Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz Presents
The Los Angeles Premiere of
Lux Aeterna Dance Company’s
Eponym
An Explosive Evening of Dance & Circus Theatre
Thursday, October 30, 2014

LOS ANGELES, CA – October 6, 2014 – Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz (TRK) is proud to present a spectacular evening of interdisciplinary dance and circus theatre, Lux Aeterna Dance Company’s Eponym, premiering in Los Angeles on Thursday, October 30, 2014. The critically acclaimed Los Angeles-based Lux Aeterna, founded and directed by pioneering breakdance daredevil Jacob “Kujo” Lyons, will first perform the beautiful duet, “Catch Me If You Can’t,” followed by the poetic quintet “Eponym” at the TRK event. Creative dancer-choreographer Kujo and Lux are known for an eclectic and powerful movement vocabulary, which fuses various art forms such as breaking, contemporary dance, and circus arts. The award-winning company cultivates beauty from sources that might not otherwise be considered beautiful, in the traditional sense, transforming urban techniques into something transcendent and radiant. Of Kujo, former Los Angeles Times Dance Critic Lewis Segal said, “there is no more-brilliant choreographer in Los Angeles at the moment.”

The 90-minute show will start at 7:30pm and will take place at Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz, the innovative performance space at Le Lycée Français de Los Angeles, 10361 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles CA 90064 (310-286-0553). Tickets are $35 for adults and $25 for students. A no host bar will be available. For more information on this event, please visit TRK’s event page here and the Facebook Event Page here. Tickets are available online here. To learn more about Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz, please visit http://www.theatreraymondkabbaz.com.

“The idea of presenting a local dance company had been on my mind for some time and, then, when I recently saw Lux Aeterna at the LA Dance Showcase during the Western Arts Alliance Conference, I was amazed!” says Pierre Leloup, Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz Director, “I knew Lux was a perfect fit for our multicultural/multidisciplinary program; Kujo’s inspiration is a brilliant mix of creativity and athleticism… his work is more than remarkable, it’s completely and utterly unique!”

Lux Aeterna Dance Company –
Lux Aeterna Dance Company, founded by Artistic Director and Choreographer Jacob “Kujo” Lyons in April 2006, is an interdisciplinary dance and physical theater company committed to the creation of an eclectic and powerful dance vocabulary through the fusion of various movement forms, such as ballet, modern, Brazilian capoeira, gymnastics, circus and aerial arts, body-to-body partnering, and, most importantly, breakdance. The company’s method obliterates pre-established boundaries that separate the various movement styles it encompasses. Victoria Looseleaf, in Dance Magazine, called Lux Aeterna’s work, Metanoia, “a magnificent melding of contemporary vocabulary with street.”

Lux Aeterna regularly performs to sold-out crowds at major hip hop and contemporary dance festivals, which have included Dancing Under the Stars, the San Francisco Hip Hop Dance Fest, Celebrate Dance, and two evening-length hip hop dance/theater shows at the Ford Amphitheatre (Breaking the Cypher and the annual Juice Hip Hop Dance Festival). Internationally, Lux has traveled to Costa Rica to participate in Festival Abierto de Danza y Arte Urbano and Festival Internacional de las Artes; Panama for Festival Internacional de Artes Escenicas; and Holland for Circusstad.

Kujo’s choreography and his Lux Aeterna Dance Company regularly participate as acrobatic character dancers in Cirque Montage, a Cirque du Soleil-style production which tours around the world. Additionally, they have performed in the live drum theater show, Street Beat, and Lux Aeterna’s dancers were featured in a 2009 underwater commercial for detergent company Nirma, in India.

click on image to view Kujo’s Reel

Jacob “Kujo” Lyons, Founder, Artistic Director & Choreographer –
Lux Aeterna Founder, Artistic Director, and Choreographer Jacob “Kujo” Lyons has been on the global b-boy/breakdance scene for over 20 years. He has performed, competed, and judged competitions, as well as taught in over 40 countries on six continents. Kujo was a founding member of the trailblazing b-boy Soul Control Crew, back-flipped into a pair of jeans in a national Levi’s commercial, consulted for Cirque du Soleil on multiple occasions, was featured in Step Up 2: The Streets, and was a principal dancer in Run DMC’s music video, “It’s Like That.” Most recently, Kujo appeared in the feature film Battle of the Year.

With Lux Aeterna, Kujo has garnered critical acclaim and won multiple awards for groundbreaking choreographic work. Former Los Angeles Times Dance Critic Lewis Segal called Kujo’s choreography, “drop-dead awesome in its millennial bravura.” In 2008, Kujo was named one of the “Faces to Watch,” by the Los Angeles Times and he was also named “Choreographer of the Year 2008” by the Beverly Hills Outlook. Kujo and Lux Aeterna also earned the 2008 Lester Horton Dance Awards for Best Male Dancer and Best Choreographer – Short Form, as well as the 2007 Lester Horton Dance Award for Best Company Performance. Additionally, Kujo and Lux Aeterna have funded their work with grants from the Durfee Foundation, the Ford Foundation (via the Hip Hop Theater Festival), and the Flourish Foundation.

Kujo, who lives in Burbank, received a B.S. in Dance Kinesiology from California State University, Northridge. He also studied modern dance and ballet with Dr. Paula Thomson from Toronto, postmodern dance with Rudy Perez from New York, acrobatic partnering with Stephan Choiniere of Cirque du Soleil’s Zumanity, and Diavolo technique with Jacques Heim.

Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz –
Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz (TRK) is a non-profit institution dedicated to the promotion of art and culture in the West Los Angeles area. This 220-seat theatre welcomes multidisciplinary and multicultural shows. TRK’s mission is to be an open window on French and international cultures and to inspire and sustain a lifelong appreciation for the arts.

Links –
• Théâtre Raymond Kabbaz (TRK) – http://www.theatreraymondkabbaz.com
• TRK Event Page – http://www.theatreraymondkabbaz.com/2014/08/06/lux-aeterna-contemporary-dance
• TRK on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/pages/Theatre-Raymond- Kabbaz/43864706321
• Facebook Event Page – https://www.facebook.com/events/1474913389426043
• Lux on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/LuxAeternaDance
• Lux Reel – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zkzYVdBVO0

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For more information, photos or to schedule an interview, please contact Green Galactic’s Lynn Tejada at 213-840-1201 or lynn@greengalactic.com.