Brand New, Seven-Screen Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Coming this Summer to the Heart of Downtown Brooklyn to Celebrate the Best in Film, Food and Drink!

“You talkin’ to me?” Not at the Alamo Drafthouse Downtown Brooklyn. The Austin-based cinema chain, known for its strict “no talking, no texting” policy is pleased to officially announce their much-anticipated theater in Downtown Brooklyn is set to open Summer 2016.

Currently in its final phase of construction, the flagship theater, located at 445 Gold Street - at the intersection of Fulton and Flatbush Avenues - will be a movie-lover's paradise featuring seven screens celebrating all forms of cinema. True to the brand’s roots, Alamo Drafthouse Downtown Brooklyn will feature a diverse programming slate blending the best arthouse and independent releases with Hollywood’s biggest blockbusters. With the ability to screen both 35mm film and digital formats, the theater will also boast a robust repertory program that salutes the classics and the obscure with equal fervor.

“It’s been a long time coming but we cannot wait to bring the Alamo Drafthouse experience to Brooklyn,” said Alamo Drafthouse Founder and CEO Tim League. “The impact on film from this region is indelible and expansive. Hopefully, we can add to that rich fabric and give fans, new and old, a place to honor the joy of cinema.”

While this new location will feature the Alamo Drafthouse’s signature series Terror Tuesday, Video Vortex and Girlie Night, the programming will also champion the distinct tastes of Brooklyn and New York audiences.  “As a local and avid moviegoer myself, I know New Yorkers are equally excited for the latest from Pixar as they are the first from Michael Haneke,” says Brooklyn Creative Manager Cristina  Cacioppo. “This city has the most adventurous audiences of anywhere in the world and our screens will be reflective of that.”

Like all of the company’s theaters, Alamo Drafthouse Downtown Brooklyn will match its love of movies with its love of food and drink to provide in-theater dining in all seven screens featuring a full menu influenced by local flavors and ingredients. The theater bar will also showcase a deep array of the best local beers on tap as well as the finest hand-crafted cocktails. And true to form, the ironclad “no-talking, no-texting” policy will be in full effect  along with unique special events, multi-course film feasts, live performances and the extensive participation of filmmaking talent.

For more information on Alamo Drafthouse Downtown Brooklyn, please visit: https://drafthouse.com/nyc

FLAMENCO VIVO CARLOTA SANTANA presents VOCES DE ANDALUCIA 2016 NYC Season at BAM Fisher May 3-8, 2016

Featuring World Premieres of new dance and music works inspired

by Pablo Picasso and Federico Garcia Lorca; plus Angeles II, choreographed and performed by British National Dance Award nominee Ángel Muñoz

FLAMENCO VIVO CARLOTA SANTANA celebrates the fundamental power and diversity of flamenco in VOCES DE ANDALUCIA, the company's 2016 NYC season, May 3-8 at Brooklyn Academy of Music's BAM Fisher Building, 321 Ashland Place, Brooklyn, New York.

Founded in 1983, FLAMENCO VIVO CARLOTA SANTANA is one of this country's longest-established flamenco companies, dedicated to promoting flamenco as a living, evolving art form. Following its successful BAM Fisher debut last year, the company returns with a program featuring four commissioned works of contemporary Spanish dance and music, including two world premieres.

In VOCES DE ANDALUCIA, Flamenco Vivo presents a suite of contemporary flamenco dance and music inspired by the cultural richness of Andalucia, the region of Spain known as "the cradle of flamenco." Voces - "voices" - explores this land of inspiration through the genius of two Andalucian-born artists, Pablo Picasso and the playwright-poet Federico Garcia Lorca. The suite features three new works: the world premiere PiCa, Susana di Palma's dance/fiction about Picasso; Federico, a celebration of Lorca's life, art and his profound connection to flamenco and its peoples; and Música Andaluza an adaption of Lorca verses, in a world premiere instrumental/vocal composition by Gaspar Rodriguez.  The program also includes Angeles II, choreographed and performed by British National Dance Award nominee Ángel Muñoz, praised by The New York Times for his "spontaneity, invention and surprise."

