Artist Statement:
In order for dance to evolve, we must ask ourselves, how did we get here? And how do our histories reveal themselves on our bodies? My work as a choreographer is a hybrid and ever-changing response to these questions.
My work draws from and brings awareness to the movement of everyday life. I marvel at our innate ability to reach, walk, stand, and gesture and am inspired by the kinesthetic empathy that forms between people who share space. I want to conjure radical awareness about what it means to have a body. And to remind people that dance is a vital part of living, breathing, bleeding, sweating, mourning, and celebrating our time as temporary residents of this planet.
My dances are hybrid creatures, part classical, part improvisational, part personal. I was trained in Western ballet in Los Angeles and New York City. But these canonical movements map differently on my body, a body that has been underrepresented in canon. I make modifications, bend rules and break them, as I search for movement that feels authentic. The territory of this search is fertile choreographic ground. This is a gift that immigrant voices give to the paradigm. We necessarily revamp the rules and interrogate the forms, in order to bring together multiple histories on our bodies.
I strive to make the invisible visible – from the small gesture to marginalized voices. I want to be a representative of the dance world for my communities and to represent my communities in dance, casting my work as an extension of them. I want to be living proof that a little, brown, middle-class, queer, immigrant boy existed and tackled the complexities of navigating a place in Western dance.
- Norbert L. De La Cruz III
My work draws from and brings awareness to the movement of everyday life. I marvel at our innate ability to reach, walk, stand, and gesture and am inspired by the kinesthetic empathy that forms between people who share space. I want to conjure radical awareness about what it means to have a body. And to remind people that dance is a vital part of living, breathing, bleeding, sweating, mourning, and celebrating our time as temporary residents of this planet.
My dances are hybrid creatures, part classical, part improvisational, part personal. I was trained in Western ballet in Los Angeles and New York City. But these canonical movements map differently on my body, a body that has been underrepresented in canon. I make modifications, bend rules and break them, as I search for movement that feels authentic. The territory of this search is fertile choreographic ground. This is a gift that immigrant voices give to the paradigm. We necessarily revamp the rules and interrogate the forms, in order to bring together multiple histories on our bodies.
I strive to make the invisible visible – from the small gesture to marginalized voices. I want to be a representative of the dance world for my communities and to represent my communities in dance, casting my work as an extension of them. I want to be living proof that a little, brown, middle-class, queer, immigrant boy existed and tackled the complexities of navigating a place in Western dance.
- Norbert L. De La Cruz III
Upcoming:
2023
JAN 12-13, 2023
Laguardia High School for the Performing Arts
Live at Manhattan Movement ad Arts Center
Earl Mosley Diversity of Dance
Dancing Beyond 2023 Benefit Concert
American Cancer Society & Dance Against Cancer
Laguardia High School for the Performing Arts
Live at Manhattan Movement ad Arts Center
Earl Mosley Diversity of Dance
Dancing Beyond 2023 Benefit Concert
American Cancer Society & Dance Against Cancer
JAN 30-FEB 10 / MAR 13-17
Ballet Hispanico
Professional Studies (NY, NY)
Guest Choreographer
Ballet Hispanico
Professional Studies (NY, NY)
Guest Choreographer
FEBRUARY 27-MARCH 3, 2023
Richmond Ballet
Directors: Stoner Winslet & Ma Cong
Commission (Richmond, VA)
Richmond Ballet
Directors: Stoner Winslet & Ma Cong
Commission (Richmond, VA)
MARCH 12, 2023
Gibney Group Study Program
Texas Christian University
Contemporary Ballet Class
10-11:45AM
Gibney Group Study Program
Texas Christian University
Contemporary Ballet Class
10-11:45AM
MARCH 20, 2023
Princeton University
Guest Contemporary teacher
Princeton University
Guest Contemporary teacher
MARCH 27-31, 2023
Fort Hamilton High School, Dance Dept.
Creative Process
Fort Hamilton High School, Dance Dept.
Creative Process
APRIL 24-29, 2023
Contemporary West Pro Division
Commission (Las Vegas, NV)
Contemporary West Pro Division
Commission (Las Vegas, NV)
MAY, 2023
Golden State Ballet
Commission (San Diego, CA)
TBD
Golden State Ballet
Commission (San Diego, CA)
TBD
MAY 2023
Dallas Black Dance Theatre
Commission (Dallas, TX)
Dallas Black Dance Theatre
Commission (Dallas, TX)
JUNE 11-30, 2023
Alonzo King LINES Ballet
Pre-Pro Program
Guest Choreographer
Performance: June 30th
Alonzo King LINES Ballet
Pre-Pro Program
Guest Choreographer
Performance: June 30th
July 10-15th, 2023
Nashville Ballet II
Commission (Nashville, TN)
Guest Choreographer
Nashville Ballet II
Commission (Nashville, TN)
Guest Choreographer
JULY 16-22, 2023
University of North Carolina School for the Arts
Summer Dance Program
Guest Choreographer
University of North Carolina School for the Arts
Summer Dance Program
Guest Choreographer
JULY 24-28, 2023
Boston Conservatory
Summer Residency
Guest Teacher/Choreographer
Boston Conservatory
Summer Residency
Guest Teacher/Choreographer
AUG 7-11, 2023
The Dance Institute
Summer Program (Austin, TX)
Guest Choreographer
The Dance Institute
Summer Program (Austin, TX)
Guest Choreographer
AUG 27 - SEPT 8, 2023
Commission (St. Louis, MO)
Owen Cox Dance Company
New Dance Partners, Dance STL
Commission (St. Louis, MO)
Owen Cox Dance Company
New Dance Partners, Dance STL
SEPT 2023
Houston Contemporary Dance Company
Commission (Houston, TX)
Houston Contemporary Dance Company
Commission (Houston, TX)
SEPT 2023
James Madison University, Dance Dept.
Creative Process (Harrisonburg, VA)
James Madison University, Dance Dept.
Creative Process (Harrisonburg, VA)
OCT 2-18 2023
Bruce Wood Dance
Commission (Dallas, TX)
Bruce Wood Dance
Commission (Dallas, TX)
NOV 13-17, 2023
Big Muddy Dance Company
Rehearsal Process (St. Louis, MI)
Big Muddy Dance Company
Rehearsal Process (St. Louis, MI)
NOV 17-19, 2023
World Premiere
Bruce Wood Dance
Dallas, TX
World Premiere
Bruce Wood Dance
Dallas, TX