Kidd Pivot

Kidd Pivot (known from 2010 to 2012 as Kidd Pivot Frankfurt RM), is a contemporary dance company based in Vancouver, Canada. The company, currently comprising eight full-time dancers and several guest dancers, is led by its founder and artistic director, Crystal Pite.

Early Years

Kidd Pivot was founded in 2002 by Canadian dancer and choreographer, Crystal Pite. The company's first full-length piece, Uncollected Work (2003), features Pite and fellow Canadian dancer Cori Caulfield in two sections: Farther Out and Field: Fiction. Inspired by Annie Dillard's The Writing Life, Pite explores the artist's creative process in this work.[1]

The company's subsequent piece, Double Story (2004), co-created with Richard Siegal, "integrate[s] text, puppets, and goofy masks,"[2] foreshadowing the puppetry that features in Pite's later work.

Lost Action

In 2006, Kidd Pivot received the Rio Tinto Alcan Performing Arts Award (Dance), a $60,000 award that resulted in the creation of Lost Action: seven dancers, including Pite herself, performing on the themes of war, love, and loss. Kaija Pepper of The Dance Current says the following about the piece: "Lost Action, however it is understood or experienced by the crowds that filled the theatre (the last four performances were sold out), is a major work of art."[3]

Kidd Pivot performed Lost Action at Sadler's Wells in London as part of the theatre's Debut series. Judith Mackrell of The Guardian commented that "Pite has a rare gift for orchestrating bodies, part of the tension in Lost Action comes from wondering how she can top each new invention. But she has an even rarer gift for conveying emotion."[4] Luke Jennings of The Observer listed Lost Action first in his Top 10 list of dance works performed in London during 2009: "this profound and compassionate work was absolutely the revelation of the year."[5]

In 2011, the National Film Board of Canada released a short film, Trace, based on Lost Action.[6]

Dark Matters and the 2010 Cultural Olympiad

Pite was commissioned to create a piece for the 2010 Cultural Olympiad in Vancouver, BC, in association with the 2010 Winter Olympics. The result was Dark Matters: "sinister magic with towering shadows, menacing puppets, and hooded figures."[7]

Dark Matters has continued to tour internationally and is part of the company's current repertoire.[8] Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival presented Dark Matters in 2011 and 2012.[9]

Künstlerhaus Mousonturm

From January 2010 to June 2012, Kidd Pivot formed a residency partnership with Frankfurt-based Künstlerhaus Mousonturm and Kulturfonds Frankfurt Rhine-Main, changing its public name to Kidd Pivot Frankfurt RM in recognition of the support received. As part of the arrangement, the company worked in Frankfurt for several extended periods.[10] While resident at Künstlerhaus Mousonturm, the company created and presented The You Show (2010) and The Tempest Replica (2011), both of which are active in the repertoire.

Selected Works

Select Awards for Kidd Pivot and Crystal Pite

References

  1. ↑ Whyte, Imogen (November 11, 2003). "TRIALOGUE: Tap Dancing Swans and Other Signs of Intelligent Life". The Dance Current. Retrieved 16 March 2012.
  2. ↑ Johnson, Gail (February 24, 2005). "Double Story". Georgia Straight.
  3. ↑ Pepper, Kaija (March 24, 2006). "The Weight of Aggression". The Dance Current.
  4. ↑ Mackrell, Judith (18 September 2009). "Crystal Pite's Kidd Pivot". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 March 2012.
  5. ↑ Jennings, Luke (12 December 2009). "2009 in review: Dance". The Observer. Retrieved 16 March 2012.
  6. ↑ "Lost Action: Trace".
  7. ↑ Smith, Janet (March 1, 2010). "With Dark Matters, Crystal Pite casts a creepy spell". The Georgia Straight. Retrieved 16 March 2012.
  8. ↑ "Kidd Pivot web site". Retrieved 16 March 2012.
  9. ↑ "Jacob's Pillow 80th Anniversary Festival web site". Retrieved 8 June 2012.
  10. ↑ "Kidd Pivot web site".
  11. ↑ http://kiddpivot.org/company/company
  12. ↑ http://kiddpivot.org/company/company
  13. ↑ http://kiddpivot.org/company/company
  14. ↑ Smith, Janet (2 March 2012). "Crystal Pite wins first Lola Award". Georgia Straight.
  15. ↑ Smith, Janet (20 August 2012). "Choreographer Crystal Pite nabs national award". The Georgia Straight.

External links

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