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Pascal Rioult

Pascal Rioult (born March 17, 1954) is the Artistic Director and Choreographer of New York City based modern dance company RIOULT. Mr. Rioult was a principal dancer with the Martha Graham Company. His works are "known for his daring and imaginative explorations of classical scores"

Anna Kisselgoff of The New York Times wrote: "The modern-dance choreographer Pascal Rioult, as is often the case, is nothing short of compelling in Black Diamond." "The increasing acclaim he has attracted on national tours has much to do with his assertive individuality." "In Black Diamond he has met the challenge of comparison with George Balanchine."

Biography

Pascal Rioult is a native of Caen, France were he was raised in a musical atmosphere. His mother was a singer and piano teacher, his father who died when Pascal was a young boy, was a contractor and also sang. A former track and field athlete, he came to study modern dance in the United States on a fellowship from the French Ministry of Culture. In the United States, he studied dance with Merce Cunningham and danced with May O'Donnell and Paul Sanasardo before joining the Martha Graham Company.

In 1994 he founded the Pascal Rioult Dance Theater now known as RIOULT. His choreography is deeply influenced by musical structure and he has choreographed works to musical classics like: Bolero and La Valse (Ravel), Duo Concertant and Firebird (Stravinsky) and more recently The Art of Fugue, The Well-Tempered Clavier and Sonata for Violin and Piano #6 in G major (J.S. Bach)

In her "Year in Review" article, Anna Kisselgoff of The New York Times wrote "Pascal Rioult...succeeded with highly physical choreography that builds into strong emotional undercurrents."

External links

• www.rioult.org