Pitch Sessions

Our Pitch committee has once again worked hard to solicit, collect, review and select a diverse collection of New Works for the Pitch session:

ACCEPTED PITCH APPLICATIONS
ISPA BRUSSELS 2007

1. Wim Henderickx, “Confrontations,” Concert (Percussion), BELGIUM (received through Conny Vandersteen)
2. Carl Hancock Rux, Michael Hardy, “Macandal” (Carnival Center lead commissioner)
   Contemporary Opera, USA
3. The Opera Group/ John Fulljames, “PIM,” Music Theatre, UK
4. Thierry Smits, Compagnie Thor, “D’Orient,” Contemporary Dance, BELGIUM
   (through Pentacle)
5. Bounce Streetdance Company, Fredrik Rydman, “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” Street Dance, SWEDEN
6. Krisztina de Chatel, Sophie Lambo, “Pulse,” Modern dance, THE NETHERLANDS
7. Wim Vandekeybus, Ultima Vez, Creation 2007, Dance Theatre, BELGIUM
8. Anouk Van Dijk, in Co-Production with Beijing Modern Dance, “Women of the World,” Modern Dance, THE NETHERLANDS
9. Les Ballets C. de la B., Ted Stoffer/Lieven Thyrion, “Aphasiadisiac,” Dance,
   BELGIUM (through Frans Brood)
10. Leine & Roebana, “Merg”, Dance and Live Music, THE NETHERLANDS

Criteria and rules for Pitch applicants for ISPA Congresses
Developed by the ISPA Pitch Committee:
Robyn Archer, Walter Jaffe, Paul King.

The purpose of the ISPA Pitch session is twofold:

1. This is a forum for creators to share new projects with the ISPA membership. The focus is on projects which are in development, or which have had no or little professional exposure.  Inspiring and quality works which have already been premiered but have a potential for international touring and room for artistic enhancement and expansion may also be considered.
2. The forum offers ISPA members an opportunity to view some of the new, cutting edge projects before they enter the market fully, to enable members to get involved in commissioning and/or presenting these developing works.

Seven to nine exciting and diverse new performing arts projects are selected by the Pitch Curators, based on artistic merit and creativity.   Those selected will reflect geographic diversity, and a broad spectrum of mediums. The Congress pitch session projects may reflect the diversity and character of the specific Congress site. The Congress host may nominate a representative from the host city onto the Congress pitch Committee.

The presentation is to be maximum seven minutes in length, and can include any combination of text, audio, visual, and performance. The presenter may speak over the audio/visual.  There is an opportunity directly following the Pitch session—at the “Meet-the-Artists” tables in ProEx—to interact with delegates, and to answer any questions. A buffet lunch is provided during this Professional Exchange Session.

Applicants for the Pitch session do not need to be ISPA members.

History
Borrowed in concept from a program originated at the Banff Film & Television Festival in Alberta, Canada and now featured at film festivals around the world, the ISPA Pitch Session is designed to attract interest and investment from ISPA colleagues in planned international and/or cross-cultural projects.
At virtually every ISPA Congress, since 1999, delegates have been exposed to exciting new works from around the world during Pitch Sessions. Many of these productions attracted serious interest, which often resulted in successful collaborations.

Past Pitch Sessions have included proposals from many of the world ‘s leading choreographers, theater and music artists: Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Michael Mao Dance, Michael Curry (United States), Emio Greco/PC (The Netherlands), Compagnie Marie Chouinard (Canada),  Ping Chong & Company (U.S./China), Opera Africa and Farber Foundry (Africa),  Chunky Move and Balletlab (Australia), Farm in the Cave (Czech Republic), Birmingham Repertory Theatre and Siobhan Davies Dance Company (Great Britain), Chinese Music Virtuosi (Hong Kong) and T’Ang Quartet (Singapore).