Adam Darius
Encyclopedia
Adam Darius is an American dancer, mime artist
, writer and choreographer. As a performer, he has appeared in over 85 countries across six continents. As a writer, he has published 14 books and written 22 plays.
In a program devoted to his career, the BBC World Service described him as "one of the most exceptional talents of the 20th century".
Adam Darius currently lives in Espoo
, Finland.
, New York City, into a family of Turkish
and Russian
ancestry.
and José Limón
.
His professional career began in 1946 with appearances at New York's Metropolitan Opera House, and then with numerous ballet companies including Britain's International Ballet (1953), Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet
(1954), and Denmark's Scandinavian Ballet (1962). He was also choreographer of the Israel National Opera (1963–1964), where he choreographed four operas for opera star Plácido Domingo
; (Don Giovanni, Carmen, La Traviata and The Pearl Fishers, all of which premièred at the Israel National Opera in Tel-Aviv in 1963). From 1964-1966, Adam Darius was the director of his own company, the Israeli Ballet.
Principal ballets:
In the years that followed he toured many countries, including: South Africa (1970); the Soviet Union (1971); the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and Australia (1971); Syria, Iran and Afghanistan (1976); Japan (1984); and Greenland (1998).
Adam Darius' concept of physical theatre
was also realized in the London productions of Yukio Mishima (1991), Rimbaud and Verlaine (1992) and Tower of Babel (1993) , in collaboration with Kazimir Kolesnik. Among their further joint productions was A Snake in the Grass, presented in Amman, Jordan (2001) and acknowledged with the Noor Al Hussein Award.
founded the Mime Centre in London. In Britain he has taught, among others, mime artist, dancer and director, Kazimir Kolesnik, rock star Kate Bush
, Hollywood film star Kate Beckinsale
, and West End principal Warren Mitchell
.
Mime artist
A mime artist is someone who uses mime as a theatrical medium or as a performance art, involving miming, or the acting out a story through body motions, without use of speech. In earlier times, in English, such a performer was referred to as a mummer...
, writer and choreographer. As a performer, he has appeared in over 85 countries across six continents. As a writer, he has published 14 books and written 22 plays.
In a program devoted to his career, the BBC World Service described him as "one of the most exceptional talents of the 20th century".
Adam Darius currently lives in Espoo
Espoo
Espoo is the second largest city and municipality in Finland. The population of the city of Espoo is . It is part of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area along with the cities of Helsinki, Vantaa, and Kauniainen. Espoo shares its eastern border with Helsinki and Vantaa, while enclosing Kauniainen....
, Finland.
Biography
Adam Darius was born in ManhattanManhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, New York City, into a family of Turkish
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
and Russian
Russians
The Russian people are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Russia, speaking the Russian language and primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries....
ancestry.
Ballet career
Adam Darius began his ballet and contemporary dance training in 1945, at the age of 14, and went on to study with, among others, Anatole Oboukhov, George Goncharov, Olga PreobrajenskaOlga Preobrajenska
Olga Iosifovna Preobrajenska was probably the best loved ballerina of the Russian Imperial Ballet....
and José Limón
José Limón
José Arcadio Limón was a pioneer in the field of modern dance and choreography. In 1928, at age 20, he moved to New York City where he studied under Doris Humphrey and Charles Weidman. In 1946, Limón founded the José Limón Dance Company...
.
His professional career began in 1946 with appearances at New York's Metropolitan Opera House, and then with numerous ballet companies including Britain's International Ballet (1953), Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet
Royal Winnipeg Ballet
The Royal Winnipeg Ballet, based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, is Canada's oldest ballet company and the longest continuously operating ballet company in North America....
(1954), and Denmark's Scandinavian Ballet (1962). He was also choreographer of the Israel National Opera (1963–1964), where he choreographed four operas for opera star Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo
Plácido Domingo KBE , born José Plácido Domingo Embil, is a Spanish tenor and conductor known for his versatile and strong voice, possessing a ringing and dramatic tone throughout its range...
; (Don Giovanni, Carmen, La Traviata and The Pearl Fishers, all of which premièred at the Israel National Opera in Tel-Aviv in 1963). From 1964-1966, Adam Darius was the director of his own company, the Israeli Ballet.
