natalie cursio : choreographer, performer, educator
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natalie cursio is an australian contemporary choreographer and dancer based in melbourne.
the latest
september 2010After a very successful second stage development of Recovery in July (with Shannon Bott, Simon Ellis, Bluebottle3, Pete Brundle, Vanessa Chapple and Paula Levis), Natalie is now concentrating a new project with emerging choreographer Fiona Bryant, who will direct a new solo work for Natalie.may 2010Nat's new curated project Private Dances is happening in May for the 2010 Next Wave Festival.
Read all about it here april 2010Natalie is making a new work in 24 consecutive hours!
24HOURS, curated by Jo Lloyd challenges 4 choreographers to make work overnight!
Natalie's work will be performed at 8pm on Friday 30th April at Dancehouse. She is working with performers Gerard Van Dyck, Trevor Patrick and Michelle Heaven and visual artist Ash Keating.
Tickets - www.dancehouse.com.aumarch 2010Natalie is back in the studio with Simon Ellis and Shannon Bott for the second stage development of Recoverynovember 09Natalie has a little side project
Guinea Pig
august 09Nat Cursio and Shannon Bott's project in development Recovery has just had news of receiving Australia Council funding for Its second stage of development, with director Simon Ellis.
Natalie is also embarking upon the research and curatorial process for her new project PrivateDances for the Next Wave Festival 2010.july 09Nat is getting back into the studio with Shannon Bott to continue development of Recovery, which is being maximised by Chunky Move.
In July, Nat will also be heading up to Lismore NSW to work on the Splendid Arts Lab as a provovateur/mentor.june 09Natalie's work Six for Gold, made for Tasdance, has been touring Victoria during May/June.
Also check out Hanguk Summer, now up on Vimeojanuary 09During December 08 and January 09 Natalie has been working on a creative development project titled Recovery with co-deviser Shannon Bott, media designer Pete Brundle, dramaturge Vanessa Chapple. designers Bluebottle 3 and costume designer Paula Levis.november 08Nature Strip, a new work choreographed by Natalie for the Victorian College of the Arts 3rd year students, opens November 22 at Gasworks Theatre, South Melbourne.
Natalie's work for Tasdance Six for Gold was toured in Tasmania and NSW during October.july/august 08Natalie is currently making a new work for the Victorian College of the Arts.june 08In June Natalie will begin research into project Recovery with co-deviser Shannon Bott.may 08May 6 -8: Trace Elements present Get A Grip. Le Parkour and more. Natalie has worked as an artistic advisor on this project. See it at Artshouse.
May 10: Natalie's film Hanguk Summer will be screened at Danceflicks this month. Included in this program is Mink Engine's video clip for Hand in Glove, choreographed by Natalie. Check out www.dancehouse.com.au for details.
May 23: Next Wave Festival's Regional Dance Project Sweet Region will be presented at the Art Centre's Black Box. Natalie has worked as a mentor to a group of regional dance artists. See www.nextwave.org.au for details.april 08Natalie's work Six for Gold can be seen this month as part of Tasdance's Victoria regional shows.
See www.tasdance.com.aufebruary 08It has recently been announced that Nat Cursio's new collaborative project with Shannon Bott, entitled Recovery, has received development funding from Arts Victoria, the Besen Family Foundation and Culture Lab. The project, also involving designer Pete Brundle, dramaturg Vanessa Chapple and entomologist Marc Tracy, will begin later this year.january 08Natalie's film Hanguk Summer will screen this month at the Sydney Festival as part of Dance Screen at the Sydney Opera House. Check out www.sydneyfestival.org.audecember 07Natalie is currently working with Tasdance in Launceston, Tasmania. She is making a new work commissioned by the company entitled Six for Gold. The work will be seen on tour around Tasmania and Victoria from March 2008.november 07WITH A BULLET : THE ALBUM PROJECT REMASTERED
Nat Cursio Co's With a Bullet is back!
With two new pieces by Bec Reid and Carlee Mellow, plus a re-mixed and expanded cast at the Fairfax Studio, Arts Centre Melbourne. November 28 - December 1.
What was the first song you ever made up a dance to? A group of Melbourne choreographers have made new dance 'singles' using the first song they ever choreographed to.
