New 42nd Street and New Victory Present Unga Klara’s 'Because I Say So'

Avant Garde Performance Art for the Under Five SetN.Y. Premiere December 12-22, 2019, at The Duke on 42nd Street

Full of joy, tracksuits and tutus, Because I Say Sois a physical theater work from acclaimed Swedish theater company for young audiences Unga Klara. With derring-do, daring dance and a look at the world from the perspective of kids, this one of a kind production asks the question: What if kids had absolute agency? Because I Say Sois part of the New Victory season at The Duke on 42nd Street in New 42nd Street Studios for a holiday engagement from December 12 - 22, 2019.

In the unique universe of Because I Say So,Unga Klara helps us consider why kids have so little influence in their own lives, and on society as a whole. Inspired by Elisabeth

Young-Bruehl’s book, Childism, which explores the notion that children have their own autonomy, Unga Klara set out to create a work that centers around the child’s perspective. Renowned for its cutting-edge theater work tackling complex issues through heightened movement and avant garde aesthetics, Unga Klara frequently works with young people and continually creates work that explores the role and experiences of children in modern society.

As Sweden’s first and only theater with a national assignment for young audiences, Unga Klara has established a strong tradition of theater with kids’ perspectives at its core. Led by Artistic Directors Farnaz Arbabi and Gustav Deinoff, Unga Klara’s other works include My True Selves, a play about identity for the grade school set; Girls Will Make You Blush, a dance theater piece about girlhood and puberty for ages 12-15; and X,a play about Swedish colonialism and racism for ages 15 and older.

Because I Say Sois directed by Farnaz Arbabi, featuring collaborators and performers Klas Lagerlund, Rita Lemivaara, David Nzinga, Joel Mauricio, Isabel Ortiz, Lisette T. Pagler, Nina Rashid, Maria Salah, Bianca Traum and Sakib Zabbar.

Gustav Deinoff and Farnaz Arbabi are co-artistic directors, Jenny Kronberg is the Costume & Set Designer, Daniela Krestelica is the Mask & Costume Designer, Johan Sundén is the Lighting Designer, Foad Arbabi is the Composer & Sound Designer, Daniela Kullman is the Dramaturg, Anne Jonsson is the Movement Coach, Céline Marcault is the Assistant Director and Ellen Dynebrink is the Textile Designer.

Learn more about Because I Say So at NewVictory.org.

Public Performance Schedule:

Thursday, December 12 at 4pm Friday, December 13 at 4pm
Saturday, December 14 at 10am / 1pm Sunday, December 15 at 10am / 1pm

Thursday, December 19 at 4pm Friday, December 20 at 4pm
Saturday, December 21 at 10am / 1pm Sunday, December 22 at 10am / 1pm*

*sign-interpreted performance

BECAUSEI SAYSO,performing at The Duke on 42nd Street in New 42nd Street Studios (229 West 42nd Street),has a running time of 35 minutes with no intermission, and is recommended for ages 3-5.

Learn more about BECAUSEI SAYSOon the New Victory website at NewVictory.org.

Ticket Information

Full-price tickets for BECAUSEI SAYSOare $20. Tickets are available online (www.newvictory.org/visitor-info) and by phone (646.223.3010).

To purchase tickets in person, the New Victory box office is located at 209 West 42nd Street (between 7th / 8th Avenues). Box office hours are Sunday & Monday from 11am-5pm and Tuesday through Saturday from 12pm-7pm.

About The New Victory Theater

The New Victory Theater brings kids to the arts and the arts to kids. Created in 1995 on iconic 42nd Street, this nonprofit theater has become a standard-bearer of quality performing arts for young audiences in the United States. Reflecting and serving the multicultural city it calls home, The New Victory is committed to arts access for all students, teachers, kids, families and communities of New York to experience and engage with the exemplary international programming of theater, dance, circus, music, puppetry and opera on its stages. A leader in arts education, youth employment and audience engagement, The New Victory Theater has been honored by the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities with the National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award, by Americans for the Arts with a national Arts Education Award, and by the Drama Desk for "providing enchanting, sophisticated children's theater that appeals to the child in all of us, and for nurturing a love of theater in young people."

