Winner of the Bessie and Arison Awards, Jessica Lang makes her choreographic debut at the Ailey company with EN, her 100th ballet. “En” is a Japanese word with multiple meanings of circle, destiny, fate or karma, and the theme of her new work is about coming full circle. This celebratory ensemble work is set to an original score by frequent collaborator Jakub Ciupinski and (in Lang's own words) "reflects on the universal experience of coming full circle and, as time passes, we recognize the people we meet along life’s journey who play a part in the fate and destiny of our lives."

In addition to serving as Artistic Director of Jessica Lang Dance since 2011, Lang (who is married to Ailey company member Kanji Segawa) has created original works for major companies around the world like American Ballet Theatre, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Birmingham Royal Ballet, Joffrey Ballet and National Ballet of Japan.

Lang’s choreography has demonstrated a breathtaking range of influences, including interests in visual art, theatrical lyricism, the geometry of the human body, and the nuances of bodily gesture.

Learn more about the making of EN

PRESS COVERAGE

"EN, an exploration of time, moved the dancers across the stage like a vortex. The set design, by Ms. Lang and Nicole Pearce, indicates night and day, dawn and dusk. A moon hovers above the dancers, while a larger orb, placed center stage, glows with the help of Ms. Pearce’s lighting. It first radiates a silvery-white light, but as the piece progresses, more colors are added and replaced—yellow, green, lavender—creating the effect of an eclipse. References to time wash over the stage. When the moon, a large bulb of sorts, lowers, the dancers push it back and forth like a pendulum, and the minimalist electronic score, by Jakub Ciupinski, echoes throughout the theater like it’s ticking off moments or minutes. EN does have a painterly quality: The dancers conjure brush strokes as they glide across the stage."
–Gia Kourlas, The New York Times

"Filled with percussive passion, precision, and resonance. En—a new work with choreography by Jessica Lang, with the dancers spinning and gyrating in white outfits to a haunting drumbeat—was a particularly head-spinning treat."
–Michael Musto, NewNowNext

The creation of EN was made possible with leadership support from Melinda & Paul Pressler and Denise Littlefield Sobel.

Generous support was provided by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.