Paul Lazar News

The 2017 Jacob's Pillow Dance Award, a prestigious honor that carries a $25,000 cash prize, will be presented to choreographer, performer, writer, educator, and speaker Liz Lerman in acknowledgement of her vision and outstanding contributions to the dance field.  Long ago dubbed the “Democrat of Dance” by Alan M. Kriegsman of The Washington Post, Lerman's extraordinary career of the past four decades includes a wide range of groundbreaking work. Established in 2007, the Jacob's Pillow Dance Award's previous recipients include the legendary choreographer Merce Cunningham; MacArthur Fellows Michelle Dorrance and Kyle Abraham; and choreographer, performer, and artistic director Camille A. Brown, among others.

Each year, more than 250 individuals come together to support this unique organization and celebrate iconic leaders from the arts sector. This year, PS122's Spring Gala 2017 at the Diamond Horseshoe honors Alan Cumming, awards a shining star to Ben Rodríguez-Cubeñas and welcomes new Executive Artistic Director, Jenny Schlenzka. 

At the Mezzanine Theatre at the A.R.T./New York Theatres (502 W 53rd Street), Soho Rep. is pleased to present the world premiere of Richard Maxwell's Samara, commissioned by Artistic Director Sarah Benson. In a departure, Maxwell, who has directed nearly all 20 of his plays, is handing over the directorial duties to Benson. Maxwell's work was seen previously at Soho Rep. in 2001 with Cavemen and in 1999 with Cowboys and Indians.

Under the leadership of Artistic Director Sarah Benson and Executive Director Cynthia Flowers, Soho Rep. has continually produced work by bold artists who harness the power of intimate spaces to create transformative experiences. Soho Rep. has announced venues for the remainder of its 2016-17 season, which includes a world premiere Soho Rep. commission by Richard Maxwell along with a workshop presentation of a new play by Jackie Sibblies Drury.

SDC, the theatrical union that unites, empowers, and protects professional stage directors and choreographers throughout the United States, announced at the Annual Membership Meeting that Pam MacKinnon has been elected SDC Executive Board President.

Beginning tonight, November 9, Brooklyn Academy of Music will present the world premiere of a A Star Has Burnt My Eye, a play with music inspired by the extraordinary New York story of unheralded musician Connie Converse.

Beginning next Wednesday, November 9, Brooklyn Academy of Music will present the world premiere of a A Star Has Burnt My Eye, a play with music inspired by the extraordinary New York story of unheralded musician Connie Converse.

The Martin E. Segal Theatre Center presents its annual PRELUDE FESTIVAL on October 5, 6, and 7 at The Graduate Center, City University of New York (CUNY). The theme of this year's festival will be FAILURE.

A play with music, A Star Has Burnt My Eye is inspired by the extraordinary true story of Connie Converse. An unknown musician living in Greenwich Village in the early 1950s, Converse wrote and self-recorded original music-by turns beautiful, poetic, funny, and haunting-that was far ahead of its time. A quarter of a century later, long despairing of finding an audience for her art, Converse left goodbye letters that weren't quite suicide notes, and vanished.

THIS IS BIG, so far as thoughtful, intellectually provocative, often hilarious century spanning contemporary dance investigations go. 2016 marks the 25th anniversary of Big Dance Theater, as one of the most compelling and innovative ensembles in New York. Under the artistic leadership of Annie-B Parson and Paul Lazar, who have honed a distinctive dance theater performance style that has been disrupting, and influencing, the urban downtown scene for the last 25 years, BDT has created a body of literate, archeological, mind-bending work that is unique in the field of performance, one at the forefront of experimentation hybridity and functional eccentricity.

Closing out Crowded Fire's 2016 season of new and contemporary plays is the Bay Area premiere of Young Jean Lee's THE SHIPMENT co-directed by Artistic Director Mina Morita and Resident Artist Lisa Marie Rollins. THE SHIPMENT, which took New York by storm in 2009 caused Time Out New York to call her 'one of the best experimental playwrights in America.' As characterized by The New Yorker, Young Jean Lee 'does whatever she can to get under our skin-with laughs and with raw, brutal talk that at times feels gratuitous, and is meant to.'

