Jan McNulty Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 Phoenix Dance Theatre - Spring 2015 Two premieres and a double bill by Christopher Bruce CBE on a national tour For its Spring 2015 season Phoenix Dance Theatre, under Artistic Director Sharon Watson, proudly presents a trademark mixed bill, featuring four works. The 10-venue tour kicks-off at West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds on 11 February and concludes at Northern Stage Newcastle on 28 May, with premières from Sharon Watson and Caroline Finn and a double bill by Christopher Bruce CBE. The double bill by Christopher Bruce CBE features Shadows, a brand new work created especially for Phoenix Dance Theatre and a restaging of Christopher’s energetic study of life in the 1940’s, Shift. This double bill was previously performed at the Linbury Studio Theatre, London in November 2014, the first time that Phoenix has performed any of this renowned choreographer’s work. The mixed bill also features two world premieres – TearFall by Sharon Watson and Bloom by NewAdventures Choreographer Award winner Caroline Finn. Watson follows up her audience favourites Melt(2011) and Repetition of Change (2013) with TearFall, a piece that builds on her exploration of tears through dance, whilst Finn’s work often presents darkly comic expressions of life and humanity using a playful, quirky and highly engaging choreographic style. Fuller programme details to be announced early in January 2015 Dates Venue Box Office 11 – 14 Feb West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds 0113 213 7700 24 Feb Watford Palace 01923 225671 3 Mar Curve Leicester 0116 242 3595 12 Mar Worthing Connaught Theatre 01903 206206 31 Mar Oldham Coliseum 0161 624 2829 22 Apr Buxton Opera House 0845 127 2190 7 May Liverpool Playhouse 0151 709 4776 13 May CAST Doncaster 01302 303 959 21 May The Churchill Theatre Bromley 0844 871 7620 28 May Northern Stage Newcastle 0844 8717 620 NOTES TO EDITORS: Sharon Watson – Phoenix Dance Theatre Artistic Director Sharon Watson was appointed as the 7th Artistic Director of Phoenix Dance Theatre in May 2009. Trained at the London School of Contemporary Dance, Sharon danced with Spiral and Extemporary Dance Theatre before joining Phoenix as a dancer from 1989 to 1997. During this time Sharon choreographed Never Still and Shaded Limits for Phoenix as well as creating new works for the Northern School of Contemporary Dance, National Youth Dance Company, Union Dance and a specially commissioned piece for the opening ceremony of the Royal Armouries in Leeds. She formed ABCD in 1998 and returned to Phoenix in 2000 as the company’s Rehearsal and Tour Director. In 2006 she embarked upon a fellowship with the Clore Leadership Programme and in 2008 she was one of 26 aspiring leaders from around the globe selected to attend Dance East’s fourth Rural Retreat. Sharon was named as one of the Cultural Leadership Programme’s Women to Watch, a list of 50 influential women working in arts and culture in the UK selected by a distinguished panel made up of figures from the cultural and creative industries. Phoenix Dance Theatre Formed in 1981 in inner-city Leeds, Phoenix Dance Theatre has grown to be one of Britain's leading international dance companies. As a repertory company, Phoenix aims to bring together the best choreographers from the international contemporary dance world. A diverse company of dancers works with these choreographers and the Artistic Director to create innovative work, which is communicative, highly accessible and represents the cultural diversity and experience of life in multi-cultural society.Phoenix is inclusive and open to people from all backgrounds. The company has a commitment to widening access to dance through its education, audience development and creative programmes. Phoenix Dance Education’s highly acclaimed programme of education work promotes participation in the arts as a stimulating and creative pursuit within schools and community settings. The company takes on dance apprentices and dancers are encouraged to develop their skills as teachers and choreographers. Sharon Watson was appointed as Artistic Director in 2009. A more detailed history of Phoenix is available atwww.phoenixdancetheatre.co.uk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted January 15, 2015 Author Share Posted January 15, 2015 An updated press release from Phoenix: Phoenix Dance Theatre - Spring 2015 Two premieres and a double bill by Christopher Bruce CBE on a national tour For its Spring 2015 season Phoenix Dance Theatre, under Artistic Director Sharon Watson, proudly presents a trademark mixed bill, featuring four works. The 10-venue tour kicks-off at West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds on 11 February and concludes at Northern Stage Newcastle on 28 May, with premières from Sharon Watson and Caroline Finn and a double bill by Christopher Bruce CBE. The double bill by Christopher Bruce CBE features Shadows, a brand new work created especially for Phoenix Dance Theatre and a restaging of Bruce’s energetic study of life in the 1940’s, Shift. This double bill was previously performed at the Linbury Studio Theatre, London in November 2014, the first