Black Grace: From Cannons Creek to Jacob's Pillow

Fusing traditional Pacific and contemporary dance forms with athleticism and grace, Black Grace electrify audiences

Black Grace: From Cannons Creek to Jacob's Pillow  (New Zealand, 2004)

Coproduced by Seannachie Productions and Tawera Productions
Director & Producer: Aileen O’Sullivan
Associate Producer & Director: Toby Mills
Executive Producer: Philippa Mossman
Editor: Ken Sparks
Cinematographer: Michael O’Connor
Second Camera: Toby Mills
Additional Camera: Chris Stanbury & John Radel
Additional Sound Recording: Ken Saville & Chris Hobbs
Lyrics by Mihi Kitekapua, Hirini Melbourne, Bic Runga
Poem by: Sia Figiel
Music Post by: Stephen McCurdy

Black Grace Guest Dancers: Dolina Wehipeihana, Abby Crowther, Desiree Westerlund

DVD, Exempt, 70 minutes

www.blackgrace.co.nz

“I kind of still have to laugh at this idea of a kid from Cannon’s Creek and a bunch of his mates … kind of getting together and arriving in Boston, Massachusetts, for one of the oldest dance festivals around and having all these wealthy, arty types come in and watch us. I mean, it’s… it’s… I don’t know, it’s really surreal.” - Neil Ieremia at Jacob’s Pillow the day of their first US performance

“Black Grace: The name combines a word that in New Zealand is slang for daring and bravery with a quality not attributed to men. It’s exquisitely apt. Never before has this reviewer seen a group of male dancers who seemed so gentle yet breathtakingly virile. The New Zealand –based all-male troupe can rock the house.” - Karen Campbell, The Boston Globe

When Black Grace, a dance troupe of Pacific Islander and Maori men, first burst onto the New Zealand stage in 1995 they were a revelation. Fusing traditional Pacific and contemporary dance forms with athleticism and grace, they electrified audiences. Led by Artistic Director Neil Ieremia, Black Grace evolved from a crew of Neil’s “mates” into one of New Zealand’s national treasures and conquered the world’s dance festivals culminating with Jacob’s Pillow in the Berkshire hills of Massachusetts. This film follows Black Grace’s journey from Cannon’s Creek, a small town outside of Wellington, New Zealand to the prestigious Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, the oldest one of its kind in North America.

At the time of filming this documentary, Black Grace was a close ensemble company that not only worked together, but who had also lived and toured together for several years. Originally recruited from Neil’s own friends, the company was comprised almost entirely of Maori and Pacific Islander men. Many of the dancers came with no formal dance training; their previous dance experience was hip-hop. They were playful, lively, funny, musical; fond of food and Neil was their leader.
In 2004 Ella Baff, Executive Director of Jacob’s Pillow invited the company to the festival. Black Grace was the first New Zealand dance company to receive such an invitation. Located in the town of Becket, in the Berkshire Hills of Western Massachusetts, the Pillow was originally a family farm in the 18th century, and in the 19th century was a station on the Underground Railroad for slaves escaping to the North. Its dynamic history grew in 1933, when dancer, teacher, and choreographer Ted Shawn founded the Pillow first as a retreat and then as a showcase for his company of male dancers. Internationally recognized as a mecca for dance artists, the festival has provided pivotal exposure for such dance luminaries as Paul Taylor and Mark Morris.

The invitation to perform at Jacob’s Pillow catapulted Neil Ieremia as a choreographer and Black Grace into the highly competitive American market and the international stage. The invitation came on the eve of Black Grace’s tenth birthday and fulfilled the last of their goals: “To present New Zealand contemporary dance on an international stage.” - www.pbs.org

Screenings: Black Grace screened on 27 March 2010