Douglas James WrightMNZM (14 October 1956 – 14 November 2018) was a New Zealand dancer and choreographer in the New Zealand arts establishment from 1980 until his death in 2018.[1][2] Although he announced his retirement from dance in 2008, on the occasion of the publication of his first book of poetry, Laughing Mirror he subsequently continued to make dance works, including touring The Kiss Inside during April 2015.[3]
Wright was born in Tuakau, South Auckland, in 1956.[4] From 1980 to 1983 he danced with the Limbs Dance Company and choreographed a number of works on the company[5] before travelling to New York where he danced with the Paul Taylor Company, 1983–1987 and London with DV8 Physical Theatre, 1988. Returning to New Zealand in 1989, he formed the Douglas Wright Dance Company, with which he created more than 30 major works, touring New Zealand, Australia and Europe.
In 2000 Wright received one of five inaugural Arts Laureate awards from the Arts Foundation of New Zealand and in 2003 he was the subject of an award-winning feature-length documentary film, Haunting Douglas, directed by Leanne Pooley for Spacific Films.
With the launch of Laughing Mirror, Wright announced his retirement from dance. Subsequently, however, during 2010 he workshopped material towards a new major group work commissioned for Auckland Festival 2011, which premiered on 16 March 2011 at The Civic Theatre as rapt, and at the Hague, in the Netherlands during 2013. During 2014 and 2015, he workshopped and developed material towards The Kiss Inside a further major group work commissioned for the New Zealand Festival, which premiered on 16 April 2015 at SkyCity Theatre, Auckland before touring to Wānaka, Dunedin, and Nelson after which touring followed on the North Island of New Zealand during March 2016. During 2018, he choreographed a solo M_nod on dancer Sean MacDonald, which had its premiere in the Grey Lynn Public Library hall to an invited audience during July, and was publicly presented in Q Theatre's Vault during Tempo Dance Festival 2018.[7] The work was commissioned by Auckland Art Gallery director Michael Lett,[8] and a film was made of the work.
Wright died 14 November 2018, aged 62, from cancer.[9]
Published worksedit
He wrote two volumes of semi-fiction/semi-autobiography, Ghost Dance (Penguin, 2004 – Montana Awards Best First Book of Non-Fiction, 2004) and Terra Incognito (2006), and also hosted an inaugural one-man exhibition of his paintings and multimedia sculptures.[10] In October 2007 a poetry collection, Laughing Mirror was published by Steele Roberts. A second collection of his poems, cactusfear was published by Steele Roberts in October 2011, and a retrospective exhibition of his work as a choreographer, based on photographs, films and writing, was held at The University of Auckland's Gus Fisher Gallery in 2012.
Choreographic worksedit
1981 – Back Street Primary (poetry, J Frame; mus. Talking Heads), Limbs Dance Company, Auckland
1982 – Late Afternoon of a Faun or Thrilled to Bits (solo, after Nijinsky; mus. Debussy), Limbs Dance Company, Auckland
1994 – As It Is – A Fragment (for television broadcast, dir. Graves mus. Bartok, Laird), Dance and the Camera, Television New Zealand, national broadcast, TV1 Work of Art
1995Forever (dance film co-directed with Chris Graves), TV1 national television broadcast, Work of Art
1996 – Ore (solo), Next Wave Festival, Auckland
1996 – Ore (dance film; co-directed with Chris Graves), International Film Festival, Wellington
1996 – Aida (directed by Wright), Victorian State Opera, Melbourne
1997 – Forbidden Memories (a work for theatre based on a novel by James Purdy with design by John Verryt), Auckland
1997 – Cunning Little Vixen (directed by Wright), Opera Australia, Sydney
1997 – Rose and Fell (mus. Part, Gubaidulina, Mussorgsky), The Royal New Zealand Ballet, Wellington
2000 - Halo, The Royal New Zealand Ballet, Wellington
2002 – Inland New Zealand International Festival of the Arts, Wellington and national tour (mus Juliet Palmer, video Florian Habicht, costumes Tanya Carlson, text Douglas Wright and Peta Rutter, design John Verryt )
2006 – Black Milk (mus. David Long, design and costumes Michael Pearce, lighting Robert Ghesquiere, text and banners Douglas Wright )
2007 – Tama ma duet commissioned by Taane Mete and Taiaroa Royal as the second of five sections comprising a larger work of the same name which premiered in the Concert Chamber, Auckland Town Hall, October 2008, subsequently toured New Zealand, and began international touring commitments in 2010.
