Seven Giordano Dance dancers perform in the middle of a Chicago street, tall buildings and blue sky in the background. Dancers wearing black suits with white undershirts, all caught jumping in midair.

JOLT

Giordano Dance Chicago

Giordano Dance Chicago (GDC) premiered JOLT at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance in March 2012. Choreographed by Autumn Eckman with concept and structure by Nan Giordano, JOLT features an original score by Evan Bivins composed on pots, pans, buckets and other household items. The work was created for the full company, following the dancers from their first moments of waking up, to their first sips of coffee, through the grueling city streets. The need for caffeine drives the work, and as the dance progresses the tempos increase until the performers reach breakneck speeds. After its premiere JOLT quickly became a GDC staple being performed worldwide as well as returning to the Harris stage on multiple occasions.

In 2020, JOLT became the clear choice for GDC’s entrée into the virtual world. Director Joshua Blake Carter adapted Eckman’s and Giordano’s stage work into a site-specific film using only an iPhone. The stage work was a commentary on our non-stop lives and what drives us; the film brings it into real life. JOLT offers a unique perspective now that the world has time to slow down and reflect.

In 58 years as an artistic leader and innovator, Giordano Dance Chicago — America’s original jazz dance company — has contributed greatly to the health of Chicago’s performing arts community. From our origins in Gus Giordano’s family-run studio to our current incarnation as a professionally-run organization with over a half-century of worldwide performances (27 countries, 46 states, and more than 1,200 cities), our imprint on the art form of jazz dance is far-reaching and significant. Our contributions include: a vast repertoire of more than 170 original works; the mentoring of new and emerging choreographers; the commissioning of innumerable musical scores and production designers; the education of tens of thousands of underserved public school and community students; the creation of generations of professional dancers, and performances to millions of audience members worldwide.