Renowned choreographer Twyla Tharp is back at New York City Center this season revisiting two of her iconic works: In the Upper Room, featuring a score by Philip Glass, and Nine Sinatra Songs, set to classic Ol' Blue Eyes standards. The double-feature program runs October 19鈥�23.
We asked the world-class performers of In the Upper Room (ITUR) and Nine Sinatra Songs to reflect on the experience of working closely with choreographer Twyla Tharp. Some of them are frequent Tharp collaborators, others newfound acolytes, but all of them had something insightful to offer about their time in the rehearsal room.
Kaitlyn Gililand
Twyla鈥檚 the first one in the studio every morning and the last to leave at the end of the day. It鈥檚 an incredibly demanding and rewarding way to work; every day you give your best to the movement and every day you expand your belief in what you can achieve as a dancer.
Is this the first time 测辞耻鈥檝别 worked with Twyla, or have you danced with her before?
KG: This is technically the second time Twyla has rescued me from retirement, and it鈥檚 been more than four years since I鈥檝e been onstage, and even longer since I鈥檝e performed in New York City. It鈥檚 a surreal and intimidating homecoming that would feel impossible without Twyla鈥檚 faith in my dancing.
Richard Villaverde
I saw Nine Sinatra Songs when I was a young dancer, probably in high school. Made me fall in love with Frank Sinatra and all his music.
[Twyla] really has a gift for seeing more than just the steps you鈥檙e doing. She challenges you to bring yourself into character right away and can tell the slightest difference in your energy or approach. It鈥檚 quite impressive.
Lloyd Knight
There鈥檚 only one Twyla Tharp!鈥疭he鈥檚 spicy, fun, intelligent, caring, and demands the most out of you and I鈥檓 here for all of it. As an artist this has been one of my most important learning lessons.鈥�
What鈥檚 one word you鈥檇 use to describe this rehearsal process?
LK: A challenge! In the best way of course. My mind has been blown with the knowledge this woman has. She鈥檚 pushed me to the edge and back mentally and physically. I鈥檓 going off the rails a little, but I have to add how truly special it is to share this experience with this beautiful cast!
George Sanders
What鈥檚 unique about working with Twyla Tharp?鈥�
Unique isn鈥檛 a word I鈥檇 use. For some reason it just doesn鈥檛 seem intelligent enough to describe someone like Twyla. The vast amounts of knowledge she has to bring into the studio 鈥� she can really give you every ounce of detail of what you should be doing or moving through. Honestly she鈥檚 pretty groovy.
One word?
GS: Lit.
Jada German
The first time I saw Twyla鈥檚 work was actually in my dance history class in my second year at Juilliard. I remember being struck by her creativity, bravery, and revolutionary spirit. It鈥檚 crazy to now be learning some of the works that I once only marveled over in school.鈥疘 went to the open call audition, honestly with no expectations at all, and then was shocked and honored when I received the casting invitation!
Julian MacKay
The first time I saw a live performance of her choreography was when I was still working in Russia, and I remember going to see Push Comes to Shove at the Mariinsky Theatre. I was watching dancers who are all good friends of mine doing steps I thought I could understand, in a completely different way than I had seen before.鈥�
It鈥檚 very rare that you get the opportunity to see how an idea was developed;鈥痶o see how simple and complicated a shifting of weight can be.鈥�
Reed Tankersley
What I find unique about Twyla鈥檚 rehearsal process is that there is so much history in the room鈥攁long with a no-bullshit attitude. When remounting repertory, like what we鈥檙e doing now, she brings a wealth of information, a catalogue of archived performance videos and rehearsal footage. I always feel like I鈥檓 learning from each rehearsal.
One word?
RT: 鈥淚nvested.鈥� Although, 鈥渟weaty鈥� is an extremely close second.鈥�
Cassandra Trenary
Twyla knows exactly where every movement stems from in the body. I always walk away with new information about my own body and how to experience each moment on stage. There is opposition and rare coordination, though to her it is perfectly natural; when I find it, it brings freedom and the ability to lose myself in the work.
When was the first time you saw Twyla鈥檚 work? What stuck with you?