About New 42nd Street Studios

New 42nd Street Studios, including the black box theater The Duke on 42nd Street, cultivates new ideas in the performing arts through exceptional services and spaces that empower artists to do their best work. Duke on 42nd Street artists access quality performance space at highly-subsidized rates that include ticket services, production equipment and venue usher support from the New 42 Youth Corps, a career success program that equips students with mentoring, academic resources and flexible employment. Owned and operated by New 42nd Street, a nonprofit whose mission is to make extraordinary performing arts a vital part of everyone’s life from the earliest years onward, New 42nd Street Studios welcomes the season’s biggest musicals and plays, as well as numerous nonprofit performing arts companies. From early development to opening night, New 42nd Street Studios are dedicated to performing artists and the spells they cast.

About The New 42nd Street

Founded in 1990, The New 42nd Street is an independent nonprofit organization charged with the continuous cultural revival of 42nd Street between 7th and 8th Avenues, building on the foundation of seven historic theaters to make extraordinary performing arts and cultural engagement part of everyone’s life. The New 42nd Street fulfills this purpose by ensuring the ongoing vibrancy of 42nd Street’s historic theaters; supporting performing artists in the creation of their work at the New 42nd Street Studios and The Duke on 42nd Street; creating arts access and education at The New Victory Theater, New York’s premier theater for kids and families; and through the New 42nd Street Youth Corps, its model youth development initiative, which pairs life skills workshops and mentorship with paid employment in the arts for NYC youth. Inspired by the city it serves, The New 42nd Street is committed to the transformational power of the arts.

CHAT W/ MAJOR ATTAWAY, THE Genius "Genie" OF BROADWAY’S ALADDIN

Get tickets to ALADDIN: http://www.broadway.com/shows/aladdin-broadway/ In this episode of Character Study, ALADDIN's Major Attaway takes us inside the lamp to witness how he goes from a gentleman to a Genie. FEATURING Major Attaway DIRECTED BY Alexander Goyco

The Broadway company of the Disney musical Aladdin welcomed and celebrated the return of Major Attaway in the role of the Genie beginning September 23 at the New Amsterdam Theatre.

Attaway followed Michael James Scott, who played his final performance on September 22. Attaway previously played the Genie on Broadway from February 2016 through February 2019.

The cast currently features Clinton Greenspan in the title role, Arielle Jacobs as Jasmine, Tony nominee Jonathan Freeman as Jafar, Brian Gonzales, Mike Longo, and Brad Weinstock as Aladdin’s sidekicks Babkak, Kassim, and Omar, respectively, JC Montgomery as Sultan, and Don Darryl Rivera as Iago.

Art Shrian had a interesting chat with Major Attaway about his character, Genie-us, his exciting, well-celebrated comeback at Broadway’s Aladdin and a lot more wonderful stuff! Listen to this mynewyorkeye exclusive interview below:

Based on the Oscar-winning animated film—which was recently adapted into a live-action feature—Aladdin is now in its sixth year on Broadway.

The Disney Theatrical Productions title features music by Tony and Oscar winner Alan Menken, lyrics by two-time Oscar winner Howard Ashman, Tony and Oscar winner Tim Rice, and Tony nominee Chad Beguelin, with a book by Beguelin. The production is directed and choreographed by Tony winner Casey Nicholaw.

ABOUT MAJOR ATTAWAY 

(Genie). Joyous Broadway Debut!  National tour: Aladdin (Genie). Regional: Hot Mikado (Mikado), Stagger Lee (T-Bone), Hands on a Hardbody (Ronald), Little Shop of Horrors (A2), Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Ken), Frosty the Snowman (Frosty). 

Television: “Orange Is the New Black” (DeShaun McAdams).  Video Games: “Borderlands 3 (Clay),” “Battleborn” (Ghalt).