Flamenco Vivo's BAM Fisher season features a cast of twelve accomplished dancers and musicians from Spain and the US, including guest artist Ángel Muñozand company dancers Antonio Hidalgo, Charo Espino, Isaac Tovar, Eliza Llewellyn, Laura Peralta and Elisabet Torras Aguilera; guitarists Gaspar Rodriguez and Pedro Medina, singer Felix de Lola, flutist Diego Villegas and singer/percussionist Francisco ("YiYi") Orozco.

Performances take place May 3-8, 2016, (evenings, Tuesday-Saturday, 7:30pm; matinees, Saturday and Sunday, 2:00pm) at BAM Fisher, 321 Ashland Place, Brooklyn, New York.  Tickets are priced from $25, and can be purchased at flamenco-vivo.org, or through BAM.org.

For the opening on May 3, guests can join the company for its First Night Fiesta, including premium seating and a post-performance tapas reception with the artists. Fiesta tickets, $125 and $250; for more information, call 212.736.4499 or visit www.flamenco-vivo.org. 

Flamenco Vivo will also offer a post-performance artist talk immediately following the Thursday (May 5) show; free and open to all same-day ticket-holders. Pre-show Chats before the evening performances on Wednesday (May 4), Friday (May 6) and Saturday (May 7) offer insights by flamenco experts, Fisher Building Lower Lobby at 6:30pm; free for same-day ticket holders, with pre-registration required to fvcsinfo@flamenco-vivo.org. 

Major funding for Flamenco Vivo's 2016 NYC season at BAM Fisher has been generously provided by the Howard Gilman Foundation, with additional support from the Harkness Foundation for Dance; the Charles Schwartz Foundation for Music; the New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency; and public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. 

VOCES DE ANDALUCIA is presented by Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana. BAM house and ticketing policies may not apply. All programs and casting subject to change. 

FLAMENCO VIVO CARLOTA SANTANA

2016 NYC Season at BAM Fisher

May 3-8, 2016

Season Repertory and Key Artist Background

SEASON REPERTORY

 

PiCa - World Premiere

Choreography: Susana di Palma

Music: Gaspar Rodriguez

Dancers: Antonio Hidalgo, Isaac Tovar, Eliza Llewellyn, Elisabet Torras Aguilera, Laura Peralta

 

Música Andaluza- World Premiere

Inspired by Federico Garcia Lorca's Canciones Populares

Adaption: Gaspar Rodriguez

Musicians: Full company

 

Federico

Original choreography (1997): Angel Rojas and Juan Andres Maya    

Original Script and direction: Manuel Duque

Re-staging:  Antonio Hidalgo

Dancers: Antonio Hidalgo, Eliza Llewellyn, Elisabet Torras Aguilera, Laura Peralta, Isaac Tovar
Music: Cañadu and Gaspar Rodriguez

 

Angeles II

Choreography: Ángel Muñoz
Original Score: Gaspar Rodriguez

Dancers: Ángel Muñoz, Antonio Hidalgo, Charo Espino, and Isaac Tovar

Musicians: Full company

 

KEY ARTIST BACKGROUND

 

CARLOTA SANTANA is an internationally renowned Spanish dance artist and educator, and the founder (1983) of Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana. She has been called "The Keeper of Flamenco" by Dance Magazine in recognition of her commitment to creating new works and developing young artists and in 2013, the King and Spanish Government awarded Ms. Santana with La Cruz de la Orden al Merito Civil medalfor "all the years of passion, excellence and dedication to the Flamenco art." Ms. Santana has produced many major performance programs, presented nationally and internationally, toured extensively, developed and implemented Flamenco Vivo's curriculum-based arts education programs and created numerous community partnerships and residency programs.  She has been a member of the Dance Panel for the New York State Council on the Arts, and has served on the panel for the National Endowment for the Arts. Ms. Santana is on the faculty of Duke University, and has taught at New York University and Long Island University.

 

ANTONIO HIDALGO (Associate Artistic Director, Dancer, and Choreographer) was born in the town of Lucena (Córdoba) Spain, and has worked with many leading Spanish dance companies throughout his professional career. These include the companies of Jose Antonio, Paco Romero, Jose Greco and Antonio Gades, where he danced the principal role of Escamillo. He has collaborated with companies such as that of Maria Benitez, Masamy Okada and Yolanda Gonzalez, as well as various flamenco-fusion groups such as Kon-raza and Arickytwon. Hidalgo has appeared on Spanish television and theatre, working with such directors as Miguel Naros, Salvador Tavara and Antonio Molero. In partnership with Inmaculada Ortega, he directs the Company Aroma Flamenca. He has received commissions from the New York State Council on the Arts for his acclaimed pieces "Mano a Mano" and "Bailaor/Bailaora" and "Imagenes Flamencas," which toured nationally and premiered in New York at The Joyce Theater in 2001, 2002 and 2006 respectively.  Named Flamenco Vivo's Associate Artistic Director in 2013, Antonio has also served as rehearsal director and performer with the Fundación Antonio Gades, whose mission is to preserve the legacy of this famed Spanish choreographer.