Choreographers and Dancers include:
Shannon Bott, Nat Cursio, Simon Ellis, Phillip Gleeson, Michelle Heaven, Luke Hockley, Jacob Lehrer, Jo Lloyd, Alisdair Macindoe, Carlee Mellow, Bec Reid, Gerard Van Dyck, Matt Cornell, Alice Dixon, Holly Durant, Melissa Jones, Laura Levitus, Rob McCredie, Kathryn Newnham, James Shannon.
bookings: Ticketmaster outlets, Arts Centre Box Office or www.theartscentre.net.auoctober 07Nat Cursio Co is gearing up for the remounting of With a Bullet : The Album Project which will be presented at the Arts Centre, Melbourne in November this year. Book now through www.theartscentre.net.au
Natalie has also begun work as a mentor/creative producer for the Next Wave Festival, for their regional dance project Sweet Region.september 07During September Natalie will be in Western Australia, first in Perth as a guest teacher at WAAPA, then heading off to Leonora to work as a resident/facilitator for Awesome Arts Creative Challenge Project.
Excerpt from LIVE CLIPS Review....
"Entering the Guild Theatre it was as I had always hoped to see it, empty, just waiting to be filled. The production filled it with humour, grace, energy and style. There was no pretension about this work..... It does converse in twisting bodies, haunting melodies and, its best quality, a sense of irreverent humour, gloriously backed up with oodles of craft. Making this physical work traverse that difficult hurdle of generating meaning to an audience. Of particular note, though this was a strong production across the board, was Lovesick. A stunning exercise of a well executed image. Live Clips had few spoken words, but the bodies conveyed an assessable physical language to an audience that wanted to experience more... Live Clips was great. Best of the festival so far." Anthony Broadbent for MUDFESTaugust 07LIVE CLIPS OPENS IN AUGUST
Like video clips... only there's no video
Local composers, local choreographers : It's all about the body and the music.
LIVE CLIPS is a series of 7 mini performance pieces integrating contemporary music, dance and theatre. Featuring the sounds of local composers and bands, music will form the vehicle for a bunch of snap-fresh physical gems.
Natalie Cursio, Stephanie Lake and Gerard Van Dyck will direct an ensemble of young actors and dancers to produce this raw and spunky little event for Mudfest 10. With design by Emily Barrie and Gina Gascoigne. Sounds by Benjamin McDonald, Fly South, David Holyoake, Nancy Hosking, nat, Slipper, The Thod.
Conceived and curated by Natalie Cursio.
August 29 - September 1, 2007
The Guild Theatre, Union House Building
University of Melbourne
7.30pm each night, plus a 4pm matinee on Saturday
bookings : 8344 7447july 07Natalie is currently rehearsing for her new curated season LIVE CLIPS, a new project commissioned by Union House Theatre and Mudfest 10. Also featuring choreography by Stephanie Lake and Gerard Van Dyck, LIVE CLIPS premieres on August 29 - check this space in August for details.june 07Natalie is now back in Melbourne and this month will work as a dancer under the direction of Shaun McLeod in the new Motion Capture Laboratory at Deakin University.
In June Natalie will also develop the choreography for a new short film (starring Amanda Muggleton, written by Gillian Barnett, directed by Sarah Grimmer with DOP Katie Milwright)may 07After recent successful showings in Melbourne with Homeless Dance Company, Natalie will spend May in Hong Kong and Taipei continuing development with the company, including performances at Ngau Chi Wan Civic Centre in Hong Kong and National Chiang Kai Shek Theatre in Taipei.
Meanwhile, Natalies choreography will feature in Reckless Valour by Quantum Leap Youth Dance Ensemble. Originally made in 2005, the show has been remounted for the Come Out Festival in Adelaide. May 10-12. Festival Theatre, at the Adelaide Festival Centre.april 07Natalie has received a Skills Development grant of $4150 from the Australia Council to assist her participation in the Homeless Dance Company tour to Hong Kong and Taiwan in May 2007.
During April Natalie is in rehearsal in Melbourne with Homeless Dance Co. at Artshouse supported by Culture Lab and Arts Victoria. Public access to this project includes classes, a workshop, open rehearsals and showings/forum. Check the Homeless website for details.march 07With a Bullet : The Album Project has been nominated for a Greenroom Award in the category of Concept and Realisation.
Awards announced April 1.february 07Natalie will present her new solo work CIndy and Polly Talk Dance in Tokyo at Theatre X from February 12-14. It will be part of a series of performances, workshops and symposia for the Original Works of World Choreographers Project.
