John R. Jasperse (born October 8, 1963)
[ orgenroth 2004 p.187] is an American
choreographer and dancer. Since 1990
he has been
artistic director and choreographer of the
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...
-based John Jasperse Company.
[John Jasperse performer biography in ''Misuse…'' program (2007)][John Jasperse Company Repertory: Becky, Jodi, and John]
, John Jasperse Company official site, accessed online 21 October 2007. This is the citation for him dancing his own works.
Joyce Morgenroth describes his work as "wry" and "often spoken of in oppositional pairs" of which the most central is "…the interplay between his tightly conceived structures and his elusive movement style." His dancers are involved in an "interactive choreographic process" and "
ts are designed to be integral to the dance," with dancers often moving or otherwise interacting with sets and props.
Originally from
Rockville, Maryland, Jasperse graduated from
Sarah Lawrence College in 1985; since then he has been based in New York City. He worked 1987–1993 with
Jennifer Monson; in 1988 and 1989 he performed with
Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker
Anne Teresa, Baroness De Keersmaeker (, born 1960 in Mechelen, Belgium, grew up in Wemmel) is a contemporary dance choreographer. The dance company constructed around her, , was in residence at La Monnaie in Brussels from 1992 to 2007.
Biograph ...
's company Rosas in Belgium.
Jasperse's work has been performed in the United States, Brazil, Chile, Israel, Japan, and throughout Europe, including such venues as the
Brooklyn Academy of Music's Next Wave Festival, the
Venice Biennale
The Venice Biennale (; it, La Biennale di Venezia) is an international cultural exhibition hosted annually in Venice, Italy by the Biennale Foundation. The biennale has been organised every year since 1895, which makes it the oldest of ...
, the
Walker Art Center
The Walker Art Center is a multidisciplinary contemporary art center in the Lowry Hill neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. The Walker is one of the most-visited modern and contemporary art museums in the United States and, to ...
(
Minneapolis, Minnesota), the
Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago
The Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) Chicago is a contemporary art museum near Water Tower Place in downtown Chicago in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The museum, which was established in 1967, is one of the world's largest contemporar ...
, and
Tanz im August
Tanz im August (; "Dance in August") is an annual festival for contemporary dance in Berlin. It was founded by Nele Hertling in West Berlin in 1988, and is now presented by the Hebbel am Ufer (HAU) theatre company on various stages in Berlin. ...
in Berlin.
Mikhail Baryshnikov's
White Oak Dance Project White Oak Dance Project was a dance company founded in 1990 by Mikhail Baryshnikov and Mark Morris.
The company took the name of the animal preservation and land plantation owned by philanthropist and Baryshnikov friend Howard Gilman. Gilman buil ...
,
Batsheva Dance Company and the
Lyon Opera Ballet
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
have all commissioned work from him.
[About Us]
John Jasperse Company official site, accessed online 21 October 2007.
Among his and his company's many awards, grants, and fellowships are a
John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation award (1998), a
Creative Capital
Creative Capital is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in New York City that supports artists across the United States through funding, counsel, gatherings, and career development services. Since its founding in 1999, Creative Capital has commi ...
Award in Performing Arts, two
Bessie Awards (2001 for Jasperse, 2002 for the Company), and grants from the
National Endowment for the Arts
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...
(1992, 1994, 1995–96) and
New York Foundation for the Arts
The New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) is an independent 501(c)(3) charity, funded through government, foundation, corporate, and individual support, established in 1971. It is part of a network of national not-for-profit arts organizations ...
(1988, 1994 and 2000).
[ Jasperse received a 2003 ]Foundation for Contemporary Arts
The Foundation for Contemporary Arts (FCA), is a nonprofit based foundation in New York City that offers financial support and recognition to contemporary performing and visual artists through awards for artistic innovation and potential. It was ...
Grants to Artists Award. In 2011 he was named a Fellow of United States Artists
United States Artists (USA) is a national arts funding organization based in Chicago. USA is dedicated to supporting living artists and cultural practitioners across the United States by granting unrestricted awards.
Mission
The organization' ...
.
Jasperse's evening-length works are ''Rickety Perch'' (1989), ''Eyes Half Closed'' (1991), ''furnished/unfurnished'' (1993), ''Excessories'' (1995), ''Waving to you from here'' (1997), ''Madison as I imagine it'' (1999), ''Giant Empty'' (2001), ''just two dancers'' (2003), ''CALIFORNIA'' (2003), ''Prone'' (2005),[ and ''Misuse liable to prosecution'' (2007).
]
John Jasperse Company
The John Jasperse Company, founded in 1985, has two managing structures: Thin Man Dance, Inc. in New York (since 1998) and Association Chapitre II in Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...
, France (since 2003).Jonah Bokaer
Jonah Bokaer (born October 1, 1981) is an American choreographer and media artist. He works on live performances in the United States and elsewhere, including choreography, digital media, cross-disciplinary collaborations, and social enterprise.
...
of Chez Bushwick to co-found the Center for Performance Research (CPR) in Williamsburg, New York.
Notes
References
* John Jasperse Company, ''Misuse liable to prosecution'', program for performance October 18–October 20 at On the Boards
On the Boards (OtB) is a non-profit contemporary performing arts organization in Seattle, Washington, founded in 1978. Originally located at Washington Hall in the Central District, the organization moved in 1998 to their current location in Up ...
, Seattle, Washington, a co-production with the Brooklyn Academy of Music, commissioned in part by Symphony Space (NYC).
*"John Jasperse", 187:204 in Joyce Morgenroth, ''Speaking Of Dance: Twelve Contemporary Choreographers on Their Craft'', Routledge 2004, .
External links
John Jasperse Company
official site
John Jasperse Company at On the Boards
(2007) includes audio interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jasperse, John
Living people
American choreographers
1963 births
Sarah Lawrence College alumni