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The 2008 winner is Hofesh Shechter
The nominations for 2008 were:
Akram Khan, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Hofesh Shechter
More information about each choreographer is given below:
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bahok - Akram Khan
Born in London, Khan studied Kathak dance from the age of 7, starting his performing career at 14. After later studies in contemporary dance at de Montfort University and with Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker’x-group project in Brussels, he performed as a solo artist, then launched his own company in 2000. He has collaborated with composers, fine artists and world-famous performers (most recently with the actress Juliette Binoche).
For bahok, he worked with his own group of contemporary dancers and members of the National Ballet of China, sharing experiences of being in transit, of co-existing under stress with people from very different backgrounds.
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Sutra - Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui
This Sadler’s Wells Production choreographed by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui was one of the highlights of the year. The collaboration between Cherkaoui and the monks of the Shaolin Temple as part of the China Now season was a truly cross-cultural event. Sutra is an innovative and moving piece drawing on eastern and western spirituality to define its parameters. Designed by sculptor Antony Gormley, and utilising a series of identical coffin-shaped wooden boxes, the stage picture is ever-changing and delightfully stimulating. The Kung Fu-based movement to music by Szymon Brzóska is highly polished and original.
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in your rooms - Hofesh Shechter
This piece, by the British-based Israeli choreographer Hofesh Shechter, made an unusual journey through three of London’s dance theatres. Thanks to an imaginative collaboration, In Your Rooms started life at The Place, had live music added at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, and finally emerged bigger and better at Sadler's Wells. The final production, which featured 11 dancers and eight musicians, churned with the precision of a well-oiled machine, delivering a mighty ride of exciting choreography and equally exciting music, both of which were written by Shechter.
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Picture credits
Russell Maliphant © Chris Nash,
Akram Khan © Rankin,
Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui © Koen Broos,
Hofesh Shechter © Sacha Gusov.
All text is © copyright of the Critics' Circle / National Dance Awards. |
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