Nederlands Dans Theatre
Encyclopedia
Nederlands Dans Theater (NDT; literal translation, Netherlands Dance Theatre) is a Dutch contemporary dance
company
. NDT is headquartered at the Lucent Danstheater in The Hague
. In addition to the Lucent Danstheater, NDT performs at other venues in the Netherlands, including Amsterdam
's Het Muziektheater and Nijmegen's Stadsschouwburg.
, Aart Verstegen and Carel Birnie together with a group of 18 members of the Dutch National Ballet (which was directed by Sonia Gaskell). Their intention was to break away from the more traditionally oriented Dutch National Ballet
(Het Nederlands Ballet). NDT focused onto new ideas and experimentation with the exploration of new forms and techniques of dance.
In 1961 the Nederlands Dans Theater got subsidy from the city of The Hague and from the government.
In the 1960s the NDTs repertoire comprised classical dance with a strong influence by American modern dance. The NDT got unprecedented recognition and success with the guidance of different persons like Hans van Manen
and Jiří Kylián
as artistic directors. In the first years of the 1970s there was no clear policy because of various conflicts within the board of the NDT. That changed when in 1975 Jirí Kylian entered the board as artistic leader.
The Nederlands Dans Theater is based in the Lucent Danstheater at the Spui in The Hague since 1987.
Many of the founding NDT dancers have made their mark on Dutch ballet and dance:
The first group of dancers also included:
, Lukáš Timulak, Marco Goecke, Medhi Walerski, Ohad Naharin, Tero Saarinen, Wayne McGregor
and William Forsythe
.
, Mats Ek
, William Forsythe
and Ohad Naharin
.
, Ohad Naharin
, Mats Ek
, William Forsythe
, and Crystal Pite
. Both NDT I as II tour in the Netherlands and abroad with various shows.
Contemporary dance
Contemporary dance is a genre of concert dance that employs compositional philosophy, rather than choreography, to guide unchoreographed movement...
company
Dance company
A dance troupe or dance company is a group of dancers and associated personnel who work together to perform dances as a spectacle or entertainment.-Members:*Artistic Director*Choreographers*Dancers*Board of Directors*Education administrator...
. NDT is headquartered at the Lucent Danstheater in The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
. In addition to the Lucent Danstheater, NDT performs at other venues in the Netherlands, including Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
's Het Muziektheater and Nijmegen's Stadsschouwburg.
Founders
NDT was founded in 1959 by Benjamin HarkarvyBenjamin Harkarvy
Benjamin Harkarvy was an American dance teacher, choreographer, and artistic director...
, Aart Verstegen and Carel Birnie together with a group of 18 members of the Dutch National Ballet (which was directed by Sonia Gaskell). Their intention was to break away from the more traditionally oriented Dutch National Ballet
Dutch National Ballet
Dutch National Ballet was formed in 1961 when the Amsterdams Ballet and the Nederlands Ballet merged. The company has been directed by Sonia Gaskell , Rudi van Dantzig , Wayne Eagling and is currently directed by Ted Brandsen. It is the largest dance company in the Netherlands and attracts many...
(Het Nederlands Ballet). NDT focused onto new ideas and experimentation with the exploration of new forms and techniques of dance.
In 1961 the Nederlands Dans Theater got subsidy from the city of The Hague and from the government.
In the 1960s the NDTs repertoire comprised classical dance with a strong influence by American modern dance. The NDT got unprecedented recognition and success with the guidance of different persons like Hans van Manen
Hans van Manen
Hans van Manen is a Dutch ballet dancer, choreographer and photographer.He is a son of a German housemaid. He studied under Sonia Gaskell, Françoise Adret and Nora Kiss. Van Manen wrote many ballets. He worked for the Dutch National Ballet from 1973 to 1985. He was awarded the Erasmus Prize in...
and Jiří Kylián
Jiří Kylián
Jiří Kylián is a Czech dance choreographer.Kylián studied in Prague and, at the age of 20, won a scholarship at the Royal Ballet School in London. He joined the Stuttgart Ballet in 1968 and worked under John Cranko, where he began to choreograph. Kylián became Artistic Director of Nederlands Dans...
as artistic directors. In the first years of the 1970s there was no clear policy because of various conflicts within the board of the NDT. That changed when in 1975 Jirí Kylian entered the board as artistic leader.
The Nederlands Dans Theater is based in the Lucent Danstheater at the Spui in The Hague since 1987.