The Martin E. Segal Theatre Center presents its annual PRELUDE FESTIVAL on October 5, 6, and 7 at The Graduate Center, City University of New York (CUNY). The theme of this year's festival will be FAILURE.

On February 12, 1915, the Abrons Arts Center's Henry Street Settlement Playhouse opened its doors on the Lower East Side. Since that day, it has remained a vital cultural resource, providing audiences with artistically bold work while offering artists opportunities to dynamically grow. Since becoming Artistic Director in 2006, Jay Wegman has done much more than maintain "one of the last standing locations for avant-garde performance downtown" (The New York Times, 2009). He has created an arts venue that is unique to the city's cultural landscape, presenting an international mix of cutting-edge performing and visual artists, both established and emerging, from across the country and around the world, as well as from New York City. In a 2015 New York Times profile, Wegman says Abrons is "a place for people to succeed or fail or land somewhere in between."

Under the leadership of Artistic Director Sarah Benson and Executive Director Cynthia Flowers, Soho Rep. has continually produced work by bold artists who harness the intimate power of the organization's own 73-seat black box theater, as well as other spaces, to create transformative experiences. Soho Rep.'s 2016-17 season, announced today, comprises two ambitious new works-both characterized by inventive theatrical forms, holistic collaborations, and striking original music-along with an opportunity to get the first 'work-in-process' look at a new commission by a celebrated playwright.

A Q&A with PS122 Gala's Honorees: Annie B Parson and Paul Lazar

PS122's Spring Gala 2016 celebrates three contemporary luminaries whose influence ripples across borders and through generations by honoring Annie-B Parson and Paul Lazar, the visionary team behind Big Dance Theater. In addition, Nicole Birmann Bloom, of the Cultural Services of the French Embassy, will receive the Shining Star Award for her unwavering dedication to New York City arts and French-American cultural exchange.

The 2016 Jacob's Pillow Dance Award, a prestigious honor that carries a $25,000 cash prize, will be presented to contemporary choreographer, dancer, and artistic director Camille A. Brown in acknowledgement of her vision and outstanding contributions to the dance field. Regularly garnering acclaim for her 'vividness and versatility' (Alastair Macaulay, The New York Times), Brown holds a New York Dance and Performance ('Bessie') Award, two Princess Grace Awards, a Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, and her work has toured nationally and internationally. The Jacob's Pillow Dance Award was established in 2007 and, in honor of its 10th anniversary, the Pillow has broadened the scope of this honor with a commitment to the artist's growth and future work. In addition to the unrestricted cash prize, this Award also includes a committed engagement for the 2017 Festival and a Creative Development Residency at Jacob's Pillow. Previous recipients of the Jacob's Pillow Dance Award include the legendary choreographer Merce Cunningham; MacArthur Fellows Michelle Dorrance and Kyle Abraham; and John Heginbotham of Dance Heginbotham, among others.

The Martin E. Segal Theatre Center, located at The Graduate Center, City University of New York, announces its Spring 2016 season of public programs. The season successfully launched with The Second Annual Segal Center Film Festival on Theatre and Performance (February 25 + 26), a yearly event that celebrates the themes of theatre and performance on the screen. The season continues with free public programs throughout the fall and winter, featuring contemporary theatre and performing artists from around the world.

Red Bull Theater today announced that their Twelfth Season will continue with Philip Massinger's The Roman Actor, directed by Louisa Proske, on Monday February 15th at 7:30 PM, at the Lucille Lortel Theatre (121 Christopher Street, between Bleecker and Hudson).  Featured in the cast will be Oberon Adjepong, Mamoudou Athie, Tina Benko, Clifton Duncan, Ben Horner, Jennifer Ikeda, Patrick Page, Paul Lazar, Carolyn Smith, Sam Underwood, Adina Verson, and more, with live music performed by percussionist Satoshi Takeishi.  Tickets may be purchased online at www.redbulltheater.com or by phone at (212) 352-3101.

This winter, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, the longest running dance festival in the U.S. and National Medal of the Arts recipient, partners with local Berkshire cultural organizations to present dance-related programming throughout 2016.  In the midst of preparing for another bustling summer season, the Pillow's winter and spring partnerships will include presentations by former and future Festival artists at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (MASS MoCA) and informational pre-screening talks by esteemed Jacob's Pillow Scholar-in-Residence Brian Schaefer at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center.