Queens Theatre in the Park Presents PAUL TAYLOR DANCE COMPANY 12/19, 12/20

Queens Theatre in the Park (QTP) presents Paul Taylor DANCE COMPANY on Saturday, December 19 at 2pm and 8pm and Sunday, December 20 at 3pm in the Claire Shulman Playhouse Main Stage Theatre at Queens Theatre in the Park, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Flushing, NY. Tickets are $41-44 and are available at www.queenstheatre.org or by phone at 718-760-0064.

"Paul Taylor is the reigning master of modern dance." - Time Magazine

Once again the critics are raving about the Paul Taylor Dance Company. This season, the Company brings several pieces from its current critically acclaimed National Tour:

Cascade, Music by J.S.Bach, Concertos for Piano and Orchestra

Changes, Music by John Philips, John Lennon/Paul McCartney and John Hartman

Dream Girls, Barbershop quartet songs sung by the Buffalo Bills

This Season the Company celebrates Paul Taylor's 80th birthday. Bringing the celebration to Queens Theatre in the Park, PTDC invites you to join members of the Company for a post performance discussion to learn about the style, energy and technique behind the master himself.

Sunday, May 30, 1954. President Eisenhower was in the midst of a counteroffensive against Sen. Joseph McCarthy and his charges that communists had infiltrated the highest levels of American government. The United States, Great Britain and France were discussing an accord that would divide Vietnam into two countries, North and South. Gil Hodges homered to lead Brooklyn to a 5-3 victory at the Polo Grounds. And at 8:40 in the evening at the Henry Street Settlement in Manhattan, a 23-year-old dancer and five colleagues gave the first public performance of his choreography, a dance called Jack and the Beanstalk. While the dance soon faded from memory, the choreographer became a giant - the youngest member of the pantheon that created American modern dance, and one of history's most celebrated artists. Laura Shapiro once wrote in Newsweek, "Short course in modern dance: in the beginning there was Martha Graham, who changed the face of an art form and discovered a new world. Then there was Merce Cunningham, who stripped away the externals and showed us the heart of movement. And then there was Paul Taylor, who let the sun shine in."

The Paul Taylor Dance Company and Taylor 2, created in 1993, have traveled the globe many times over, bringing Mr. Taylor's ever-burgeoning repertoire to theaters and venues of every size and description in cultural capitals, on college campuses and in rural communities - and often to places modern dance had never been before. The Taylor Company has performed in more than 520 cities in 62 countries, representing the United States at arts festivals in more than 40 countries and touring extensively under the aegis of the U.S. Department of State. In 1997 the Company toured throughout India in celebration of that nation's 50th Anniversary. Its 1999 engagement in Chile was named the Best International Dance Event of 1999 by the country's Art Critics' Circle. In the summer of 2001 the Company toured in the People's Republic of China and performed in six cities, four of which had never seen American modern dance before. In the spring of 2003 the Company mounted an award-winning four-week, seven-city tour of the United Kingdom. The Company's performances in China in November 2007 mark its fourth tour there. While continuing to garner international acclaim, the Paul Taylor Dance Company performs more than half of each touring season in cities throughout the United States. The Company's New York City Center season in 2005, marking its 50th Anniversary, was attended by more than 25,000 people. In celebration of the Anniversary and 50 years of creativity by one of the most extraordinary artists the world has ever known, the Taylor Foundation presented Mr. Taylor's works in all 50 States between March 2004 and November 2005. That tour underscored the Taylor Company's historic role as one of the early touring companies of American modern dance. Beginning with its first television appearance for the Dance in America series in 1978, the Paul Taylor Dance Company has appeared on PBS in nine different programs, including the 1991 Emmy Award-winning Speaking in Tongues and The Wrecker's Ball - with Company B, Funny Papers, and A Field of Grass - which was nominated for an Emmy Award in 1997. In 1999 the PBS American Masters series aired Dancemaker, the Academy Award-nominated documentary about Mr. Taylor and the Taylor Company, which is available on home video.

Tickets are available:
* Online at www.queenstheatre.org.
* By phone at 718-760-0064, Tue-Sat, 12-6pm.
* In person at Queens Theatre in the Park, Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Flushing, NY.

* Multi Show: Order any three or more shows and earn the multi show discount price. This discount is available for any show this season. There is no limit on the number of tickets you can purchase at this discount. If you are already a Theatre or Dance Subscriber or have purchased at least two shows this season, you have already earned this discount on additional ticket purchases.
* Groups: Contact group sales associate Barbara Matovu at 718-760-0064 x128 for groups of 15 or more.

Queens Theatre in the Park is located in Flushing Meadows Corona Park, Flushing, NY.
By Subway: Take the 7 train to Mets-Willets Point stop. Exit and turn left after passing through turnstile, walk downstairs on the parking lot side and follow the theatre shuttle signs. Take free trolley to the Theatre. Trolley runs for one hour before and after all performances.
By Car: Take the Grand Central Parkway to exit 9E (from Manhattan) or 9P (from Long Island) and follow the signs for the Theatre. Free parking in adjacent lot.

About Queens Theatre in the Park
Queens Theatre in the Park is committed to presenting performing arts that provide audiences with the highest quality work. QTP also produces new plays, with a concentration on up-and-coming directors and playwrights. QTP has broadened the experience of its core audience to include works by under-recognized artists from around the world and works that tap into the diverse communities of Queens.

Queens Theatre in the Park is located in Flushing Meadows Corona Park in the New York State Pavilion designed for the 1964 World's Fair by Philip Johnson. The Pavilion was converted to a theatre in 1972 and was operated by various organizations until 1985. QTP was officially established in 1989 with the full support of the community and the Queens Borough President. After a $4 million renovation that brought full ADA compliance, the Theatre officially opened to the public in 1993 in a facility that allows it to stage productions equal to those of any Off-Broadway house in Manhattan in its 464-seat main stage theatre and its 99-seat Studio Theatre. What was then a small cabaret-style theater with an operating budget of under $500,000 has transformed itself into a major performing arts center with exhibition galleries with a projected operating budget of $3.9 million for FY2009.

QTP became an independent nonprofit in 1997. It is a member of the Cultural Institutions Group receiving support from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs. The Theatre presents and produces 300 performances annually. QTP serves 100,000 people annually who reflect the rich demographics of its community population. Currently 75% of the Theatre's constituency is from Queens. In addition to its own season, QTP frequently provides its space for use by community arts organizations and local promoters.

QTP has recently completed a $ 23 million physical transformation of the Theatre. This major capital investment has added a 75-seat cabaret performance space with a full service cafe and kitchen facility; created a dramatic new 3,000 square foot lobby/reception area; provided new visitor amenities and improved the facility's accessibility. These improvements have transformed Queens Theatre in the Park into a destination for the residents of the borough and beyond.

Queens Theatre in the Park events are made possible with public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, the New York State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Funding is provided by The Harkness Foundation for Dance, Jerome Robbins Foundation, the Mertz Gilmore Foundation and the New York Community Trust/Lila Acheson Wallace Fund for the Arts.

For more information, visit www.queenstheatre.org.

 

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