Choreographers Project

Since 1984, the Choreographers Project at the Hess Studio has provided guidance and assistance for creative and professional development in contemporary dance, as well as a collegial atmosphere for artistic exploration. The project is a model for research and development in movement.

This residency for emerging independent choreographers from the Greater Philadelphia area annually offers to three to four artists space and time in which to develop their craft; opportunities to present their works to the public and build audiences; master teacher and peer evaluation; and continuous encouragement in their creative development. CP artists come from a wide range of stylistic backgrounds and are encouraged to investigate diverse expressions.

SHMD accepts inquiries from interested local choreographers throughout the year. Ultimately, a candidate is invited into the project only after Hess has viewed a selection of his or her work in live performance. Performance values such as ambitious concepts and creative execution of those concepts, as well as movement training and awareness, are critical in Hess?s evaluation.

The emerging choreographers must have been active in the field for at least two years and show potential for growth. Invited artists may not be in college or in another residency that provides ready access to rehearsal space, as this is a key offering of the CP.

The 2011-2012 season of SHMD’s Choreographers Project has been supported by the Suzanne F. Roberts Cultural Development Fund, the Philadelphia Cultural Fund, the SHMD Board of Directors, and individual contributors.

Resident choreographers for 2011-2012

Photo by Anja Hitzenberger

Bronwen MacArthur

Bronwen MacArthur danced as a freelance artist with New and Copenhagen- (Denmark) based companies, including those of Bill Young, Gina Gibney, Robin Becker, Donna Uchizono, Sara Gebran, and Tim Feldmann, performing and teaching throughout Europe, the United States, and South America. Bronwen formed MacArthur Dance Project (MDP) in 2007 as an umbrella for her choreographic work, which has been performed in New York, New England, Philadelphia, Russia, and France. Her passion for music and particular interest in original scores has led her to collaborate with composers Doug Henderson, Matthew Suttor, Willow Williamson, and Bryan Senti, among others. MDP is featured in the documentary Coming to Grips, produced and directed by Emmy-nominated filmmaker Lori Petchers, which was selected for the Hartford International Film Festival, the Bergenfield Film Festival (N.J.), and installed at Dance New Amsterdam (N.Y.). It is also featured in webisodes of the Mr. Nice web series Haute & Bothered, directed by Ami Armstrong, on Teen.com. Bronwen has served guest instructor at Connecticut College and has co-taught in the Theater Studies department at Yale University. She continues to teach at various schools and studios nationally and internationally.

Gabrielle Revlock

Photo by Lindsay Browning

Gabrielle Revlock is a native Philadelphian and director of Mano/Damno Projects. She has received support from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, the nEW Festival, and the New Edge Mix and is currently a 2nd-year Resident Artist in the Susan Hess Choreographers Project. Sheis the recipient of a 2010 Rocky Award and her collaboration with Nicole Bindler, ”I made this for you,” won a finalist prize in the 2011 A.W.A.R.D. Show! Revlock’s work has been shown at various venues includingthe Joyce SoHo (NYC) and the Korzo Theater (The Hague, Netherlands). In the spring she will be touring Seattle, Minneapolis, and San Francisco as a 2012 SCUBA National Touring Network for Dance artist.As a dancer, she has worked with many local and international choreographers including Isabelle Chaffaud and Jérôme Meyer (Netherlands), Sean Feldman (UK), Willi Dorner (Austria), Katsura Kan(Japan), Suzanna Linke (Germany), Mark Dendy, Jane Comfort, Robert Battle, Jeanne Ruddy, Lisa Kraus, Myra Bazell, Leah Stein, Jumatatu Poe, Meg Foley, and Matthew Neenan for the Opera Company of Philadelphia. In addition to her dance works, Gabrielle’s films were shown in 2007 and 2008 at the dance film festival Motion Pictures, programmed by Philadelphia Dance Projects. As a photographer, she has been published in both Smithsonian and Bust Magazine.

Raphael Xavier

Photo by Mike Quain

Raphael Xavier is an award-winning artist from Wilmington, Delaware, who is credited for the resurrection and the growth of the Breaking community in Philadelphia from 1995 to the present. A self-taught Hip Hop dancer and Breaking practitioner since 1983, Raphael has forged an exceptional approach to improvisation. Brenda Dixon Gottschild deemed Xavier “a fine movement technician.” His creation of new ways to expand the vocabulary of the dance form has not only come from the culture but from his visual background as a Hip Hop magazine photographer. His extensive research in Hip Hop forms has led to the creation of Ground-Core, a Somatic dance technique, giving the practitioner a better understanding of the body within all dance forms.  As active Alumnus of the world-renowned Hip Hop dance company Rennie Harris Puremovement, his choreographic dance works, solo and ensemble, have been performed worldwide.

Choreographers Project Alumni – 1984-2010