71 replies to this topic

[Kathleen O'Connell]

Claudia la Rocco has posted an interview with Lourdes Lopez regarding Morphoses future on her WNYC Performance Club blog. In it, Lopez fleshes out her planned "curatorial model" with a bit of detail.  There's also a link to a WQXR "Artsfile on Line" interview of La Rocco regarding Wheeldon's departure from Morphoses and the company's porspects now that he's gone.

[bart]

Bumping this up, here's another Times article, courtesy of dirac's Links forum.  It's in the print edition of the Sunday Times.

Thanks, dirac.

Quote

A preview of Morphoses' engagement at the Joyce by Claudia La Rocco in The New York Times.

http://www.nytimes.c...rges-ahead.html

Quote

This  new approach reflects Ms. Lopez's desire to find a sustainable  framework for generating new work. But whether the company will develop a  viable or truly innovative alternative to established models remains an  open question, as Ms. Lopez readily acknowledges.

The support and excitement engendered by the first Morphoses (pronounced  MORE-pho-zees) is notably muted now, and the company's long-term  outlook remains uncertain. Its annual budget is a little under $500,000,  down from $1.2 million during Mr. Wheeldon's final year, and the  company still needs to close a $275,000 gap for this year. There are no  gigs booked beyond the Joyce, though Ms. Lopez said she is in  discussions with several European festivals.

[Kathleen O'Connell]

bart, on 24 October 2011 - 05:32 AM, said:

Bumping this up, here's another Times article, courtesy of dirac's Links forum.  It's in the print edition of the Sunday Times.

Thanks, dirac.

Quote

A preview of Morphoses' engagement at the Joyce by Claudia La Rocco in The New York Times.

http://www.nytimes.c...rges-ahead.html

Quote

This  new approach reflects Ms. Lopez's desire to find a sustainable  framework for generating new work. But whether the company will develop a  viable or truly innovative alternative to established models remains an  open question, as Ms. Lopez readily acknowledges.

The support and excitement engendered by the first Morphoses (pronounced  MORE-pho-zees) is notably muted now, and the company's long-term  outlook remains uncertain. Its annual budget is a little under $500,000,  down from $1.2 million during Mr. Wheeldon's final year, and the  company still needs to close a $275,000 gap for this year. There are no  gigs booked beyond the Joyce, though Ms. Lopez said she is in  discussions with several European festivals.

I found this particularly interesting:

Quote

What it is now is something of an experiment. Ms. Lopez does not intend  to hire a permanent replacement for Mr. Wheeldon. Instead, she sits  alone at the helm, operating under a curatorial model of sorts. The plan  is to rotate in a new resident artistic director each year, with each  tenure revolving around a single, collaborative project. (The Swedish  choreographer Pontus Lidberg is to follow Mr. Veggetti and will create a  live companion piece to his 2010 dance film "Labyrinth Within"; Ms. Lopez is in talks with two theater directors for the third year.        

...


Once "Bacchae" and subsequent works are completed, the goal is to  license them to other companies. Beyond generating income for Morphoses,  this allows for the projects to have a life outside of a short New York  run. It also bolsters the repertories of other companies that are  seeking to attract new audiences but can't or won't take the full  financial risk of generating less traditional, interdisciplinary  projects. [emphasis mine]  

I'm pulling for her.

[ViolinConcerto]

I was particularly interested in this portion:

Quote

The Thursday performance of “Bacchae” will be live-streamed free to an East Village bistro, Zaitzeff, and to the Casita Maria Center for Arts and Education, a community organization in the South Bronx, to make the company accessible to a larger audience. Ms. Lopez said she felt strongly about this effort, despite criticism from colleagues.

“I’ve gotten a lot of flak: ‘This is not sports,’ or ‘If you’re offering it for free, people won’t come to the show,’ ” she said. “I’m really tired of people talking about how fragile dance is. It’s powerful. Where would I be as a Cuban immigrant if I hadn’t found it?”

