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THE DANCE ON ENSEMBLE The Dance On Ensemble was founded in 2015 by the Berlin-based cultural non-profit organisation Bureau Ritter (formerly Diehl + Ritter) as part of the Dance On initiative that celebrates the artistic excellence of dancers aged 40+ and explores the relationship between dance and age both on stage and in society. Working with internationally renowned choreographers and directors, including among others Rabih Mroué, Lucinda Childs, Meg Stuart, Christos Papadopoulos and Jan Martens, the Dance On Ensemble is developing a repertoire of groundbreaking and challenging contemporary dance works. Its aim is to create a solid base for a rich and ambitious future repertoire for dancers 40+. As a member of the Dance On Ensemble since the beginning of the project, Ty Boomershine is responsible for its artistic direction since 2019. Further members of the Dance On Ensemble are: Javier Arozena, Alba Barral Fernández, Ziv Frenkel, Anna Herrmann, Christine Kono, Emma Lewis, Gesine Moog, Omagbitse Omagbemi, Miki Orihara, Tim Persent, Jone San Martin, Marco Volta, Lia Witjes Poole – all of them are professional dancers between the ages 43 to 71 who have danced in leading companies, among them Lucinda Childs Dance, Ballet
Frankfurt, Martha Graham Dance Company, Netherlands Dance Theater, Hamburg Ballet and Cullberg Ballet. DANCE ON has created strong alliances with coproduction partners – on a national and international level, among them Kampnagel Hamburg, tanzhaus nrw, Berliner Ensemble, Münchner Kammerspiele, Sadlers Wells London, Holland Dance Festival, STUK House for Image, Dance and Sound, ONASSIS STEGI Athens, Belgrade Dance Festival, and ADC – Association pour la Danse Contemporaine Genève. These alliances will ensure the DANCE ON concept is implemented sustainably and make an active contribution to establishing a dance repertoire 40+.
“A Suite of Dances - A Day in the Studio” is part of a series called “Replies” in which Dance On Ensemble invites contemporary choreographers to respond to iconic works of the 20th century from their own artistic perspectives. This production is following earlier editions dedicated to Merce Cunningham and Mathilde Monnier, Lucinda Childs and Panzetti / Ticconi as well as Martha Graham and Tim Etchells. The series creates a continuous thread in which tradition and innovation continue to question one another.
A S u i t e o f D a n c e s Noa Eshkol A D a y i n t h e S t u d i o Noé Soulier “A Suite of Dances – A Day in the Studio” is the fourth production in the “Replies” series, in which the Dance On Ensemble invites contemporary choreographers to engage with iconic works of modern and postmodern dance from their own artistic perspectives. Following earlier editions dedicated to Merce Cunningham and Mathilde Monnier, Lucinda Childs and Panzetti / Ticconi as well as Martha Graham and Tim Etchells, the ensemble now turns to the work of Noa Eshkol (1924–2007). Revealing a striking formal precision and intricately structured movement language, her choreographic compositions enter into dialogue with a newly created work by choreographer and dancer Noé Soulier. Noa Eshkol’s artistic practice was defined by an uncompromising commitment to essentials. Rooted in a profound understanding of the body and its spatial relationships, she created rigorously articulated choreographic compositions shaped through the movement notation system she developed together with architect Avraham Wachman: the Eshkol-Wachman Movement
Notation (EWMN), a unique system for composing, recording, and analysing movement. In 1954, she founded the Noa Eshkol Chamber Dance Group, through which her choreographic works were continuously developed and performed. Now, for the first time, dancers outside this group perform Eshkol’s works. The dancers of the Dance On Ensemble bring artistic maturity, precision, and their openness to the challenging movement structures of this approach. Guided by Mor Bashan, longtime dancer with the Noa Eshkol Chamber Dance Group and now stager and archive manager, together with her assistant Dror Shoval, the Ensemble dancers enter into Eshkol’s choreographic system at its core – engaging with the fundamental movement principles that structure the compositions at every level, and revealing the richness, formal inventiveness, and poetic resonance of her work. The evening features works from the earliest cycle of “Theme and Variations” (1965), Eshkol’s first dance suite using the EWMN, together with a later work from the 1970s.
