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:
2022
AUGUST 22-SEPT 10, 2022
Big Muddy Dance, Residency
Commission (St. Louis, MO)
Live Performances Oct 28-29th, 2022
Big Muddy Dance, Residency
Commission (St. Louis, MO)
Live Performances Oct 28-29th, 2022
SEPT 1- NOV 19th, 2022
Barnard College/Columbia University
Guest choreographer/Adjunct Professor
Performances at NY Live Arts Nov 14-19
Barnard College/Columbia University
Guest choreographer/Adjunct Professor
Performances at NY Live Arts Nov 14-19
SEPT 17-18th, 2022
Vitacca Dance, guest choreographer
Houston, TX
Vitacca Dance, guest choreographer
Houston, TX
SEPT 27-DEC 11, 2022
SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance, PDC
Guest Choreographer
Restaging of Repertoire "Reintegrate"
PDC Performances Dec 9-11
SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance, PDC
Guest Choreographer
Restaging of Repertoire "Reintegrate"
PDC Performances Dec 9-11
September 16-18th, 2022
McKnight Fellowship
Solo Premier for Hassan Ingraham
Minneapolis, MN
McKnight Fellowship
Solo Premier for Hassan Ingraham
Minneapolis, MN
October 10-15, 2022
Commissioned Ballet
Richmond Ballet (VA)
Directors: Stoner Winslet & Ma Cong
Premieres: November 1, 2022
Commissioned Ballet
Richmond Ballet (VA)
Directors: Stoner Winslet & Ma Cong
Premieres: November 1, 2022
OCTOBER 28 & 29, 2022
World Premiere of "Cloud 9"
Danced by Big Muddy Dance Company
Venue: Center of Creative Arts
World Premiere of "Cloud 9"
Danced by Big Muddy Dance Company
Venue: Center of Creative Arts
Nov 1-10, 2022
Commissioned work
Dance Kaleidoscope (Indianapolis, IN)
Premieres Jan 12-15, 2023
Commissioned work
Dance Kaleidoscope (Indianapolis, IN)
Premieres Jan 12-15, 2023
October-November, 2022
Laguardia High School for the Performing Arts
Guest Choreographer
Junior Ensemble
Laguardia High School for the Performing Arts
Guest Choreographer
Junior Ensemble
DECEMBER 9-11 2022
Live Performances
SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance
"Reintegrate"
Venue: Purchase College
Live Performances
SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance
"Reintegrate"
Venue: Purchase College
2023
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)
APRIL 2023
Contemporary West
Commission (Las Vegas, NV)
To be announced
Contemporary West
Commission (Las Vegas, NV)
To be announced
MAY, 2023
Golden State Ballet
Commission (San Diego, CA)
TBD
Golden State Ballet
Commission (San Diego, CA)
TBD
MAY 2023
Commission (Dallas, TX)
To be announced
Commission (Dallas, TX)
To be announced
FALL 2023
Commission (Dallas, TX)
To be announced
Commission (Dallas, TX)
To be announced