Justin Allen
Stefanie Batten Bland
CHICAGO (November 5, 2013) – The Joffrey Academy
of Dance, Official School of The Joffrey Ballet, is pleased to announce
the winners of the third annual Choreographers of Color Award: Justin Allen, Stefanie Batten Bland and Norbert De La Cruz III. This announcement follows a national call for artists to submit applications, which began in July.
The
Choreographers of Color Award was created to recognize promising young
minority choreographers whose diverse perspective will ignite creativity
in the field of dance. Each of the three
selected choreographers will be given a minimum of 30 rehearsal hours to
set a new work on the Joffrey Academy Trainees. Each winning
choreographer will also receive a $2,500 stipend and an opportunity to
work directly with Joffrey Academy Artistic Directors, Alexei Kremnev and Anna Reznik. The three World Premieres will be presented in Winning Works: Choreographers of Color Awards 2014 at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, 205 E. Randolph Drive, in one performance only, Saturday, March 1, 2014 at 7:00 pm.
Joffrey
Ballet Artistic Director, Ashley Wheater stated: “Gesture and movement
likely preceded speech as the first form of human communication. Even
now, though we have developed languages as diverse as the people who
populate the earth, dance remains a ‘universal’ language. People from
all backgrounds dance, and communicate, without sharing words. Dance is
a powerful bridge. With Choreographers of Color, we celebrate all that
is different and all that is universal amongst us.”
Stefanie Batten Bland,
from New York City, adds to Mary Batten and Ed Bland's artistic legacy
of liertature and music with her own layer of dance. She has been
recognized as a 2010-12 Baryshnikov Arts Center Artist in Residence and a
Jerome Robbins "NEW Fellow," and a 2011-12 Cambridge Who’s Who of
Professionals and Entrepreneurs. Bland has danced for Bill T.
Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Pal Frenak, Georges Momboye, Pina Bausch
Tanz Theater Wuppertal, Lar Lubovitch, Julie Taymor and Angelin
Preljocaj, among others. She created Company Stefanie Batten Bland in
2008 in France so that she might better investigate the human condition
and our relationship within the natural world. Her works are based in
dance, with a strong instillation component which allows futuristic
worlds to take place in space and time. The troupe has performed live
and via dance cinema, throughout Europe, Asia, Africa and the States.
Bland has also set pieces on Ailey ll, Danceland of Singapore, Zenon
Dance Company of Minneapolis and is currently guest choreographer for
Transitions Dance Company of London.
Justin Allen was born
in Baltimore, Maryland and began his dance training at the Baltimore
School for the Arts. In 2004, he began his training at The Rock School
for Dance Education and completed his education in the Rock Academics
Program Alliance. From 2004 to 2008, he spent his summers training with
the Miami City Ballet School. In 2008, Allen received his first
opportunity to dance as a professional guest artist with The Dayton
Ballet, which led to him receiving his first professional contract. In
2009, he joined The Ballet Theatre of Maryland where he performed as a
soloist and in 2010 he became full time faculty and a choreographer at
The Rock School.
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