Catherine Allard

 

 

 

Catherine Allard, born in Belgium and resident in Catalonia. Dancer and director of IT dance. In 1978 she auditioned for Maurice Béjart’s Mudra School, at the age of 17. Catherine Allard joined the 1st company of the NDT in 1982. A year later, Nacho Duato joined the company as a dancer and took his first steps as a choreographer. , from this moment Catherine begins to dance her works. She has been, in the choreographer’s words, “her inspiration and her muse” and has toured the entire world, America, Europe, Japan and Australia. Her stay at NDT continues until 1990. During this period she performs pieces by the best contemporary dance choreographers of the 20th century, Jiří Kylián, Ohad Naharin, Hans van Manen, Nils Christie, Jerome Robbins, Mats Eks, William Forsynthe, Christopher Bruce and Nacho Duato. Duato created the ballet Jardín Cerrado, based on old popular texts and sung by the Majorcan performer Maria del Mar Bonet, who provided the voice and music. In 1988, Catherine Allard was awarded the Zilveren Teatro Dans Prijs prize for her interpretation of Bolero and Arenal, for Catherine Allard «Arenal is the piece where I have felt freest». From the idea of Nacho Duato they created the duo Corazón Perdido as a birthday present for Maria del Mar Bonet. Meanwhile, Nacho Duato, who had left the NDT to direct the National Lyric Ballet of Spain (later renamed the Compañía Nacional de Danza), asked her to accompany him as prima ballerina, and Catherine Allard continued to Madrid months later. She would stay for six years, from 1990 to 1996, becoming the director’s perfect partner. In 1996 Allard moved to Barcelona to create a Postgraduate course for young dancers at the Barcelona Theater Institute.

On July 30, 1997, the classes of the young company of the Theater Institute begin. Its objective was to create a bridge between the training and the professional practice of young dancers. At the front is Catherine Allard as artistic director. IT Dansa was born. In 2001 Catherine Allard received the National Dance Award, the highest institutional recognition awarded by the Department of Culture of the Government of Catalonia within the National Culture Awards; an award for individuals or entities in recognition of the most relevant contributions.

Catherine will be in charge in Barcelona of uniting Medicine and dance.