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DANCE NEWS: Pascal Rioult Dance Theatre Dissolving Their Organization, Closing the Astoria-based Dance Center & Dance Company Due to COVID-19
After 27 Years One of New York City's Most Vibrant Creative Forces, Pascal Rioult Dance Theatre, Closes
The Board of Pascal Rioult Dance Theatre announced today that it is dissolving the organization, closing the Astoria-based Dance Center and the dance company due to the ongoing difficulties of the COVID-19 pandemic, effective immediately.
“On behalf of the Board, we’re saddened to announce the dissolution of the organization and the closure of the RIOULT Dance Center,” said Hope Greenfield, former Chairman of the Board. “We had expected many great things for the future of the Company, especially with our new Center in Astoria, but the pandemic has sadly brought an end to our plans”.
Pascal Rioult Dance Theatre is proud to have been a part of the thriving NYC dance community for the past 27 years. The dance company (aka RIOULT Dance NY) performed 12 of its NY seasons at the Joyce Theater and has had the privilege of performing in theaters and festivals in the US including New York City Center Fall for Dance, Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors, Central Park Summer Stage, the American Dance Festival (Raleigh, NC), the Annenberg Center (Philadelphia, PA), the Raymond F. Kravis Center for the Performing Arts (West Palm Beach, FL), and Zellerbach Hall (Berkeley, CA), among others. International venues included the Cannes International Festival, Danse à Aix, Paris Opera Bastille, Maison de la Danse in (Lyons FR), the Bermuda Festival, the Tamaulipas International Festival (Mexico), Le Grand Théâtre De Québec (Canada), and many stages in Italy, Switzerland, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Japan.
The RIOULT Dance Center, opened just over two years ago on October 15, 2018 and quickly became a safe and welcoming space for dancers from all across the Greater New York City area to take classes, rehearse and create, as well as a home for the dance company. The school was dedicated to community-based arts programming: providing an educational resource for the local community of western Queens. It is with great sadness that these doors must now close.
“I am sorry that my dream of establishing a home for the company and a school that celebrates the diversity and richness of dance has come to this unfortunate end, and has necessitated the closure of the dance company,” said Pascal Rioult, founder of the Company. “I am grateful for the dedication of my Board, my staff, my dancers, the teachers, and the artists who made the Center a vibrant place. I am proud of the reputation RIOULT Dance NY has garnered over 27 years.
My entire life has been dedicated to dance and even though this chapter is closing, my choreographic career has not come to an end”.
