New Dance Project UNITING IN MOVEMENT Will Be Presented by ABT and Segerstrom Center

The project contains three works by choreographers Jessica Lang, Lauren Lovette, and Darrell Grand Moultrie.

By: Apr. 13, 2021
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New Dance Project UNITING IN MOVEMENT Will Be Presented by ABT and Segerstrom Center

Segerstrom Center for the Arts and American Ballet Theatre announce UNITING IN MOVEMENT, bringing 18 dancers together for safe collaboration and exhilarating performance. ABT, America's National Ballet Company, has been in residence at the Center since March 22, rehearsing this new program that will receive its world premiere before a live audience on Sunday, April 25 in Segerstrom Hall, followed by streaming on demand from May 12 - 26.

Uniting in Movement is comprised of three works by contemporary choreographers, each with very personal and unique visions for the future of ballet: Jessica Lang, Lauren Lovette, and Darrell Grand Moultrie. The program will also pay homage to ABT's classical heritage with Grand Pas Classique, a virtuosic showcase of ballet technique. The performances will be the first in Segerstrom Hall since the shutdown of all live theater in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, just one week after the world premiere of ABT's new production of Alexei Ratmansky's Of Love and Rage.

The choreographs, dancers and ABT artistic staff have been living and rehearsing ina quarantined 'bubble,' isolating themselves at the Avenue of the Arts Costa Mesa A Tribute Portfolio Hotel across the street from the Center, venturing out only to rehearse in the Center studios and, ultimately, perform in Segerstrom Hall. All rehearsal and performance activity is adhering to strict medical and safety guidelines, with an initial quarantine and testing period prior to the start of ABT's residency.

Wincome Hospitality CEO Paul Sanford said, "Avenue of the Arts Costa Mesa, A Tribute Portfolio Hotel and Wincome Hospitality, is proud to work with Segerstrom Center for the Arts and be the host hotel for American Ballet Theatre. Their mission of wanting to preserve the classics of the past for modern audiences and foster innovation in the world of ballet should be lauded. We're excited to help the Center bring ABT to Costa Mesa for Southern Californians to enjoy what will surely be very beautiful, emotionally moving, and entertaining performances."

Ms. Lang's Let Me Sing Forevermore, set to songs sung by Tony Bennett, is a vibrant, energetic pas de deux blending ballet and jazz vocabulary. Ms. Lovette's work, La Follia Variations, is set to music of the same name by Francesco Geminiani. With costumes by fashion designer Victor Glemaud, La Follia Variations brims with poetry, wit, nuance and power. Mr. Moultrie's Indestructible Light, set to music by Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Neal Hefti and Billy Strayhorn, is an expansion of his earlier work for the Company created in an East Coast bubble in fall 2020. Indestructible Light is a work for eight dancers and celebrates the resilience of artists despite impossible odds.

"These creations reflect a time of recalibration on how we create and deliver new work, reinvent how to gather together to create, and what it means to use this art form to lift us all, artist and audience alike," said Kevin McKenzie, ABT Artistic Director. "Lauren's use of classical vocabulary for dynamic effect of empowerment, Darrell's facile use of classical technique fused with classic jazz, and Jessica's joyous, reverent nod to Tony Bennett's fabulous voice, contrasted with a classic pas de deux, exemplify the vibrant spirit of American Ballet Theatre."

Segerstrom Center President Casey Reitz said, "As you can imagine, Uniting in Movement is a complex project requiring the combined, or uniting, resources and experience of both the Center and ABT, particularly during this period of quarantine. The project aligns with the mission of our Center for Dance and Innovation, which was established to support and advance the creative and sometimes even experimental process of developing new works by talented artists. The Center and ABT have a long history of producing extraordinary dance projects, including new productions, world premieres, and two projects that were broadcast on Great Performances: Dance in America. We are especially proud of how Uniting in Movement so beautifully confirms the resilience and indomitable spirit of the arts and artists."

Complete performances will be recorded on Friday and Saturday, April 23 and 24, and streamed on demand May 12 - 26. Tickets are $25 per household. ABT will give a final performance of Uniting in Movement before a live audience on Sunday, April 25 at 1:30 pm. Seating will be limited and available in two-person, safely distanced pods. Ticket prices start at $50. Complete information and tickets for on-demand access and the live performance are available now online at www.SCFTA.org or by calling the box office at (714) 556-2787 weekdays between 10am and 2pm.



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