Follow on: @majorattaway #BigTexGenie

To celebrate the 5th anniversary of Aladdin on Broadway, 5 current and former Genies - Tony Award winner James Monroe Iglehart, current star Michael James Scott, tour Genie Major Attaway, and current Broadway standbys Juwan Crawley and Deonte L. Warren - stopped the show following today's matinee with a medley of Aladdin hits.

Chat w/ Clinton Greenspan, the Title Star of Broadway’s Aladdin

Get Tickets to ALADDIN: https://www.broadway.com/shows/aladdin-broadway/ Go beyond the palace walls as as Clinton Greenspan turns into the title star of Disney's ALADDIN before a show.

The Broadway company of the Disney musical Aladdin welcomed Clinton Greenspan, who starred in the North American tour of Aladdin, in making his Broadway debut. He succeeded Jacob Dickey. Major Attaway has returned to the role of the Genie on Broadway which began on September 23. Attaway previously played the Genie on Broadway from February 2016 through February 2019.

Based on the Oscar-winning animated film—which was recently adapted into a live-action feature—Aladdin is now in its sixth year on Broadway.

Art Shrian had a wonderful chat with Clinton Greenspan about his role as Aladdin, his experience at Broadway performing our much-loved disney character and a lot more! Listen to the whole interview below:

About Clinton Greenspan:

Clinton Greenspan (Aladdin) is making his Broadway debut in Aladdin! National Tour: Aladdin. Other credits include Romeo & Juliet; Dreamgirls (Dallas Theater Center) and Fiddler on the Roof (Casa Manana). NYMF (2014). Studied at KD Conservatory. Insta: @clinton_patrick

Aladdin cast:

The cast currently features Arielle Jacobs as Jasmine, Tony nominee Jonathan Freeman as Jafar, Brian Gonzales, Mike Longo, and Brad Weinstock as Aladdin’s sidekicks Babkak, Kassim, and Omar, respectively, JC Montgomery as Sultan, and Don Darryl Rivera as Iago.

The Disney Theatrical Productions:

The Disney Theatrical Productions title features music by Tony and Oscar winner Alan Menken, lyrics by two-time Oscar winner Howard Ashman, Tony and Oscar winner Tim Rice, and Tony nominee Chad Beguelin, with a book by Beguelin. The production is directed and choreographed by Tony winner Casey Nicholaw.

LEOLA GOES DEEPER INTO LADY LAND AT THE GREEN ROOM 42 ON THURSDAY, APRIL 11

Photo by Ron Glow -TICKETS ON SALE

Creator Will Nolan and producer Wayward Creatives have announced that Leola’s Lady Land! returns to The Green Room 42 (570 Tenth Ave, 4th Floor inside YOTEL) on Thursday, April 11 at 7.00pm for the next show in her 2019 residency at the venue. 

Written and performed by Nolan, each edition of Lady Land! is a healing sermon from Leola, your favorite Kelly Clarkson-worshipping, senior citizen, redneck lesbian who is on a mission to serve up some much-needed national group therapy, one audience at a time.  On April 11, Leola goes Deeper Into Lady Land! to explore the Gospel according to Kelly Clarkson. This edition of the show is a celebration of the second coming – Ms. Clarkson’s birth – from the perspective of a simple gal of 72 who began to discover her sexuality when she tumbled out of the closet and into the arms of Jesus’s little sister, Kelly.

Winner of the Long Island City Flying Solo Festival two years in a row, Leola has appeared across the country in a variety of fringe festivals, regional theaters, and middle-aged birthday parties doing her best to bring you Dame Edna’s hillbilly cousin giving a TED Talk.  The 2018 Atlanta Fringe Festival called Leola a “...touching performance,” and [a] “fantastic character with a great connection to the audience,” as well as “wildly hilarious, deeply intellectual and poignant.”

