Ton Simons

After his training he was a dancer at Käthy Gosschalk’s Werkcentrum Dans, the forerunner of De Rotterdamse Dansgroep. Ton Simons took workshops and classes with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company. In 1978, he set up as a freelance dancer and choreographer in New York City, where he directed his own dance group, Ton Simons and Dancers, between 1982 and 1996. In 1990 Simons became artistic director of De Rotterdamse Dansgroep, which was then renamed Dance Works Rotterdam. Since 2010, he has been working as a freelance choreographer. In 2012, Simons made his first work for Dutch National Ballet, The Nature of Difference, for the anniversary programme Present/s. In 2014 he received a Swan Award for his choreography Romance, made in collaboration with photographer Rineke Dijkstra for the programme Double Dutch. Throughout his career, Simons has often collaborated with many prominent composers, musicians, visual artists and designers. He’s creating a new chorography, 8 Preludes,  for the programme Juniors Go Dutch of the Junior Company of Het Nationale Ballet, on music by the Russian composer Sofia Gubaidulina.

Awards:

• 1979, Amsterdam Fund for the Arts (the Netherlands), Sonia Gaskell Prize

* 1990, Dutch Association of Theatres and Concert Halls (the Netherlands), Dutch Choreography Award

• 1991, The New York Foundation for the Arts (United States), Individual Artist’s Fellowship

• 1992, The National Endowment for the Arts (United States),  Choreographer’s Fellowship

• 1993, The National Endowment for the Arts (United States), Choreographer’s Fellowship

• 2004, Dansersfonds ‘79 (the Netherlands), Merit Award

* 2014, 'Swan' for choreography Romance