Next Step

PNB's annual choreographers’ showcase, NEXT STEP, returns to McCaw Hall for a night of original danceworks. This year’s showcase features seven premieres choreographed by PNB company dancers Mark Cuddihee, Kyle Davis, Zsilas Michael Hughes, Noah Martzall, Joh Morrill, Miles Pertl, and James Kirby Rogers, all set on the Professional Division student dancers of PNB School – the dance stars of tomorrow, on stage today. 

NEXT STEP provides dancers, studio space, and rehearsal time for company members who wish to hone their choreography skills. It was originally conceived by Artistic Director Peter Boal as a means to develop emerging choreographic talent, and as a channel for Professional Division students from PNB School (talented young artists one step away from their professional careers) to participate in the creation of a new work. “There are seven exciting NEXT STEP choreographers this season, some returning artists from the past and some new,” said program coordinator Eva Stone. “All are busy creating inside this unique laboratory of movement exploration and discovery. The Professional Division students are not only working with heart and commitment but are learning new perspectives about the creative process from the ground up.”

PRODUCTION INFORMATION:

Traverse
Music: Lee Bradshaw and Sylvain Chauveau
Choreography: Mark Cuddihee

Ricochet
Music: Kerry Turner, played by American Brass Quintet
Choreography: Miles Pertl

What is Here Today
Music: Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Choreography: Kyle Davis

In absence of
Music: Ezio Bosso
Choreography: Noah Martzall

Piano Concerto Appassionato in B Minor
Music and Choreography: Zsilas Michael Hughes

(a)part
Music: Bulgarian State Television Female Choir
Choreography: James Kirby Rogers

Downtime
Music: Simon Jeffes, performed by Penguin Café Orchestra
Choreography: Joh Morrill