Modern marvel 'Parsons Dance' Returns to
Kansas City and Harriman-Jewell Series

WHAT: PARSONS DANCE
David Parsons, artistic director and founder

PRESENTED BY: HARRIMAN-JEWELL SERIES

WHEN: Saturday, March 15, at 8 p.m.

WHERE: FOLLY THEATER, downtown Kansas City, Mo. (12th and Central Sts.)

TICKETS: $25 or $55 | call 816-415-5025 or visit www.harriman-jewell.org

PROGRAM: Choreography by David Parsons including Kind of Blue, Hand Dance, Nascimento Novo, Union, Caught, and In the End. view complete program and notes

EDUCATIONAL COMPONENT: David Parsons will return to the stage for a conversation with the audience immediately following the performance.

HIGH-RESOLUTION IMAGES: | |
credit Lois Greenfield
(Black-and-white image features Kansas City native David Parsons at center.)

New York City based PARSONS DANCE will touch down in Kansas City on Saturday, March 15, at 8 p.m., in the downtown Folly Theater (12th and Central Sts). This performance will mark the ninth Harriman-Jewell Series presentation of what NBC's Today Show claims as "one of the most successful dance companies in the world."

Kansas City native David Parsons returns with the company that he founded in 1985. Parsons Dance is an ensemble of 10 full-time dancers that maintains a repertory of more than 70 works choreographed by David Parsons, 20 of which feature originally commissioned scores by leading composers and musicians including Dave Matthews, Michael Gordon, and Milton Nascimento. Parsons Dance has collaborated with many leading artists, including Julie Taymor, William Ivey Long, Annie Leibovitz, Donna Karan, and Alex Katz.

Parsons Dance is committed to building new audiences for contemporary dance by creating American works of extraordinary artistry that are engaging and uplifting to audiences throughout the world. The company tours nationally and internationally, including annual seasons in New York, Brazil, and Italy.

Since 1985, Parsons Dance has toured an average of 32 weeks per year, to a total more than 235 cities, 30 countries, six continents and millions of audience members. Many others have seen Parsons Dance on PBS, Bravo, A&E Network, and the Discovery Channel. Millions watched Parsons Dance perform live in Times Square as part of the internationally broadcast, 24-hour Millennium New Year’s Eve celebration.

David Parsons, artistic director and founder, has enjoyed a remarkable career as a performer, choreographer, teacher, director, and producer of dance. Parsons was born in Chicago and was raised in Kansas City. He was a leading dancer with The Paul Taylor Dance Company, where Taylor created many roles for him in works such as Arden Court, Last Look, and Roses. He is a recipient of the 2000 Dance Magazine Award, as well as the 2001 American Choreography Award, for his work as a co-producer of AEROS, a production featuring the Romanian Gymnastic Federation that was featured on Bravo.

Parsons has received commissions from organizations that include the American Ballet Theatre, New York City Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, the American Dance Festival, Jacob’s Pillow, the Spoleto Festival, and Het Muziektheater in Amsterdam. His work has been performed by Paris Opera Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Nederlands Danse Theatre, National Ballet of Canada, Hubbard Street Dance, and BatSheva Dance Company of Israel.

Tickets to the Parsons Dance performance are $25 or $55; please call the Harriman-Jewell Series at 816-415-5025 (or toll free at 888-528-5521). Tickets and event information are also available at www.harriman-jewell.org. This event is sponsored by Bunni and Paul Copaken.

Now in its 43rd season, the nationally recognized Harriman-Jewell Series brings acclaimed performers from the worlds of music, dance, and theatre to Kansas City’s downtown venues. In addition to the performances, educational events offer free master classes and lectures to allow area community members and students to view artists in an informal setting.

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