Matthew Lutz-Kinoy

A newly commissioned project by Paris, France-based American multidisciplinary artist Matthew Lutz-Kinoy, Filling Station comprises three dance performances sited across two partner locations, and an exhibition of a new series of paintings, archival materials, audiovisual elements and ephemera by the artist at The Kitchen’s satellite loft space at Westbeth in the West Village.

For this project, Lutz-Kinoy reinterprets the one-act ballet Filling Station originally staged by the short-lived troupe Ballet Caravan (1936-1940)—which grew out of American Ballet, co-founded by Lincoln Kirstein, George Balanchine and Edward Warburg—as part of a presentation titled A Sunday in Town, which debuted in Hartford, Connecticut, on January 6, 1938. This ballet is credited as the first ballet directed by an American choreographer, danced by an American company, and based on an American theme, with music and designs by American artists. Lutz-Kinoy’s restaging considers this 1938 work of American dance through a contemporary lens, creating a dynamic, queered space for reflection on race, class, and gender.

Lutz-Kinoy’s Filling Station features new choreography by Niall Jones (lead choreographer) with Raymond Pinto (consulting choreographer); a new music score made by James Ferraro; a set design by Lutz-Kinoy; and costumes by Mike Eckhaus and Zoe Latta of fashion label Eckhaus Latta. The ensemble of dancers includes Bria Bacon, Ayano Elson, Maxfield Haynes, Niall Jones, Kris Lee, Niala, and Mina Nishimura.

The recording, produced and edited by Al Foote III, combines video footage from each performance date.