The second part of the evening, “A Day in the Studio”, is choreographed by Noé Soulier and reflects Noa Eshkol’s radical use of geometry within a contemporary choreographic language. Eshkol’s systematic and rigorous approach to spatial organisation forms a central conceptual point of reference, not as a model to be reproduced, but as a framework for rethinking how movement can be composed, articulated, and perceived. Soulier’s practice is rooted in embodied experience and in situations where physical, sensory, and affective dimensions are closely interwoven. In “A Day in the Studio” he isolates actions such as hitting, avoiding, or throwing from their original functional contexts, allowing them to generate distinct qualities of acceleration, momentum, and tension. These shifts in intensity give movement an affective charge that operates independently of narrative structures. By directing actions toward imaginary objects, another performer’s body, or the performer’s own body, the choreography activates bodily memory, kinesthetic empathy, and sensory responsiveness in the spectator. In the duet opening and closing “A Day in the Studio”, geometry is not employed as a system of control, but as a spatial and compositional framework that foregrounds trajectories of movement while simultaneously
opening them to variation and spontaneity. This principle extends into the group sections of the work. While the movement phrases are carefully composed, their organisation remains deliberately flexible: performers may reorganise phrases or reorient them in space in real time. The choreography thus unfolds through decisions made in the moment and establishes conditions for processes of transformation and structuring – within the individual body as well as in the evolving constellations between performers.
A Suite of Dances Dance Compositions / Choreography: Noa Eshkol Staging: Mor Bashan (The Noa Eshkol Chamber Dance Group) Staging Assistant: Dror Shoval (The Noa Eshkol Chamber Dance Group) Performance: Javier Arozena, Alba Barral Fernández, Anna Herrmann, Gesine Moog, Lia Witjes Poole, Dominic Santia, Marco Volta (5 dancers with an alternating cast) Light: Martin Beeretz Sounddesign: Mattef Kuhlmey Costume: Werkstattkollektiv Technical Direction: Martin Beeretz Selected pieces from Noa Eshkol’s dance suite “Theme and Variations”: Jacob Rachel and Lea (2) (early 1960s), Duet (5) (early 1960s), Skilla (6) (early 1960s), Fugue (0) (early 1970s), March (1) (early 1960s), Minuet (0,3) (early 1960s)
A Day in the Studio Choreography: Noé Soulier Performance: Javier Arozena, Alba Barral Fernández, Anna Herrmann, Dominic Santia, Gesine Moog, Lia Witjes Poole, Marco Volta (5 dancers with an alternating cast) Light: Martin Beeretz Costume: Chiara Valle Vallomini Music: A Day in the Studio, Hanne Lippard (2020); Portals, Jana Irmert (2025); Phase III, Lucy Railton (2025) Sound: Mattef Kuhlmey Technical Direction: Martin Beeretz
Both works Artistic Direction Dance On Ensemble: Ty Boomershine Production Dance On Ensemble: Anastasia Luck (Senior Producer), Valentin Braun (Production Assistant) Production Cndc: Céline Chouffot, Adèle Thébault International Distribution: Chalmont Agentur Premiere: 6 & 7 July 2026, Julidans Amsterdam Duration: Eshkol: 25 minutes – Break: ca 20 minutes – Soulier: 35 minutes
Production: DANCE ON / Bureau Ritter In collaboration with Cndc Angers. The performance is part of Dance On Ensemble’s 10th anniversary celebrations. Funded by the Kulturstiftung des Bundes (German Federal Cultural Foundation). Funded by the Beauftragte der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien (Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media). Part of DanceMap, funded by Horizon Europe, the European Union’s funding programme for research and innovation. DANCE ON is a project by BUREAU RITTER, funded by the German Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media. Teaser Trailer Full Recording
Photo: Noa Eshkol, photographer: Shosh Kormush, 1993
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E S HKO L
Noa Eshkol was a choreographer, dance pedagogue, and textile artist. Together with Avraham Wachman, she developed the Eshkol-Wachman Movement Notation System and collaborated across disciplines with artists and scientists. Her approach to dance was marked by a focus on the essential: by recognizing each movement and every part of the body in its full autonomy and complexity, she opened a vast space for creative diversity in choreographic composition. Her work continues to influence contemporary choreographic and performative practices to this day.
M O R B A S H A N Mor Bashan is an archivist, head of the research department at the Noa Eshkol Foundation for Movement Notation, and an active dancer with the Noa Eshkol Chamber Dance Group. In her dual role as researcher and performer, she bridges practical bodily knowledge with a deep understanding of the theoretical foundations of Noa Eshkol’s movement notation system. Her work makes a vital contribution to preserving, teaching, and advancing Eshkol’s choreographic and scientific legacy.
