We are pleased to announce that achugar's next work, PURO DESEO premiering at The Kitchen in the Spring of 2010, will be supported through a generous grant from the MAP FUND. PURO DESEO, which translates both to "pure desire" and "nothing but desire," will examine the relationship between artistic process and art as commodified product. To create PURO DESEO, achugar will deepen her collaboration with visual artist Michael Mahalchick. The two will work with her other recent collaborators including lighting designer Madeline Best and dramaturg Victoria A. Davies.

For more information about 2009 MAP FUND grantees, click here.

BAX names luciana achugar a 2009/10 Artist in Residence

achugar will participate in the 2009/10 Artist in Residence Program at the Brooklyn Arts Exchange as she develops her new work PURO DESEO, premiering in the Spring of 2010. As part of the residency achugar will receive administrative and artistic support throughout the work's development, and have the opportunity to take part in public work-in-progress showings. For more information about BAX and the AIR Program, click here.

A Super Natural Return to Love Presented at Walker Art Center in Minneapolis

achugar's 2004 work, A Super Natural Return to Love enjoyed a successful Minneapolis premiere as part of New World Dance: New York. The work completed an evening featuring work Nora Chipaumire, Nami Yamamoto and achugar. “In an evening defined by strong female artistic perspectives,” said Caroline Palmer of the Star Tribune, “achugar's 'uncivilized women' provoke the most extreme reaction.”

For more information on the Minneapolis premiere at Walker Art Center click here.

The tour was supported in part with funding from the Foundation for Contemporary Arts.

Winter Tour to Uruguay

Two of achugar's works, A Super Natural Return to Love (2004) and Franny and Zooey (2007) will be presented in Montevido, Uruguay at Teatro Solis this coming December. The home of opera, ballet and classical music for 150 years, Teatro Solis will present the performance in the newly-minted contemporary dance and theater wing of the renowned theater: the first venue of its kind in Uruguay.

LMCC honors luciana with the 2009 Prestigious President's Award

The Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, honored luciana achugar at The Downtown Dinner 2009 Gala on April 20, 2009. Maggie Boepple, President of the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, presented achugar with The Liberty, LMCC's 2009 prestigious President's Award: The Liberty. To see event images, click here.

Praise for The Sublime is Us
"Changes to the way we see dance, to the way we think about it, come in small increments. The Sublime is Us is one," said Roslyn Sulcas of The New York Times.

"…[A] Busby Berkeley dream in the flesh…" hailed Elizabeth Zimmer of METRO New York, "We watch ourselves watching them, a very disconcerting sensation…"

"…The Sublime Is Us challenges us with a sometimes primal physicality, while containing it in a carefully organized structure… As the piece ends, a woman in the audience checks the mirror and fixes her hair. What could be more natural, given the smoke-and-mirrors atmosphere of today's political atmosphere?" observes Deborah Jowitt for The Village Voice.

BAX10 Passing It On Award
This year, luciana achugar was honored to receive the BAX Passing It On award from Tere O'Connor. Each year, BAX10 award winners are given the opportunity to nominate an up-and-coming individual in their field to receive the award.

Known for his wit and signature choreographic vocabulary, O'Connor has created over 30 works for his company since 1982. In addition, he has been commissioned by various venues across the globe. In 2007, luciana achugar created Franny and Zooey for O'Connor's The Nothing Festival at Dance Theater Workshop. The piece was hailed by The New York Times' Claudia La Rocco as, "…[one] of the year's smartest works…"

On November 13th, Tere O'Connor honored luciana at the BAX10 Award Ceremony. He had this to say:

"luciana is asking questions of dance. She is attempting to live in the middle of divides between behavior and style; presentation and action; theater and public space. I find her artistic journey incredibly compelling. Through her investigations, she creates works that have an uncommon, but inevitable form. They convince through their otherness, like an odd looking person who you fall in love with after your first meeting. luciana's immersion into questions of the body, of woman-ness and of hierarchical organizational systems is truthful and enlightening. Her works are shaped by internal content that manifests itself on the surface of her art. This places her far from the choreographic default settings employed by many, where visible design is mistaken for choreography. She offers us a different value system by posing art as heightened existence rather than spectacle."

-Tere O'Connor, BAX10 Award Recipient

NYFA 2008 Fellowship for Choreography
luciana was also honored to receive a NYFA 2008 Fellowship for Choreography earlier this year. The Fellowship, along with the private supporters of the company, allowed for the development of The Sublime is Us. For more information about NYFA programs and award winners visit www.nyfa.org.