HARUKO CROW NISHIMURA
Haruko Crow Nishimura is co-director, dancer and vocalist for Seattle's Degenerate Art Ensemble (DAE). The company creates performance work infused with the energy of live music and driven by her own style of visceral movement theater and dance. Her work with the ensemble has been featured in 10 countries presenting large scale experimental dance and theater projects, concerts, site-transforming spectacles and ongoing public experimentation. She was commissioned along with DAE by director Robert Wilson to interpret his work Einstein on the Beach at the Baryshnikov Center in 2013. She directed a large scale site specific mutli-disciplinary project for the 50th anniversary of the Seattle Worlds Fair at Seattle Center in collaboration with Olson Kundig Architects in 2012. She danced as a soloist with the Kronos Quartet in 2015 as part of the 95 rituals - Anna Halprin’s 95th birthday anniversary project at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in 2015. She was the recipient of a 2012 Guggenheim Fellowship. In addition to her work with DAE, Nishimura is constantly collaborating with both local and international artists to push the boundaries of her medium such as dancing in the street, creating rituals for strangers in public spaces and hosting artist salons cultivating community spaces for artists to share their work. Her most recent work Skeleton Flower tells the story of her own struggle with identity depression, childhood trauma and finding her voice. It was shown at the Spotlight USA Festival in Plovdiv, Bulgaria 2018 and in 2020 will have its New York Debut as well as being shown at the International Festival of Contemporary Dance in Mexico City. She is currently in the process of collaborating with sculptor and installation artist Senga Nengudi and musician Eddy Kwon to create a new interdisciplinary performance work commissioned by Colorado College and the Contemporary Art Center in Cincinnati.
JOSHUA KOHL
Joshua Kohl is a composer and conductor and is the co-director of the Seattle based multi-art group Degenerate Art Ensemble (DAE). He has performed with the group throughout the United States, and ten countries of Western and Eastern Europe. Recent project highlights include a major museum exhibition of his work with DAE at the Frye Art Museum in 2011, performance of his work by the Kronos Quartet for their 40th anniversary celebration in 2013, a commission from the legendary Czech rock band Uz Jsme Doma to create an orchestral suite inspired by their music which he composed and conducted with the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra in 2016. His work Red Shoes with DAE received the Music Theater Now award from the International Theater Institute at the Swedish Biennale in 2012. He is also an avid orchestral conductor of the music of his peers. In February of 2012 he conducted the music of fellow DAE composer Jherek Bischoff with the Wordless Music Orchestra in New York at Lincoln Center with vocalist David Byrne. He also conducts composer Samantha Boshnack’s big band orchestra B’shnorkestra and co-produced their debut record which made the top ten jazz albums in 2015. In 2019 he released an album of his and Nishimura’s compositions entitled Skeleton Flower to critical acclaim.
