Bull, Richard

Richard Niles Bull, a pioneer in the art of performance improvisation in dance, was born on July 3, 1931, in Detroit, Mich. While earning a BA in sociology from Wayne State University, he supported himself as a jazz pianist and, upon moving to New York City in 1952, continued to pursue a musical career. Bull began his dance training at this time with Maxine Munt and Alfred Brooks, and soon joined their company. He later studied with Erick Hawkins, Alwin Nikolais, and Mary Anthony.

Bull's interest in performed dance improvisation began while he was studying and teaching at New York University [NYU], 1963-1970. He received his graduate degree in Dance and Cinematography in 1965, began work towards his doctorate, and formed the New York Chamber Dance Group [NYCDG] at NYU in 1967. His earliest "dance structures" were developed for NYCDG, but it was War Games (1968), a signature piece from this period, which set the course for subsequent work by incorporating structured improvisation in its design. "My own improvisational roots are in jazz," noted Bull in 1969, "and my feeling for spontaneously shaping a dance phrase carries my experience in jazz into a different dimension."

Bull was Chair of the Dance Department at the State University of New York at Brockport from 1970-1978. He taught, expanded the university's dance program, directed and choreographed student and professional productions, began his lifelong collaborations with Cynthia Novack and Peentz Dubble, and continued, as a single father, to raise his daughter. In addition to his ensemble work, Bull staged events both on campus and in public spaces, playing with notions of theatrical time and personnel. Celebration City (1973) and Barn Dance (1974) were two site-specific works from this period and The Longest Dance (1976) unfolded over the course of twelve hours.

Yet Bull resigned his tenured position in 1979 and returned to New York City where he, Novack and Dubble had founded a non-profit arts organization, the Improvisational Arts Ensembles, Inc. [IAE] the previous year. They had also formed the Improvisational Dance Ensemble [IDE] (later renamed the Richard Bull Dance Theatre [RBDT]), and the Warren Street Performance Loft. IDE (and, later, RBDT) were companies-in-residence, performing and teaching at the Loft on a regular schedule, as well as nationwide. Making and Doing (1970), an early work in which the dancers memorize everything they improvise in the first half of the dance and then repeat it without error, remained in the repertoire, and new works, such as Another Serenade (1988), inspired by the ballet of the same name by George Balanchine, were added.

The Loft was as much a home to Bull, Novack and Bull's daughter, Katie, as it was a performance venue. Private family celebrations often filled the dance floor. Publicly, it was known among New York City audiences for its intimate atmosphere and for its mission to promote the work of improvising artists. Among those presented at the Loft from 1978-1998 were: Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane, Susan Foster, Deborah Hay, Simone Forti with Peter Van Riper, Brenda Bufalino, Elliot Sharp, Jane Ira Bloom, Joel Chadabe, and Jay Clayton.

From 1983-1997, Bull directed the Graduate Studies in Movement and Dance at Wesleyan University. He deepened his exploration of performed improvisation with summer courses such as "Choreographic Improvisation" and considered parallel structures among artistic disciplines in "Analogous Forms" and "The Joyce of Choreography." Bull also oversaw publicity, faculty and curricula for each season, and guided numerous advisees through their scholarly work. He was a beloved mentor, teacher, and colleague, known for his wit, intellect and dedication.

Following the illness and death of his wife and collaborator, Cynthia Novack, in 1996, Bull continued creating work for the junior company of the RBDT. Bull was diagnosed with advanced lung cancer in 1997 and died in New York on July 4, 1998. The work of the Improvisational Arts Ensembles, Inc. is being carried on by Katie Bull Pritchett and former RBDT members.

From the guide to the Richard Bull Papers, 1926-2003, (The New York Public Library. Jerome Robbins Dance Division.)

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