Invited by Ishii Kaoru, founder of Tokyo Dance Theatre, Natalie will also collaborate with choreographers from Canada, China, Japan and Korea. The results of this collaboration will be presented at Theatre X on February 15.january 07Natalie has been invited to Tokyo for the Original Works of World Choreographers project in February 07. Here she will present a new solo work and collaborate with choreographers from Canada, China, Korea and Japan.
Also, check out the recently launched website for Homeless Dance Company, a global collaborative dance group of which Natalie is a member. www.homelessdance.comdecember 06Natalie has received support from Culture Lab for AUSTRAL-ASIAN-DUAL-INVASION, a collaborative creative development project that will begin in Melbourne and continue development in Hong Kong and Taiwan in 2007. The team also consists of local visual artist Elizabeth Boyce with five dance artists from four Asian cities : TOKYO Motoko Ikeda, TAIPEI Chan Yu chun, KOREA Jung Young doo, and HONG KONG Daniel Yeung and Anna Cheng.
This project marks the debut of Homeless Dance Company. It will also be supported by Arts Victoria.
november 06Natalie's new short work Anonymous will premiere in Seoul with Dance Theatre Ccadoo.
dancers : Seo Jung-sun, Hong Yun-seon, Hong Sae-hee, Ju Sun-hee, Choi Gui-jin, Eo Young-mi and Song Ji-Hyun.
Anonymous will be performed alongside works by Park, Ho-bin, Seo Jung-sun and Hong Sae-hee as part of the company's ‘Roadside' season. November 27 and 28 at ArKo Theatre in Hyewha-dong.
october 06Natalie has begun work choreographing a new piece, commissioned by Dance Theatre Ccadoo - Artistic Director Park, Ho Bin - to be performed at ArKo Theatre, Seoul in November. This is part of her Asialink residency which is supported by Arts Victoria and The Australia-Korea Foundation.
Natalie has been selected as a featured artist for the Australia Council/Dance Down Under Initiative at APAP in New York 2007. Dance Down Under will promote With a Bullet : The Album Project for future touring.september 06Natalie is currently in Seoul teaching at The Korean National University of Arts in the Choreography Department.
As part of her Asialink residency, Natalie will also perform with Doo Dance Theatre, at the LIG Art Hall in Gangnam, Seoul at the end of September. She will perform a solo work entitled This Side of the Blue choreographed for her by artistic director Jung, Young doo, alongside three other works by the company. www.ligarthall.comaugust 06Natalie is currently in Korea working at Theatre Nottle. She will present a series of workshops as part of the company's International Workshop Festival. As part of this she will shoot material for a new dance film and later experiment with Nottle company members to develop a new piece. Supported by the Australia Korea Foundation and Arts Victoriajuly 06Natalie has received $11,000 from Arts Victoria to develop new work AUSTRAL-ASIAN-DUAL-INVASION with five international dance artists from four Asian cities and local visual artist Elizabeth Boyce.
Natalie has recently been awarded a Fellowship at the Australian Choreographic Centre. She will work with Don Asker, John Utans and Tim Harvey in early 2008.
On July 31 Natalie will leave Australia to work with Theatre Company Nottle in South Korea.may 06With a Bullet : The Album Project is in rehearsal during may and june and will premiere at ARTSHOUSE, North Melbourne Town Hall June 21 - July 1.
Go to main menu and click on With a Bullet for full season details.
january 06Natalie will spend a week working in Brisbane with Circa, in creative development for their new work Time Pieces.
Chunky Move have agreed to 'Maximise' Natalie's project With a Bullet : The Album Project in 2006.december 05Natalie is the recipient of an Asialink residency for 2006. She will divide her time between Singapore with Odyssey Dance Theatre and Korea with Theatre Company Nottle .
Natalie has been awarded a place in the Winter Retreat at Dancehouse in 2006 to be facilitated by Rosalind Crisp and Andrew Morrish.
Natalie has just received $10,000 from Arts Victoria for the second stage of With a Bullet : The Album Project, to be presented at Arts House, North Melbourne Town Hall, June 2006.
Natalie has just received $5,000 from The Besen Family Foundation for the second stage of With a Bullet : The Album Project, to be presented at Arts House, North Melbourne Town Hall, June 2006 Natalie Cursio, Shannon Bott and Simon Ellis have been awarded a joint space grant at Dancehouse for 2006.october 05Natalie's first experiment with dance film, spinning yarns, has been nominated for an Australian Dance Award. The Awards will be announced in Sydney on November 19, 2005.
