CONFIGURATION DANCE THEATRE American Contemporary Dance and Classical Ballet to “Break of Reality”

American contemporary dance montage presenting ballet scenes from the award winning and nationally recognized CONFIGURATION DANCE THEATRE, the people’s choice for 2008 and 2009 ARTVOICE BEST DANCE COMPANY AWARD, and features the song “Circles” by the New York Grammy bound cello rock group “Break of Reality,” and new choreography by resident, principal, and guest choreographers, solos, variations, pas de deux, duets, pas de trois, Michael Shannon’s “What’s the Pointe, Tchaicotic, Transfiguration, Awakenings;” Sacha Jane’s “Fascia La Spina;” Harrison McEldowney’s “En Redondo Sombras;” Yuri Zhukov’s “Levitation;” “Crumbling” by Edgar Zendejas.

ARTVOICE described Configuration Dance Theatre and its choreographers in “Balanchine and Beyond” (9/20/2009): “As their name implies, their emphasis widens the scope of dance and dramatic, a certain noir-ness, they lay bare emotions, startle senses, and make one think,” qualities DANCE MAGAZINE experts saw early, and gave CDT its descriptive moniker, “A LIVING ART GALLERY.”

CDT was featured in “DANCE SPECTACULAR” (9/22/09) by its producer, New York City Ballet star, Daniel Ulbricht, with Boston Ballet and New York City Ballet stars in “Apollo,” “Who Cares, “Diamond” and “Tarantella” authorized by the Balanchine Foundation, with Michael Shannon’s WHAT’S THE POINTE, Susan Jaffe’s ROYENNE, Joseph Cipolla’s BREATHLESS, “whose acclaimed company,” said Ulbricht, “is known for its cutting-edge contemporary choreography.”

After CDT premiered over 15 new ballets from 2005 to 2009, THE BUFFALO NEWS (1/02/09) named co-Founder, Artistic Director Joseph Cipolla, and Michael Shannon, Resident Choreographer, THE DREAM TEAM, respected from illustrious careers with legendary dance institutions, both principal stars for BIRMINGHAM ROYAL BALLET under the patronage of HRH Queen Elizabeth II, Prince of Wales, Lady Sarah Chatto, and Artistic Director, David Bintley.

Artistic Director Joseph Cipolla was a principal star for Dance Theatre of Harlem co-founders, Arthur Mitchell (New York City Ballet) and Karel Shook (Dutch National Ballet), Sadler’s Wells Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet for Artistic Directors Sir Peter Wright, David Bintley. He was a 1993 Lawrence Olivier Award Nominee; 2006 St. Joseph’s Collegiate Institute Wall of Honor Awardee; Artvoice Best Dance Company Award in 2008 and 2009, and co-founded Configuration School of Dance in 2009. He retired in 2002 but returned to BRB in 2007 to dance Nimrod in “Enigma Variations” and De Guiche in “Cyrano.”

Companies have premiered 40 Michael Shannon contemporary ballets since 1995, in addition to his plays, films and opera in Europe and USA. He has created 11 new works for CDT since 2005, and revised his “Yumeji” and “Madame Bovary” for CDT co-Founder, Catherine Batcheller, principal star for Stuttgart Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, who portrayed Emma Bovary with Momchil Mladenov, principal star for Suzanne Farrell Ballet, National Ballet of Bulgaria, as Léon Dupuis, literature’s most famous illicit lovers.

In 2007, Susan Jaffe, principal star for American Ballet Theatre, and guest artist for the Kirov, Vienna State Opera Ballet, Royal Swedish Opera Ballet, Royal Danish Ballet, Royal Ballet of Covent Garden, English National Ballet, Stuttgart Ballet, Munich State Opera Ballet, La Scala Ballet in Milan, Dance Magazine Awardee, author, actress, television host, educator, Advisor to ABT Board of Governing Trustees Chairman 2002-2007, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School faculty since 2002, and Duke Corporate Education Lecturer on Excellence, joined the CDT National Advisory Board and is the company’s Principal Guest Choreographer.

Michael Shannon danced (1979-2002) his last roles for Birmingham Royal Ballet as Lancelot in David Bintley’s “Arthur” and Prince Siegfried in Sir Peter Wright’s “Swan Lake. He was a principal star, and ballet competition judge for Bolshoi Ballet legends, Artistic Director Yuri Grigorovich; Stars of the Bolshoi for Maya Pliesetskaya, Madame Sophia Golovkina, Natalia Bessmertnova, Ekatrina Maximova, Vladimir Vasiliev; Vienna State Opera Ballet for Artistic Director Elena Tchernichova (ABT, Kirov); Kremlin Palace Ballet for Director Andrei Petrov, Vladimir Vasiliev, Ekatrina Maximova; and others, i.e., Royal Ballet 1979; Los Angeles Ballet 1980, American Ballet Theatre 1981; Boston Ballet 1983; National Ballet of Canada 1984; Royal Swedish Opera Ballet 1986; Hungarian State Opera Ballet; Awarded Silver Medals in Paris France 1992 and Budapest Hungary 1993 International Ballet Competitions; Honored by Town Hall of California 1986, 1990; President George H. W. Bush 1990, President William J. Clinton 1993; Best Play of 1995, “Monday After the Miracle” televised at the Moscow Art Theatre; Awarded Professor of Choreography, Ukrainian State Academy of Ballet 1999; 2008 YAGP Outstanding Choreographers Award; Artvoice Best Dance Company Award 2008 and 2009.

Duration : 0:5:53

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