World premiere of an NAC Dance co-production. Exclusive Canadian engagement.

The restless, inquiring mind of award-winning performer-creator Tedd Robinson—Artistic Director of 10 Gates Dancing, an NAC Associate Dance Artist, choreographer, educator and Ottawa favourite—has resulted in a catalogue of innovative work blazing with witty originality and extraordinary visual style.

Best known for his deeply personal solos, and most recently for the critically acclaimed Room and Sticks (created and performed with Ame Henderson and Charles Quevillon), Robinson now directs and performs in FACETS with seven outstanding young creative voices, each of whom has been inspired by decades of imagery from his vast repertoire.

Each of Tedd Robinson’s solos—Rokudo, Rigmarole and REDD—has three parts. Each deals with his personal history, the use of material as sculpture/movement, and the notion of balance as metaphor and risk-taking device. FACETS reflects these solos. The work essentially shatters a mirror reflecting his solos, examines and reassembles the shards, and creates a new mosaic of images.

FACETS was created in collaboration with Angie Cheng, James Gnam, Ame Henderson, Thierry Huard, Simon Renaud, and Riley Sims, with music created and performed live by Charles Quevillon. It will be performed in the Studio of the National Arts Centre on May 7-9 at 8 p.m. during the NAC’s Ontario Scene presented by OLG.

NOTE: may contain nudity.

ABOUT TEDD ROBINSON | 10 GATES DANCING
Tedd Robinson is best known for his idiosyncratic solo dance works, including the Chalmers Award winning Rokudo: six destinies in three steps. Robinson's choreography juxtaposes spiritually controlled movement with unexpected moments of sly, subtle humour. Born in Ottawa, Tedd Robinson graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts from York University, and studied at The School of The Toronto Dance Theatre and with eminent British visual theatre artist Lindsay Kemp. He first rose to prominence as Artistic Director of Contemporary Dancers in Winnipeg (1984-1990), where he created highly theatrical ensemble works. He returned to Ottawa in 1990 to pursue a solo career and study with Peter Boneham at Le Groupe Dance Lab, and became firmly established as a choreographer, mentor and solo artist whose critically acclaimed, award-winning works won him a multitude of commissions and an international touring and teaching schedule. Robinson’s work has been performed across Canada, China, Japan, Russia, Spain, Brazil, Mexico, and the United States. His collaborators have included artists such as Margie Gillis (2003-2014), Louise Lecavalier (2003-06), Ame Henderson (2011-2015) and composer/performer Charles Quevillon (2010-2015). Robinson is Artistic Director of 10 Gates Dancing Inc., a non-profit company formed in 1998 to promote the development and performance of contemporary dance creations. Between 2005 and 2012, Tedd Robinson took up residence in the Pontiac, Québec and established La B.A.R.N., an intimate venue for creation and performance. Through 10 Gates Dancing he created a series of works, and in 2009 won le Prix en art de la scène l’Avant-Première at the Culturiades de l’Outaouais. Since 2013, he also co-directs Centre Q: a centre for questioning. His work is influenced by his six years of study as a monk in the Hakukaze soto zen monastery, Ottawa. He is winner of the 2014 Walter Carsen Prize for Excellence in the Performing Arts, a founding member of Projet bk, and an Associate Dance Artist of the National Arts Centre. Asked by Canadian dance magazine The Dance Current to describe his dance aesthetic, Tedd Robinson replied, “ … it’s functional abstract theatrical imagistic narrative technical dance. It’s meant to be tongue in cheek – partly. I am looking for work that will blow my socks off but also touch me deeply in the heart first and then the head.”

 

ABOUT FACETS
FACETS (2015)
directed and ChoreographED BY Tedd Robinson
MUSIC Charles Quevillon
CHOREOGRAPHIC COLLABORATORS Angie Cheng, James Gnam, Ame Henderson, Thierry Huard, Simon Renaud, Riley Sims, and Charles Quevillon
LIGHTING DESIGN Paul Chambers

TICKETS AND PERFORMANCES
FACETS will be performed in the Studio of the National Arts Centre on Thursday May 7, Friday May 8, and Saturday May 9 at 8 p.m. Tickets are $31 for adults and $17.50 for students (upon presentation of a valid student ID card).

Groups of 10 or more save 15% to 20% off regular ticket prices; to reserve your seats, call 613 947-7000 x634, or e-mail grp@nac-cna.ca.

Tickets are available for purchase:

• in person at the NAC Box Office
• at all Ticketmaster outlets *
• by telephone from Ticketmaster, 1-888-991-2787 (ARTS)
• online through the Ticketmaster link on the NAC’s website (www.nac-cna.ca) *

* A service charge applies on all purchases made through Ticketmaster.

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