“Some people are called to slice meat at the Piggly Wiggly deli counter, some people are called to preach the good word of Kelly Clarkson – I’m that rare breed of senior citizen, redneck lesbian who’s called to do both,” said Leola. “Mama Earth and all her babies desperately need some healin’ during these messy times we are livin’ through. And no place is messier than New York City. On April 11, we are going to reconnect with ourselves, reconnect with each other, and find our inner American Idol. Because in the words of Kelly Clarkson, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Except for gators. Gators will kill you.

Tickets are $15-40 and available by visiting bit.ly/LADYLAND.  Leola’s residency continues throughout 2019 on June 13th, September 12th, October 24th and December 5 that 7.00pm. 

BIO

WILL NOLAN (Creator)hails from Atlanta, but has been in the New York City area since 1994. A performer, writer and director, Will spent several years as the male half of the sketch comedy duo Naked Dog Walking, giving birth to Leola. Will continues to perform as part of the highly successful Mortified series in New York. He’s had pieces published and animated for Mortified, and filmed a pilot for Comedy Central.  Check out his animated monologue on YouTube. Besides writing for Naked Dog Walking and Mortified, Will has written numerous plays, including When the Mayonnaise Goes Bad with Stephen Kaplan. His plays have been produced throughout New York City. He is a husband and father living in Northern New Jersey, and is a proud member of the Dramatist Guild of America.

WAYWARD CREATIVES (Producer) is a producer and incubator of emerging creatives in live performance and film.  Visit WaywardCreatives.com for more information.

FOLLOW ON:

Pip’s Island, a One-of-a-Kind Theatrical Adventure for Kids & Families, Begins Previews on March 11, 2019 & Officially Reopens on March 21, 2019

Located on West 42nd Street, the Groundbreaking Interactive Show Combines Exploration, Empowerment and Education, Where Kids Are the Heroes

Pip's Island is back! New and exciting adventures from Pip and the gang are coming your way this winter. Make sure to stay connected with us on social for your exclusive look at all the magic!

New York, NY (January 10, 2018) – Pip’s Island returns to New York City with public previews starting on March 11, 2019 and officially reopens on March 21, 2019, establishing a permanent home for its groundbreaking immersive entertainment walking adventure for kids at 400 West 42nd Street. After making its world premiere in November 2016 in NYC for a limited engagement, the three founders including sibling-duo Rania and Rami Ajami and Creative Director Walter Krudop are thrilled to bring the next chapter of the Pip’s Island adventure to a custom-built flagship attraction in the heart of Manhattan. Combining immersive sets, original narrative, exploratory spaces and stimulating audiovisual content, the brand's mission is to provide a space where children are encouraged to find their inner spark and to positively impact the world around them. 

"Pip's Island is as real as 'make-believe' gets for children," says Walter Krudop, Pip’s Island Creative Director. "They literally feel like they are entering a live video game and are pulled right into the story."

Audiences will be guided through an hour-long inspirational “hero's journey” by live performers, puppets, interactive set-pieces and animated characters. As a walking adventure, they will navigate a series of challenges and one-of-a-kind games to save the Island from darkness and restore harmony to the land. Along the way, they will collect signature achievement badges, called "sparks" on Pip’s Island, which parallel many elements of the STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics) curriculum. 

As the audience moves forward, the story unfolds, the music escalates, the characters change, the challenges grow, and the young audience is soon engaged in an uplifting adventure that will leave them with a lasting sense of self-esteem and personal empowerment. 

"Pip’s Island is a special blend of the creative arts including interactive space design, performance art, music, animation, digital gadgetry and play; all brought together with seamless storytelling and audience engagement," explains Rania Ajami, Pip’s Island’s Chief Creative Officer. CEO Rami Ajami continued, "We exist to cater to kids of today who take a 360 multi-sensory, multi-platform approach to engaging with their world."

Pip’s Island Fun Facts:

  • Join the expedition to unlock a secret tree portal that transports you to the shores of a magical island!

  • Strap on your Legendarium and collect all five of your sparks. 

