ruth childs

Pastime (1963) | Carnation (1964) | Museum Piece (1965)

3 solos by Lucinda Childs danced by Ruth Childs

Thursday, June 29, 2017 | 8pm
Saturday, July 1, 2017 | 6:30pm
Location: The Yard's Patricia Nanon Theater

Tickets:
$25 Adult
$15 Seniors, Students and Military
$5 Children under 12
Behind the Counter and Membership discounts apply

British-American dancer, performer, singer, Ruth Childs was born in 1984 in London. She grew up in the United States where she studied dance (classical and contemporary) and music (violin.) In 2003 she moved to Geneva to finish her dance training with the Ballet Junior de Genève. Following this, she worked with many internationally know choreographers and directors including Foofwa d’Imobilité, La Ribot, Gilles Jobin, Massimo Furlan, the 2B company and Yasmine Hugonnet.                                                                                                         

Since 2015, she is also working on a re-creation and revival project of the early works of her the aunt, the American choreographer Lucinda Childs.

In 2014 she founded her company SCARLETT'S in order to develop her own work through dance, performance, film and music and collaborates with Stéphane Vecchione on a musical project "SCARLETT'S FALL."

In 2016 the state of Geneva awarded her a scholarship and research residency in Berlin of 6 months to develop her own work.

Lucinda Childs is one of post-modern dance's pre-eminent icons, and a founding member of the Judson Dance Theater. She also happens to be my aunt. We decided to work on a revival project of three solos that she choreographed and performed herself in the 1960’s at the Judson Dance Theater in New York: Pastime, Carnation and Museum Piece.  

We revived these three solos to be as close as possible to the original versions, knowing that there are no film archives of her solos during the Judson period. Lucinda gave me very exact choreographic indications. She shared anecdotes and archives from that period. She then left me with room to explore my own way to perform these 3 solos. 

With the exception of Carnation, these solos are quite unknown and have never been presented outside of the USA. This work of revival, handing-down and re-creation is essential because it allows a new generation of audiences to discover these historic pieces. 

- Ruth Childs

Lucinda Childs began her career as a choreographer in 1963 at the Judson Dance Theater in New York. Since forming her dance company in 1973, she has created over fifty works, both solo and ensemble. In 1976, she collaborated with Robert Wilson and Philip Glass on the opera Einstein on the Beach, as principal performer and choreographer. From 1979, she collaborates with numerous composers and designers to create several pivotal pieces most especially Dance. She receives the Bessie Award for Sustained Achievement in 2001, and was elevated from the rank of Officer to Commander in France's Order of Arts and Letters in 2004, and receives the NEA/NEFA American Masterpiece Award in 2009. In 2016 the National Center for Dance in Paris will host the first retrospective exhibit dedicated to Lucinda's work organised by Lou Forster in collaboration with the Thaddaeus Ropac gallery. 

Support comes from The City of Geneva, the Stanley Johnson foundation, the Loterie Romande, the Nestlé Foundation for Art, the Louis Vuitton foundation, Corodis and the State of Geneva.