time that Phoenix has performed any of this renowned choreographer’s work. The mixed bill also features two world premieres – TearFall by Sharon Watson for 8 dancers, with music byKristian Steffes and Bloom by New Adventures Choreographer Award winner Caroline Finn. Sharon Watson follows up her audience favourites Melt (2011) and Repetition of Change (2013) withTearFall, a piece that explores both the science and emotion of tears. Supported by the Wellcome Trust,TearFall was inspired by the exploration of the biochemical make up of tears, how their appearance and composition is affected by different emotional states and looks at the differences between how tears function and how they are perceived. For TearFall, Watson worked in partnership with Professor Sir John Holman from York University and dramaturg Lou Cope. Caroline Finn’s Bloom, for 7 dancers, examines how people create ‘facades’, behind which they can become the person they believe they should be. The title Bloom was inspired by the idea that a tree in blossom - a beautiful layer – only masks the true nature of the tree beneath. Finn’s work often presents darkly comic expressions of life and humanity using a playful, quirky and highly engaging choreographic style. UK TOUR SPRING 2015 Dates Venue Box Office 11 – 14 Feb West Yorkshire Playhouse, Leeds 0113 213 7700 24 Feb Watford Palace 01923 225671 3 Mar Curve Leicester 0116 242 3595 12 Mar Worthing Connaught Theatre 01903 206206 31 Mar Oldham Coliseum 0161 624 2829 22 Apr Buxton Opera House 0845 127 2190 7 May Liverpool Playhouse 0151 709 4776 13 May CAST Doncaster 01302 303 959 21 May The Churchill Theatre Bromley 0844 871 7620 28 May Northern Stage Newcastle 0191 230 5151 NOTES TO EDITORS: Sharon Watson – Phoenix Dance Theatre Artistic Director Sharon Watson was appointed as the 7th Artistic Director of Phoenix Dance Theatre in May 2009. Trained at the London School of Contemporary Dance, Sharon danced with Spiral and Extemporary Dance Theatre before joining Phoenix as a dancer from 1989 to 1997. During this time Sharon choreographed Never Still and Shaded Limits for Phoenix as well as creating new works for the Northern School of Contemporary Dance, National Youth Dance Company, Union Dance and a specially commissioned piece for the opening ceremony of the Royal Armouries in Leeds. She formed ABCD in 1998 and returned to Phoenix in 2000 as the company’s Rehearsal and Tour Director. In 2006 she embarked upon a fellowship with the Clore Leadership Programme and in 2008 she was one of 26 aspiring leaders from around the globe selected to attend Dance East’s fourth Rural Retreat. Sharon was named as one of the Cultural Leadership Programme’s Women to Watch, a list of 50 influential women working in arts and culture in the UK selected by a distinguished panel made up of figures from the cultural and creative industries. Since returning to the company in 2000 Sharon has choreographed Fast Lane for Phoenix’s Ignite tour, Melt for the company’s Reflected programme and re-worked Never Still into Never 2 Still. Repetition of Change, featured as part of the successful Particle Velocity programme In 2013 Sharon collaborated with BBC’s adaptation of Susanna Clarke’s novel Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrelland choreographed pieces to feature in the seven-part series due to be screened in 2015. In 2014 Sharon choreographed three major commissions - Ghost Peloton, an ambitious collaboration with Scottish Public Arts charity NVA, in partnership with Sustrans, for Yorkshire Festival 2014 Grand Départ of the Tour de France; Honour, a multimedia live performance by Quays Culture for the centenary of WW1; and a large scale performance for the RFL Challenge Cup Final at Wembley. Phoenix Dance Theatre From small beginnings in inner-city Leeds, Phoenix Dance Theatre has grown to be one of the UKs leading contemporary dance companies. For over three decades Phoenix Dance Theatre has performed, educated and inspired people across the globe. Phoenix has performed in the US, Western Europe, South America and the Caribbean and the company also collaborates with international artists on a regular basis. In recent years this has included choreographic commissions from artists based in US, Israel, Switzerland and France. Featuring two mixed bills, two special multi-media commissions, a small scale rural tour and international festival performances, in 2013/14 Phoenix performed a more varied programme of work than ever before. Over the course of the year Phoenix delivered 35 performances to more than 12,000 people at 24 venues across the UK including five sold out performances at the Linbury Studio Theatre at the Royal Opera House. Phoenix Dance Theatre employs 18 full time members of staff including 8 dancers, 58 freelance practitioners and 3 volunteers. The company commissions work from numerous artists each year, some of whom are Leeds based and some who stay in Leeds for the duration of their creative period. Sharon Watson was appointed as Artistic Director in 2009. A more detailed history of Phoenix is available at www.phoenixdancetheatre.co.uk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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