  • Hop on board Pebble's Cloud Rover and navigate stormy skies!

  • Travel underground and help Finn outwit the dastardly moles!

  • Grab a treat at Grumble Plum's bakery and help build one of her giant specialty cakes.

  • Sing along and even take a moment to meditate with Shelly, the princess of the underwater seas. 

 In addition, Pip’s Island will offer easy-to-book, all-inclusive birthday party packages of up to 50. For more information, email birthdays@pipsisland.com.

Pip's Island is a time-ticketed experience designed for ages 4-10, although grown-ups looking to reconnect with their childhood sense of wonder are also encouraged to sign up for an expedition! 

The show lasts 60 minutes and it’s recommended to arrive 15 minutes in advance of the ticketed time. Pip’s Island runs daily Wednesday through Monday and is closed on Tuesdays

Tickets are $59 for adults and kids at the box office or $49 online. Discounts are available for schools and groups, please contact at customerservice@pipsisland.com.

About Pip’s Island

Pip’s Island, a new kids entertainment company that is disrupting the industry, elevating standards and empowering children, is launching its first in a series of live events called Pip’s Island: The Lighthouse Rescue. The experience blends storytelling, interactive games, animation, music, and play to truly immerse young explorers in a unique island universe. In addition to a live entertainment experience in New York, the company has created a rich universe of digital content that it will be rolling out over multiple media channels including books, animation, gaming and additional live adventures at our flagship location, as well as destinations around the world.

For more information, visit www.pipsisland.com and follow on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram @pipsisland.

AMANDA SELWYN DANCE THEATRE presents FOOTPRINTS: A Modern Dance Festival Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater, NYC May 19-21, 2016

The West Side YMCA Community Arts Department and Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre present FOOTPRINTS: A Modern Dance Festival, May 19-21, 2016 at 7:30pm, at the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater.  This second annual dance festival will celebrate innovative works of contemporary dance from diverse new and established voices in NYC dance.

FOOTPRINTS will feature the following works:Dreaming into Being by Lillian Stamey and 96b; It is You, and You, and You by Jin-Wen Yu; Shaft Medley by Sue Samuels and Jazz Roots Dance Company; Untitled by Alana Marie Urda and Amalgamate Dance Company; EVO by Winnie Berger and Mook Dance Project; and Refuge by Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre.

Performances will take place Thursday, May 19, 2016 through Saturday, May 21, 2016 at 7:30pm in the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater at the West Side YMCA, 5 West 63rd St, NY, 10023. Tickets are priced at $15 for all premium and regular seats,  $10 for Students/Children, and $10 for YMCA NYC Members.

To purchase tickets, visit https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pr/957283.

Performance dates/times:

  • Thursday, 5/19 at 7:30PM
  • Friday, 5/20 at 7:30PM
  • Saturday, 5/21 at 7:30PM

For more details, please visit:

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College presents Step Afrika!

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College continues its 2015-16 season on Saturday, January 23, 2016 at 2pm with Step Afrika!  The dancers of Step Afrika! use their bodies as instruments, combining traditional step choreography with other styles including tap, modern, and hip hop to create an enthralling, high-energy performance.  Opening for the company will be the award-winning, Brooklyn-based step group Regime. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased at BrooklynCenter.org or by calling the box office at 718-951-4500 (Tue-Sat, 1pm-6pm).

As an art form, stepping is an important part of America's artistic and cultural heritage. In stepping, the body is used as an instrument to create intricate rhythms and sounds through a combination of footsteps, claps and the spoken word.  It is based on a long and rich tradition in African-based communities that uses movement, words and sounds to communicate allegiance to a group. It draws movements from African foot dances, such as Gumboot, originally conceived by miners in South Africa as an alternative to drumming, which was banned by authorities.

The stepping tradition in the United States grew out of song and dance rituals practiced by historically African American fraternities and sororities, beginning in the early 1900s. Today, stepping is not only practiced on college campuses; it can also be found in schools, churches, and community organizations around the country. The form is also spreading its wings to new venues and participants, such as Latino and Asian American Greek-letter organizations.