HARUKO CROW NISHIMURA AWARDS, FELLOWSHIPS, RESIDENCIES
Guggenheim Fellowship 2012
Music Theatre Now Award (International Theatre Institute, Sweden ) 2012
Creative Capital Grant and Partnership 2013
Robert Wilson / Watermill Laboratory for Performance artist in residence (New York) 2011
New Museum artist in residence (New York) 2009
Colorado College Artists in Residence 2018-2021
Base Experimental Art Space Residency ( Seattle ) 2020
Cincinnati Contemporary Art Center Artists in Residence 2020-2021
American Dance Abroad Spotlight USA 2018
Gettysburg Battlefield Artist Residency April 2016 ( Philadelphia )
4 Culture Tech Specific Grant 2016
Degenerate Art Ensemble Art book Publication by EMKS.fi production 2015
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Residency and performance 2015 ( SF )
Oregon Performance Lab Residency 2015 ( Eugene OR )
Penny Stamps School of Art & Design Lecture Series,( Anne Arbor Michigan )2014
Cornish College of the Arts ‘Cornish Play House Residency 2014 ( Seattle )
MAP Fund Performance Grant 2014
Cornish College Dance Studio Summer Residency 2013 ( Seattle )
Moore Theatre Residency 2013-2014
Next 50 World’s Fair Anniversary commision (Seattle Center Foundation) 2012
Frye Art Museum Residency and Exhibition 2011- 2012
National Endowment for the Arts Grant 2011
JOSHUA KOHL AWARDS, FELLOWSHIPS, RESIDENCIES
Colorado College Artists in Residence 2018-2021
Cincinnati Contemporary Art Center Artists in Residence 2020-2021
US Artists International Touring Fund 2018
4 Culture Special Projects Special Projects 1999-2017 multiple
New Music USA, 2014
MAP Fund 2013
Creative Capital, 2013
Music Theatre Now Award (International Theatre Institute), 2012
Next50 Worlds Fair Anniversary (Seattle Center Foundation), 2012
Watermill a Laboratory for Performance (New York), 2011 artist in residence
National Endowment for the Arts, 2011
New Museum (New York), 2009 artist in residence
Meet the Composer / Commissioning Music USA, 2007
Artist Trust Fellowships 2000 & 2007
Aaron Copland Fund for Music, 2004
MAJOR WORKS (Haruko Crow Nishimura & Joshua Kohl as collaborators)
Boy mother / faceless bloom (work in progress) is a three city collaboration between Haruko Crow Nishimura, Joshua Kohl, Colorado based sculptor Senga Nengudi and Cincinnati based violinist and composer Eddy Kwon. The work will premiere at the Fine Art Center of Colorado College in 2021 followed by the Cincinnati Contemporary Art Center
Skeleton Flower - Full length dance and music work performed at the Spotlight USA Dance Festival in Plovdiv, Bulgaria in March of 2018, Seattle premiere in 2019, coming New York Premiere in 2020 and the International Festival of Contemporary Dance in Mexico City in August of 2020
Skeleton Flower Band - recording and performance of an album of songs under the band name Skeleton Flower in 2019.
Collaboration with Uz Jsme Doma and the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra - Joshua Kohl was commissioned by the legendary Czech music group Uz Jsme Doma to create an orchestral suite based on their 30 year catalogue of music and music of DAE. The performance in Prague in 2016 was conducted by Kohl with Nishimura on vocals.
Predator Songstress - Full length stage production with dance, film and music at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco and On the Boards in Seattle 2015
The Warrior - a solo dance/choreography in collaboration with Kronos Quartet as part of Anna Halprin’s 95 Rituals celebrating dancer Anna Halprin’s 95th birthday Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (San Francisco) 2015
Underbelly - Site Specific large scale production and collaboration with world renowned firm Olson Kundig Architects as a commission from NEXT50 - a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Seattle World’s Fair.
Letters from the Atomic shores - A choreography & music tribute piece to Einstein on the Beach commissioned by Robert Wilson at the Baryshnikov Arts Center, New York 2012
FRYE Art Museum /Degenerate Art Ensemble Retrospective A major three month exhibition in collaboration with curator Robin Held & DAE team 2011
Red Shoes - Five location site specific epic performance work produced by the Fry Art Museum in collaboration with DAE team Seattle 2011
Sonic Tales - Large scale full length dance and music work, Moore Theatre, Seattle 2009
Silvering Path - A butoh dance and sound sculpture collaboration experiment produced by DAE and the Free Sheep Foundation Seattle 2008
Cuckoo Crow ( remount with new choreography and design) November presented REDCAT (Los Angeles) 2007
Cuckoo Crow - Full length theatrical dance performance at the Moore Theater presented by Seattle Theater Group, and Bumbershoot Festival fall (Seattle) 2006
Cuckoo Pie Dances TFF Festival (Rudolstadt, Germany) 2007
Old Women Stories - Women’s Project pt.1 March 2007, (Seattle)
Wonder Club Interactive Performance ( Women’s Project pt.2), July 2007, (Berlin)
Wonder Woman Tea Party (Woman’s Project pt. 3: dance with interactive game shows ), July 2007, Dock11 and cafe. A week of interviews and discussions in public cafe about women’s stories and hidden truths.
