Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center has just announced its 2022 Season featuring the West Coast Premiere of Hamburg Ballet’s Bernstein Dances and the West Coast Premiere of The Joyce Theater’s SW!NG OUT directed by Caleb Teicher. Also on the ticket is the return of the phenomenal Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater and the highly acclaimed Pacific Northwest Ballet. While in town, companies will take part in local school performances, educator workshops, pre-performance talks and other events to engage the public.
Spring 2022 will be the 19th season of Dance at The Music Center and, following almost two years of virtual and outdoor performances, will joyfully usher in the live indoor performances beginning in March. These are world famous companies will be offering a diverse list of works ranging from ballet to contemporary dance styles. Season subscriptions are now available.
The Hamburg Ballet John Neumeier is considered one of Germany’s most important cultural ambassadors. John Neumeier has been the Artistic Director and Chief Choreographer since the company premiered in 1973 with productions of “Divertimento No. 15”, “Allegro Brillante”, “Désir”, “Jeu de cartes”. In the Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion on March 11, 13 and 19, 2022, The Hamburg Ballet will present the West Coast premiere of Bernstein Dances, artistic director John Neumeier’s homage to his home country and the great American composer Leonard Bernstein. Bernstein Dances will be performed to a live orchestra.
“Dance moves us in many ways and communicates so much without uttering a word —and that’s why we love it. Whether en pointe or with tap shoes, The Music Center’s upcoming performances will bring joy to the hearts and minds of Angelenos eager to experience and learn more about this incredible artform,” said Rachel S. Moore, president and CEO of The Music Center. “Our new dance season brings two West Coast premieres, a Music Center debut and the return of two other companies that Southern California audiences have missed. We closed our doors in March 2020 just as the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater was ready to take the stage, so the company’s April 2022 residency will be much anticipated. We’re also thrilled to join in Pacific Northwest Ballet’s celebration of its golden anniversary as it closes out our season with a mixed repertoire of thrilling and dynamic contemporary works never before seen in Los Angeles.”
Karen Azatyan, Christopher Evans, Ensemble
Neumeier’s Bernstein Dances premiered in 1998 in New York City and “follows a similar structure to that of a revue: a collage of separate episodes resulting in a danced mosaic—unified by Bernstein’s music. Featuring six solo dancers, the work allows the audience to witness the development of an artist through one central figure. A seventh dancer appears periodically, directing, motivating and inspiring the action. Bernstein Dances has a run time of two hours and 30 minutes, and features music from some of the composer’s most indelible works including Candide, MASS, On the Town, Peter Pan, West Side Story and Wonderful Town as well as the complete Serenade (after Plato’s “Symposium”). Additional public events involving the company will be announced at a later date.” The Music Center press release
Making its annual return to Dance at The Music Center April 6 – 10, 2022, New York based and world treasure, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater will perform a mix of new works and fan favorites including Mr. Ailey’s inspirational masterpiece, Revelations, which never fails to bring Los Angeles audiences to their feet for a standing ovation. The Ailey company is under the leadership of Robert Battle, who celebrates his 10th anniversary as artistic director this season, and the company continues Ailey’s mission by presenting important works of the past and commissioning new ones that “ignite rapturous responses and rouse the public to its feet out of sheer joy” (Washington Post). Additional repertoire will be announced at a later date.
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater – Photo by Dario Calmese
Additionally, The Music Center and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater will host educational residency programs at four local middle schools. Ailey Master Teachers will lead these curriculum-based workshops using Ailey’s Revelations as the inspirational framework for an in-depth study of language arts and social studies while learning choreography from the famous dance work.
Dance party SW!NG OUT, led by New York based tap artist Caleb Teicher, will have its West Coast premiere June 24–26, 2022 on the stage of the Ahmanson Theatre and Jerry Moss Plaza where audiences are invited to join Lindy Hop champions out on the dance floor. The high-energy SW!NG OUT features 12 Lindy Hop champions and the 10-piece Eyal Vilner Big Band.
SW!NG OUT – Caleb Teicher, Nathan Bugh, Eyal Vilner, LaTasha Barnes, Evita Arce – Photo by Em Watson
Caleb Teicher, who specializes in musically-driven dance traditions and interdisciplinary collaboration, was a founding member of Michelle Dorrance’s celebrated company, Dorrance Dance. He is also a freelancing dancer working with contemporary dance companies The Chase Brock Experience and The Bang Group. He has worked with Syncopated City Dance Company and was a part of the West Side Story International Tour. In 2015, Teicher founded Caleb Teicher & Company as a creative home for incubating new concert dance works from Teicher’s unique perspective. He is the recipient of many awards including a 2019 New York City Center Choreographic Fellowship, two Bessie Awards, a 2019 Harkness Promise Award, the 2020 Gross Family Prize, and a 2019 NEFA National Dance Project Production Grant.
