Richard Niles Bull, a pioneer in the art of performance improvisation in dance, was born July 3, 1931 in Detroit, Mich. While attending Wayne State University, he supported himself as a jazz pianist and, in 1952, moved to New York City to pursue a musical career. Bull began his dance training with Maxine Munt and Alfred Brooks and later studied with Erick Hawkins, Alwin Nikolais, and Mary Anthony. Bull's interest in performed dance improvisation began while studying and teaching at New York University. His earliest "dance structures" were developed for his New York Chamber Dance Group. From 1970-1978, he was Chair of the Dance Department at the State University of New York, Brockport where he staged events both on campus and in public spaces. Resigning his university position, he returned to New York City to concentrate his work on the Improvisational Arts Ensembles which he co-founded with Cynthia Novack and Peentz Dubble. They also formed the Improvisational Dance Ensemble (later renamed the Richard Bull Dance Theatre) and the Warren Street Performance Loft. The Loft was home to Bull, Novack, and Bull's daughter, Katie, as well as a performance venue. From 1983-1997, Bull directed the Graduate Studies in Movement and Dance at Wesleyan University. Following the illness and death of his wife and collaborator, Cynthia Novack, in 1996, Bull continued creating work for the junior company of the Richard Bull Dance Theatre. He was diagnosed with advanced lung cancer in 1997 and died in New York City on July 4, 1998.
From the description of Richard Bull Papers, 1926-2003. (New York Public Library). WorldCat record id: 156977289