Natalie has been commissioned to choreograph Mink Engine Can Dance - one of a new series of video clips by audio visual duo Mink Engineseptember 05Natalie has just received $27,800 from The City of Melbourne for the second stage of With a Bullet : The Album Project, to be presented at Arts House, North Melbourne Town Hall, June 2006
biography
current projects
Biography
Over the last 15 years Natalie Cursio has been prolific in her contribution to Australian dance as a choreographer, performer, curator, producer, educator and mentor. Her choreographic work has been presented in Taipei, Seoul, Busan, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Singapore, Sydney, Canberra, Adelaide, Tasmania and throughout Victoria. She has received funding/support from the Australia Council, Arts Victoria, The City of Melbourne, The Besen Family Foundation, The Next Wave Festival, Ausdance Victoria and Chunky Moves Maximised Program. Natalie was awarded an Asialink Residency in 2006 and has been nominated for both Victorian Greenroom and Australian Dance Awards. Natalie currently operates under the title of Nat Cursio Co. creating her own work that pursues issues and ironies around culture and nature. Nat Cursio Co. also produces curated projects which assemble and showcase other Australian choreographers.
Current projects
Natalie is in various stages of development on two projects:
Recovery will be a new work made in collaboration with Shannon Bott, Simon Ellis, Pete Brundle, Ben Cobham, Ben Cisterne, Vanessa Chapple and Paula Levis. Recovery is a work that investigates themes of resilience, adaptation and the weathering of existence. The work has had its first stage of development and will continue to be developed throughout 2010.
PrivateDances is a curated project that Natalie is creative directing and producing for the 2010 Next Wave Festival. Focusing on intimate encounters with dance, the project includes the commissioning of 5 short dance films in partnership with ReelDance and the engagement of 10 solo dancers who will perform in private rooms for 1 audience member at a time.history1995 - 2000
Natalie began her choreographic career by establishing her own company, Dance Elixir, with whom she created twelve seasons of work including touring and festival events: conceptualising, choreographing and performing. Highlights of Dance Elixir's earlier work include a sell out season of Passionfruit at the Adelaide Fringe Festival (Adelaide Zoo 1996) and performance of Maffiosi at the Greenmill Dance Festival (1996). Later works include the highly acclaimed Corkscrew (1997), Hello (Next Wave Festival 1998) and site specific work Space Engravers (2000).
1999 - 2002
Around this time Natalie began working as an independent choreographer and was commissioned to create work for Quantum Leap Youth Dance Ensemble (I built this 2001 and Offside 2002), The Victorian College of the Arts (Square 1999), Deakin University (Astrid 1998 and Motorunit 2000) and The Melbourne Festival (new episode in outdoor living 2000). She also worked extensively in fashion, choreographing a series of highly original parades for clothing label Body, including fashion.motion.exhibit for mixed metaphor at Dancehouse (curated by Helen Herbertson).
2003 - 2004
Natalie's first experiment with dance film, Spinning Yarns, was screened at Danceflicks and Cinemoves. Also in 2003 Natalie was a dance captain for the Bal Moderne project under the direction of Jerril Rechter for the Melbourne Festival. The project toured regional Victoria and finished at the Exhibition Buildings in Melbourne. Natalie was in charge of teaching Gideon Obarzanek's work 'Slinky' to hundreds of people around the state of Victoria. In 2004 Natalie was chosen to represent Australia on the Little Asia Dance Exchange Network tour (Double Happiness) touring to Taipei, Seoul, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Singapore, where she collaborated choreographically with four Asian artists on new work Doubling and presented her solo work In The Clearing.
2005
With funding from Arts Victoria and The Australia Council, Natalie assembled a group of mid career choreographers to undergo the creative development of With a Bullet : The Album Project. Natalie was again commissioned by Canberra's Quantum Leap to make Lest We Forget (for the Reckless Valour season) in collaboration with the Australian War Memorial. She worked as a movement facilitator for Arena Theatre and choreographed Partietag for Union House Theatre's Insurgency project with Cazerine Barry and composer Brett Dean. Natalie collaborated with Tim Harvey to present the development of long distance relationship for the Danceworks Generation II initiative. She also presented a dance film symposium in order to open up a dialogue around some of the dance material from her choregraphic research project Cringe and Spinning Yarns was nominated for an Australian Dance Award.
Natalie underwent a period of research into international collaboration supported by an Australia Council Skills Development grant. She travelled to Korea to work as an assistant director and choreographic adviser on not yet it's difficult's cross cultural, bilingual version of K, as part of the Seoul Performing Arts Festival. Natalie also took a separate trip to Korea where she was invited to present two of her own works at the Busan International Beach Dance Festival. As Nat Cursio Company, she presented four in the clearing and small square, adaptations of older works, with dancers Shannon Bott, Shona Erskine and Joanna Lloyd.
