A gift from Mr Gregory Hines for the Jazz Tap Ensemble. Created on a music by Jerry Kalaf.

Source: Jazz Tap Ensemble

More information: jazztapensemblelegacy.org

Gregory Hines, in full Gregory Oliver Hines, (born February 14, 1946, New York, New York, U.S.—died August 9, 2003, Los Angeles, California), American tap dancer, actor, and choreographer who was a major figure in the revitalization of tap dancing in the late 20th century.

By the age of four, Hines and his older brother Maurice were taking tap lessons with renowned dancer and choreographer Henry Le Tang. The brothers soon formed the Hines Kids, a song-and-dance act that appeared in clubs across the United States. When Gregory was six years old the duo performed at the Apollo Theater in New York, and two years later he made his Broadway debut in The Girl in Pink Tights (1954). The act’s name was later changed to the Hines Brothers, and in 1963 it became Hines, Hines and Dad when their father joined them as a drummer. The trio made numerous television appearances and performed throughout the United States and Europe. Mounting tensions with his brother, however, and declining public interest in tap dancing led Gregory to leave the act in 1973 and move to California. There he formed the jazz-rock band Severance, serving as songwriter, singer, and guitarist. By the late 1970s, however, the band had broken up, and Hines had returned to New York to resume his dancing career.

In 1978 Hines starred with his brother in Eubie!, a tribute to American ragtime pianist and composer Eubie Blake that was choreographed by Le Tang. The production was a great success and sparked new interest in tap dancing. Hines received a Tony Award nomination, and other nominations followed for performances in Comin’ Uptown (1979) and Sophisticated Ladies (1981). In the early 1980s Hines began appearing regularly on television and in movies. He proved a versatile actor, and his numerous film credits include History of the World: Part I (1981), The Cotton Club (1984), and White Nights (1985), in which he starred with Mikhail Baryshnikov. In the 1989 film Tap, he appeared alongside Sammy Davis, Jr., and other once well-known African American tap dancers. In 1989 he also won an Emmy Award for his television special Gregory Hines: Tap Dance in America. Hines continued to appear on Broadway, and in 1992 he costarred with Savion Glover in Jelly’s Last Jam. Portraying an older version of Jelly Roll Morton, Hines received his first Tony Award. He later performed in the role of dancer Bill (“Bojangles”) Robinson in the television film Bojangles (2001). In addition to his acting and dancing work, Hines also released an album of songs in 1988 and made his directorial debut with the 1994 film Bleeding Hearts.

Source : britannica.com

Author, filmmaker and video artist Charles Picq (1952-2012) entered working life in the 70s through theatre and photography. A- fter resuming his studies (Maîtrise de Linguistique - Lyon ii, Maîtrise des sciences et Techniques de la Communication - grenoble iii), he then focused on video, first in the field of fine arts at the espace Lyonnais d'art Contemporain (ELAC) and with the group « Frigo », and then in dance.
   On creation of the Maison de la Danse in Lyon in 1980, he was asked to undertake a video documentation project that he has continued ever since. During the ‘80s, a decade marked in France by the explosion of contemporary dance and the development of video, he met numerous artists such as andy Degroat, Dominique Bagouet, Carolyn Carlson, régine Chopinot, susanne Linke, Joëlle Bouvier and regis Obadia, Michel Kelemenis. He worked in the creative field with installations and on-stage video, as well as in television with recorded shows, entertainment and documentaries.

His work with Dominique Bagouet (80-90) was a unique encounter. He documents his creativity, assisting with Le Crawl de Lucien and co-directing with his films Tant Mieux, Tant Mieux and 10 anges. in the 90s he became director of video development for the Maison de la Danse and worked, with the support of guy Darmet and his team, in the growing space of theatre video through several initiatives:
       - He founded a video library of dance films with free public access. This was a first for France. Continuing the video documentation of theatre performances, he organised their management and storage.
       - He promoted the creation of a video-bar and projection room, both dedicated to welcoming school pupils.
       - He started «présentations de saisons» in pictures.
       - He oversaw the DVD publication of Le tour du monde en 80 danses, a pocket video library produced by the Maison de la Danse for the educational sector.

