Introdans is a dance company based in the city of

Arnhem Arnhem ( or ; german: Arnheim; South Guelderish: ''Èrnem'') is a city and municipality situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands about 55 km south east of Utrecht. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland, located on both banks of ...

in the Netherlands, established in 1971 by Hans Focking and Ton Wiggers. In 2009 the

Ministry of Education, Culture and Science The Ministry of Education, Culture and Science ( nl, Ministerie van Onderwijs, Cultuur en Wetenschappen; OCW) is the Dutch Ministry responsible for education, culture, science, research, gender equality and communications. The Ministry was cre ...

designated Introdans part of the basic national infrastructure.

History

The company was founded in 1971 by Ton Wiggers, a former dancer, with a few friends who met in his living room in Arnhem. At first the small company produced

classical ballet Classical ballet is any of the traditional, formal styles of ballet that exclusively employ classical ballet technique. It is known for its aesthetics and rigorous technique (such as pointe work, turnout of the legs, and high extensions), its ...

pieces choreographed by Wiggers. The company gradually became known, first touring in the Netherlands and then in 1993 making its international debut. Since then Introdans has traveled widely. For example, it was the first company to perform on the new stage of the

Bolshoi Theatre The Bolshoi Theatre ( rus, Большо́й теа́тр, r=Bol'shoy teatr, literally "Big Theater", p=bɐlʲˈʂoj tʲɪˈatər) is a historic theatre in Moscow, Russia, originally designed by architect Joseph Bové, which holds ballet and ope ...

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

, Russia. In 2001 and 2005 it appeared on Broadway, New York, in 2006 at the

Teatro Colón The Teatro Colón (Spanish: ''Columbus Theatre'') is the main opera house in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It is considered one of the ten best opera houses in the world by National Geographic. According to a survey carried out by the acousti ...

in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 2008 at the National Opera in

Tallinn Tallinn () is the most populous and capital city of Estonia. Situated on a bay in north Estonia, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland of the Baltic Sea, Tallinn has a population of 437,811 (as of 2022) and administratively lies in the Harju ' ...

, Estonia and in 2011 at the Shanghai Centre Theater in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

, China.

Princess Margriet of the Netherlands Princess Margriet Francisca of the Netherlands (born 19 January 1943) is the third daughter of Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard. As an aunt of the reigning monarch, King Willem-Alexander, she is a member of the Dutch Royal House and currently ...

became the Company’s patroness. The company was the subject of a documentary ''"Recognition at Last"'' that was aired on Dutch TV in 2011.

Education

Adriaan Luteijn is the artistic manager of Introdans Education, which runs a program called "Introdans Interactive". This involves interactive workshops that teach young people to participate creatively in dance, classes and performances of integrated and disability dance, and youth performances. In 2008 he was guest speaker at the Ukukhua Komdanso Youth Dance Festival in

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

, South Africa, and this led to a relationship with the Flatfoot Dance Company in which Introdans and Flatfoot visited each other, shared classes and workshops and put on a joint performance in Arnhem in 2010.

Recent tours

Introdans returned to the United States to appear on 1 May 2012 at the

Joyce Theater The Joyce Theater (“The Joyce") is a 472-seat dance performance venue located in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City. The building opened in 1941 as the Elgin Theater, a movie house, and was gut-renovated and reconfigured in 1981-82 to re ...

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

with a show named ''Heavenly''. The show consisted of three very different works: the energetic ''Messiah'' with choreography by Ed Wubbe and music by

George Frideric Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque music, Baroque composer well known for his opera#Baroque era, operas, oratorios, anthems, concerto grosso, concerti grossi, ...

; the lyrical ''Fünf Gedichte (five songs)'' by Nils Christe with music by

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

; and the chaotic but organized hip-hop ''Paradise?'' choreographed by Gisela Rocha of Brazil. The show got lukewarm reviews. One critic said of the show: "This is choreography made to slide in and out of the mind. Even never having seen it, you know all too well where it is going". Another said "The dancers are attractive and highly skilled, if also generic, and the same goes for the choreography".

References

{{reflist , refs= {{cite web , url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/01/arts/dance/introdans-dance-troupes-long-road-to-the-joyce-theater.html , work=The New York Times , title=Dutch Troupe’s Long Road to the Joyce , author=REBECCA MILZOFF , date=April 30, 2012 , accessdate=2012-05-04 {{cite web , url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/03/arts/dance/introdans-dutch-company-at-joyce-theater.html , title=Themes From the Netherlands That Feel Familiar , work=The New York Times , author=CLAUDIA LA ROCCO , date=May 2, 2012 , accessdate=2012-05-04 Contemporary dance companies Dance in the Netherlands