I think that since they are aiming for a younger, more offbeat/artsy/alternative audience, that's a good idea, akin to the beginnings of the Metropolitan Opera's radio broadcasts, which have been going on for years and years.    The work may not appeal to ballet traditionalists, but she'll be opening a door to new viewers.  The Joyce is so small that she needs to widen the company's reach, and live streaming is a good way to do it.

[sandik]

ViolinConcerto, on 24 October 2011 - 09:19 AM, said:

  The Joyce is so small that she needs to widen the company's reach, and live streaming is a good way to do it.

And the company is unusual enough that this kind of simultaneous feed doesn't feel as radical as it might if this were another group.

It occurs to me that, while there's usually a blackout on television broadcast of sports events in the same city where they're happening, if the game sells out sometimes they lift the ban -- they're already got as many people into the arena as they're going to get, why not get some broadcast visibility as well (not to mention the ad revenue)

[Kathleen O'Connell]

sandik, on 24 October 2011 - 01:36 PM, said:

ViolinConcerto, on 24 October 2011 - 09:19 AM, said:

  The Joyce is so small that she needs to widen the company's reach, and live streaming is a good way to do it.

And the company is unusual enough that this kind of simultaneous feed doesn't feel as radical as it might if this were another group.

It occurs to me that, while there's usually a blackout on television broadcast of sports events in the same city where they're happening, if the game sells out sometimes they lift the ban -- they're already got as many people into the arena as they're going to get, why not get some broadcast visibility as well (not to mention the ad revenue)

The Metropolitan Opera doesn't appear to be too concerned about its live HD broadcasts cannibalizing the theater audience: you can catch one of the live HD broadcasts in at least 7 theaters in Manhattan plus several others in the outer boroughs.

I'm glad Morphoses is giving a live feed a try.

[miliosr]

http://www.nytimes.c...l?_r=1&ref=arts

And so, despite what Lopez says, Morphoses dies an ignominious death, unloved and unmourned by anyone . . .

[Kathleen O'Connell]

miliosr, on 03 April 2012 - 04:57 PM, said:

http://www.nytimes.c...l?_r=1&ref=arts

And so, despite what Lopez says, Morphoses dies an ignominious death, unloved and unmourned by anyone . . .

Well, I'm mourning them, though I'm not convinced they're dead yet: here's what I posted in the MCB thread:

Quote

An MCB / Morphoses partnership -- I wonder how that would work? Morphoses still a laboratory for new dance run on a "curatorial" model, but now with a more-or-less stable roster of dancers recruited from MCB during the off season, with performances scheduled for venues outside of Florida? A run at Aspen, a week at the Joyce, etc ...

Deep in my heart-of-hearts I was hoping that Morphoses would somehow turn into the Lyon Opera Ballet. The "Bacchae" Luca Veggetti did for them was a misfire, but I'm grateful that it introduced me to some terrific dancers I didn't know (especially Frances Chiaverini).

[cubanmiamiboy]

ViolinConcerto, on 24 October 2011 - 09:19 AM, said:

"I'm really tired of people talking about how fragile dance is. It's powerful. Where would I be as a Cuban immigrant if I hadn't found it?"

Perhaps in Congress , just as Ross-Lethinnen and Diaz-Balart..?

[bart]

Just want to make it clear that the statement "Where would I be as a Cuban immigrant" was made by Lourdes Lopez.  Violin Concerto was merely quoting it.

[abatt]

My understanding is that Wheeldon left Morphoses because of a "falling out" with Lopez, as stated in the article.  Is it possible that Wheeldon might re-engage with Morphoses if Lopez leaves to take over Miami City?

[sandik]

abatt, on 04 April 2012 - 06:30 PM, said:

My understanding is that Wheeldon left Morphoses because of a "falling out" with Lopez, as stated in the article.  Is it possible that Wheeldon might re-engage with Morphoses if Lopez leaves to take over Miami City?

My intuition is that he would have to come in with an administrator as well, who was willing to do the promotion/production/fundraising work that any small non-profit needs, particularly one with an up and down history like Morphoses.

But even beyond that, they would need to establish a strong artistic direction for the group -- I don't know that it would really fly if it's the place that Wheeldon works sometimes, when he's not making work elsewhere...