2008 NYFA Choreography Fellows

New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA), New York’s leading provider of unrestricted funding to individual artists, has awarded 136 Fellowships to 144 New York artists representing eight artistic disciplines that cover the visual, performing and literary arts. Reflected in the total are eight artistic collaborations. A NYFA Fellowship comes with an unrestricted grant in the amount of $7000.

This year’s 144 NYFA Fellows–who were chosen among over 4,500 applicants–includes
architects, choreographers, composers, fiction writers, painters, photographers, playwrights, screenwriters and video artists. The Fellows were selected by peer panels, which were assembled according to each artistic discipline.

Choreographers:

Luciana Achugar
Roxane Butterfly
Shemy Deganit
Miguel Gutierrez
Saar Harari and Lee Sher
Michel Kouakou
Nicholas Leichter
Jennifer Monson
Erick Montes – Gregory Millard Fellow
Max Pollak
Sally Silvers
Donna Uchizono

For additional information about NYFA, its fellowship program and a complete ist of 2008 NYFA Fellows, click here.

Vogueing in the West Village

The Voice - When Life's a Mini-Ball
as told to Jennifer Bleyer, The New York Times, June 29, 2008

What I've been seeing lately...

Whew! Busy month! And now it's Pride Weekend! So, some quick notes:

nicholas leichter dance concludes its Spanish Wells premiere season at Dance Theater Workshop tomorrow night, and I'm just realizing just how much the smart and energetic Leichter has manage to throw into that very choppy ocean of his. I'm also starting to hear some buzz about Leichter's newest dancer, Mathew Heggem. One to watch.

Tom Pearson and Zach Morris (of Third Rail Projects) conclude their Vanishing Point premiere season at Danspace Project (www.danspaceproject.org) tonight. Everything about this one is big with heart--performances (of which Morris, Donna Ahmadi and Tara O'Con are the standouts), visual design, and music. This is a lovely one. See it, see it, see it!

The uncommonly handsome and indecently-talented Foofwa D'Imobilité concludes his Benjamin de Bouillis season at Baryshnikov Arts Center, a co-presentation with Chez Bushwick, tonight. Of course, he is a master of movement, and his overarching concept of embodiment/disembodiment gets played out in a myriad of clever, fascinating ways. But what I really hope you'll get to see (weather permitting) is the fantastic composition of sky, water towers, pigeons and window frame designed by New York City and God. I missed my camera, desperately, desperately!

And last, there'sThierry Malandain's Ballet Biarritz, concluding a season at the Joyce Theater tonight. I'm not on board for this one, but you'll enjoy the fine dancers.

That's it for now! Happy Pride Weekend!

DTW membership has its privileges

Dance Theater Workshop announces the expansion of its Web site with the launch of a Members Only site with greater functionality and interactive tools that offer self-producing artists an opportunity to tap into Dance Theater Workshop’s growing online network.

One of the new online features--the Member Profile Pages--allows members to upload personalized pages onto Dance Theater Workshop’s highly visible, savvy web site. To get a view of these pages, peruse the directory of member profiles now up at this link.

In addition to the Profile Pages, the Artist Services program has also updated the MOSAIC newsletter with an expanded reach on the blog and increased functionality that includes larger images and video content.

An online Bulletin Board has been launched for members to post events, classes, audition notices and more.

In the age of social networking, Dance Theater Workshop is proud to provide current online platforms that connect artists with each other and with a dance community regularly tuning into the Dance Theater Workshop site.

The first of its kind, Dance Theater Workshop Artist Services has been supporting, connecting, and empowering contemporary dance performance and the dance community for over 35 years. These resources create opportunities for artists to advance their specific goals and contribute to the overall vitality of contemporary dance and performance culture.
Membership deepens over 650 artists’ and arts organizations’ connection to the Dance Theater Workshop community, putting them in touch with a network of cultural innovators and leaders in the field.

For more information about Artist Services, visit this link.

Ballet Hispanico's Tina Ramirez steps down

Arts, Briefly
At Ballet Hispanico
by Patricia Cohen, The New York Times, June 24, 2008

New blog on the business of dance

InfiniteBody welcomes Brittany Fridenstine-Keefe to the family of dance bloggers. You'll find her new blog--Empowering thoughts for Dancers (Resources for dancers to increase their knowledge about the business of art) at this link.

Costume designer Kermit Love, 91

Kermit Love, Costume Creator, Dies at 91
by Dennis Hevesi, The New York Times, June 24, 2008