2007 – a small dance for the children's theatre work Rumplestiltskin (Phineas Phrog Productions)
2007 – He then choreographed a dance especially for his niece Sarah
^"Dancer Douglas Wright dies aged 62". Newshub. 15 November 2018. Retrieved 16 November 2018.
^Schultz, Marianne (2017). Limbs Dance Company : dance for all people, 1977-1989. Dance Aotearoa New Zealand. Auckland, New Zealand. ISBN978-0-473-40769-8. OCLC 1011322731.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
^"Queen's Birthday honours list 1998". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 1 June 1998. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
^"Dance review: Tempo Dance Festival - week two". 16 October 2018 – via www.nzherald.co.nz.
^"Between Two - The queues should be round the block". www.theatreview.org.nz.
^"Modern dance figure Douglas Wright dies aged 62". 15 November 2018.
^. Online gallery of Douglas Wright art works. Archived from the original on 29 April 2007.
Sourcesedit
Elleray, Michelle (1993). Barbarous gestures: voicing the visual in a far Cry Unpublished monograph
McNaughton, Howard (1998). Performing on the Faultlines: Douglas Wright's Forever in Helen Gilbert (ed) (Post)Colonial Stages: Critical and Creative Views on Drama, Theatre and Performance in Colonised Cultures. Hebden Bridge, U.K, Dangaroo Press.
Whyte, Raewyn (1994). Dance Works of 1993: A Review Article Illusions: NZ Moving Image and Performing Arts Criticism. #23 Winter 1994: 28–35
Whyte, Raewyn (1996). Buried Venus: An Interview with Douglas Wright. Landfall: New Zealand Arts & Letters #191 Autumn 1996:37–49
Whyte, Raewyn Chronology of Douglas Wright Choreographic Works [archived doc, continuously maintained]
Wilcox, Leonard (2006) Dancing Dissent: Douglas Wright’s Black Milk Landfall: New Zealand Arts & Letters #212, Spring, 2006:145–151.
February 16, 2024
douglas, wright, dancer, douglas, james, wright, mnzm, october, 1956, november, 2018, zealand, dancer, choreographer, zealand, arts, establishment, from, 1980, until, death, 2018, although, announced, retirement, from, dance, 2008, occasion, publication, first. Douglas James Wright MNZM 14 October 1956 14 November 2018 was a New Zealand dancer and choreographer in the New Zealand arts establishment from 1980 until his death in 2018 1 2 Although he announced his retirement from dance in 2008 on the occasion of the publication of his first book of poetry Laughing Mirror he subsequently continued to make dance works including touring The Kiss Inside during April 2015 3 Douglas WrightMNZMBornDouglas James Wright 1956 10 14 14 October 1956Tuakau New ZealandDied14 November 2018 2018 11 14 aged 62 Auckland New ZealandOccupation s Dancer choreographer poetYears active1980 2008CareerFormer groupsLimbs Dance Company Paul Taylor Company Douglas Wright Dance Company Contents 1 Biography 2 Published works 3 Choreographic works 4 References 4 1 SourcesBiography editWright was born in Tuakau South Auckland in 1956 4 From 1980 to 1983 he danced with the Limbs Dance Company and choreographed a number of works on the company 5 before travelling to New York where he danced with the Paul Taylor Company 1983 1987 and London with DV8 Physical Theatre 1988 Returning to New Zealand in 1989 he formed the Douglas Wright Dance Company with which he created more than 30 major works touring New Zealand Australia and Europe In the 1998 Queen s Birthday Honours Wright was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to dance 6 In 2000 Wright received one of five inaugural Arts Laureate awards from the Arts Foundation of New Zealand and in 2003 he was the subject of an award winning feature length documentary film Haunting Douglas directed by Leanne Pooley for Spacific Films With the launch of Laughing Mirror Wright announced his retirement from dance Subsequently however during 2010 he workshopped material towards a new major