Photo: Noé Soulier © Willfried Thiery - Cndc
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In his work, Noé Soulier explores choreography and dance in various settings, including the stage, the museum space and theoretical reflections. In this way, he develops a practice that is both conceptual and deeply rooted in movement, reflecting his educational background, which combines dance (Conservatoire national supérieur de musique et de danse de Paris, National Ballet School of Canada, P.A.R.T.S) and theory (Master’s degree in Philosophy from the University of Paris Sorbonne). He has performed worldwide at renowned venues such as the Théâtre National de Chaillot (Paris), Sadler’s Wells (London), Performa (New York), and Tanz im August (Berlin). In the past, he has also choreographed for numerous companies: the Ballet du Rhin, Ballet de Lorraine, L.A. Dance Project, Lyon Opera Ballet, Nederlands Dans Theater and the Trisha Brown Dance Company. In July 2020, he took over as director of the Cndc – Angers (National Centre for Contemporary Dance), a unique institution that combines a centre for choreographic creation, a postgraduate school for contemporary dance and a dance programme.
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Javier Arozena, born 1977 in Spain, trained in contemporary dance at the Andalusian Dance Center in Seville and later graduated from the Institut del Teatre de Barcelona. He worked for Ramón Oller’s company Metros and Thomas Noone Dance, dancing repertoire by Thomas Noone, Roni Haver & Guy Weizman and Johannes Wieland, as well as in “Sunday again” by Jo Strömgren. He dances with Cámaralúcida in Barcelona and is currently a guest dancer with Lava Compañía de Danza in Tenerife. In 2010 he joined the PostClassical Ensemble in Washington D.C. as a principal soloist for the production “El corregidor y la molinera”. He has worked as Ramón Oller’s assistant for productions with the Ballet Hispánico de New York, the Ballet des jeunes d’Europe in Marseille, the Ballet de Andalucía in Seville and the Dance Conservatory in Prague. In December 2019, he presented two creations for the Canarios Dentro y Fuera Dance Festival, “Schwanengesang” and “Las Ellas”.
Ty Boomershine (Artistic Director), USA 1968, studied dance at the Fort Hayes School for the Performing Arts in Columbus, Ohio, and earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts at Stephens College in Columbia, Missouri. He danced for Yvonne Rainer, Dan Wagoner, DANCENOISE , Gus Solomons Jr., Bill T. Jones/ Arnie Zane, Ton Simons, Merce Cunningham Repertory Ensemble, Lucinda Childs, Dance Works Rotterdam, LeineRoebana, Emio Greco | PC, Giulia Mureddu, and Nicole Beutler. He performed as a soloist in the 2012 remounting of Robert Wilson and Philip Glass’s opera Einstein on the Beach and acted as the rehearsal director for Lucinda Childs’ dances in the opera. Ty worked as production tour manager for Pere Faura and Nicole Beutler, and as Rehearsal Director and curator of special events for ICK Amsterdam. He has been artistic assistant to Lucinda Childs since 2009. Ty joined the Dance On Ensemble in 2015 and was named Artistic Director in 2019.
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Alba Barral Fernández, Spain 1979, trained in contemporary dance at Espazo de Danza Universitario in Santiago de Compostela and later moved to the Netherlands, where she graduated with a bachelor in dance fom ArteZ University of the Arts in Arnhem. She worked with the companies LeineRoebana and Suzy Blok in Amsterdam and with SenzaTempo Teatrodanza (Inés Boza/Carles Mallol) in Barcelona. She has been a member of Thomas Noone Dance (Barcelona) since 2008, dancing works by Thomas Noone, Roni Haver/Guy Weizman, Johannes Wieland and Jo Strömgren and been part of the project Camaralucida (Barcelona) under the direction of Lautaro Reyes. She is currently working as rehearsal director for Thomas Noone Dance and as an independent artist with La Veronal, Marcos Morau.
Anna Herrmann, Switzerland 1979, began her dance education in Zurich. A full scholarship from Migros-Kulturprozent allowed her to study at the School of the Hamburg Ballett. In 1998, upon graduation, she was invited to join The Hamburg Ballet. Anna has been a company member of Niedersächsische Staatsoper Hannover, Göteborgs Operan, Staatstheater Wiesbaden and later of the Nederlands Dans Theater where she performed from 2009 until 2016. Anna has had the privilege to create and collaborate with renowned choreographers, such as John Neumeier, Jiří Kylián, Mats Ek, Stephan Thoss, Crystal Pite, Leon/Lightfoot, Marco Goecke, Johan Inger, Franck Chartier, Sharon Eyal, Medhi Walerski among others. Since 2015 Anna is exploring her own choreographic voice and has served as guest teacher at The Royal Conservatoire Den Haag and Arts Umbrella Vancouver.
