Born in Venezuela, Luis Lara Malvacías is a choreographer, dancer, designer and visual artist. He has danced in the work of Jeremy Nelson (1994 – 2004), David Zambrano, Mark Tompkins, Yoshiko Chuma, and in his own choreography. Performing with the John Jasperse Company at the Rencontres Chorégraphiques Internationales de Bagnolet in Paris in 1996, he won the Group Performance Award.
He has also being in creative residences at Le Pacific in Grenoble and Labor Gras in Berlin and was a 1998/1999 and 2002/2003 Movement Research Artist-in-Residence. He has received support for the creation of his work from, among others the MAP Rockefeller Funds and The Jerome Foundation, and was the recipient of a 2006 NYFA Fellowship for choreography.
He holds a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in New Media. He has presented his work in New York since 1994, including DTW, PS122, Danspace Project, the Kitchen and Joyce SoHo among others. In the United States he has taught, created and presented work in several colleges and institutions. Internationally, he regularly teaches and present work in many countries in Europe, South America, North America and Asia. He has also created work for repertory companies in Venezuela, Italy and the USA and for students at Texas Christian University, Stephen’s College, University of Madison, SEAD in Salzburg, the NSCD in Leeds, England and The Danish National School of Performing Arts in Copenhagen. He is presently Assistant Professor in the Dance department of the University of California, Riverside.
His choreographic work is presented now under Luis Lara Malvacías/3RD CLASS CITIZEN. He has created several touring performances –installations projects that involve his interest in collaborative multi-cultural and multi-disciplinary projects presented in no- conventional spaces. In 2000 at the Asyl Gallery, NY, he presented Purchase, an interactive performance installation that challenged the usual perspective of viewer and performer: the audience had the opportunity of choosing the dancer(s)-set-music-costumes and seeing their own performances in a chosen installation space. And since 2003 he has been creating and presenting his conceptual artistic object entitled NOT FESTIVAL.
More information about Luis & 3RD CLASS CITIZEN: www.laramalvacias.org