Kyle Abraham
Kyle Abraham | |
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Born | Choreographer | August 14, 1977
Kyle Abraham (born August 14, 1977)
Early life and career
Kyle Abraham was born in Lincoln-Larimer Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1977. He began dancing when he was young at the Civic Light Opera Academy and the
A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
Abraham established his company A.I.M by Kyle Abraham (formerly Abraham.In.Motion) in 2006 with the mission to create a body of dance-based work that is galvanized by Black culture and history. Abraham creates work for his company that draws from his personal experiences, often exploring themes of Black life, emotion, and the relationship between visual art, music and dance.
A.I.M by Kyle Abraham has been presented around the
Choreographic works and career milestones
Works for A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
The first choreographic work Abraham created for A.I.M in 2006 was Fading into Something Tangible, premiering in Pittsburgh. In 2010 Abraham created The Radio Show, where he "delves into identity and personal history....Creating an abstract narrative around the loss of communication, he investigates the effects of the abrupt discontinuation of a radio station on a community and the lingering effects of Alzheimer's and aphasia on a family. Abraham mixes recordings of classic soul and hip-hop with contemporary classical compositions to create an eclectic score that evokes fond memories and a passion for what is lost."[3]
Some of Abraham's other choreographic works include A Ramp to Paradise, Op. 1, Live! The Realest MC, and Pavement. A Ramp to Paradise, was commissioned by THPAC and is about a true story by Alex Smith that describes the history of the black gay underground club called
Abraham was the 2012–14 Resident Commissioned Artist at New York Live Arts,[5] and created two new works for the Live Arts stage. The Watershed premiered at New York Live Arts on September 23, 2014, with scenic design by visual artist Glenn Ligon and a score from a contemporary cello suite to Otis Redding.[6] The second work developed at Live Arts was When the Wolves Came In and it premiered on October 25, 2014, also with scenic design by Glenn Ligon. It featured music from We Insist! by Max Roach as well as an original composition by Robert Glasper.[7]
Drive (2017), choreographed by Abraham in collaboration with A.I.M, was commissioned by New York City Center for the 2017 Fall for Dance Festival. Drive is frequently included in A.I.M by Kyle Abraham's touring of mixed repertory performances. In 2018, Abraham created Show Pony, a solo work set to musician Jlin's song "Hatshepsut" and as was described by Brian Seibert in The New York Times as capturing "the pressures of being on display and having to deliver."[8]
INDY, a 2018 work commissioned by the
In 2019, Abraham created Studies On A Farewell in collaboration with his dancers from A.I.M by Kyle Abraham, commissioned by The Joyce Theater Foundation's Artist Residency Center. It is a tender work featuring nine dancers set to a classical score by Nico Muhly, Sebastian Bartmann, and Ludwig van Beethoven.
Abraham served as a visiting professor in residence at UCLA's World Arts Cultures in Dance program from 2016 to 2021.[10] In 2021, he was named the Claude and Alfred Mann Endowed Professorship in Dance at The University of Southern California Glorya Kaufman School of Dance. Abraham currently sits on the advisory board for Dance Magazine and the artist advisory board for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago.
An Untitled Love (2021), is an evening-length work generated by Abraham through residencies at the Pillow Lab at
In 2021, Abraham also developed the evening-length work Requiem: Fire in the Air of the Earth, in collaboration with pioneering producer, composer, and EDM artist Jlin. This piece explores death, folklore, and reincarnation through a reimagining of Mozart's Requiem in D minor.
Commissioned works outside of A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
In addition to creating work for his company, Abraham has also been commissioned to create new works for prominent dance companies including
Abraham has choreographed for film as well, including the 2017 feature-length film The Book of Henry directed by Colin Trevorrow. Abraham premiered the Bessie-nominated The Runaway for New York City Ballet at the 2018 Fall Fashion Gala, which was recognized as one of the "Best Dance of 2018" by The New York Times.[14]
In fall 2019, he choreographed Ash, a solo work for American Ballet Theatre Principal Dancer Misty Copeland; Only The Lonely, the last commissioned choreographic work selected by Paul Taylor himself before his passing for Paul Taylor Dance Company; and The Bystander, a new commission for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago to rave reviews. In 2020 Misty and Kyle reunited for an intimate conversation as part of A.I.M's 2020 Virtual Homecoming Gala Sponsored by The Skin Deep program {The And}.[15]
Abraham premiered to be seen, a new solo for American Ballet Theatre Principal Dancer Calvin Royal III, for the 2020 virtual Fall For Dance Festival. Abraham collaborated with New York City Ballet Principal Dancer Taylor Stanley on Ces noms que nous portons (2020), a Lincoln Center and NYCB commissioned solo; choreographed the music video for Sufjan Stevens' Sugar (2020); and choreographed Unto The End We Meet (2021), commissioned by the National Ballet of Cuba. Abraham premiered When We Fell in 2021, his third creation for New York City Ballet.
