CONTEMPORARY DANCE THEATER PRESENTS

ZVIDANCE

“Les Noces” and “Personals”

 

January 29 & 30, 2010, 8:30 pm

Jarson-Kaplan Theater, Aronoff Center for the Arts

 

Tickets to Contemporary Dance Theater’s presentation of

ZviDance are $27 & $22; $17 students & seniors;

ETA member benefits apply. 

Tickets may be purchased at the Aronoff Center Ticket Office at

(513) 621-2787 or on-line at www.cincinnatiarts.org.

 

“…able to convey human dilemma and aspiration through movement and form and make traditional modern steps resonate with individuality.”

- The Village Voice

 

Cincinnati, OH:  ZVIDANCE.  Artistic Director, Israeli-born Zvi Gotheiner choreographs each piece to define a unique set of relationships and experiences, boldly addressing the depths of the human experience.  The company, ZviDance, is comprised of athletic and lyrical dancers who blend contemporary aesthetics with lush, full-bodied movement.

 

 

 

“Personals”

“Personals” is a dance work about the roles people play when seeking a lover. This work is not about the dilemmas of finding a partner or maintaining a relationship, but rather how the pageantry of constructed identities becomes a means for sexual solicitation. Gotheiner explores identity as space for exposing the realities these identities create.  He constructed “Personals” from short solos, each created by the dancers, a collaborative process allowing for each personal “profile” to bring idiosyncratic material to a parade of human advertising.  As in Gotheiner’s previous work “Territories,” “Personals” draws its narrative through reflection upon the inconsistencies of assumed identities, a creative process of looking inward toward a more authentic presence. “Personals” is set to music by Nick Cave and Tuxedomoon, costumes by Rabiah Troncelliti and lighting by Mark London.

 

 

Photo by Klaus Schoenwiese

“Les Noces”

In the past, “Les Noces,” Igor Stravinsky’s seminal work about marriage, has provided fertile ground for the creation of timeless dance. A common thread that unites these works are their portrayal of society coming together to ensure the consummation of the union between a young couple. Early audiences were shocked by the piece’s disharmony, unpredictable rhythms and portrayal of a pre-Christian community in pagan Russia. As our perceptions have changed over time, today these works could be viewed as suggesting the power of the group over the individual, and marriage as a symbol of an orderly society.  Gotheiner uses dance as a means for reflection on old forms within the context of a new reality, emphasizing changing attitudes toward marriage and its contemporary ritualization. His version of “Les Noces” celebrates neither a specific time nor place. He deconstructs the work’s narrative, blurring the role of bride and groom and eliminating the clergy to democratize the act. The institution of marriage has been evolving over the centuries, changing meaning as well as form. “Les Noces’’ glides on that wave of change, suggesting a new perspective on an old ritual.

-        Jodee Nimerichter, Co-Director

American Dance Festival

 

 

CDT’s presentation of ZviDance is supported by

 

 

 

 

Contemporary Dance Theater's 2009-10 season supporters include the Otto M. Budig Family Foundation (Season Support); Ohio Arts Council (Operating Support), The National Endowment for the Arts (a federal agency) (Season Support), the Fine Arts Fund (Operating Support), the Greater Cincinnati Foundation's Endowment Fund (presentations at the Aronoff), an anonymous fund, The Wohlgemuth Herschede Foundation, as well as individual advertisers and contributors.

  

CELEBRATING ITS 37TH SEASON!

 

Contemporary Dance Theater was founded in 1972 by Jefferson James and remains the only arts organization in the Tri-State dedicated to promoting and presenting contemporary dance.  CDT operates a dance studio and performance space in the historic College Hill Town Hall, 1805 Larch Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio 45224.  For more information call (513) 591-1222 or visit www.cdt-dance.org.