The Dance at the Music Center 2022 season concludes with the Pacific Northwest Ballet (PNB) and Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra marking the company’s 50th anniversary season with a mixed program of modern classics by Twyla Tharp, Alejandro Cerrudo and Crystal Pite. Touring nationally and internationally, PNB was founded in 1972 led by artistic directors Kent Stowell and Francia Russell until 2005 when Peter Boal took over that position. PNB is regarded as one of the finest ballet companies in the U.S. with a company of nearly fifty dancers.
Pacific Northwest Ballet company dancers in Twyla Tharp’s “Waiting at the Station” – Photo © Angela Sterling
“From the social dance of the 30s and 40s, to the contemporary pillars of today’s dance, Dance at The Music Center returns with four distinct companies, each of which interpret movement and passion through diverse viewpoints,” added Josephine Ramirez, executive vice president, TMC Arts. “To highlight these dance residencies, we’re also making each presentation an ‘experience’ for our guests as they come closer to knowing and understanding the repertoire. From pre-talks featuring special commentators to events that get fans on their feet dancing, the new season will give us all wonderful opportunities to celebrate and engage in world-class arts experiences at The Music Center.”
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Dance at the Music Center 2022 Season
Hamburg Ballet John Neumeier
Bernstein Dances
Friday, March 11, 2022, at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, March 13, 2022, at 2:00 p.m.
Saturday, March 19, 2022, at 7:30 p.m.
The Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
Live orchestra
Choreography: John Neumeier
Music: Leonard Bernstein
Debut performance at The Music Center
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Alvin Ailey® American Dance Theater
Wednesday, April 6, 2022, at 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, April 7, 2022, at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, April 8, 2022, at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 9, 2022, at 2:00 p.m.
Saturday, April 9, 2022, at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, April 10, 2022, at 2:00 p.m.
Mixed repertoire
The Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
Recorded music
# # #
SW!NG OUT
A Joyce Theater Production
Directed by Caleb Teicher
Friday, June 24, 2022, at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 25, 2022, at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, June 26, 2022, at 2:00 p.m.
The Music Center’s Ahmanson Theatre and Jerry Moss Plaza
Live music: Eyal Vilner Big Band
Debut performance at The Music Center
# # #
Pacific Northwest Ballet & Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra
Mixed repertoire
Friday, July 15, 2022, at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, July 16, 2022, at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, July 17, 2022, at 2:00 p.m.
The Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion
Live orchestra: Pacific Northwest Ballet Orchestra
Last company appearance at The Music Center: 2016
*Programs and artists subject to change.
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At the current time, The Music Center requires all members of the public who attend performances and events inside The Music Center’s four theatres to show proof of full vaccination for COVID-19 or a negative COVID-19 test taken within 72 hours of attendance (including children under 12). This applies to performances and events presented by TMC Arts and any organizations that present in The Music Center’s theatres with the exception of The Music Center’s resident companies, which have their own vaccination policies. As directed by the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, all current visitors to The Music Center’s indoor venues must wear a face covering, whether fully vaccinated or not. These policies could change and will be adapted to current conditions when the Dance at The Music Center season begins on March 11, 2022.
Season subscriptions for the Dance at The Music Center 2022 season are on sale now. Single tickets will be available for purchase on December 17, 2021. For tickets and information, call (213) 972-0711 or visit musiccenter.org. The Music Center’s Ticket Buyer Assurance Program protects all advance ticket purchases for dance presentations through 2022. Ticketed patrons will receive, at their request, a full refund or a credit for a future performance if Los Angeles County or the State of California elects to restrict or prohibit large gathering events at venues, resulting in the cancellation of dance performances due to COVID-19-related conditions. If an event is postponed or rescheduled, ticketed patrons will be moved automatically to the new performance date; however, patrons may request a refund or credit for the future. All changes must be handled prior to the purchaser’s scheduled performance date.
To read more about Glorya Kaufman Presents Dance at The Music Center, click HERE.
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Written and compiled by Jeff Slayton for LA Dance Chronicle from The Music Center October 19, 2021 press release.
Featured image: Pacific Northwest Ballet company dancers in Crystal Pites Plot Point – Photo © Angela Sterling