Abraham received two commissions from The Royal Ballet in London, UK for 2021 and 2022. Optional Family, a divertissement premiered in May 2021 as part of their 21st Century Choreographers program. The Weathering, a full one-act length ballet, premiered in March 2022.[16][17]
Selected works
- 2006 Inventing Pookie Jenkins – Kyle Abraham
- 2006 Fading Into Something Tangible – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2007 Another Building Dancing # Quarantine (Film - Short) – Danz Isa
- 2010 The Radio Show – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2010 Op. 1 – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2010 The Corner – Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
- 2011 Live! The Realest MC – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2011 The Quiet Dance – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2011 Addition Incorporated (Film – Documentary) – Acapella Pictures, Dune Road Films
- 2012 Pavement – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2012 Another Night – Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
- 2012 A Ramp to Paradise – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2012 Continuous Relation – Second Avenue Dance Company
- 2012 Outsider – Kyle Abraham, Liv O'Donoghue, Ryan O'Neill, Philip Connaughton, and Rebecca Reilly
- 2013 The Serpent and the Smoke – Kyle Abraham and Wendy Whelan
- 2013 Hallowed – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2013 Kollide – BODYTRAFFIC
- 2013 Blood on the Leaves, Voyeur, Our Love Comes Back, I Am Sold, Retrograde, Digital Lion, Overgrown (New Media) – Collaboration with Carrie Schneider
- 2013 When We Take Flight – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2014 The Watershed – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2014 When the Wolves Came In – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2014 The Gettin' – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2014 Lamentation Variation – Martha Graham Dance Company
- 2014 Frail – Kyle Abraham
- 2014 Counterpoint – Hubbard Street Dance Chicago
- 2015 Absent Matter – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2015 Non sequitur paramour – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2015 The Book of Henry (Feature Film) – Naomi Watts, Lee Pace, and Jacob Tremblay
- 2015 Elevada (Play) – Yale Repertory Theatre
- 2016 Untitled America – Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
- 2016 Restless Creature (Film-Documentary) – Wendy Whelan
- 2016 Candle – TU Dance
- 2016 Wire – Karli Scott, Purchase College
- 2016 Grey – Marcella Lewis, Purchase College
- 2017 Drive – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2017 Dearest Home – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2018 Show Pony – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2018 Meditation: A Silent Prayer – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2018 The Runaway – New York City Ballet
- 2018 INDY – Kyle Abraham
- 2018 Chapter Song – L.A. Dance Project
- 2019 Ash – American Ballet Theatre Principal Dancer Misty Copeland
- 2019 Big Rings – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2019 Cocoon – Kyle Abraham
- 2019 Only The Lonely – Paul Taylor American Modern Dance
- 2019 Studies on Farewell – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2019 The Bystander – Hubbard Street Dance Chicago
- 2020 Ces noms que nous portons – Kyle Abraham and Taylor Stanley for New York City Ballet and Lincoln Center
- 2020 to be seen – American Ballet Theatre Principal Dancer Calvin Royal II
- 2020 And let the air no more – Opera Ballet Vlaanderen
- 2020 Sugar (Music Video) – Sufjan Stevans
- 2021 When We Fell – New York City Ballet
- 2021 Unto The End We Meet – National Ballet of Cuba
- 2021: If We Were a Love Song (film) – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2021 Our Indigo: If We Were a Love Song – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2021 An Untitled Love – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2021 Optional Family, a divertissement – Royal Ballet
- 2021 Requiem: Fire in the Air of the Earth – A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
- 2021 MotorRover
- 2022 Untitled One-Act – Royal Ballet
Critical acclaim
In 2009, Abraham was listed in
In 2012, Abraham was named the
In 2018, the choreographer won a Princess Grace Statue Award.[28] Also that year, Abraham's work The Runaway for the New York City Ballet's 2018 Fall Fashion Gala was recognized as a "Best Dance of 2018" by The New York Times.[29] The New York Times applauded Abraham for his virtual work at the 2020 Fall for Dance Festival saying "how skilled he has become at mingling the ballet vernacular with other forms, from hip-hop to West African movement" and his unique talent for "finding the person within the dancer and the bodies within a body."[30] In 2020, he was selected to be Dance Magazine's first-ever Guest Editor.[31] In 2022, Abraham was selected to be an inaugural member of the Black Genius Brain Trust,[32] and was selected by the Kennedy Center to be one of their Next 50 Cultural Leaders, an honor celebrating individuals who are lighting the way forward through art and action.[33]
Awards and recognition
- 2010, New York Dance and Performance "Bessie" Award[19]
- 2010, Princess Grace Foundation Fellowship in Choreography[34]
- 2012, United States Artists Fellow[35]
- 2012, Jacob's Pillow Dance Award[36]
- 2012, JoyceCreative Residency Artist
- 2013, MacArthur Fellowship[37]
- 2013, Creative Capital Award[38]
- 2014, Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts, Washington & Jefferson College.[39]
- 2015, New York City Center Choreographer in Residence
- 2016, Doris Duke Performing Artist Award[40]
- 2017, Abraham's hometown of Pittsburgh declares November 10 "Kyle Abraham Day"[41]
- 2017–2018, JoyceCreative Residency Artist
- 2018, Princess Grace Statue Award
- 2020, White Bird Barney Commissioning Prize
References
- ^ a b Potter, Julie (February 18, 2011). "Owning it: Kyle Abraham in fast and slow motion". The San Francisco Bay Guardian. Retrieved September 27, 2017.
