Cutting Up

Tharp and Baryshnikov in a promotional photo. Photo by Annie Leibovitz.

Excerpts from Acts II & III.

Tharp and Baryshnikov in a promotional photo. Photo by Annie Leibovitz.

Baryshnikov and Tharp in a promotional photo. Photo by Annie Leibovitz.

Baryshnikov in “Act II – Bare Bones.” Photo by Kevin Fitzsimmons.

Premiere

Date

27 November 1992

Company

Twyla Tharp Dance

Venue

Wexner Center for the Arts

Location

Columbus, OH

Production

Choreographer

Twyla Tharp

Music Director and Live Pianist

Sterling Smith

Music by

Sterling Smith,
Hoagy Charmichael,
Henri Ruifrok,
Louis Armstrong,
John Lee Hooker,
Gerard Marsden,
Giovanni Battista Pergolesi,
Saxie Dowell,
Herman Hupfeld,
Frank Sinatra

Lighting Designer

Jennifer Tipton

Costume Designer

Isaac Mizrahi

Scenic Designer

John Arnone

Ballet Mistress

Shelley Washington

Manager for Ms. Tharp

Pennie Curry

Dancers

Twyla Tharp and Mikhail Baryshnikov

with

Allison Brown, Stacy Caddell, Julie Michael, Shawn Stevens

Jamie Bishton, Aaron Cash, Daniel Otevrel, Art Palmer, Michael Whaites, Keith Young

Number of Dancers

12

Dance Sections

Act I: Shtick

1. Opening Piano
2. Sextet Jam
3. I Get Along Without You
4. Ruifrok Song
5. Clowns/Armstrong
6. Faux Fosse
7. Theme and Variation
8. Rail Blues
9. Hooker: I Wanna Walk
10. Men’s March
11. Homecoming/Berry/Mersey

Act II: Bare Bones

1. Adagop 6/8 Adagio
2. Olimpiade – Ha-ha
3. Andante – Maestoso
4. Finale

Act III: Food

1. Palm Court Suite
2. Three Fishes
3. Celeste/Jitterbug
4. As Time Goes By
5. One More For My Baby
6. Mortons
7. Finale

Runtime

01:13:26

Description

Cutting Up is a three-act roadshow headlined by Tharp and Baryshnikov. The opening act is a quick succession of flashy dance numbers. Company members join Tharp and Baryshnikov in various groupings for each section.

Act II is a duet for Tharp and Baryshnikov. The phrases combine their divergent dance techniques and histories in a playful competition. “Bare Bones” was later restructured as a solo for Baryshnikov called Pergolesi (1993).

The final act traces the history of social dance in American clubs and ballrooms, from the Palm Court in 1917 to Morton’s LA in 1992.

From the premiere program: “Twyla Tharp wishes to thank the Wexner Center for the Arts and the Ohio State University for their support during the 1992 Tharp residency to create Cutting Up in Columbus. Ohio. Tharp Productions gratefully acknowledges the generous support provided by the Avedon Studio, Leibovitz Studio, MPL Productions, Isaac Mizrahi Studio and WNET Great Performances.”