2006
In the first half of 2006 Natalie worked as a guest choreographer with Circa in Brisbane for their work Time Pieces. She performed in Blowback with not yet it's difficult at the Sydney Opera House and choreographed/directed a video clip for audio-visual duo Mink Engine funded by Film Victoria. Natalie then presented her curated season With A Bullet : The Album Project, where 8 choreographers, including herself, created new dance using the first song they ever choreographed to as impetus. Within this project she made her work Mild Things and also performed in works by Simon Ellis, Gerard Van Dyck, Jo Lloyd and Luke Hockley.
Later in 2006 Natalie engaged in a four month stint in Korea for an Asialink residency where she worked with Theatre Company Nottle, performed with Doo Dance Theatre and made a new work, Anonymous, for Dance Theatre CcadoO. In Korea she also took up employment for the semester at The Korean National University of Arts in the choreography department.
2007
Natalie presented a new solo work Cindy and Polly Talk Dance, as part of the Original Works of World Choreographers project in Tokyo. Here she also participated in a collaborative process with dance artists from Canada, China, Japan and Korea. She then co-directed and co-produced a successful collaborative tour (Melbourne, Hong Kong, Taiwan) for Homeless Dance Company, a nomadic company of artists from 5 different countries, of which she is founding member. www.homelessdance.com Natalie's work Lest We Forget, for Quantum Leap was remounted in Adelaide at the Come Out Festival.
Natalie then curated and choreographed for Live Ciips - commissioned by Union House Theatre and Mudfest 10. The project also involved the work of choreographers Stephanie Lake and Gerard Van Dyck, the music of local composers and a memorable and eclectic cast of 12 emerging actors and dancers. Later in 2007 Natalie was invited by Full Tilt at the Arts Centre to present an adapted and extended version of With a Bullet: The Album Project and then travelled to Launceston to make Six for Gold, a commission with Tasdance.
2008
Hanguk Summer, Natalie's dance/document video work screened at the Sydney Festival. Natalie worked as artistic advisor and co-choreographer on Get a Grip with parkour specialists Trace Elements. She also created Nature Strip for the graduating students at the Victorian College of the Arts. Natalie's work for Tasdance, Six for Gold, toured Tasmania and Victoria. In 2008 Natalie was also a Greenroom Awards Panel member for Dance.
current project
WITH A BULLET : THE ALBUM PROJECT
22ND JUNE - SAT 1 JULY 2006
at artshouse, north melbourne town hall, queensberry st
press
Natalie Cursio's interview with The Program (web link)
Article by John Bailey in the Sunday Age (web link)
Review by Hilary Crampton in The Age (web link)
Review by Chris Boyd (web link)
Article by Simon Piening at melbournestage.com.au (web link)
Review by Adam Gray at program.net.au (web link)
writings
Read 'Loungeroom dancing' essay by Elizabeth Boyce(pdf)
Read artists' biographies (pdf)
read transcripts of interviews with particpants
1. Cursio, Bott, Ellis, Erskine and Van Dyck (pdf)
2. Jo Lloyd (pdf)
3. Michelle Heaven (pdf)
4. Luke Hockley (pdf)
FULL DETAILS OF THE SEASON
With a Bullet reinterprets that first impulse to push back the furniture and bust a few moves. 8 Melbourne choreographers make new dance work using the first song they ever choreographed to...... with dance by shannon bott, nat cursio, simon ellis, phillip gleeson, michelle heaven, luke hockley, jacob lehrer, jo lloyd and gerard van dyck...
stage design : matt delbridge
costume consultant : paula levis
video artist : cobie orger
production manager : frog-philip peck
publicity : prue bassett publicity
management : moriarty's project
producer : natalie cursio
understudies : kathryn newnham and tony nguyen
rehearsal assistant : shona erskine
graphic design and photography : pete brundle
june 21 preview at 8pm
thursday 22 june - saturday 24 june at 8pm
sunday 25 june at 5pm
tuesday 27 june - saturday july 1 at 8pm
tickets $20 / $15 (all preview tix $15)
bookings through easytix
www.easytix.com.au/artshouse or 03 9639 0096
supported by The City of Melbourne, Artshouse, Arts Victoria, The Besen Family Foundation and Chunky Move's Maximised Program.