Principal ballets:
- Pierrot the Wanderer - Choreographed for American prima ballerina Melissa HaydenMelissa Hayden (dancer)Melissa Hayden was a Canadian ballerina at the New York City Ballet.-Early life:...
and premièred at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) in Toronto, Canada in 1955. - Quartet - Choreographed for American prima ballerina Cynthia GregoryCynthia GregoryCynthia Kathleen Gregory is an American ballerina.-Career:Born in Los Angeles, Gregory’s parents encouraged her to take up dancing when she was five, hoping exercise would stem a history of childhood illnesses. By age six, she was en pointe...
and premièred at the San Gabriel Mission Playhouse, California in 1958. - The Anne Frank Ballet - Premièred in Long Beach, California in 1959. Produced for Italian Television in 1967. Released as a video in 1989, in which Mr Darius danced the role of Anne FrankAnne FrankAnnelies Marie "Anne" Frank is one of the most renowned and most discussed Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Acknowledged for the quality of her writing, her diary has become one of the world's most widely read books, and has been the basis for several plays and films.Born in the city of Frankfurt...
’s father, Otto Frank. - Marilyn - A ballet based on the life of Marilyn MonroeMarilyn MonroeMarilyn Monroe was an American actress, singer, model and showgirl who became a major sex symbol, starring in a number of commercially successful motion pictures during the 1950s....
, which ran for five weeks at the Arts TheatreArts TheatreThe Arts Theatre is a theatre in Great Newport Street, in Westminster, Central London. It now operates as the West End's smallest commercial receiving house.-History:...
in London's West EndWest End theatreWest End theatre is a popular term for mainstream professional theatre staged in the large theatres of London's 'Theatreland', the West End. Along with New York's Broadway theatre, West End theatre is usually considered to represent the highest level of commercial theatre in the English speaking...
in February 1975. - FirebirdThe FirebirdThe Firebird is a 1910 ballet created by the composer Igor Stravinsky and choreographer Michel Fokine. The ballet is based on Russian folk tales of the magical glowing bird of the same name that is both a blessing and a curse to its captor....
- Choreographed to Stravinsky's music. Presented by the Las Vegas Civic Ballet at the Reed Whipple Cultural Center, Las Vegas, in April 1986.
Expressive mime
In 1967, Adam Darius broke away from the traditional world of ballet and premièred his own fusion of dance and mime, described as 'expressive mime', at the Spoleto Festival in Italy and at the Arts Lab in London.In the years that followed he toured many countries, including: South Africa (1970); the Soviet Union (1971); the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and Australia (1971); Syria, Iran and Afghanistan (1976); Japan (1984); and Greenland (1998).
Adam Darius' concept of physical theatre
Physical theatre
Physical theatre is used to describe any mode of performance that pursues storytelling or drama through primarily and secondarily physical and mental means. There are several quite distinct but indistinct traditions of performance which all describe themselves using the term "physical theatre",...
was also realized in the London productions of Yukio Mishima (1991), Rimbaud and Verlaine (1992) and Tower of Babel (1993) , in collaboration with Kazimir Kolesnik. Among their further joint productions was A Snake in the Grass, presented in Amman, Jordan (2001) and acknowledged with the Noor Al Hussein Award.
Teaching
In 1978, Adam Darius and Marita CrawleyMarita Crawley
Marita Georgina Phillips , a British songwriter and playwright, was born the third daughter of Lt.-Col. Harold Pedro Joseph Phillips and his wife, Georgina Wernher, who was the elder daughter and co-heiress of Sir Harold Wernher, 3rd Bt, by his wife Countess Anastasia de Torby...
founded the Mime Centre in London. In Britain he has taught, among others, mime artist, dancer and director, Kazimir Kolesnik, rock star Kate Bush
Kate Bush
Kate Bush is an English singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. Her eclectic musical style and idiosyncratic vocal style have made her one of the United Kingdom's most successful solo female performers of the past 30 years.In 1978, at the age of 19, Bush topped the UK Singles Chart...
, Hollywood film star Kate Beckinsale
Kate Beckinsale
Kathryn Bailey "Kate" Beckinsale is an English actress. After some minor television roles, she made her film debut in Much Ado About Nothing while still a student at Oxford University...
