Asun Noales
Asun Noales is a choreographer, teacher, dancer, and director of the dance company OtraDanza, currently established at L’Escorxador CCE in Elx. She is a graduate of the Conservatorio Oscar Esplá in Alicante with a bachelor’s degree in Classical Dance and Spanish Dance. She later earned a professional degree in Contemporary Dance at the Institut del Teatre in Barcelona and did the specialization in Choreography and Dance Performance Techniques.
Asun Noales begins her training at the dance school Pilar Sánchez in Elche. She studies at the Institut del Teatre in Barcelona under the guidance of Guillermina Coll, Gilberto Ruiz Lang and Avelina Argüelles, as well as of other guest teachers such as María Muñoz, Pep Ramis (Mal Pelo) or Angels Margarit (Mudances). She participates in exchange programs with the Choreographic Center of Montpellier under the direction of Mathilde Monnier, and with the Paris National Conservatory. She also studies at the Royal Academy and takes workshops with Margarita Urbino, Bárbara Kasprovicz, Victor Ullate, Maxinne Steinman, Alain Davesne, Jose Ferrán, Eugenio Valukin, Alix Riga, Karemia Moreno, Karine Saporta, Joe Alegado, Ramón Oller, Mikhail Baryshnikov, and Ohad Naharin.
In 1994 she moves to Barcelona and begins to grow professionally as an international performer. Since her youth, she combines her formal education with her professional work in different companies and institutions such as Ballet Joven de Alicante (directed by Pilar Sánchez), Compañía Roberto G. Alonso in Barcelona, Ballet Contemporáneo de Barcelona (directed by Amelia Boluda), Compañía Avelina Argüelles or Compañía Selene Lux Dance (directed by Pepe Hevia and Janette Moreno). She performs choreographies by Luc Bouy, Gigi Cachiuleanu, Antonio Canales and Gustavo Ramírez Sansano (the award-winning of Premio Ricard Moragas in 1997 Fetos). When she finishes her studies she takes part of Angels Margarit’s dance company Mudances in the production of Térbola – winner of the ‘Premi Nacional de Dansa de Catalunya’ – and La edad de la paciencia.
Asun Noales keeps moving from one place to another. A few years later, she moves to Cologne (Germany), where she works as a guest dancer in the production of Coppelia with the dance company Tanz Forum under the direction of Jochen Ulrich. Then she goes back to Barcelona for the project My brother’s keeper with Rick Merril & friends. By the end of 1999, she establishes herself in Valencia and joins the company Vicente Sáez in the creations of Fénix and Eva Millenium. Together with Santiago Sempere and the music director Carles Magraner, she participates in the production of Lamento de Tristano. She is also a guest dancer in the productions La venta del cruce – organized by the dance company La Carátula – and Congelado en el tiempo, choreographed by Ramón Oller with the Ballet de Teatres de la Generalitat Valenciana.
For six years, between 2000 and 2006, Noales co-directs the dance company Patas Arriba and is acknowledged by the audience and by the dance critics for works like Tinajas, Mixto, Storyboard, Islas, or Afán. The project Dícese/Sacra, choreographed by both Gustavo Ramírez Sansano (Dícese) and Asun Noales (Sacra), receives seven nominations for the awards from the Artes Escénicas de la Generalitat Valenciana, and the project ends up winning two of the most important ones: Best Dance Choreography and Best Choreographic Direction.
She presents a good amount of short pieces as well. Some examples of these are: En sueños, awarded in the First Certamen Burgos/New York; Entre, made with Ramírez Sansano for the Belgian company Passerelles 03; Three thoughts for a place (2005), created for the Neuberger Museum in New York in collaboration with students from the Purchase College; Tan lejos tan cerca (2005), the selected duo for the International Tanzmesse in Düsseldorf in 2006 and finalist piece at the Certamen Coreográfico Burgos/New York; Huella, a solo for the company Take Dance; or Llebeig, a piece created for the Ballet de Teatres de la Generalitat Valenciana in 2008 that got later awarded with the prices ‘Best Choreographic Direction’, ‘Best Lightning Design’, ‘Best Stage Space’, and ‘Best dancer’ of the Premios de las Artes Escénicas de la Generalitat Valenciana in 2009.
With the birth of her new solo project ‘OtraDanza’, Noales oozes with creativity and freedom to create, which leads to the presentation of a bunch of other works such as Orillas, Salpíca-te salpíca-me, Invisibles, Mujeres, Sola, Tierra – awarded ‘Best Dance Choreography’ of the Premios de las Artes Escénicas de la Generalitat Valenciana/Valencia Performing Arts Awards –, Frágil, Soy lo que fuimos, El Gran Banquete – awarded ‘Best Male Dancer’ and ‘Best Female Dancer’ of the Premio Abril 2009 –, Back, and her latest work Mater.
Some of the places and festivals where Noales’ shows have been presented include Danse Lille (France), Platform International of Almada (Portugal), Catweek-Kaunas (Lithuania), Festival Mawazine-Rabat (Morocco), Seoul Drum Festival (Korea), Festival Dansa Valencia, San José de Costa Rica, Forum Barcelona, Madrid en Danza, Sagunt a Escena, Veranos de la Villa de Madrid, Danza Gijón, Internationale Tanzmesse (Düsseldorf), Teatro Nacional de San Salvador (El Salvador), Managua (Nicaragua) or Tegucigalpa (Honduras).
Since 2003, Noales incorporates teaching to her career, which will coexist with her side as creator until today. She has collaborated as a teacher and invited choreographer in several courses, workshops, and master classes during all these years: Centro Coreográfico de Teatres de la Generalitat Valenciana, Summer Dance International Burgos/New York (invited by Kazuko Hirabayashi from 2003 to 2007), Universidad Miguel Hernández (2004-2005), Purchase Collage in New York (2005), La Megaló Teatro Móvil school in Madrid (2005), Universidad Mayor in Santiago de Chile (2005), National University in Heredia, Costa Rica (2006), La Maratón de Riba Roja (2007), Conservatorio Profesional in Valencia (2007), Ballet de Teatres de la Generalitat Valenciana (2008), Compañía Nacional de El Salvador, Escuela Nacional de danza de Managua in Tegucigalpa, Asociación Gerard Collins in Valencia.
Since the academic year 2007/08, Noales is a tenured professor at the Conservatorio Profesional de Danza José Espadero in Alicante.