by Marc Raymond Strauss with Myron Howard Nadel

AscenDance Project

Another intriguing contemporary dance presenter, AscenDance Project (www.ascendanceproject.com), a Berkeley, California-based company has its performers moving vertically on climbing walls to choreographed rhythms in music and silence, was founded in 2006. Artistic Director and founder Isabel von Rittberg (b. September 4, 1980, Haan, Germany) was driving through Utah’s Virgin River Gorge during sunset and was stunned by the red sandstone cliffs surrounding [her and] enjoying imaginary bodies dancing on the immense vertical terrain…When rock climbing, it was the continuous flow of vertical movements that generated a strong mental focus and a powerfully physical strength that allowed [her’ to gracefully overcome [her] body weight. [Her] vision of climbers executing technical and powerful movements to music was clear and strong.

As with Elizabeth Streb, Cirque du Soleil, and Momix before her, von Rittberg discovered a new and unique venue for “dance” performance.

Chapter Eleven: 2000 and Beyond: A New Century, P. 165

By Elizabeth Miller

Maybe you know AscenDance from the television show America’s Got Talent. Or maybe from their 2009 appearance at Boulder’s Aerial Dance Festival. Or maybe you’re getting to know them as a new neighbor on Arapahoe Avenue. The AscenDance Project moves an art form into a sports arena by blending dance and climbing — the dancers cling to holds on a climbing wall while executing their choreography. And its founder and artistic director, Isabel Von Rittberg, has officially moved to Boulder, bringing the AscenDance company to a new studio here.

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By Liz Moskow

Dance Climb Fusion Class with The AscenDance Project

Instructor: Isabel von Rittberg, artistic director and innovator of The AscenDance Project grew up in Wuppertal, Germany. Inspired by Pina Bausch, one of the world's foremost authorities on modern dance, Isabel began dancing at a young age. But dance didn't entirely satisfy her need to express herself. Possessing the spirit of a dancer and the soul of a climber, Isabel was driven to create the AscenDance project, where she could integrate the two separate but complementary parts of herself. In 2006, Isabel started AscenDance in California's Bay Area; in November of 2011, she moved her brainchild to Boulder.

What is the workout? Read More...