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RHAPSODY
IN TAPS (RIT) is a Los Angeles based touring
company headed by Artistic Director, Linda Sohl-Donnell (dancer and primary choreographer)
and Music Director, Phil Wright. Founded by Sohl-DonneIl and Toni Relin in 1981,
RHAPSODY IN TAPS is intergenerational and multiracial, as is its audience. The
six dancers and five musicians create and perform exciting and innovative dance/music
concerts. All of the dances focus on rhythm and have live musical accompaniment,
much of it original. The repertoire ranges from traditional rhythm tap pieces
to dances which extend the boundaries of tap with contemporary spatial and visual
ideas. The artistic vision incorporates moving rhythm tap into a more contemporary
arena, and the staging providing a dramatic context with theatrical production
values. These elements are fused within pieces and are a true response to musical
and movement areas not normally associated with tap. The process of creating repertoire
is collaborative in nature, with the Artistic Director relying on input from composers,
design artists and expert tap dancers. Relationships
with historic tap masters have been a highlight of RHAPSODY IN TAPS' history.
From 1985-1992, legendary tap master Eddie Brown performed as a soloist with RIT
at home and on tour, providing audiences with a program that balanced tradition
and innovation. This intergenerational approach is carried further in the repertoire
with pieces by Eddie Brown, Honi Coles and Foster Johnson. In 1990, the company
commissioned a new choreography by dance/film artist Gregory Hines for RIT's Fifth
Annual Los Angeles Season at the Japan American Theater. The creation and premiere
of Hines' quintet, "Toeing The 3rd And Fifth," was supported by RHAPSODY
IN TAPS' first company grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. In addition
to the critical success of this collaboration and the increased box office and
publicity for RIT's L.A. Season, the association with Gregory Hines was an artistic
highlight. An aesthetic contrast to choreography by the masters is provided by numerous works created by Sohl-DonneIl in collaboration with an ever-widening range of composers and solo music masters. In 1990, Sohl-Donnell collaborated with jazz great AI "Tootie" Heath to create "Raindance." Heath composed an original percussion score for "Raindance" and worked directly with the dancers to teach interlocking rhythm patterns and drumming which were expanded visually in the choreography. A similar collaboration with San Francisco percussionist Keith Terry was supported by the NEA in 1994. Other collaborations from 1983 to the present include works by composers: Cedar Walton, Steve Fowler, Asanga, Jerry Kalaf, Phil Wright, Brent Lewis, Joh Bergamo, Clayton Cameron, Jeff Mayor and M.B. Gordy. RHAPSODY IN TAPS has enjoyed an exciting musical association with Louie Bellson, performing concerts with the Louie Bellson Big Band in 1990 and 1993 and creating "Suite Echoes" (1993), a three-part choreography by Sohl-Donnell to Bellson's composition "Trilogy in Time." The company repertoire, normally performed by a quartet, was enchanted by the fuller instrumentation of the big RHAPSODY IN TAPS celebrated its l0th Anniversary in 1991 creating three new repertoire works and presenting its first major children's' programs at the Japan America Theatre. In 1992, noted tap dancer/choreographer Fred Strickler joined RIT, performing solo and company works and eventually choreographing a quintet, "Just Around The Corner" (1993), supported by the company's third NEA grant. In 1993, RHAPSODY IN TAPS co-produced the first Southern California Tap Festival, featuring an intensive week of dance workshops, seminars and performances by RIT and some of the finest tap artists & master teachers working today. Attended by more than 100 international students and professionals, the festival was a tremendous success resulting in an exciting expansion in the 1995 tap festival, July 21 through 30. RHAPSODY IN TAPS' performance history includes: A 1988 New York debut on Lincoln Center's Out-of- Doors Festival, San Francisco's prestigious Stern Grove Festival (performing for an audience of 16, 000 ), numerous tap festivals, television appearances (KECT), eight seasons in Los Angeles, annual Orange County seasons, California touring with plans for continued touring in the United States. In the past, touring support has been provided by the Western States Art Foundation (WESTAF) touring program, and the company continues to be supported by the California Arts Council touring program. The company anticipates more active touring in the future after signing with New York based agency Arthur Shafman, International, Ltd., August, 1995.
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