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
NOV 4-11th, 2023
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU.Arts)
Guest Teacher/Choreographer
Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU.Arts)
Guest Teacher/Choreographer
NOV 11th, 2023
Pony Box Dance
Live Performance of "Four of Hearts"
Jersey City Theater Center (New Jersey)
Pony Box Dance
Live Performance of "Four of Hearts"
Jersey City Theater Center (New Jersey)
NOV 10 & 11, 2023
World Premiere
"Critical Mass"
Dallas Black Dance Theatre
Wyly Theatre, Dallas, TX
World Premiere
"Critical Mass"
Dallas Black Dance Theatre
Wyly Theatre, Dallas, TX
NOV 17-19, 2023
World Premiere
"Arrive"
Bruce Wood Dance
Moody Performance Hall, Dallas, TX
World Premiere
"Arrive"
Bruce Wood Dance
Moody Performance Hall, Dallas, TX
DEC 1 & 2, 2023
James Madison University, Dance Dept.
Live Performance
Forbes Performing Arts Center (Harrisonburg, VA)
James Madison University, Dance Dept.
Live Performance
Forbes Performing Arts Center (Harrisonburg, VA)
2024
JAN 2-9, 2024
Hartford Ballet
New Dance Residency
Hartford, CT
Hartford Ballet
New Dance Residency
Hartford, CT
JAN 11-14, 2024
Big Muddy Dance Company
Live Performance: "Cloud 9"
C.O.C.A. Catherine B. Berges Theater (St. Louis, MO)
Big Muddy Dance Company
Live Performance: "Cloud 9"
C.O.C.A. Catherine B. Berges Theater (St. Louis, MO)
JAN 12 & 13, 2024
Dallas Black Dance Theatre
NYC Debut of "Critical Mass"
American Dance Platform
The Joyce Theatre
Dallas Black Dance Theatre
NYC Debut of "Critical Mass"
American Dance Platform
The Joyce Theatre
JAN 15 - FEB 16, 2024
Olympic Ballet Theatre
Restaging: "To The Moon"
Live Performances Feb 15 & 16th
Olympic Ballet Theatre
Restaging: "To The Moon"
Live Performances Feb 15 & 16th
MARCH 7-18, 2024
Kent State University
Creative Residency
Live Performances April 5-7th
Kent, OH
Kent State University
Creative Residency
Live Performances April 5-7th
Kent, OH
MARCH 30, 2024
Golden State Ballet
Live Performance: "Semblance"
Balboa 100th Anniversary
San Diego, CA
Golden State Ballet
Live Performance: "Semblance"
Balboa 100th Anniversary
San Diego, CA
APRIL 6 & 7, 2024
Golden State Ballet
Program: From New York With Love
Live Performance: "Semblance"
San Diego, CA
Golden State Ballet
Program: From New York With Love
Live Performance: "Semblance"
San Diego, CA
JULY 8-12, 2024
Richmond Ballet
Education Residency
Richmond, VA
Richmond Ballet
Education Residency
Richmond, VA
OCT 14-25, 2024
Boston Conservatory
Creative Residency
Live Performances Nov 1 & 2
Boston, MA
Boston Conservatory
Creative Residency
Live Performances Nov 1 & 2
Boston, MA