       - He launched the series “scènes d'écran” for television and online. He undertook the video library's digital conversion and created Numeridanse.

His main documentaries are: enchaînement, Planète Bagouet, Montpellier le saut de l'ange, Carolyn Carlson, a woman of many faces, grand ecart, Mama africa, C'est pas facile, Lyon, le pas de deux d'une ville, Le Défilé, Un rêve de cirque.

He has also produced theatre films: Song, Vu d'ici (Carolyn Carlson), Tant Mieux, Tant Mieux, 10 anges, Necesito and So schnell, (Dominique Bagouet), Im bade wannen, Flut and Wandelung (Susanne Linke), Le Cabaret Latin (Karine Saporta), La danse du temps (Régine Chopinot), Nuit Blanche (Abou Lagraa), Le Témoin (Claude Brumachon), Corps est graphique (Käfig), Seule et WMD (Françoise et Dominique Dupuy), La Veillée des abysses (James Thiérrée), Agwa (Mourad Merzouki), Fuenteovejuna (Antonio Gades), Blue Lady revistied (Carolyn Carlson).

Source: Maison de la Danse de Lyon

Artistic direction: Lynn Dally Fred Strickler and Camden Richman

Creation: 1979

The Jazz Tap Ensemble, America’s first touring tap dance company, was founded in 1979 by three dancers and three musicians who brought original tap choreography with live jazz to the concert stage.   Initially inspired by the great rhythm masters John Bubbles, “Baby” Laurence, “Honi” Coles as well as Fred Astaire, Eleanor Powell, Gene Kelly, the varied modern dance backgrounds of the dancers and the diverse interests of the musicians, JTE’s vision of excellence, innovation, and collaboration, with a deep respect for the living masters, brought forth a repertory of virtuosity, wit, and deep musicality.

JAZZ TAP ENSEMBLE has been honored to present and share the stage with a pantheon of tap legends including Jimmy Slyde, Steve Condos, LaVaughn Robinson, Fayard Nicholas, Harold Nicholas, Charles “Honi” Coles, Eddie Brown, Brenda Bufalino, Dianne Walker, Savion Glover, and our beloved Gregory Hines. Based in Los Angeles, JTE has appeared in major concert halls in the U.S. and abroad including the Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian, London’s Riverside Theatre, Paris’ Theatre de la Ville, Lyon’s Maison de la Danse, as well as NY’s Joyce Theater, Jacob’s Pillow, Spoleto USA, major first generation tap festivals across the U.S., and State Dept sponsored USIA tours of Southeast Asia and Latin America. Most recently, via DanceMotion USA, a US Department of State program, we embarked on a life changing one month tour of central and South Africa (Democratic Republic of Congo, Mozambique, Bulawayo and Harare, Zimbabwe) where real cultural exchange was able to happen daily with local artists, dancers and musicians, as well as disadvantaged youth in workshops, master classes, and concerts.

Performance highlights include Gregory Hines’ “Evening of Tap at Carnegie Hall,” “Dancing in the Streets” at the Apollo, Hollywood’s Playboy Jazz Festival, Salzburg’s 10th Annual JazzFest, Madrid’s Festival en Danza, and Lyon’s 4th Biennale, “An American Story.” TV and film credits include JTE Live in Concert (London), JTE with Honi Coles (San Francisco), and Christian Blackwood’s award winning documentary, “Tapdancin.” Recognized as leaders in the renaissance of tap dance in America, Artistic Director Lynn Dally and Jazz Tap Ensemble are well represented in Constance Valis Hill’s new history book, “Tap Dancing America.”

Source: Jazz Tap Ensemble 's website

More information: jazztapensemble.org