, and West End principal Warren Mitchell
Warren Mitchell
Warren Mitchell is an English actor who rose to initial prominence in the role of bigoted cockney Alf Garnett in the BBC television sitcom Till Death Us Do Part , and its sequels Till Death... and In Sickness and in Health , all of which were written by Johnny Speight...
.
Books by Adam Darius
| Author | # | Year | Title | Pages | Publisher | City | ISBN | Genre |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Darius, Adam | 1 | 1973 | Dance Naked in the Sun | 325 | Latonia Publishers | London | ISBN 0950270709 | Autobiography |
| Darius, Adam | 2 | 1978 | The Way to Timbuktu | 276 | Latonia Publishers | London | ISBN 0950270717 | Autobiography |
| Darius, Adam | 3 | 1984 | The Adam Darius Method | 270 | Latonia Publishers | London | ISBN 0950270725 | Teaching Books |
| Darius, Adam | 4 | 1988 | The Man Who Spat at Fate | 251 | Latonia Publishers | London | ISBN 0950270733 | Novel |
| Darius, Adam | 5 | 1991 | The Guru | 115 | Latonia Publishers | London | ISBN 0950270741 | Philosophy |
| Darius, Adam | 6 | 1996 | The Commedia Dell' Arte | 97 | Kolesnik Production OY | Helsinki | ISBN 9529071884 | Teaching Books |
| Darius, Adam | 7 | 1998 | Acting - A Psychological and Technical Approach | 208 | Kolesnik Production OY | Helsinki | ISBN 952909146X | Teaching Books |
| Darius, Adam | 8 | 2000 | Audition Monologues | 128 | Kolesnik Production OY | Helsinki | ISBN 9519823204 | Teaching Books |
| Darius, Adam | 9 | 2003 | Double Existence | 202 | Kolesnik Production OY | Helsinki | ISBN 9519823212 | Novel |
| Darius, Adam | 10 | 2004 | A Nomadic Life | 250 | Kolesnik Production OY | Helsinki | ISBN 9519823220 | Autobiography |
| Darius, Adam | 11 | 2005 | When Your Dog Dies | 63 | Kolesnik Production OY | Helsinki | ISBN 9519823239 | Animal Welfare |
| Darius, Adam | 12 | 2007 | Arabesques Through Time | 407 | Harlequinade Books | Helsinki | ISBN 9519823247 | Autobiography |
| Darius, Adam | 13 | 2009 | Death in Damascus | n/a | e-book | n/a | ISBN 9789529254767 | Novel |
| Darius, Adam | 14 | 2011 | The Passion of Black Jesus | n/a | e-book | n/a | ISBN 9789529267521 | Novel |
Honours and awards
- 1976: Silver medallion of the Belgrade Monodrama Festival (Yugoslavia)
- 1976: Honorary membership of the North Sumatran Community (Indonesia)
- 1978: American Television Emmy (US)
- 1984: Premio Positano Léonide Massine Per L'arte Della Danza (Italy)
- 1987: Key to the City of Las Vegas (US)
- 1998: Shetland Dance and Mime Award (UK)
- 2001: Noor Al Hussein Foundation Award (Jordan)
- 2002: Beirut Festival du Rire Trophy (Lebanon)
- 2003: Noor Al Hussein Foundation Award (Jordan)
- 2009: Order of Luis Manuel Gutiérrez (Venezuela)
International performances since January 2000
Unless marked as being a SOLO performance, all shows were given in partnership with Kazimir Kolesnik.| Year | Month | Country | City | Venue | Repertoire | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | April | Jordan | Amman | Royal Cultural Centre | Resurrection | |
| 2000 | July | Croatia | Dubrovnik | Dubrovnik Festival Dubrovnik Summer Festival The Dubrovnik Summer Festival In a unique ambient of open and closed scenes of Renaissance-Baroque city of Dubrovnik a rich programme of classical music, theatre, opera and dance is presented.-External links:*... |
Resurrection | |
| 2000 | August | Finland | Oulu | Oulu Music Festival Theatre Oulu Music Video Festival Founded in 1994, Oulu Music Video Festival is an annual festival of music video, cinema, live music, and air guitar world championships, held in Oulu, Finland.- External links :* *... |
Pierrot in Exile | |
| 2000 | Nov. | Turkey | Istanbul | Atatürk Cultural Center Atatürk Cultural Center Atatürk Cultural Center , called also simply as AKM, is a multi-purpose cultural center located in Taksim Square of Istanbul, Turkey... |
Selected solos | SOLO |
| 2001 | Jan/Feb | Jordan | Amman | Baccalaureate School Theatre | A Snake in the Grass | |
