Neil Ieremia is a choreographer and dancer in New Zealand. He is the founder and artistic director of

Black Grace Black Grace is one of New Zealand's leading contemporary dance companies. Founded by Neil Ieremia in 1995, Ieremia draws from his Samoan and New Zealand roots to create innovative dance works that reach across social, cultural and generationa ...

, a modern dance company formed in 1995. Black Grace has toured extensively in New Zealand and internationally including Australia, USA and The Netherlands. Ieremia has also choreographed work for the Royal New Zealand Ballet, the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, Opera New Zealand, New Zealand Wearable Arts and the Holland Dance Festival. Born in New Zealand, Ieremia is of Samoan heritage.

Awards and honours

In 2005, Ieremia received the prestigious Laureate Award from the

Arts Foundation of New Zealand 'The Arts Foundation of New Zealand Te Tumu Toi is a New Zealand arts organisation that supports artistic excellence and facilitates private philanthropy through raising funds for the arts and allocating it to New Zealand artists. The concept ...

for outstanding creative achievement. In 2015 he was awarded the Senior Pacific Artist Award at the Creative New Zealand Arts Pasifka Awards. In the

2016 Queen's Birthday Honours The 2016 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as pa ...

, Ieremia was appointed an

Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have re ...

for services to dance.

Background

Born in Cannons Creek,

Porirua Porirua, ( mi, Pari-ā-Rua) a city in the Wellington Region of the North Island of New Zealand, is one of the four cities that constitute the Wellington metropolitan area. The name 'Porirua' is a corruption of 'Pari-rua', meaning "the tide sw ...

, Wellington, Ieremia graduated from the Auckland Performing Arts School, before joining the acclaimed Douglas Wright Dance Company, performing in the major works ''Gloria, A Far Cry, Forever, How on Earth'' and ''Buried Venus''. He subsequently worked with other leading choreographers in New Zealand. After forming Black Grace in 1995, he choreographed all of the company's major full-length works and created the concepts behind ''New Works'' and ''UrbanYOUTHMovement''. Black Grace was made up predominantly of male

Pacific Island Collectively called the Pacific Islands, the islands in the Pacific Ocean are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of se ...

and

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

dancers. Black Grace has toured extensively throughout the main centres and regional New Zealand, including sold out performances at the New Zealand International Festival of the Arts. They have performed right across Australia including the Festival of Dreaming, Sydney and UWA Perth International Arts Festival. In 2003, Black Grace toured The Netherlands, performing at the Holland Dance Festival. In the same year, Ieremia received a nomination for the prestigious international Rolex Mentor Programme. In 2004, Black Grace debuted in the USA, at the world-renowned dance festival at Jacob's Pillow.

"He has spread his artistic roots in several rich pasts and grown up and out into a sunlight of his own making." The New York Times, 2004

In 2005, Black Grace's two Auckland seasons, ''New Works 2005'' and ''10 – A Decade of Works by Neil Ieremia'' sold out. The company performed Ieremia's works at the World Expo, Aichi and Tokyo, Japan; returned to Jacob's Pillow to perform on the main stage; a four-week season in New York's

New Victory Theater The New Victory Theater is a theater at 209 West 42nd Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, near Times Square. Built in 1900 as the Republic Theatre (also Theatre Republic), it was designed by Albert Westover an ...

; a week at the prestigious Cervantino Festival, Mexico and a tour of Hawai'i. In 2007, ''The Grass Roots Tour'' took the company to regional centres in the North Island. In 2008, the company performed at WOMAD as well as Ieremia presenting a short works programme in North America and Canada. In 2009, a major new work ''Gathering Clouds'' choreographed by Ieremia, premiered at the Auckland Festival. ''Gathering Clouds'' was a response to controversial claims made in 2008 by Massey University lecturer Dr Greg Clydesdale. The Dominion Post newspaper falsely reported that Dr Clydesdale said Pacific Island immigrants are a "drain on the economy".

Samoan heritage

Born in New Zealand and of Samoan heritage, Ieremia's work embodies three important Samoan principles: ''Fa'amaoni'' (integrity, honesty and pride), ''Fa'amalosi/Loto Tele'' (perseverance and determination) and ''Fa'aaloalo'' (humility and respect). Ieremia's father, a Samoan, is the cultural adviser for Black Grace.

Documentary

A documentary ''Black Grace: From Cannons Creek to Jacob's Pillow (2005)'' was made by director Aileen Sullivan and Māori actor and director Toby Mills. The documentary was broadcast on TVNZ and has also been broadcast by PBS, USA.

References

External links

Black Grace website

NZ Herald article 2009

Boston News interview 2004

TVNZ Black Grace documentary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ieremia, Neil Samoan artists New Zealand choreographers Living people People from Wellington City Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit Year of birth missing (living people)