and Friday, March 16 and 17 at 7:30 PM, Saturday, March 18 at 2:00 PM and 7:30 PM, Sunday, March 19 at 2:00 PM.

Founded in 2010, the Joffrey Academy of Dance, Official School of The Joffrey Ballet, provides students of all ages, levels, and backgrounds with a world-class education, built on a foundation of classical ballet.

Based in the heart of Chicago's theater district, the 20,000 square foot Exelon Education Center at Joffrey Tower, home to the Academy, boasts four state-of-the-art studios and facilities. In 2021, The Joffrey Ballet acquired two more state-of-the-art studios in the South Loop of Chicago.

The Joffrey Academy received the distinguished honor of being named four-time Outstanding School by the Youth America Grand Prix, the world's largest international student ballet competition, and the Boeing Game Changer Award in recognition of its efforts to make dance accessible to everyone.

The Joffrey Academy, located in Chicago, Illinois, is the only school that follows the organizational mission, training syllabi, and artistic vision of The Joffrey Ballet. No other program, including those holding the Joffrey name, is sanctioned by The Joffrey Ballet.

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