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Gesine Moog, Germany 1976, received her Bachelor of Arts at Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts 1997. After graduating she danced for the Frankfurter Künstlerhaus Mousonturm, Staatstheater Mainz, Staatstheater Wiesbaden, Saarländisches Staatstheater Saarbruecken and Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz Munich. In 2004 Gesine was named a “dancer to watch” by the magazine Tanz. In 2007 she toured Sweden with Riksteatern and Batsheva Dance Company’s production of Ohad Naharin’s Kamuyot . She was awarded the Riksteatern’s award for “Dancer of the year 2007” for outstanding performance and dedication. Since 2008 Gesine Moog has been a member of Cullberg Ballet, where she has worked with, among others, Mats Ek, Jiří Kylián, Crystal Pite, Johan Inger, Alexander Ekman, Gaetano Soto, Edouard Lock, Robert Cohan, Antony Rizzi, Benoit Lachambre, Eszter Salamon, Deborah Hay, Jefta van Dinther and Ian Kaler.
Lia Witjes Poole, Canada 1979, received her formal education at Arts Umbrella in Vancouver, British Colombia. While in their Youth Dance Company, she danced with renowned Canadian choreographers such as Joe Laughlin, Gioconda Barbuto and Wen Wei Wang. Lia started her professional career in Toronto with Desroisiers Dance Theatre. Moving to the Netherlands she worked with Pieter de Ruiter, Jennifer Hanna, Itzik Galili, Omar Rajeh, Heather Ware, and LeineRoebana. Lia has also made two dance films with Ivar Hagendoorn. She has taught ballet and contemporary dance at the Amsterdam Academie voor Theater en Dans, The Dutch National Ballet Academy, Codarts in Rotterdam and has come full circle to Canada where she has been developing an international educational exchange between Arts Umbrella and the Dutch dance institutions.
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Dominic Santia, originally from Michigan, USA, received his B.F.A. from The Juilliard School in 2006. After his studies he joined La La La Human Steps (2006-09) under the direction of Edouard Lock for the production “Amjad”. He then spent some time as a guest with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal before joining Nederlands Dans Theater I in December of 2009. At NDT he had the opportunity to work with Crystal Pite, Johan Inger, Jiri Kylian, Sol Leon and Paul Lightfoot as well as several other choreographers. Following his time at NDT, he toured internationally with Sharon Eyal and Gai Behar as a member of their company L-E-V, and is now working as a freelance artist based in Berlin.
Marco Volta, Italy 1969, studied dance at “Lo Studio” Dance School Bussoleno, Italy. He has been dancing for several theatres and independent dance companies in Italy, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Ireland since 1994, among them Balletto Teatro di Torino, Tanztheater Wien, Theater Freiburg and Cois Ceim Dance Theatre. As a choreographer he has created several works that have been presented in Seoul, New York, Turin and Basel, among other places. Marco is currently Lecturer at the Zurich University of the Arts, Bachelor of Arts in Contemporary Dance and Higher Education for Contemporary and Urban Stage Dance. He also works with children and teenagers, for example with the miniMIR Education Dance Program and the Young Ensemble Hermesdance. In 2015 he obtained a Diploma of Advanced Studies in Dance Culture at the University Bern.
C O N TAC T C O N TAC T
Bureau Ritter gUG Crellestraße 29–30, 10827 Berlin Bureau Ritter gUG www.bureau-ritter.de Crellestraße 29–30, 10827 Berlin
Esther Ningelgen Head of Communications Esther Ningelgen e.ningelgen@bureau-ritter.de Head of Communications
www.bureau-ritter.de
e.ningelgen@bureau-ritter.de
Ty Boomershine Madeline Ritter Artistic Director and Dancer Dance On Ensemble Artistic and Executive Director Dance On t.boomershine@bureau-ritter.de m.ritter@bureau-ritter.de Ty Boomershine Hélène Philippot Artistic Director and Dancer Dance Executive Producer Dance On On Ensemble t.boomershine@bureau-ritter.de h.philippot@bureau-ritter.de Simone Graf & Hélène Philippot
Anastasia Luck Management Artistic Production Senior Producer Dance On s.graf@bureau-ritter.de h.philippot@bureau-ritter.de a.luck@bureau-ritter.de
Chalmont Agentur
Julia Danila and Sepide Freitag International Distribution Distributing Producers lea@chalmont-agentur.com Danila-Freitag Agency for the Performing Arts jd@danila-freitag.com sf@danila-freitag.com Photos Dancers: Jubal Battisti
Photos Performance: Delphine Perrin
Photos dancers: Anna Mora, Dorothea Tuch, Filip Van Roe, Jubal Battisti, Michael Slobodian, Sacha Grootjans, www.dance-on.net Thierry Gründler www.dance-on.net