Dear Lord, Make Me BeautifulDecember 2-14, 2024
Details
“What Abraham brings … is an avant-garde aesthetic, an original and politically minded downtown sensibility that doesn’t distinguish between genres but freely draws on a vocabulary that is as much Merce and Martha as it is Eadweard Muybridge and Michael Jackson.”
—Vogue
“Abraham showed how skilled he has become at mingling the ballet vernacular with other forms, from hip-hop to West African movement … he also continued to do what he does best: finding the person within the dancer and the bodies within a body.”
—The New York Times
MacArthur Fellow Kyle Abraham is one of the most sought after choreographers and dancers of our time, creating a unique and expressive style of dance that explores issues of identity, history, and geography. In addition to performing and developing new works for his company A.I.M by Kyle Abraham, the bold creator has been commissioned by a variety of dance companies including New York City Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Paul Taylor American Modern Dance, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, The Royal Ballet, and The National Ballet of Cuba. He has also choreographed for many of the leading dancers of our time, including Misty Copeland, Calvin Royal III, and Wendy Whelan. He unleashes his signature style—a unique blend of modern dance techniques ranging from ballet to hip hop—in the world premiere of a new evening-length work.
Featuring a large ensemble of dancers with whom he has collaborated from across the country, plus Abraham himself, this Armory commission includes an innovative visual design created by Cao Yuxi (JAMES) and an Armory-commissioned score composed and performed live by the critically acclaimed new music ensemble yMusic to explore the growing sensitivities of life and transition, and nature and humanity, in our chaotic world. The underlying choreography employs layers of counterpoint to find intimacy and evoke ideas of empathy and constant change, fueling an evocative new dance work that migrates through the fragility of time and an ever-changing ecology.
Gala
2024 Armory Gala: Kaleidoscope
Tuesday, December 3, 2024 at 7:00pm
Following the world premiere performance, join us for a cocktail reception and seated dinner in the Armory’s Gilded Age interiors with Kyle Abraham and the visionary creative team for the production. Proceeds support the Armory’s commissioning program of world-class artists and arts education programs.
Related Event
Artist Talk: Dear Lord, Make Me Beautiful
Wednesday, December 4, 2024 at 7:30pm
Tickets: $25 (plus fees)
MacArthur Fellow, choreographer, and dancer Kyle Abraham is joined by Guggenheim and Bessie Award-winning dancer and choreographer Bebe Miller to examine the process of creating his latest commission and realizing it at the Armory.
World Premiere—An Armory Commission
Direction and Choreography Kyle Abraham
Composition yMusic
Visual Design Cao Yuxi (JAMES)
Lighting Design Dan Scully
Costume Design Karen Young
Sound Design Sam Crawford
Dear Lord, Make Me Beautiful is made possible with support from Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels, Denise Littlefield Sobel, Sarah Arison, a commissioning grant from the O’Donnell-Green Music and Dance Foundation, Jody and John Arnhold, and the Harkness Foundation for Dance.
Public support is provided by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature as well as the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council under the leadership of Speaker Adrienne Adams.
Photo: Gioncarlo Valentine
Return to Arts at the Armory Listing
Visit
December 3–14, 2024
Monday–Thursday at 7:30pm
Friday–Saturday at 8:00pm
(2:00pm and 8:00pm on December 14)
To view a full schedule of performances, click here.
Performance Details
Wade Thompson Drill Hall
View the seating chart.
This performance is approximately 1 hour and 5 minutes without an intermission.
Tickets
Tickets start at $35 (plus fees)
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