PAUL TAYLOR DANCE COMPANY
“The American spirit soars whenever Taylor’s dancers dance.” – San Francisco Chronicle
The Paul Taylor Dance Company, established in 1954, is one of the world’s most highly respected and sought-after ensembles. Dance maker Paul Taylor first presented his choreography with five other dancers in Manhattan on May 30,1954. That modest performance marked the beginning of nearly 60 years of unrivalled creativity, and in the decades that followed, Mr. Taylor became a cultural icon and one of history’s most celebrated artists, hailed as part of the pantheon that created American modern dance.
The Paul Taylor Dance Company and Taylor 2, created in 1993, have traveled the globe many times over, bringing Mr. Taylor’s ever-burgeoning repertoire to theaters and venues of every size and description in cultural capitals, on college campuses and in rural communities – and often to places modern dance had never been before. The Taylor Company has performed in more than 520 cities in 62 countries, representing the United States at arts festivals in more than 40 countries and touring extensively under the aegis of the U.S. Department of State. In 1997 the Company toured throughout India in celebration of that nation’s 50th Anniversary. Its 1999 engagement in Chile was named the Best International Dance Event of 1999 by the country’s Art Critics’ Circle. In the summer of 2001 the Company toured in the People’s Republic of China and performed in six cities, four of which had never seen American modern dance before. In the spring of 2003 the Company mounted an award-winning four-week, seven-city tour of the United Kingdom. The Company’s performances in China in November 2007 mark its fourth tour there.
While continuing to garner international acclaim, the Paul Taylor Dance Company performs more than half of each touring season in cities throughout the United States. The Company’s New York City season in 2005, more than 25,000 people attended marking its Anniversary. In celebration of the Anniversary and 50 years of creativity by one of the most extraordinary artists the world has ever known, the Taylor Foundation presented Mr. Taylor’s works in all 50 States between March 2004 and November 2005. That tour underscored the Taylor Company’s historic role as one of the early touring companies of American modern dance. The 50th Anniversary celebration also featured a quartet of new dances.
In 2012 the Company enjoyed a triumphant three-week season in its new New York City performance venue, the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center. Beginning with its first television appearance for the Dance in America series in 1978, the Paul Taylor Dance Company has appeared on PBS in nine different programs, including the 1992 Emmy Award-winning Speaking in Tongues and The Wrecker’s Ball—including Company B, Funny Papers, and A Field of Grass—which was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1997. In 1999 the PBS American Masters series aired Dancemaker, the Academy Award nominated documentary about Mr. Taylor and his Company. In 2004, PBS aired Acts of Ardor, featuring Black Tuesday and Promethean Fire.
The Paul Taylor Dance Company makes its Winnipeg debut November 13-15, 2015. Don’t miss out on three powerful works by “the greatest choreographer alive” (The New York Times).