Nederlands Dans Theater to Bring Four U.S. Premieres to NY City Center

Nederlands Dans Theater 1 returns to New York with a 2016 season that includes four U.S. premieres by Sol León and Paul Lightfoot, Crystal Pite, and Marco Goecke, running November 16 - 19, 2016 at New York City Center. Nederlands Dans Theater, under the Artistic Direction of choreographer Paul Lightfoot, is recognized as one of the world's most prolific and creative contemporary dance companies.

The season features the U.S. premieres of Safe as Houses (2001) and Stop-Motion (2014) choreographed by Sol León and Paul Lightfoot; The Statement (2016), choreographed by Crystal Pite; and Woke up Blind (2016), choreographed by Marco Goecke.

"Nederlands Dans Theater has a strong connection and history to New York City, and we are thrilled to introduce these four pieces to American audiences," said Paul Lightfoot. These dances feature the finest dancers working in the Netherlands today, and will highlight NDT's diverse and acclaimed repertoire."

About the Performances:

Safe as Houses (2001), choreographed by house choreographers Sol León and Paul Lightfoot to secular music by Johann Sebastian Bach, was inspired by the ancient Chinese book of I Ching. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCf8oMwauWY&feature=youtu.be

Stop-Motion (2014), choreographed by Sol León and Paul Lightfoot to music by Max Richter, features seven dancers depicting a process of farewell and transformation, reinforced by large screens that show delayed video projections, which include their daughter Saura. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uz_k7BEZY2I&feature=youtu.be

Sol León and Paul Lightfoot started to work as a duo for NDT over 26 years ago. Together they have won many prestigious awards, including the Benois de la Danse and the Herald Archangel. They have been the house choreographers of NDT since 2002 and have created over fifty ballets for the company.

Their many works include The Bard of Avon; Spilt Milk; Step Lightly; Softly, as I Leave You; Spiritwalking; Shoot the Moon; and most recently, Shut Eye.

Woke up Blind (2016), choreographed by NDT's Associate Choreographer Marco Goecke, was inspired by two love songs by American singer/songwriter Jeff Buckley, who died tragically and young. Two female and five male dancers are drawn into an acoustic world that contrasts with Buckley's vocal power and his frenetic guitar sounds. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tr8yuY6QXiA&feature=youtu.be

Marco Goecke, an Associate Choreographer with NDT since 2013, made his first choreographic work in 2000. Since then he has created over forty works and is one of the world's most sought-after choreographers. Goecke was resident choreographer at the Stuttgart Ballet and the Scapino Ballet Rotterdam. He has created work for Les Ballets de Monte Carlo, Hamburg Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle, the Norwegian National Ballet, the Leipzig Ballet and Zurich Ballet. Mr. Goecke is the recipient of the prestigious Nijinsky Award (2006) as Emerging Choreographer.

The Statement (2016), choreographed by Crystal Pite, on a new composition by Owen Belton with spoken text by playwright Jonathan Young, takes a contemporary world view of power, conflict and morality. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rragD1P34NA

Canadian choreographer Crystal Pite has been an Associate Choreographer with NDT since 2008. The ballet Plot Point, which Pite created for NDT 1 in 2010, was nominated for the prestigious dance award Benois de la Danse. Pite is also an Associate Dance Artist at Canada's National Arts Centre and at Sadler's Wells, London. Her ballets are performed by dance companies worldwide. In 2002, Pite founded her own company, Kidd Pivot, based in Vancouver, Canada.

Nederlands Dans Theater is recognized as one of the most prolific and creative contemporary dance companies in the world. It consists of two multinational companies: NDT 1 and NDT 2. The latter prepares sixteen classically trained dancers (between the ages of 17 and 23) for the highest possible level, during a three-year trajectory. NDT 1 consists of 28 dancers (varying in age between 24 and 38 years old), each one excelling in their solo qualities and renowned for their versatility, astonishing technique and virtuosic expression. Under artistic guidance of Artistic Director Paul Lightfoot and Artistic Advisor Sol León and based in The Hague, NDT dancers perform for over 115,000 visitors annually in Europe, USA, Asia and Australia. The multi- national company showcases multiple art forms alongside their stunning choreography, including visual art, music composition and innovative light and set designs.

Since inception in 1959, NDT has built a rich repertoire of over 600 works by master choreographers such as Ji?í Kylián and Hans van Manen, León and Lightfoot, associate choreographers Pite and Goecke, and high-profile guests such as Ohad Naharin, Nacho Duato, William Forsythe, Johan Inger, Glen Tetley, Gabriela Carrizo, Franck Chartier, Edward Clug, Hofesh Shechter, Alexander Ekman, and Sharon Eyal &Gai Behar. www.ndt.nl

Nederlands Dans Theater will present four performances at New York City Center: Wednesday, November 16 at 8 pm, Thursday, November 17 at 8 pm, Friday, November 18 at 8 pm, Saturday, November 19 at 8 pm. Tickets start at $35 and can be purchased, after August 1, online at www.NYCityCenter.org, by calling CityTix at (212) 581-1212, or at the City Center Box Office at 131 W. 55th St. (between 6th & 7th Aves). For more information, please visit www.NYCityCenter.org.

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