Martha Graham News

THE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER, PURCHASE COLLEGE (PAC) is gearing up for November, which begins with a World-Premiere from one of their own, Purchase alum and professor in the Conservatory of Dance, Doug Varone and Dancers celebrating their 30th Anniversary season with a new co-commissioned piece by The PAC.

Baruch Performing Arts Center (BPAC) will host award-winning choreographer Gabrielle Lamb'sPigeonwing Dance in the premiere of an ensemble work that includes a new solo created for guest artist PeiJu Chien-Pott, a principal dancer with the Martha Graham Dance Company. The program also includes Lamb's Tessellations (2016), performed by the Joffrey Ensemble. The one-night-only performance, presented in association with the CUNY Dance Initiative, will take place on Friday, November 18, at 7pm, at Mason Hall at the Baruch Performing Arts Center.

The American Dance Guild Fall Performance Festival will return October 14-16 to the 92nd Street Y Harkness Dance Center, 1395 Lexington Avenue, NYC, in a weekend tribute to legendary modern dancer, choreographer and avant-garde theater director Jean Erdman in honor of her centenary.

THE AYE SHOW is adapted from Ana Isabel Ordonez's THE EXTRAORDINARY LOVE STORY OF AYE AYE AND FEDOR. A sparkling fusion of music, dance and narration, the show was performed last week in Cape Town. Before the event, Before the event author Ana Isabel Ordonez discussed elements of the show for our readers.

Arden Theatre Company continues its 29th season with Mattew Lopez's THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA McBRIDE from October 13 through November 27, 2016. Emmanuelle Delpech directs. THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA McBRIDE runs on the Arden's Arcadia Stage at 40 N. 2nd Street in Philadelphia.

Melding all forms of the arts into a cohesive program is never an easy task. Former New York City Ballet dancer Damian Woetzel is trying to do this with a series called Demo, which brings artists from the worlds of theatre, dance and opera together on one stage.

The acclaimed Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) gives three performances at the Auditorium Theatre on November 18, 19, and 20 with a program that includes System, a major new work by choreographer Francesca Harper. The work is supported by the New England Foundation for the Arts, and is inspired by the current social, political, and economic climate in the United States.System was choreographed in collaboration with Dance Theatre of Harlem dancers who used their own experiences as people of color for inspiration.  DTH Artistic Director Virginia Johnson told the Washington Post that System "addresses social justice issues in the Black Lives Matter era" and is "a very contemporary piece, but also very beautiful and uplifting.' A live string quartet performs composer John Adams' original music for the piece.

Eryc Taylor Dance will present the US premiere of seven new choreographic works in celebration of the company's 10th Anniversary, Friday, October 21, and Saturday, October 22nd at Martha Graham Center for Contemporary Dance, 55 Bethune Street (Greenwich Village) in New York City. Each dance piece will feature an independent narrative, choreographed by Mr. Taylor as well as by company members.

From October 21 - November 20, 2016, SpeakEasy Stage Company will proudly present the New England Premiere of THE SCOTTSBORO BOYS, a bold new musical by Broadway legends John Kander and Fred Ebb about a sensational true story that changed American history. 

I love a good prequel, especially when a contemporary playwright decides to take on the back story of a hallowed play by the likes of William Shakespeare. I mean, come on. Daring to tread on that playing field takes some guts because you know before you begin that audiences are going to have high expectations of your work. They also know where you need to end your story in order for Shakespeare's to begin so getting there must be highly inventive and worthy of its foregone conclusion.

Acclaimed Italian choreographer Caterina Rago will return to New York this fall with her company of eight female dancers in her new full-evening work, "Labir Into," October 6 though October 8 at New York Live Arts. Caterina Rago is the only female choreographer from Italy running a modern dance company in NYC.

ABARUKAS, a young and vital contemporary dance company under the direction of Yoshito Sakuraba, will dance the world premiere of Sakuraba's 'Bernadac,' joined by repertory  works 'The Master' (2014) and 'No Man is an Island' (2016), dances that explore the theme of fatality, set to music by Massive Attack, Terrorfikt, and Frank Bretscheneider.   Three performances, October 28 & 29, at the Gelsey Kirkland Arts Center, 29 Jay Street in Brooklyn.

 The GrahamDeconstructed series brings audiences behind the scenes for an intimate view of Martha Graham's masterworks. On October 4 and 5 the Martha Graham Dance Company will present a rehearsal showing of Clytemnestra (Act 2),from Graham's 1958 full-evening masterwork.

The American Dance Guild Fall Performance Festival will return October 14-16 to the 92nd Street Y Harkness Dance Center, 1395 Lexington Avenue, NYC, in a weekend tribute to legendary modern dancer, choreographer and avant-garde theater director Jean Erdman in honor of her centenary.

The word "legend" is almost too modest a word in describing Twyla Tharp. Over her storied career, Twyla Tharp has created over 160 dances across genres, choreographed for film (from Miloš Forman to James Brooks) and Broadway (with music ranging from Billy Joel to Bob Dylan). She's received a Tony Award, 19 honorary doctorates, a MacArthur Fellowship, among other honors (see below).

Arden Theatre Company continues its 29th season with Mattew Lopez's THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA McBRIDE from October 13 through November 27, 2016. Emmanuelle Delpech directs. THE LEGEND OF GEORGIA McBRIDE runs on the Arden's Arcadia Stage at 40 N. 2nd Street in Philadelphia.

There's not much one can say when you look at the resume of Ben Vereen. I have to admit I thought the email to interview Mr. Vereen was a hoax or a vile trick someone was playing on me. Now the reason I say this is because he is one of my idols and reasons I studied musical theatre in college and left to go to NYC to work professionally. We are familiar with his work with Bob Fosse as the Leading Player in PIPPIN and as Judas in JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR but Mr. Vereen still continues to give us the ole razzle dazzle on the stage and on the screen. He's starred in 9 Broadway shows, has received the coveted Antionette Perry Award (The Tony), a Drama Desk Award, and a Prism Award. Nominated for an NAACP Image Award, starred in 30 plus movies and television shows, and has a huge crossover career. Ben Vereen hit the scene in Martha Graham's PRODIGAL SON in 1965 and he's been working ever since. I had the esteemed pleasure to sit and talk about his illustrious career and the current projects he's working on currently.

CUNY Dance Initiative and John Jay College present the World Premiere of Rites of Passage on September 24, 2016 at 8pm at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater, 524 W. 59th Street, NYC, in celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month.

 The GrahamDeconstructed series brings audiences behind the scenes for an intimate view of Martha Graham's masterworks. On October 4 and 5 the Martha Graham Dance Company will present a rehearsal showing of Clytemnestra (Act 2),from Graham's 1958 full-evening masterwork.

After 21 seasons as a Principal Dancer at Colorado Ballet and 26 seasons as a professional dancer, Maria Mosina announced her plan to retire at the end of the 2016-2017 season.