ABOUT THE COMPANY
Alonzo King LINES Ballet is a celebrated contemporary ballet company that has been guided since 1982 by the artistic vision of acclaimed choreographer Alonzo King. Collaborating with extraordinary composers, musicians, writers, and visual artists from around the world, King draws on a diverse set of deeply rooted cultural traditions, imbuing classical ballet with new expressive potential. He has been heralded as a visionary and thought leader on topics that reach far beyond dance, receiving numerous accolades such as a 2020 Dance Magazine Award. The company brings new works of illuminating beauty to Bay Area audiences in bi-annual home seasons. LINES Ballet’s national and international tours allow the company to share its vision of transformative, revelatory dance through performances worldwide.
LINES Ballet is dedicated to training the next generation of artists through its pre-professional summer program, training program, and bachelor of fine arts program with Dominican University of California. LINES also makes dance accessible to Bay Area adults and youth through world-class, affordable classes open to the community and free in-school education programs.
After San Francisco’s stay-at-home order began in March 2020, all of LINES Ballet’s programs transitioned into the online space. The company also produced a new film series, There Is No Standing Still, which The New York Times and The Guardian included in their respective “Best Dance of 2020” lists.
ALONZO KING, Co-Founder, Artistic Director & Choreographer
Alonzo King has been called a visionary choreographer, who is altering the way we look and think about movement. King calls his works ‘thought structures’, created by the manipulation of energies that exist in matter through laws, which govern the shapes and movement directions of everything that exists. Named as a choreographer with ”astonishing originality” by the New York Times, Alonzo King LINES Ballet has been guided by his unique artistic vision since 1982.
King has works in the repertories of the world’s leading ballet and modern companies and has collaborated with distinguished visual artists, musicians and composers across the globe. His work has been recognized for its impact on the cultural fabric of the company’s home in San Francisco, as well as internationally by the dance world’s most prestigious institutions.
Named a Master of Choreography by the Kennedy Center in 2005, King is the recipient of the NEA Choreographer’s Fellowship, the Jacob’s Pillow Creativity Award, the US Artist Award in Dance, NY Bessie Award, and the National Dance Project’s Residency and Touring Awards. In 2015 he received the Doris Duke Artist Award in recognition of his ongoing contributions to the advancement of contemporary dance. Joining historic icons in the field, King was named one of America’s “Irreplaceable Dance Treasures” by the Dance Heritage Coalition. He is a former San Francisco commissioner, and a writer and lecturer on humanity and art. Inducted into the California Hall of Fame, King holds an honorary Doctorate from Dominican University, California Institute of the Arts, and The Juilliard School.
ROBERT ROSENWASSER, Co-Founder, Executive Director & Creative Director
Robert Rosenwasser shapes the aesthetic and artistic direction of each project at the Company, including conceptual design and production. In addition to his work with Alonzo King LINES Ballet, he has designed for American Ballet Theater, Ballet de Monte Carlo, Ballet Bejart, the Royal Swedish Ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Alvin Ailey American, Dance Theater of Harlem, Ballet Rambert, Joffrey Ballet, and Frankfurt Ballet. Working with Kelsey St. Press, Mr. Rosenwasser has collaborated with artists and poets Richard Tuttle, Kiki Smith, Cecilia Vicuna, Mei-mei Berssenbrugge, and Barbara Guest. This work can be found at the New York Museum of Modern Art in the Department of Books and Illustrated Prints, at the Whitney Museum, and at the Spencer Collection of the New York Public Library. He has been Executive Director of LINES since 2019. Mr. Rosenwasser grew up in New York and attended Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Performing Arts, Cooper Union, and California Institute of the Arts.
“The term LINES alludes to all that is visible in the phenomenal world. There is nothing that is made or formed without a line. Straight and Circle encompass all that we see. Whatever can be seen is formed by a line. In mathematics it is a straight or curved continuous extent of length without breadth. Lines are in our fingerprints, the shapes of our bodies, constellations, geometry.
It implies genealogical connection, progeny and spoken word. It marks the starting point and finish. It addresses direction, communication, and design. A line of thought. A boundary or eternity. A melodic line. The equator. From vibration or dot to dot it is the visible organization of what we see.”
— Alonzo King