Visit BrooklynCenter.org for a complete season lineup.

AMANDA SELWYN DANCE THEATRE presents White Night 2016 - Costumes and Cocktails

Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre presents the annual White Night 2016 - Costumes and Cocktailson Thursday, January 28, 2016 at 6:30 pm at 401 East 34th Street, 2nd floor, NYC, 10016.  White Night 2016 will celebrate and honor long-time collaborator Anna-Alisa Belous and the many designs she has created for Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre. The evening will include delicious food and drink, live dance performance, live music, a fashion show, a wine auction, giveaways, and much, much more. Regular tickets are $75, and Patron tickets are $150, and are available at http://amandaselwyn.notesinmotion.org/?event_code=116. The attire will be white and black festive attire.

At White Night 2016 - Costumes and Cocktails, Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre will preview a new developing work, Refuge.  Refuge will develop into an evening-length dance theatre piece that embodies the drama of solitude, the power of connection, the quiet and the noise of the self and the other. Inspired by Francesco Clemente's Encampment, Refuge will magnify humanity through character, relationships, and motif. Selwyn will develop this work throughout 2016 and early 2017, with open rehearsals, studio performances, and work-in-progress showings at NYC public schools in partnership with our arts education arm. 

Refuge will include Six dancers; costumes, scenery, and props designed by Anna Alisa Belous; sound design by Joel Wilhelmi; projection design by Zachary Ludescher; and lighting design by Dan Ozminkowski. The choreography and production design will explore isolation and inner reflection. When seeking personal refuge, we go deep inside ourselves and begin an internal journey of transformation and enlightenment. Selwyn will translate this personal journey into a vocabulary of immediate, athletic, sensuous, and raw movement that has come to define her work. The piece will include a progressive series of solos and duets punctuated by group sections that magnify the personal experience into a shared one.

For more information, please visit: www.amandaselwyndance.org

Ballet Hispanico to perform SOMBRERÍSIMO at inaugural Hudson River Dance Festival | @HudsonRiverPark

JUNE 17 & 18, 2015

TWO FREE PERFORMANCES

***

Ballet Hispanico, recognized as the nation's leading Latino dance organization since 1970, will perform in the first Hudson River Dance Festival at Hudson River Park on June 17 & 18, 2015 at 6:30pm.

Hudson River Park, one of the nation's longest waterfront parks and an urban oasis for New Yorkers and visitors from every corner of the world, will host the first-ever Hudson River Dance Festival, presented this summer on the Pier 63 lawn in Hudson River Park. This free celebration of NYC's premier dance culture is a rare and unique opportunity for diverse audiences to experience some of the city's most talented and acclaimed dancers and ground-breaking dance compositions and performances.

The same program will be featured each evening, with Ballet Hispanico, Paul Taylor Dance Company, and Parsons Dance sharing the bill. Each company has planned engaging and distinctive programs that spotlight the cultural wealth and stylistic innovation that makes New York the epicenter of the American dance scene. The repertoire is designed to delight a broad audience, from aficionados and dance enthusiasts, to families and new audiences alike. The Hudson River Dance Festival is sponsored and presented by SHS Foundation in association with The Joyce Theater, with funding from The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, and the Hudson River Park Trust.

"We are thrilled to be a part of the inaugural Hudson River Dance Festival and to share our artistry with the larger New York City community," said Ballet Hispanico Artistic Director Eduardo Vilaro. "For this performance we present Sombrerísimo, a witty audience favorite that showcases the athleticism of the Ballet Hispanico Company's men and the exuberance of Latinos."

Choreographed by Annabelle Lopez Ochoa and commissioned by New York City Center for the 10th anniversary of the Fall for Dance Festival, Sombrerísimo is an absorbing exploration of identity. The piece references the surrealist world of the Belgian painter René Magritte, famous for his paintings of men in bowler hats.