CT: The first work I saw of Twyla鈥檚, I was an apprentice with American Ballet Theatre and they were performing In the Upper Room. I had the chance to sit in on every tech rehearsal of ITUR. More than anything I remember being entranced. The dancers entering and exiting through the smoke as if ethereal beings, mixed with the physicality of the choreography, with Phillip Glass鈥� swirling score; it was transcendent. There was a powerful energy and ownership of self that was demanded of every dancer. All I could think the first time I saw it was, 鈥淚 have to be a part of this one day.鈥濃�
Marzia Memoli
Working with Twyla is a unique experience because鈥痵he has the ability to push each dancer to their maximum potential. Whenever you are physically or mentally exhausted, she will ask you to dance one more time鈥攂ut with a different energy, approach, or even meaning. Believe it or not, you鈥檙e inspired to work harder, find more energy, and try with all that鈥檚 left in your body to deliver what she asked for.鈥�
One word?
MM: I would say 鈥淪timulating.鈥� But it鈥檚 a very difficult question, one word isn鈥檛 enough after all these months.
James Gilmer
The first time I saw or ever even heard of Twyla Tharp or her choreography was when I was first starting as a student at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School, when the company was set to perform In The Upper Room. What鈥檚 stuck with me about her work is the attention to the dancer. [Twyla鈥檚] generosity along with her precision and vision have amplified my experience in the studio and on stage!
Benjamin Freemantle
The first time I really experienced the entirety of [Twyla鈥檚] work was last year when City Center put on TWYLA NOW. What struck me most was how human each piece felt. It seemed that each dancer was fully in the moment and that they were on stage for each other, and not the audience. It felt as if we were all witnessing a private moment on a public stage. After working with her for a short time now, I see that it was entirely her bringing that out of the dancers, encouraging them to be less 鈥減erformative鈥� and more grounded in their bodies.
Jacquelin Harris
Twyla Tharp鈥檚 style is a brilliant mix of natural, intuitive expression and technical movement. There is a perfect balance of groove, gravitas, and momentum which challenges鈥痬e as an artist to move from an honest human place.
Ayaka Kamei
[Twyla] values our personal contributions to her work. While some choreographers might say 鈥淒o it my way,鈥� it feels empowering that she wants to know how we feel and lets us incorporate our own voices and nuances in her masterworks.
One thing she said at the audition was, 鈥淒o it from the inside out, not outside in.鈥� I keep thinking about that and finding more meaning in it throughout this process.鈥�
Jeanette Delgado
Twyla is a force! To me, what makes working with her so unique is her incredible ability to push you beyond your limits, physically and mentally, in the most thoughtful way. She sees your potential before you can even see it.
I was fortunate to work with her while dancing with Miami City Ballet. It was the first time that a piece was being created for us by a living choreographer. I feel incredibly privileged to work again with the woman who burst open my world of what dance could be.
Stephanie Petersen
It鈥檚 like you enter the room and all there is in the world is dance.
I first saw Twyla鈥檚 work in the movie White Nights. I remember I was quite young and I just loved the way Hines and Baryshnikov moved. It spoke to me, the feeling of what they were going through鈥攂ut with a freedom and ease that felt remarkable to me.鈥�
One word?
SP: 骋补濒惫补苍颈锄颈苍驳.鈥�
Daniel Ulbricht
For me it鈥檚 about working with somebody who is an icon, and not just for the sake of the pieces they鈥檝e done but for how they approach the room.
The only word that comes to mind really is invigorating. I have walked out of the studio every day tireless, despite the hours of work. I feel fulfilled, I鈥檓 in the best shape of my dancing life 鈥� I feel alive!
Daisy Jacobson
Her mind operates on genius level. It goes at lightning speed, and I feel it鈥檚 my job as a dancer to meet her where her brain goes.
It鈥檚 really inspiring, how she thinks about the audience watching her dances. In one rehearsal she said, I think about section 5: 鈥淵ou want the audience to think they could come up and do it with you.鈥� It鈥檚 not performing for them or showing off for them; it鈥檚 letting them feel like they鈥檙e dancing too. That鈥檚 an incredible lesson, and it鈥檚 thrilling that that鈥檚 what we鈥檙e trying to do here.
For more on Twyla Tharp at New York City Center, visit .
