Alvin Tolentino

Born in Manila, Philippines, Alvin Tolentino has been exploring the universe of dance since the age of eight. He started with ballet in the Philippines and continued to pursue his dance career after moving to Canada with his family in 1983. Since then, he has refined his dance techniques at SUNY Purchase and Limon Institute in the United States and trained in dance at the Julliard Academy and the Martha Graham School in New York where he developed his craft with several renowned art and dance teachers.

In 2000 Alvin Tolentino founded the Erasga Co. with the purpose of combining contemporary dance and multi-disciplinary practices. Established in Vancouver, the group collaborates with artists from all over the world opening up the performance of innovative dance forms and enriching this art of movement. Since its creation, Alvin Tolentino's dance company has participated in several festivals and has toured and seduced audiences in Canada, United States, Europe, and Asia.

A recipient of rave reviews for the artistry in his creations, dance virtuoso Alvin Tolentino never ceases to amaze audiences. He is one of the most active Asian-Canadian artists with a focus on identity, hybridity, the dialogue between traditional and modern cultures, and the issue of man's co-existence with nature. The originality and imagination in his works combined with his mastery of classical and modern dance techniques, enables him to evoke a wide palette of human experiences in one simple movement. From light to shadow, dance is his way of revealing the power, the mystery, and the grace of the human soul.

Since 1989 Alvin Tolentino has created over fifteen thematic solo performances such as SOLA 1998, BATO/Stone et Minori 2001, VOLT 2002, Field 2003, SHE SAID and ORINTIK/ PORTRAIT 2005. He has received several prestigious awards highlighting the quality of his artistry such as B.C. Leo Awards (2000), Gemini (2001) and the Grand Prize at the UNESCO International video competition (2002).

Artist's Note

In a cross-cultural journey, Field is a homage to land and people, and the connection between past and future. Within the dance is the heritage of my roots, a meeting between and transformation of ethnicity and modernity. Field is the grain, force, work, roots and the life reflected in one's culture and identity, connecting out to our globalized world.

In 2002, Ballet Philippines and the Cultural Center of the Philippines commissioned me to return and create a new work based on Balikbayan, (Home Coming); assisted by the Canada Council for the Arts, the result was a thirty minute dance piece entitled Field 1 for five male dancers of the ballet company. That showing was seen by over 4000 spectators in the Philippines. My desire to continue the voice of Field 1 has been haunting and inspiring, a desire that led me to re-create a full-length solo dance for myself that is now entitled Field: Land is the belly of man.

Fittingly, the International Year of Rice was officially celebrated and announced by UNESCO globally in 2004. This important advocacy is to promote and reflect on the loss and need to revitalize the importance of the rice grain as heritage. Over the years, the grain has suffered much disaster in parts of South East Asia, an effect of rising climate changes that result from modernization. These effects are felt by the people and by the land.

The making of Field was created for the 4th International Danse En Vol Festival in Brussels, Belgium in 2003 as part of the Canadian-Belgian dance exchange between Theatre de L'L and Studio 303 in Montreal. Since then, the work has graced national and international stages including: Montreal in the spring of 2004, and the CanAsian Dance Festival 2005 in Toronto. Early stages of the work have appeared in the 20 Danceweek Festival in Zagreb, Croatia and at Jean Mermoz College in Laon, France in 2003.

Field was featured at Singapore's Asian Arts Mart and at the 13th International Dance Festival in Maracaibo, Venezuela showcased in six cities. The May 2007 tour with MAI and the National Alliance of Philippine Women Centres in Canada helps to continue the voice and journey of this work.

Press Review

ARTIST

"One of the 21 artistes and performers who will change the face of culture in B.C. in the 21st century."
- Vancouver Sun

"Tolentino established himself as a daring virtuoso dancer, with his originality, technical brilliance, exuberance and powerful grace"
-The Philippine Chronicle

"One of Vancouver's most prolific and Canada's gifted male contemporary dancers"
-The Georgia Straight

"It is always exciting to come across an artist who eloquently embodies the ideas and aesthetic of the ever-elusive present. ( ...)I have met such an individual — Alvin Erasga Tolentino"

"Rare is the lone performer who has the ability to command an audience's attention, but Tolentino is one of those captivating movers whose every gesture explodes with meaning"
- The Georgia Straight

"His artistic ventures are marked by the intercultural , and Tolentino continues to evolve at exciting cultural crossroads"
"With his arresting good looks and supple body, Tolentino is a mesmerizing performer " -The Vancouver Courier

WORK

"Unpredictable, bizarre and totally captivating "
-Extra West

"Devastatingly beautiful works of physical spirituality"
-The Winnipeg Free Press

"Adept at creating unusual, captivating movement... he's one not to miss"
-The Georgia Straight

"Tolentino's performance was breathtaking in it's fluidity and strength. Stunningly graceful yet precise in movement, the likely neophyte audience seemed completely captivated by the sheer perfection of the work"
-Extra West

"Against the Grain, Field, the latest solo work from Alvin Erasga Tolentino, has a global pedigree which is fitting, given that it's inspired by the powerful forces transforming traditional agrarian societies worldwide"
-The Georgia Straight, Vancouver

Photos