group work commissioned for Auckland Festival 2011 which premiered on 16 March 2011 at The Civic Theatre as rapt and at the Hague in the Netherlands during 2013 During 2014 and 2015 he workshopped and developed material towards The Kiss Inside a further major group work commissioned for the New Zealand Festival which premiered on 16 April 2015 at SkyCity Theatre Auckland before touring to Wanaka Dunedin and Nelson after which touring followed on the North Island of New Zealand during March 2016 During 2018 he choreographed a solo M nod on dancer Sean MacDonald which had its premiere in the Grey Lynn Public Library hall to an invited audience during July and was publicly presented in Q Theatre s Vault during Tempo Dance Festival 2018 7 The work was commissioned by Auckland Art Gallery director Michael Lett 8 and a film was made of the work Wright died 14 November 2018 aged 62 from cancer 9 Published works editHe wrote two volumes of semi fiction semi autobiography Ghost Dance Penguin 2004 Montana Awards Best First Book of Non Fiction 2004 and Terra Incognito 2006 and also hosted an inaugural one man exhibition of his paintings and multimedia sculptures 10 In October 2007 a poetry collection Laughing Mirror was published by Steele Roberts A second collection of his poems cactusfear was published by Steele Roberts in October 2011 and a retrospective exhibition of his work as a choreographer based on photographs films and writing was held at The University of Auckland s Gus Fisher Gallery in 2012 Choreographic works edit1981 Back Street Primary poetry J Frame mus Talking Heads Limbs Dance Company Auckland 1982 Late Afternoon of a Faun or Thrilled to Bits solo after Nijinsky mus Debussy Limbs Dance Company Auckland 1982 Baby Go Boom mus Holiday Armstrong Farnell Limbs Dance Company Auckland 1982 Kneedance mus Anderson Limbs Dance Company Auckland 1982 Walking on Thin Ice mus Ono Limbs Dance Company Auckland 1982 Aurora Borealis mus Ono Anderson Hagen Limbs Dance Company Auckland 1983 Land of a Thousand Dances mus Small Pickett Limbs Dance Company Auckland 1983 Sorry to have Missed You mus Tartini Royal New Zealand Ballet New Moves Wellington 1983 Ranterstantrum mus Branca Limbs Dance Company Auckland 1983 Dog Dance solo mus Cage Douglas Wright New York 1984 Threnody solo mus Penderecki Douglas Wright Auckland 1984 It s Not Unusual mus Tom Jones Douglas Wright and Brian Carbee Auckland 1984 Cubist Cowboy Shootout with Brian Carbee mus various Auckland 1985 Halcyon mus Vivaldi Limbs Dance Company Whangarei 1986 Parallel mus Busby for two gymnasts New York 1987 Hey Paris mus Ayler Hirt Nancarrow Douglas Wright and Dancers New York 1987 Quartet mus Vivaldi Douglas Wright and Dancers New York 1987 Faun Variations solo mus Ravel Paul Taylor Company City Centre New York 1988 Now is the Hour mus McGlashan and various Limbs Dance Company New Zealand International Festival of the Arts Wellington 1988 Aria solo text Dostoevsky MJ O Reilly Auckland 1989 How on Earth mus various Douglas Wright Dance Company Auckland 1989 a far Cry mus Bartok Australian Dance Theatre Adelaide 1990 Passion Play A New Dance with Kilda Northcott Wellington 1990 Gloria mus Vivaldi Douglas Wright Dance Company Wellington 1990 I Am A Dancer Gloria documentary film dance dir Bollinger Oomen Top Shelf Productions TV1 national television broadcast Sunday Arts 1991 As It Is mus Bartok Laird Douglas Wright Dance Company Auckland 1992 Beethoven mus Beethoven and the Shangri Las graduating students of the Performing Arts School Auckland 1992 The Decay of Lying text Wilde mus Lully The Royal New Zealand Ballet Wellington 1992 Elegy for Jim Leigh and Bayly solo mus Wilson Artzaid Benefit Wellington 1993 Forever mus various film Graves design Pearce Douglas Wright Dance Company Auckland 1993 Elegy for Jim Leigh and Bayly dance film dir Graves New Zealand International Film Festival