New York Theatre Ballet Announces Program Change

The NYTB REP program with a World Premiere by Richard Alston has now added encore performances of three of Jerome Robbins' rarely seen ballets: Septet, Concertino and Rondo, recently performed in sold-out shows in The Harkness Dance Festival 2018 at 92Y. The program will feature live music for all works.

Richard Alston's premiere The Seasons, described as a serene and limpid meditation on the cycle of a year in Nature. The music has an extraordinary clarity with images of Quiescence (Winter), Creation (Spring), Preservation (Summer) and, intriguingly, Destruction (Fall), which all come from Indian philosophical thought.

"I am making this dance in memory of my very good friend David Vaughan who for over fifty years was closely associated with Merce Cunningham, the choreographer for the original production in 1947. That choreography is now lost," said Richard Alston who will be using the John Cage score from 1947.

2018 is the year the world comes together to celebrate the centennial of Jerome Robbins (1918-1998). The Jerome Robbins Centennial is a global celebration of the 100th birthday of Jerome Robbins, the director and choreographer whose creative genius during the 20th century continues today. Having created film, theater and dance that has resonated for generations, Robbins is rightfully regarded as a towering figure in American cultural history. Jerome Robbins' legacy from the last century is assured and his influence is ongoing. During 2018, the Jerome Robbins Centennial will celebrate the life and career of the cultural giant with performances, screenings, events, exhibitions and discussions around the world.

The Jerome Robbins ballets NYTB will encore at Gould: Septet and Concertino were choreographed in 1982 for New York City Ballet's Stravinsky Centennial celebration and Rondo, with music by Mozart, premiered at New York City Ballet in 1980.

"Diana Byer, New York Theatre Ballet's artistic director, recently remarked on how nice it is to see Robbins without the sets and the costumes, and with only a few dancers. "Just these little teeny jewels!" she exclaimed. They reveal things that are harder to see in the big works-notably, the often muffled intimacy among the performers. The dancers interact companionably but feelingly, as if they had known one another for a long time and didn't have to tell us, maybe couldn't tell us, what it was all about." - Joan Acocella, New Yorker

New York Theatre Ballet (NYTB) continues their 39th Season with REP at Florence Gould Hall, 55 E. 59th Street, NYC, on April 27 & 28, 2018 at 7:30pm. Tickets are $29 ($14 for students and seniors) and may be purchased at http://nytb.org/calendar-and-tickets/view/REP/ or by calling (212) 355-6160.

For New York Theatre Ballet: Founder and Artistic Director Diana Byer, Executive Director Alyce Dissette.

RICHARD ALSTON is a major figure on the British dance scene. He made his first dance 50 years ago and has been choreographing prolifically ever since. In 1975 Alston came to New York to study for two years at the Merce Cunningham Dance Studio. He also studied with Alfredo Corvino. On his return to London, Alston became Resident Choreographer with Ballet Rambert and later became Artistic Director from 1986 to 1992. As Director he invited American choreographers such as Merce Cunningham, Trisha Brown, David Gordon and Lucinda Childs to work with the Company.

In 1994 Alston became Artistic Director of The Place and formed Richard Alston Dance Company. Over the past 19 years he has made over 45 dances for this company. In May 2004 the Company made its U.S. debut at the Joyce Theater and has since toured extensively across the United States, presenting its third New York season at the Joyce Theater in January 2010. The Company was part of Fall for Danceat New York's City Center in 2011, 2014 and 2016 and performed at Peak Performances @ Montclair State University, New Jersey in 2012, 2014 and 2017.

Alston is a Commander of the British Empire and a Chevalier dans l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. In 2008 he received the De Valois Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dance. Commissions for other companies include: Rugged Flourish for New York Theatre Ballet (2011), Light Flooding Into Darkened Rooms remounted on New York Theatre Ballet (2013), Such Longing remounted on New York Theatre Ballet (2015), Brisk Singing remounted on the students of the University of Michigan (2015) and Carmen remounted on Miami City Ballet (2015). Sheer Bravado, made originally for Ballet Theatre Munich in 2006, is remounted on the students of The Juilliard School.

JEROME ROBBINS is world-renowned for his work as a choreographer of ballets, as well as his work as a director and choreographer in theater, movies and television. His Broadway shows include On the Town, Billion Dollar Baby, High Button Shoes, West Side Story, The King and I, Gypsy, Peter Pan, Miss Liberty, Call Me Madam and Fiddler on the Roof. His last Broadway production in 1989, Jerome Robbins' Broadway, won six Tony Awards, including best musical and best director. Among the more than 60 ballets he created are Fancy Free, Afternoon of a Faun, The Concert, Dances at a Gathering, In the Night, In G Major, Other Dances, Glass Pieces and Ives, Songs, which are in the repertories of New York City Ballet and other major dance companies throughout the world. His last ballets include A Suite of Dances, created for Mikhail Baryshnikov (1994); 2 & 3 Park Inventions (1994); West Side Story Suite (1995); and Brandenburg (1996). In addition to two Academy Awards for the film West Side Story, Mr. Robbins received four Tony Awards, five Donaldson Awards, an Emmy Award, the Screen Directors' Guild Award and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. Mr. Robbins was a 1981 Kennedy Center Honors recipient and was awarded the French Chevelier dans l'Ordre National de la Legion d'Honneur. Mr. Robbins died in 1998.

Diana Byer is the founder and Artistic Director of New York Theatre Ballet and Ballet School NY. She is a répétiteur for The Antony Tudor Trust, a member of the Board of Directors of the Dance Notation Bureau, an Education Ambassador for The New York Pops, on the Dance Portal Advisory Board of The Children's Museum of Manhattan, and on the Selection Committees of The Bessies and Clive Barnes Awards. She has staged the ballets of Antony Tudor for American Ballet Theatre and The Hartt School and the ballets of Agnes de Mille for the Alabama Ballet and American Ballet Theatre. She coached the principals for the Columbia Pictures film, Center Stage.

With its ever-expanding repertory, New York Theatre Ballet's cutting-edge programming brings fresh insight to classic revivals paired with the modern sensibilities of both established and up-and-coming choreographers. Going strong after 38 years, New York Theatre Ballet's diversity in repertory explores the past while boldly taking risks on the future.

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