Many of the founding NDT dancers have made their mark on Dutch ballet and dance:
- Gérard Lemaître was knighted Order of Orange-NassauOrder of Orange-NassauThe Order of Orange-Nassau is a military and civil order of the Netherlands which was created on 4 April 1892 by the Queen regent Emma of the Netherlands, acting on behalf of her under-age daughter Queen Wilhelmina. The Order is a chivalry order open to "everyone who have earned special merits for...
by Queen Beatrix. He retired in 1982 but returned as dancer of the NDT III company till 2006. - Charles Czarny, Martinette Janmaat and Mabel Alter became well known ballet teachers at the conservatoires and dance academies in RotterdamRotterdamRotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
and AmsterdamAmsterdamAmsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population... - Martinette Janmaat was artistic director for the Contemporary dance department at the Nationale Ballet Academy in Amsterdam.
The first group of dancers also included:
- Willy de la Bije
- Aart Verstegen
- Jaap Flier
- Pepita Goedemans
- Mabel Alter
- Hannie van Leeuwen
- Annemarie Verhoeven
- Alexandra Radius
- Olga Dzialiner
- Marianne Westerdijk
- Hans van ManenHans van ManenHans van Manen is a Dutch ballet dancer, choreographer and photographer.He is a son of a German housemaid. He studied under Sonia Gaskell, Françoise Adret and Nora Kiss. Van Manen wrote many ballets. He worked for the Dutch National Ballet from 1973 to 1985. He was awarded the Erasmus Prize in...
- Rudi van DantzigRudi van DantzigRudi van Dantzig , is a Dutch choreographer, ballet dancer and writer. Since 1965 he has been co-artistic leader of Het Nationale Ballet . After Sonia Gaskell and his other colleague left in 1971, he was the only artistic leader until 1991...
- Hans van der Togt
- Han Ebbelaar
Artistic directors
- Benjamin HarkarvyBenjamin HarkarvyBenjamin Harkarvy was an American dance teacher, choreographer, and artistic director...
(1959–1969) as choreographerChoreographyChoreography is the art of designing sequences of movements in which motion, form, or both are specified. Choreography may also refer to the design itself, which is sometimes expressed by means of dance notation. The word choreography literally means "dance-writing" from the Greek words "χορεία" ...
and artistic co-directorArtistic directorAn artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company, that handles the organization's artistic direction. He or she is generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the organization is generally a non-profit organization...
(with Hans van Manen). He went on to be the co-director of the Dutch National Ballet and from 1992 he became the director of the Dance Division of The Juilliard SchoolJuilliard SchoolThe Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
in New York.
- Hans van ManenHans van ManenHans van Manen is a Dutch ballet dancer, choreographer and photographer.He is a son of a German housemaid. He studied under Sonia Gaskell, Françoise Adret and Nora Kiss. Van Manen wrote many ballets. He worked for the Dutch National Ballet from 1973 to 1985. He was awarded the Erasmus Prize in...
(1961–1970) He was connected to the NDT from 1960 till 1971 as a dancer (till 1963) and after that as a choreographer and artistic leader. He was also a freelancer at the Nationaal Ballet, as a choreographer. He came back in 1988 as house choreographer at the Nederlands Dans Theater. His repertoire comprises more than 110 ballets (two of which were written for the Nederlands Dans Theater).
- Jaap Flier (1970–1973) became the new artistic director. For this job he stopped dancing but once in a while he made choreographies himself.
- Hans Knill (1975–1977) has worked together for 2 years as artistic director with Jiří Kylián.
- Jiří KyliánJiří KyliánJiří Kylián is a Czech dance choreographer.Kylián studied in Prague and, at the age of 20, won a scholarship at the Royal Ballet School in London. He joined the Stuttgart Ballet in 1968 and worked under John Cranko, where he began to choreograph. Kylián became Artistic Director of Nederlands Dans...
(1975–2004), the second artistic director, brought unprecedented recognition and success to NDT. His time as artistic director was from 1975 to 1999 – after he stepped down as artistic director, he remained with NDT as chief choreographer and artistic adviser.
- Marian Sarstädt (1962-1972/1999-2004) has been a dancer and a staffmember of the artistic council as adjunct-director and she made a great contribution to the NDT.
- Anders Hellström (2004 to September 2009) trained at the Royal Swedish Ballet School and danced with the Royal Swedish BalletRoyal Swedish BalletThe Royal Swedish Ballet is one of the oldest ballet companies in Europe. Based in Stockholm, Sweden, King Gustav III founded the ballet in 1773 as a part of his national cultural project in response to the French and Italian dominance in this field; he also founded the Royal Swedish Opera and the...
and the Hamburg BalletHamburg BalletHamburg Ballet, also known as the Hamburg State Opera Ballet, is an internationally acclaimed ballet company located in Hamburg, Germany. Since 1973 it is directed by the American dancer and choreographer John Neumeier....
. He also danced with William Forsythe's Ballett Frankfurt from 1993-1999 before taking over as Artistic Director of Sweden's Goteburg Ballet.
