Andrew de Lotbinière Harwood has been dedicated to improvisation as a performing art for nearly 40 years and is recognized worldwide as a specialist in instantaneous choreography and contact improvisation. Since 1976, his work has evolved through ongoing collaborations with several artists from various disciplines and through exploration into performance, composition, spatial design and various movement techniques. His improvisation work is influenced by the practice of gymnastics, athletics, yoga, modern dance, Alexander technique, Aikido, Release Technique, and a variety of somatic approaches.
He was introduced to dance in 1975 by Linda Rubin in Vancouver. While studying with Ms. Rubin, he formed the company Fulcrum with Peter Bingham and Helen Clark. From 1976-1988, he gravitated toward Contact Improvisation. During this period, he studied, taught and shared the stage with Steve Paxton, Nancy Stark Smith and Nita Little, founding members of this art form, and danced with the Jo Lechay company in Montreal. During the 1990s, he taught and performed regularly with numerous exceptional improvisers at various festivals, including the Bates Dance Festival in the United States, the Impuls Tanz Festival in Vienna and the Improvisation Festival in New York. During this same period, he also danced with the Marie Chouinard company from 1991-1994 and participated in 1994 in the Canadian tour of Joe with the Fondation Jean-Pierre Perreault. From 1992-2008, he participated in a major annual collaboration in Vancouver with Marc Boivin and Peter Bingham, with whom he founded the improvisation group The Echo Case.
He was awarded the Canada Council’s Jacqueline Lemieux Dance Award in 2000. That same year, he founded AH HA Productions, an artistic project company focusing on improvisation as a performing art. He was the artistic director of the company until its dissolution in 2013. From 2003-2013, Andrew gave an annual intensive training course in Montreal followed by performances with the improvisation group Discovery Bal. This unique training course promoted exploration and professional development in spontaneous choreography and contact improvisation.
For more than 15 years, Andrew has been regularly sharing his pedagogical knowledge in three renowned Montreal institutions: École de danse contemporaine de Montréal, Université du Québec and École Nationale de Théâtre. He is also much sought after by artistic directors of various companies such as Marie Chouinard, O Vertigo, Nyata Nyata and Dancemakers, which greatly admire his artistic approach.