Wellington 1994 As It Is A Fragment for television broadcast dir Graves mus Bartok Laird Dance and the Camera Television New Zealand national broadcast TV1 Work of Art 1995 Forever dance film co directed with Chris Graves TV1 national television broadcast Work of Art 1996 Ore solo Next Wave Festival Auckland 1996 Ore dance film co directed with Chris Graves International Film Festival Wellington 1996 Buried Venus mus Farr and various design Pearce Douglas Wright Dance Company New Zealand International Festival of the Arts Wellington 1996 Aida directed by Wright Victorian State Opera Melbourne 1997 Forbidden Memories a work for theatre based on a novel by James Purdy with design by John Verryt Auckland 1997 Cunning Little Vixen directed by Wright Opera Australia Sydney 1997 Rose and Fell mus Part Gubaidulina Mussorgsky The Royal New Zealand Ballet Wellington 2000 Halo The Royal New Zealand Ballet Wellington 2002 Inland New Zealand International Festival of the Arts Wellington and national tour mus Juliet Palmer video Florian Habicht costumes Tanya Carlson text Douglas Wright and Peta Rutter design John Verryt 2006 Black Milk mus David Long design and costumes Michael Pearce lighting Robert Ghesquiere text and banners Douglas Wright 2007 Tama ma duet commissioned by Taane Mete and Taiaroa Royal as the second of five sections comprising a larger work of the same name which premiered in the Concert Chamber Auckland Town Hall October 2008 subsequently toured New Zealand and began international touring commitments in 2010 2007 a small dance for the children s theatre work Rumplestiltskin Phineas Phrog Productions 2007 He then choreographed a dance especially for his niece Sarah 2011 rapt commissioned by Auckland Festival 2015 The Kiss Inside commissioned by the New Zealand Festival 2018 M nod commissioned by Michael LettReferences edit Eggleton David 27 March 2004 Still Life with Douglas New Zealand Listener Archived from the original on 26 September 2013 Retrieved 4 December 2011 Dancer Douglas Wright dies aged 62 Newshub 15 November 2018 Retrieved 16 November 2018 The Kiss Inside Theatreview online archive Dancer Douglas Wright dies aged 62 Newshub 15 November 2018 Retrieved 16 November 2018 Schultz Marianne 2017 Limbs Dance Company dance for all people 1977 1989 Dance Aotearoa New Zealand Auckland New Zealand ISBN 978 0 473 40769 8 OCLC 1011322731 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint location missing publisher link Queen s Birthday honours list 1998 Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet 1 June 1998 Retrieved 5 July 2020 Dance review Tempo Dance Festival week two 16 October 2018 via www nzherald co nz Between Two The queues should be round the block www theatreview org nz Modern dance figure Douglas Wright dies aged 62 15 November 2018 Douglas Wright Art Online gallery of Douglas Wright art works Archived from the original on 29 April 2007 Sources edit Elleray Michelle 1993 Barbarous gestures voicing the visual in a far Cry Unpublished monograph McNaughton Howard 1998 Performing on the Faultlines Douglas Wright s Forever in Helen Gilbert ed Post Colonial Stages Critical and Creative Views on Drama Theatre and Performance in Colonised Cultures Hebden Bridge U K Dangaroo Press Whyte Raewyn 1994 Dance Works of 1993 A Review Article Illusions NZ Moving Image and Performing Arts Criticism 23 Winter 1994 28 35 Whyte Raewyn 1996 Buried Venus An Interview with Douglas Wright Landfall New Zealand Arts amp Letters 191 Autumn 1996 37 49 Whyte Raewyn Chronology of Douglas Wright Choreographic Works archived doc continuously maintained Wilcox Leonard 2006 Dancing Dissent Douglas Wright s Black Milk Landfall New Zealand Arts amp Letters 212 Spring 2006 145 151 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Douglas Wright dancer amp oldid 1182753135, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