Degenerate Art Ensemble big band tours (vocalist/performer 2001-2006) touring US, Netherlands, France, Italy, Slovenia, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Poland and Germany.
Checker Splitter, March 2005, Solo/choreography dance with 45 piece orchestra The Moore Theater, presented by Seattle Theater Group (Seattle)
Duet / Broken Love, June 2005, collaboration in choreography work & Duet dance with Butoh master Yuko Kaseki (Berlin)
Sleep Vessel Sheep, January 2005,Choreographed 4 dancers and direction in music in The Bridge Project at Velocity Dance Center (Seattle)
The Trio Birds 2004, THE CAVE (New York), Industrial Performance Project (Seattle)
Dreams from Wounded Mouth , 2004 full scale architectural installation experimental theater work at Consolidated Works ,Seattle
Dreams From Wounded Mouth, choreography 2003, Orph Theater (Berlin), Teatr 2 Strefa (Warsaw, Poland ) KUD, (Ljubljana, Slovenia), Consolidated Works (Seattle)
THIRTEEN 45 min evening length choreography /butoh dance with music sculptures, Theater Yugen 2002 ( San Francisco), Intimate Stage ( Seattle ), lluseum (Amsterdam)
Holes in Her Mouth, 2004, Solo dance performance at the SOIL Gallery (Seattle)
13, 2003, Solo Dance,
Dream Eater, 2002 Lincoln Park outdoor site specific night performance ritual (Seattle) blindfolds and rituals
Nymph, full length piece 2001/2002 On The Boards International New Performance Series, Orph Theater (Berlin), Seattle Fringe Festival, Seattle Art Museum Special Event (Seattle)
Razor Stitch, full length piece 1999, On The Boards NW New Works, Theater Yugen (San Francisco), NW Asian American Theater
SCREAM!LionDogs, full length piece 1999, On The Boards (Special Commission for 17 piece orchestra, 3 dancers, 3 actors)
Hell’s Cauldron, 1998, On The Boards NW New Works, Theater of Yugen (San Francisco)
Rinko, full length piece 1997/2000 On The Boards NW New Works, ODC Dance Theater (San Francisco)
Yokai, full length piece 1995, commissioned by On The Boards (Seattle)
Yokai Stampede, 1994, co-choreographed with Saiko Kobayashi at NW New Works On The Boards
Hell Courtesan, 1994, Seattle Experimental Opera, Seattle Asia Dance Festival
Children Playing in the Hour of the Ox, 1993, Seattle Asian Art Museum, OK Hotel (Seattle), Evergreen State College (Olympia)
HARUKO CROW NISHIMURA - EDUCATION AND STUDIES
Yuko Kaseki Butoh Dance (Berlin)
Shinichi Iova-Koga Butoh Dance, Action Theater, Tadashi Suzuki Method ( intensive workshops since 1993 San Francisco)
Yuko Kaseki Butoh Dance ( ongoing studies Berlin )
Yumiko Yoshioka Butoh Dance Studies ( Berlin)
Mari Osanai, Noguchi Gymnastics ( Aomori, Japan )
Robin Hunt Tadashi Suzuki Theater method Studies ( summer program Seattle )
Cornish College ( music study )
New England Conservatory of Music 1989-1990 ( Boston, MA )
JOSHUA KOHL - EDUCATION AND STUDIES
Private Studies: Bright Sheng, Composer
Private Studies: Jarad Powell, Composer
Private Studies Bern Herbolsheimer, Composer
Cornish College of the Arts, Seattle, WA Bachelor of Arts in Music Composition
New England Conservatory of Music Boston, MA
Berklee College of Music Boston, MA