Stage Door News
Stage Door News
Following a historic 50th anniversary season that culminated in the acclaimed spring presentation of Glass Fields, Toronto Dance Theatre is thrilled to kick-off their 2018/19 season with a bold new version of the tour-de-force work, This Shape, We Are In, on stage at ‘The Winch' January 24 – February 2, 2019.
This Shape, We Are In, a creation from vanguard New York City-based Jeanine Durning, was first presented by the Toronto Dance Theatre in 2015 as part of a series of international collaborations that included Berlin/Toronto (2009), Paris/Toronto (2011) Brussels/Toronto (2013), and finally New York/Toronto which paired Durning’s piece with Un Petit Peu Plus by Joanna Kotze.
The 2019 presentation of This Shape, We Are In continues TDT’s multi-year exploration ‘Reimagining Repertoire’, which explores ways in which repertoire can be viewed, discussed, and presented while allowing it to evolve and retain vitality. The work returns to TDT as a new full-length version that “questions time and place and meaning and fate and togetherness.”
Durning’s work has been described by The New Yorker as having both “the potential for philosophical revelation and theatrical disaster.” Her ongoing research is based on a practice she calls nonstopping which has yielded several performance works, including her solo inging (based on nonstop speaking) and the group work To Being (based on nonstop moving). Durning has performed inging more than 40 times across the US, in Europe and Canada, including in Toronto.
"It's a joy to be working with Jeanine once again,” said TDT Artistic Director Christopher House. She's an extraordinary artist, bursting with questions that she explores with rigour and enviable confidence. Her skill as a director and coach is an inspiration to us all. "
Playing alongside This Shape, We’re In, is Slow Dance, a performance installation by choreographer/visual artist Marie Lambin-Gagnon, opening January 23 in Studio B. A conversation between dancers, objects and environment, Slow Dance celebrates the intimacy and strength present in all things.
Marie Lambin-Gagnon is a strong emerging voice in the Canadian dance landscape. Since graduating from The School of Toronto Dance Theatre she has collaborated with Quebecois choreographer Robert Desrosiers, who created a solo on her, and performed with a number of Toronto choreographers including Shannon Litzenberger and Robert Abubo. She has also collaborated with Tiger Princess Dance Projects with Robyn Breen, Brandy Leary, Mairéad Filgate, Jasmyn Fyffe and Miles Gosse. Internationally, Lambin-Gagnon has been a guest artist for Motley Dance, a New York City-based dance company directed by Elisabeth Motley.
This Shape, We Are In runs January 24 – February 2 at the Winchester Street Theatre, with performances at 8:00 pm (Jan 24, 25, 26, 30, 31, Feb 1, 2), and a 2:00 pm matinée on January 27. Slow Dance opens one night earlier, running January 23 – February 2 in Studio B, with 7:00 pm performances Wednesday – Saturday, 4:00 pm matinées on January 26 and 27, and a 1:00 pm matinée on January 27. Performances are scheduled so that audiences can see the two programmes as a double bill and double bill ticket pricing is available.
Tickets are now available for TDT’s 2018/19 season with regular tickets starting at $15 for students and seniors and at $20 for general admission.
Get online information and make ticket purchases at tdt.org.
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ABOUT THIS SHAPE, WE ARE IN
Choreographer: Jeanine Durning
Dancers: Valerie Calam, Alana Elmer, Mairi Greig, Megumi Kokuba, Pulga Muchochoma, Erin Poole, Roberto Soria
Outside Eye: Ame Henderson
Rehearsal Director: Rosemary James
Production Stage Manager: AJ Morra
Lighting Designer: Simon Rossiter
THE COMPANY
Toronto Dance Theatre’s dancers are remarkable individuals who play an essential role in the creative process. With a broad range of skills and experience, they are capable of physical and expressive virtuosity as well as powerful ensemble work.
Performers for the 2018/19 season include: Nicole Rose Bond, Valerie Calam, Alana Elmer, Mairi Greig, Yuichiro Inoue, Peter Kelly, Megumi Kokuba, Pulga Muchochoma, Erin Poole, Devon Snell, Margarita Soria, Roberto Soria and Christianne Ullmark; Dancer Interns: Sonja Boretski and Zachary Cardwell. www.tdt.org
Photo: Scene from This Shape, We Are In.
2018-12-18
Toronto: Toronto Dance Theatre presents "This Shape, We Are In" January 24-February 2, 2019