- Jim Vincent (James Francis Vincent Jr.) (2009–2012) He danced for the NDT from 1978 till 1990. After that he went to Spain where he danced from 1990 till 1994 and he was the adjunct-director. After this he worked in Lyon (Opera ballet) and Disneyland Resort Paris (director "corporate and Special Events"). In 2000 he became artistic director of the Hubbard Street Dance Chicago. And in 2009 he became the artistic director of the NDT.
- Paul Lightfoot, who danced with NDT since 1985, and who is resident choreographer since 2002, has been appointed artistic director as of Januari 2012.
Resident choreographers
Jiří Kylián, Paul Lightfoot and Sol León (the two of them also referred to as Lightfoot León).Guest choreographers
The Nederlands Dans Theater collaborates a lot with renowned guest choreographers. For example: Hans van Manen, Johan Inger, Crystal PiteCrystal Pite
Canadian choreographer and performer Crystal Pite has created works for the Cullberg Ballet, Netherlands Dans Theater, Ballett Frankfurt, The National Ballet of Canada, Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal , Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, Ballet British Columbia, Alberta Ballet, Ballet Jorgen Canada, and...
, Lukáš Timulak, Marco Goecke, Medhi Walerski, Ohad Naharin, Tero Saarinen, Wayne McGregor
Wayne McGregor
Wayne McGregor CBE is a British choreographer of contemporary modern dance. His work is highly distinctive in its vocabulary of movement, for its integration of dance with film and visual art, and for his active interest and incorporation of computer technology and biological science...
and William Forsythe
William Forsythe (dancer)
William Forsythe is an American dancer and choreographer resident in Frankfurt am Main in Hessen. He is known internationally for his work with the Ballett Frankfurt and The Forsythe Company...
.
NDT I
Nederland Dans Theater I (30 dancers) was founded in 1959, and is highly successful all over the world. The dancers all have solo qualities and are not divided into categories. Besides works of Jiří Kylián and Lightfoot León the repertoire of Nederland Dans Theater I comprises a large number of works by internationally renowned choreographers such as Nacho DuatoNacho Duato
Juan Ignacio Duato Bárcia, also known as Nacho Duato is a Spanish modern ballet dancer and choreographer. After a long and successful career, he was selected by the Spanish Ministry of Culture and Education as the artistic director of the National Spanish Dance Company in June 1990...
, Mats Ek
Mats Ek
Mats Ek is a leading Swedish dance and ballet choreographer, dancer and stage director. He was the manager of the Cullberg Ballet from 1985 to 1993....
, William Forsythe
William Forsythe (dancer)
William Forsythe is an American dancer and choreographer resident in Frankfurt am Main in Hessen. He is known internationally for his work with the Ballett Frankfurt and The Forsythe Company...
and Ohad Naharin
Ohad Naharin
Ohad Naharin is an Israeli contemporary dancer, choreographer and dance company artistic director.-Biography:...
.
NDT II
Nederlands Dans Theater II (16 dancers) was founded in 1978 for dancers between 17 and 22. Alongside ballets by Hans van Manen and Jiří Kylián, much work by young choreographic talent is performed. As a true pioneer, the ensemble is constantly striving to give more room to new and brave initiatives.NDT III
By initiative of Jiří Kylián a new group was set up in 1991, especially for dancers of 40 years and older. This group became legendary in the dance world. But because there was not enough structural subsidy to keep up the activities of Nederlands Dans Theater III as a permanent part of the company, the management and Board of Nederlands Dans Theater decided in 2006 to discontinue Nederlands Dans Theater III in its current form. Plans to continue the group and realize new projects are being investigated.Repertoire
Besides works of Jiří Kylián and Lightfoot León the NDT performs works choreographed by Jacopo GodaniJacopo Godani
- Dance career :Jacopo Godani began studying classical ballet and modern dance techniques at the Centro studi Danza of La Spezia, under the direction of Loredana Rovagna...
, Ohad Naharin
Ohad Naharin
Ohad Naharin is an Israeli contemporary dancer, choreographer and dance company artistic director.-Biography:...
, Mats Ek
Mats Ek
Mats Ek is a leading Swedish dance and ballet choreographer, dancer and stage director. He was the manager of the Cullberg Ballet from 1985 to 1993....
, William Forsythe
William Forsythe (dancer)
William Forsythe is an American dancer and choreographer resident in Frankfurt am Main in Hessen. He is known internationally for his work with the Ballett Frankfurt and The Forsythe Company...
, and Crystal Pite
Crystal Pite
Canadian choreographer and performer Crystal Pite has created works for the Cullberg Ballet, Netherlands Dans Theater, Ballett Frankfurt, The National Ballet of Canada, Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal , Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, Ballet British Columbia, Alberta Ballet, Ballet Jorgen Canada, and...
. Both NDT I as II tour in the Netherlands and abroad with various shows.