On Friday, May 10th, Kansas City Ballet will embark on an incredible dance adventure. They’ve been preparing for months with rehearsals, costume fittings and the like. But with a title like Tharp / Parsons / Forsythe, there is room to wonder what to expect.
Each of these names belongs to a world renowned choreographer known for navigating uncharted dance territory—Legends of Dance. Here’s your chance to get to know them a bit before the curtain rises.
TWYLA THARP
Twyla Tharp was born on July 1, 1941 in Portland, Indiana to Lecile Tharp. Her mother was the first woman from Jay County, Indiana to have received a college degree. Since Ms. Tharp’s graduation from Barnard College in 1963, she has choreographed more than 160 works: 129 dances, 12 television specials, six Hollywood movies, four full-length ballets, four Broadway shows, and two figure skating routines. She has received one Tony Award; two Emmy Awards; 19 honorary doctorates, mostly recently from Harvard University; the Vietnam Veterans of America President’s Award; the 2004 National Medal of the Arts; the 2008 Jerome Robbins Prize; and a 2008 Kennedy Center Honor. Read More
DAVID PARSONS
David Parsons has enjoyed a remarkable career as a director, choreographer, performer, master teacher and producer. Raised in Kansas City, Mr. Parsons made it to New York at the age of 17 when he received a scholarship to the Alvin Ailey School. After Ailey, he became an understudy with the Paul Taylor Dance Company and then joined the company as a principal dancer. He stayed for eight years. During summers, he toured with MOMIX; he appeared with Mikhail Baryshnikov and Mark Morris in the first White Oak tour; and he launched his choreographic career by setting work on the Taylor Company and on the National Ballet of Canada, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Batsheva Dance Company, and the Paris Opera Ballet. Read More
WILLIAM FORSYTHE
William Forsythe has been active in the field of choreography for over 45 years. His work is acknowledged for reorienting the practice of ballet from its identification with classical repertoire to a dynamic 21st century art form. Mr. Forsythe’s deep interest in the fundamental principles of organization has led him to produce a wide range of projects including Installations, Films, and Web based knowledge creation. Raised in New York and initially trained in Florida with Nolan Dingman and Christa Long, Mr. Forsythe danced with the Joffrey Ballet and later the Stuttgart Ballet, where he was appointed Resident Choreographer in 1976. In 1984, he began a 20-year tenure as director of the Ballet Frankfurt. After its closure, Mr. Forsythe established a new ensemble, The Forsythe Company, which he directed from 2005 to 2015. His most recent works were developed and performed exclusively by The Forsythe Company, while his earlier pieces are prominently featured in the repertoire of virtually every major ballet company in the world, including The Mariinsky Ballet, The New York City Ballet and The Paris Opera Ballet. Read More
TICKETS
Tharp / Parsons / Forsythe runs May 10-19, 2019 at the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts. For tickets click here or call 816.931.8993.
Top Photo: KCB Dancers Amaya Rodriguez and Joshua Bodden. Photography by Kenny Johnson.
