On April 16, 2019, which would have been Merce Cunningham's 100th birthday, the Merce Cunningham Trust in conjunction with three longtime partners of the Cunningham Company, The Barbican in London, the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York, and the Center for the Art of Performance at UCLA in Los Angeles, presented a worldwide performance Night of 100 Solos: A Centennial Event. In each city, 25 dancers joined 5 musicians and a visual artist to present a ninety (90) minute performance comprised of 100 solos choreographed by Merce Cunningham. A former dancer experienced in creating Cunningham Events worked with an associate stager and other Merce Cunningham Dance Company alumni in each city to impart the choreography to a new generation of dancers.
As was the case for the Events late in Cunningham’s career, it was impossible for any one person to see all of Night of 100 Solos at once. Reflecting Cunningham’s interest in technology, and taking advantage of the multiple time zones in which the Event was staged, a live-stream allowed anyone anywhere to experience each venue’s performance in real-time.
During the evening, a set specifically curated for each venue graced the stage. Keeping with traditional Cunningham performances, each city’s performance included live music performed by composers and musicians who represented expressions of Cunningham’s musical interests over the course of his lifetime. Former members of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company’s Music Committee participated or supported the evening.
Night of 100 Solos: A Centennial Event
The Merce Cunningham Trust in conjunction with:
Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), New York City
Center for the Art of Performance (CAP), Los Angeles
Choreography: Merce Cunningham
Night of 100 Solos: A Centennial Event is supported with a generous grant by the
Howard Gilman Foundation.
Running Order and Solos for All Performances
London
Barbican Theatre
April 16, 2019 at 7:45pm (British Summer Time)
Stager: Daniel Squire
Associate Stagers: Ashley Chen and Cheryl Therrien
Music Coordinator: Christian Wolff
Set Designer: Richard Hamilton “Shadows Cast by Readymades”
Lighting Designer: Richard Beaton
Running Order and Solos for This Performance
Dancers
Luke Ahmet, Harry Alexander, Elly Braund, Siobhan Davies, Inès Depauw, Daphne Fernberger, Jonathan Goddard, Nathan Gracia, Thomasin Gülgeç, Francesca Hayward, Molly Hick (understudy), Hannah Kidd, Catherine LeGrand, Sophie Martin, Estela Merlos, Mbulelo Ndabedi, Michael Nunn, Rowan Parker, Paolo Pisarra (understudy), Else Raymond, Joseph Sissens, Beatriz Stix-Brunell, Toke Strandby, Asha Thomas, Billy Trevitt, Luc Verbitzky, and Ben Warbis
Musicians
Mira Benjamin, John Lely, Anton Lukoszevies, Christian Marclay, and Christian Wolff
Studio Wayne McGregor in London is supporting Night of 100 Solos: A Centennial Event as part of their FreeSpace program.
NEW YORK CITY
BAM's Howard Gilman Opera House
April 16, 2019 at 7:30pm (Eastern Daylight Time)
Stager: Patricia Lent
Associate Stager: Jean Freebury
Music Coordinator: John King
Set Designer: Pat Steir
Lighting Designer: Christine Shallenberg
Running Order and Solos for This Performance
Dancers
Kyle Abraham, Christian Allen, Mariah Anton (understudy), Reid Bartelme, Jacqueline Bulnes, Cecily Campbell, Peiju Chien-Pott, Maggie Cloud, Jason Collins, Marc Crousillat, Angela Falk, Peter Farrow (understudy), Tamisha Guy, Jacquelin Harris, Forrest Hersey, Eleanor Hullihan, Shayla-Vie Jenkins, Claude “CJ” Johnson, Lindsey Jones, Sara Mearns, Sharon Milanese, Chalvar Monteiro, David Norsworthy, Keith Sabado, Vicky Shick, Joshua Tuason, and Anson Zwingelberg
Musicians
David Behrman, Gelsey Bell, John King, Matana Roberts, and Jesse Stiles
Baryshnikov Arts Center (BAC) has provided studio space for the Night of 100 Solos creative team and cast to rehearse the BAM performance.
LOS ANGELES
CAP UCLA's Royce Hall
April 16, 2019 at 8:00pm (Pacific Daylight Time)
Stager: Andrea Weber
Associate Stager: Dylan Crossman
Music Coordinator: Stephan Moore
Set Designer: Jennifer Steinkamp
Lighting Designer: Jessica Wodinsky
Running Order and Solos for This Performance
Dancers
Paige Amicon, Cemiyon Barber (understudy), Barry Brannum, Lorrin Brubaker, Rena Butler, Tamsin Carlson, Erin Dowd, Katherine Helen Fisher, Joshua Guillemot-Rodgerson, Casey Hess, Thomas House, Laurel Jenkins, Burr Johnson, Vanessa Knouse, Brian Lawson, Jessica Liu, Victor Lozano, Una Ludviksen, Daniel McCusker, Polly Motley, Jermaine Maurice Spivey, Savannah Spratt, Pam Tanowitz, Ros Warby, Riley Watts, and Sam Wentz
Musicians
Madison Greenstone, Bethan Kellough, Stephan Moore, Stephanie Richards, and Suzanne Thorpe
Night of 100 Solos: A Centennial Event
Music Director: John King
Costume Design and Builders: Reid Bartelme and Harriet Jung
Technical Director: Davison Scandrett
Stagers and Coaches:
Cédric Andrieux, Kimberly Bartosik, Lisa Boudreau, Thomas Caley, Ashley Chen, Michael Cole, Brandon Cowlles, Dylan Crossman, Julie Cunningham, Paige Cunningham, Emma Diamond, Foofwa d’Imobilité, Holley Farmer, Maydelle Fason, Victoria Finlayson, Jean Freebury, Jennifer Goggans, Alan Good, Neil Greenberg, Meg Harper, Susana Hayman-Chaffey, Joseph Lennon, Patricia Lent, Larissa McGoldrick, Rashaun Mitchell, Marcie Munnerlyn, Sandra Neels, Dennis O’Conner, Banu Ogan, Jared Phillips, Albert Reid, Silas Reiner, Kristy Santimyer-Melita, Jamie Scott, Daniel Squire, Jeannie Steele, Derry Swan, Carol Teitelbaum, Cheryl Therrien, Melissa Toogood, Megan Walker-Straight, and Andrea Weber
Creative Producer: Trevor Carlson
Executive Producer: Ken Tabachnick
Videographer and Livestream Producer: Nel Shelby Productions
Co-produced by the Barbican, London, Brooklyn Academy of Music, UCLA’s Center for the Art of Performance, and the Merce Cunningham Trust.
Night of 100 Solos: A Centennial Event is supported with a generous grant by the
Howard Gilman Foundation.
