.){kind=link}
[NoHo Arts District, CA] – On April 26, The Soraya presents LA Dances Graham100, showcasing nearly a century of pieces by the Martha Graham Dance Company (MGDC). The program features dynamic Los Angeles-based dancers from Lula Washington Dance Theatre, Glorya Kaufman School of Dance at USC, CSU Northridge, L.A. County High School for the Arts (LACHSA), and three soloists from MGDC. The seven-piece program covers a singular arc of MGDC history from 1932 to two anticipated 2025 world premiere Lamentation Variations pieces. The performance is part of The Soraya’s inaugural LA Seen festival, a monthlong series of programs dedicated to the performing arts in Los Angeles.
“This one-night performance at The Soraya is a true collaboration with Martha Graham Dance Company and its artistic director, Janet Eilber,” said Thor Steingraber, The Soraya’s Executive and Artistic Director. “Rarely seen masterpieces will come to life as dancers from across Los Angeles join for The Soraya’s second contribution to Graham100, celebrating America’s longest-running dance company. This centenary event features outstanding dancers from L.A.’s top dance companies, high schools, and universities, showcasing pieces from Martha Graham’s vast 180-piece catalog.”
When:
Saturday, April 26 | 8PM
Tickets:
Ticket Office: 818-677-3000
https://thesoraya.org/whats-on/en/la-dances-graham100
Where:
Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts (The Soraya)
18111 Nordhoff Street, Northridge, CA 91330
About the LA Dances Graham100 Program
The April 26 repertoire includes Panorama, El Penitente, Lamentation Variations, Satyric Festival Song, Conversation of Lovers, and Ritual to the Sun (Helios). Martha Graham Dance Company’s Lamentation Variations Project, initiated in 2007 to commemorate 9/11, involves contemporary choreographers creating short works inspired by a 1940 film of Martha Graham dancing Lamentation. Intended for a single performance, audience enthusiasm led to its addition to the company’s permanent repertory.
Two brand new Lamentation Variations will be presented: the Glorya Kaufman School of Dance at USC and Lula Washington Dance Theatre. A third Lamentation Variation created by Larry Keigwin in 2007 will be danced by performers from the CSUN School of Dance.
LA Dances Graham100 aligns with the second year of the company’s three-year celebration of its 100th anniversary, making it the oldest dance company in the United States.
“As part of our centennial we are trying to spread the Graham artistry far and wide, inviting professional (and student) dancers around the world to license a Graham ballet and perform it. So, there’s going to be a collection of them at The Soraya,” said MGDC Artistic Director Janet Eilber.
The program for the evening will include two of Martha Graham’s earliest solos Satyric Festival Song and Deep Song, in addition to El Penitente, Lamentation Variations, Panorama (previously performed at The Soraya) and will close on two pieces of Graham’s later work, Conversation of Lovers, and Ritual to the Sun (Helios).
About LA Seen
The April 26 LA Dances Graham100 performance is part of The Soraya’s first-ever LA Seen festival, which launches April 6 with GRAMMY©-winning jazz trumpeter and composer Terence Blanchard. Additional LA Seen festival performances include the return of downtown L.A.’s Colburn Orchestra with conductor Stéphane Denève on the podium (April 12), and The Soraya & ARTDONTSLEEP Present Adrian Younge Something About April with full orchestra (April 17).
About the Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for the Performing Arts (The Soraya)
The Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for The Performing Arts (The Soraya) is an award-winning, state-of-the-art 1,700-seat theatre designed and built by HGA Architects and Engineers and opened in January 2011 as the Valley Performing Arts Center (VPAC). Through a transformative gift by Younes and Soraya Nazarian, the venue was renamed The Soraya in 2017. Vibrant programming has served to establish The Soraya as the intellectual and cultural heart of the San Fernando Valley and its 1.8 million residents and as one of the top arts and culture venues in Southern California. Since its inaugural season, The Soraya has presented over 500 artists and companies across the genres of music, dance, theater, and film and is a highly in-demand location for filming and rental events.
The Soraya’s 2024-25 Season boldly advances the expansive sound of orchestras both traditional and contemporary; the freestyle vibe of jazz; an array of dance luminaries, and a cultural bounty drawn from the musical well of global voices. The Soraya continues its vigorous commitment to innovating, excelling, and amplifying access by offering a wide variety of performances that reflect Los Angeles’ many distinctive communities and featuring new and original work and artists from the local region as well as nationally and around the world.
Located on the vibrant campus of California State University Northridge (CSUN), The Soraya and the Mike Curb College of Arts, Media, and Communication share an integral link that enhances student access and opportunities in the arts and performing arts. A $5 million contribution from record producer and former California Lieutenant Governor Mike Curb was pivotal in ensuring the completion and opening of The Soraya in 2011. For his founding support and in acknowledgment of the integral relationship between the Mike Curb College and The Soraya, Mike Curb is recognized as one of The Soraya’s Cornerstone Benefactors. This partnership fosters academic and artistic excellence, elevating the talents and the future growth of CSUN’s students through master classes, student tickets, concerts of student ensembles, and students appearing alongside renowned artists such as Wynton Marsalis, Aida Cuevas, and Martha Graham Dance Company.