"Celebrating our City's culture, and keeping the arts-especially dance-accessible and relevant for all New Yorkers is at the heart of what we do at SHS," said Richard Feldman, President of the SHS Foundation. "We are excited to bring these iconic dance companies and their talented artists to Hudson River Park, which showcases so many quality events each summer."

The Hudson River Dance Festival is part of an ongoing commitment by the Hudson River Park Trust to present free and low cost cultural, artistic and educational programming for all visitors to the Park's Manhattan's waterfront location from 59th Street to Chambers Street, on the west side.

"There is nothing quite like sunset on the Hudson River in the summertime," said Madelyn Wils, CEO and President of Hudson River Park Trust. "It is a privilege to launch with the support of The SHS Foundation, Hudson River Park's first-annual dance festival, with such diverse and extraordinary dance companies. We invite everyone to join us this June to experience these exciting, beautiful and spirit-lifting works of art that celebrate life and our connection to the world around us."

For more information, please visit:

http://www.hudsonriverpark.org/events

www.hudsonriverpark.org

www.facebook.com/HudsonRiverPark

BALLET HISPANICO selected Mexican-American Choreographer MICHELLE MANZANALES for Instituto Coreográfico

Ballet Hispanico, recognized as the nation's leading Latino dance organization since 1970, presented the latest installment of its choreographic institute, Instituto Coreográfíco,with a showing held on Thursday, May 28, 2015 at the company's headquarters at 167 W. 89th Street, NYC. This year's Instituto Coreográfico featured Mexican-American choreographer and Ballet Hispanico Rehearsal Director Michelle Manzanales, who was paired with filmmaker Fernando Venegas Traba and photographer Madeline Campisano. The 2015 installment of the Instituto program was made possible through support from the Ford Foundation, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and the Mertz Gilmore Foundation.

The groundbreaking Instituto Coreográfico provides emerging Latino choreographers, dance filmmakers, and now dance photographers with a professional and supportive environment in which to explore their heritage and develop their craft. Choreographers receive ongoing feedback from a group of notable artistic mentors and advisors, daily archive DVD recordings of the rehearsals, an edited film of the resulting work, an academic advisor, and a showing of their work.  Should an artistically appropriate work emerge from this process, it could enter Ballet Hispanico's permanent repertory. Filmmakers will be paired with a choreographer and will be mentored by filmmaker Nel Shelby.

For more information, visit: www.ballethispanico.org.

Manhattan Youth Ballet presents WITH REGARD and A Gala Benefit honoring Marina Stavitskaya

Manhattan Youth Ballet presents WITH REGARD... In Practice & Performance from May 29 - 30, 2015 and A Gala Benefit honoring Marina Stavitskaya on Sunday, May 31, 2015 at Manhattan Movement & Arts Center. A Gala Benefit honoring Marina Stavitskaya will begin with a cocktail hour at 5pm, followed by the gala performance at 6pm curtain. There will also be a post-performance catered reception and silent auction.

In Practice & Performance will feature world premieres by Brian Reeder, Marina Stavitskaya, Daniel Ulbricht, Frederick Earl Mosley and Natalia Boesch as well as George Balanchine's Valse Fantaisie. Performance times are Friday, May 29 at 7pm and Saturday, May 30 at 3pm and 7pm. Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for students.   

A Gala Benefit honoring Marina Stavitskayawill feature special performances by GUEST ARTISTS and alumni from American Ballet Theatre and New York City Ballet as well as WORLD PREMIERES by Brian Reeder, Marina Stavitskaya, Daniel Ulbricht, Frederick Earl Mosley and Natalia Boesch, and George Balanchine's Valse Fantaisie. Gala tickets are $100 for adults and $50 for students. All proceeds will benefit the Manhattan Youth Ballet Scholarship Fund.

Tickets Information: For In Practice & Performanceand A Gala Benefit honoring Marina Stavitskayacan be purchased at manhattanyouthballet.org beginning on Friday, May 8, or by calling 212-787-1178.