Bebe Neuwirth Hosts Chamber Dance Project Benefit Dec.6

The Chamber Dance Project announced that its 2007 repertory season will include two world premiere ballets by Diane Coburn Bruning and Matthew Prescott, a commissioned score by Giovanni Spinelli, and two contemporary ballets by Victor Quijada and Adam Hougland.  The season, which runs December 6 - 9, opens with a Benefit Performance and party hosted by Bebe Neuwirth. All performances will take place at the Ailey Citigroup Theater (9th Avenue at 55th Street).

Chamber Dance Project is a contemporary ballet company made up of eight dancers and four chamber musicians who are an integral part of the company and perform onstage along with the dancers. Founded in 2000, it is dedicated to producing works with a contemporary relevance, created and performed by the collaboration of dancers, musicians and composers and presented in intimate settings with live music.

By sharing the creative process and performances within the intimate and interactive settings of rehearsal studios, classrooms and theaters, the company strives to attract a diverse audience who might not otherwise have the opportunity to experience contemporary ballet. To that end, there will be FREE pre-performance discussions with artists beginning ½ hour before every performance.  In addition, after the Saturday Family Matinee performance, parents and children are invited onstage to join artists for a post-performance workshop.

Diane Coburn Bruning, Artistic Director, choreographer, was recently awarded both a Guggenheim Fellowship and a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship in choreography (her second) and was named by Dance Magazine as one of "25 to Watch in 2003." She has worked with Atlanta Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Pennsylvania Ballet, Boston Ballet, American Repertory Ballet, Joffrey II, Nashville Ballet, Ballet Chicago, Daghdha Dance, Juilliard Dance Ensemble, Pittsburgh and Glimmerglass Operas among others. She has received fellowships from The National Endowment for the Arts, Sundance Film Institute, Meet the Composer, Harkness Foundation, New York State Council for the Arts, Heathcote Foundation, and McKnight Foundation among others. Diane serves on grants panels, leads choreographic workshops, and has served as a teaching artist for Lincoln Center Institute and New York City Ballet. Diane is a founding member of CDP.

Christopher Collins Lee, Principal Musician, Violinist, holds B.F.A. and M.M. Degrees from the Juilliard School, a Doctorate from SUNY Stony Brook, and five honorary doctorates from foreign institutions. He holds the State Department title of Official Musical Ambassador of the United States and has toured the world many times under its auspices. Chris has received numerous awards, including a Fulbright. He has performed as soloist with Leopold Stokowski and Arthur Fiedler among other conductors, and has recorded for the CBS, RCA, Desto, Everest, Arista, Delos and Quattro Corde labels. He plays a violin made in Cremona, Italy by Francesco Ruggieri in 1680, which once belonged to Leopold Mozart. His recording of Grieg's complete works for piano and violin was released this spring. He plays lead violin on Linda Ronstadt's and Stevie Wonder's albums. Chris is a founding member of CDP.

Tickets for the Opening Night Benefit (7:30PM curtain) are available www.chamberdance.org. The schedule for other performances is as follows: Wednesday, December 7 - Saturday, December 9 at 8PM, with a family matinee on Saturday at 2PM.

Performance tickets are available by calling SmartTix at (212) 868-4444 or www.smarttix.com. For further information and group sales, please visit www.chamberdance.org.

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