- ^ "Kyle Abraham". New York Live Arts. Retrieved September 25, 2017.
- ^ "Radio Show / Abraham.In.Motion". Abrahaminmotion.org. Retrieved April 18, 2014.
- ^ Boynton, Andrew (November 11, 2012). "Boyz n the Hood Reimagined As Dance". The New Yorker. Retrieved November 20, 2013.
- ^ "RCAII PressRelease FINAL.pdf" (PDF). New York Live Arts. Retrieved April 18, 2014.
- ^ "The Watershed". New York Live Arts. Retrieved October 6, 2017.
- ^ "When the Wolves Came In". New York Live Arts. Retrieved October 6, 2017.,
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ custom. "Cocoon – Out & About NYC Magazine". Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ Burke, Anne Marie. "Kyle Abraham, dancer-choreographer and MacArthur Fellow, to join UCLA faculty". UCLA Newsroom. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
- ^ La Rocco, Claudia (December 7, 2012). "Ailey Offers Premiere of Another Night by Kyle Abraham". The New York Times. Retrieved November 20, 2013.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
- ^ Bengal, Rebecca (December 7, 2012). "Behind the Scenes of Another Night: Choreographer Kyle Abraham's Alvin Ailey Debut". Vogue. Retrieved September 27, 2017.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
- ^ Even As Successful Black Artists, We're Underdogs | {THE AND} | Misty & Kyle, retrieved February 22, 2022
- ^ Winship, Lyndsey (March 25, 2022). "Royal Ballet review – Kyle Abraham's fresh style connects to the real world". The Guardian. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
- ^ Mohammed, Sagal (March 25, 2022). "Kyle Abraham's New Ballet Is a Tribute to "Love, Loss and Acceptance"". Another Magazine. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
- ^ Sucato, Steve. "25 to Watch". Dance Magazine. Retrieved September 25, 2017.
- ^ a b "Award Archive". The Bessies.
- ^ "Jacob's Pillow Dance Award". Jacob's Pillow. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ "United States Artists » Kyle Abraham". Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ "KYLE ABRAHAM + A.I.M". New York Live Arts. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ "Kyle Abraham". www.macfound.org. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ "ADP President, CEO to Deliver Keynote Address at W&J Commencement". Washington & Jefferson College. April 24, 2014. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ "Kyle Abraham". Princess Grace Foundation-USA. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ "2016 Doris Duke Artist Awards". www.ddcf.org. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ Sucato, Steve. "Kyle Abraham and company return for their first show here in four years". Pittsburgh City Paper. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ "2018 Award Winners". Princess Grace Foundation-USA. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ Stahl, Jennifer (November 15, 2020). "Kyle Abraham Is Dance Magazine's Guest Editor This Week". Dance Magazine. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ "Black Genius Brain Trust". The Black Genius Foundation. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ "Kyle Abraham | Kennedy Center". The Kennedy Center. Retrieved February 22, 2022.
- ^ "Kyle Abraham". Princess Grace Foundation USA. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
- ^ "Kyle Abraham". USA Artists. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
- ^ "Jacob's Pillow Dance Award". Jacob's Pillow. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
- ^ "Kyle Abraham". MacArthur Foundation. September 25, 2013. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
- ^ "Kyle Abraham". Creative Capital. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
- ^ "President and CEO of ADP Delivers Keynote Address at 215th Commencement". May 21, 2014.
- ^ "Kyle Abraham". Doris Duke Foundation. Retrieved March 6, 2018.
- ^ Davidson, Lauren (October 14, 2021). "Pittsburgh Native Kyle Abraham Shows Hometown Love in a Hometown Show". Pittsburgh Magazine. Retrieved November 14, 2021.
External links
- A.I.M Google Arts and Culture
- A.I.M Company Website
- Archival footage of Kyle Abraham dancing Inventing Pookie Jenkins in 2010 at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival
- Archival footage of Kyle Abraham/Abraham.In.Motion in Pavement in 2013 at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival.
- Archival footage of Kyle Abraham/Abraham.In.Motion in Dearest Home in 2017 at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival.
- Archival footage of Camille A. Brown and Kyle Abraham performing in their work How We Process Jacob's Pillow in 2011.
- Image Gallery of Kyle Abraham and Abraham.In.Motion in Pavement at Jacob's Pillow, August 2013
- Image Gallery of Abraham.In.Motion in When the Wolves Came In at ICA Boston, October 2014