| 2001 | April | Turkey | Istanbul | Aksanat Cultural Centre | Resurrection | |
| 2001 | Sept. | Morocco | Casablanca | International Theatre Festival | Resurrection | |
| Rabat | Salle Bahnini | Resurrection | ||||
| 2001 | Nov. | Finland | Helsinki | Q-Teatteri | James Dean | As director |
| 2002 | June | Slovakia | Bratislava | Pantomime Festival | Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2002 | July | Lebanon | Beirut | Festival du Rire | Highlight repertoire | |
| 2003 | Feb. | Russia | St. Petersburg | Okryty Theatre | Highlight repertoire | |
| 2003 | May | Italy | Turin | Teatro Gobetti | Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2003 | Sept. | Jordan | Amman | Royal Cultural Centre | Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2004 | March | New Zealand | Christchurch | Hagley Community College Hagley Community College Hagley Community College, is a non-integrated state secondary school in inner-city Christchurch, New Zealand.Prior to 1965 the school was Christchurch West High School, which was founded in 1858.... |
Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2004 | April | Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur | Malaysian National Theatre Istana Budaya The Istana Budaya or The Palace of Culture, founded in September 1999, is Malaysia's main venue for all types of theatre including musical theater, operetta, classical concert and opera from local and international performances... |
Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2004 | August | Malta | Valetta | Saint James Cavalier Centre Saint James Cavalier St. James Cavalier is Malta's Millennium Project- A Centre for Creativity. St. James, one of two Cavaliers built out of the originally projected nine, by the Knights of Malta... |
Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2004 | Nov. | Syria | Damascus | Al-Kabbani Theatre | Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2005 | Feb. | Syria | Damascus | Finnish/Jordanian Festival, Al-Assad Opera House Damascus Opera House Damascus Opera House is the national opera house of Syria. It is located in central Damascus, on the Umayyad Square. It was inaugurated on May 7, 2004.-History:... |
Fusion | With company |
| 2005 | August | Turkey | Istanbul | Sultan's Palace | Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2006 | Feb. | Portugal | Porto | Serralves Foundation | Yukio Mishima | With company |
| Ponte del Lima | Teatro Diogo Bernardes Teatro Diogo Bernardes The Teatro Diogo Bernardes is a theatre and opera house in Ponte de Lima, Portugal, is an Italian-style theatre built in 1893 and inaugurated in 1896. The theatre was completelly renewed in 1999, and sits currently 310 spectators. The Teatro Diogo Bernardes is home of the Ponte de Lima Festival of... |
Yukio Mishima | With company | |||
| 2006 | May | Ukraine | Kiev | TYS Theatre; Suzirie Theatre | Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2006 | Dec. | Argentina | Rosario | Teatro del Rayo; Centro Cultural Lavarden | Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2007 | Oct. | Armenia | Yerevan | High Fest Theatre Festival | Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2007 | Dec. | Macedonia | Skopje | Macedonian Academy of Science and Arts | Dance: A Bridge between Cultures | UNESCO UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations... sponsored lecture |
| 2008 | Feb. | Egypt | Alexandria | Bibliotheca Alexandrina | Tears of a Clown | |
| 2009 | Jan. | Finland | Espoo | Sellosali | Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2009 | March | Macedonia | Skopje | Macedonian National Theatre | Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2009 | Oct. | Venezuela | Isla de Margarita | Teatro Simon Bolivar | Selected solos | SOLO |
| 2009 | Nov. | Finland | Espoo | Sellosali | Tears of a Clown | |
| 2010 | May | Bosnia & Herzogovina | Sarajevo | Teaterfest | Death of a Scarecrow | |
| 2010 | Nov. | Nepal | Kathmandu | Kathmandu International Theatre Festival | Basho - A Windswept Spirit | |