 

SUSANA DI PALMA - (Choreographer) has studied Spanish dance and flamenco since childhood, training in Spain with maestros Ciro, Manolo Marin, Manolete, Carmen Mora and Merche Esmeralda, and performing throughout Spain in tablaos and with companies such as La Singla.  In 1985, she founded Zorongo Flamenco Dance Theater in Minneapolis with the mission to create innovative theater works that expand on traditional flamenco to reflect on controversial contemporary issues. Di Palma's full length theater-flamenco ballets include:  Flor, Garden of Names, Gernika, Sadja , First, I Dream,  La Virtud Negra, Encuentros, Tales of the Black Legend, Convivir, Los Caprichos among others. Her works have been presented at The Cowles Center, New York's Joyce Theater, Miami's Florida Dance Festival, St. Paul's O'Shaughnessy Theater's "Women of Substance Series," and the Walker Art Center. Di Palma has received grants and fellowships from the Minnesota State Arts Board; National Endowment for the Arts; The McKnight Foundation; Jerome Foundation, Metropolitan Regional Arts Council and The Bush Foundation. She currently divides her time between Madrid and Minneapolis.

 

GASPAR RODRIGUEZ (Composer, Guitarist, Musical Director) was born in Estepona, Málaga.  He has won several prestigious awards, including the "Sabicas," and was a finalist of La Unión in flamenco guitar.  An accomplished composer, Gaspar has traveled throughout Spain, Europe and in New York City with Cañadú with whom he has produced several CD's, and has worked for El Nuevo Ballet Español under the direction of Angel Rojas.  In addition to touring worldwide with many esteemed flamenco artists, including Juan Andrés Maya, Rocío Molina, Juanito Maravillas, Andres Lozano, Maite Maya and Paco del Pozo, he regularly performs in Madrid tablaos Casa Patas and Las Carboneras.  Gaspar first worked with Flamenco Vivo in 1997 and currently servies as Musical Director for the company's New York seasons and National Tours.


ÁNGEL MUÑOZ (Choreographer, Dancer), born in Córdoba, began his studies with Inmaculada Luque and as a student of the Conservatory of Dance, then won the prize "La Mejorana" in 1994 in the National Contest of Flamenco Art in Córdoba. He began his performing career with Javier Latorre's Company Ziryab Dance, and went on to roles as first dancer with the companies of José Antonio and María Pages in Spain, and with María Benitez in the USA. He is the first dancer and guest artist with Paco Peña, and his work with Peña's ensemble earned him a nomination for Britain's 2015 National Dance Awards. Ángel has created choreographies for his own company and in collaboration with the guitarist Victor Monge, "Serranito" and Juan Manuel "Cañizares," with whom he has released a record. He was in the movie Callas Forever directed by Zeffirelli, performs often in London, America and throughout Europe. Ángel first worked with the Flamenco Vivo in 1996, and has been a featured guest artist and choreographer since 2012.

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.

For more information, please visit:

LABAlive Presents BIRD SING A PRETTY SONG at the Theater at the 14th Street Y April 7 & 9, 2016

LABAlive presents BIRD SING A PRETTY SONG created by LABA fellows Rebecca Margolick and Maxx Berkowitz on April 7, 2016 and April 9, 2016 at 8pm at the Theater at the 14th Street Y, 344 E 14th St, New York, NY.  BIRD SING A PRETTY SONG is a new performance piece combining dance, interactive media and film from dancer Rebecca Margolick and composer and graphic artist Maxx Berkowitz. The work is an exploration of solitude, beauty and chaos and the way in which technology amplifies and minimizes those states of being. 

Tickets are $20 (drinks included) and can be purchased at www.labajournal.com/calendar or by calling 646-395-4310.

 

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:

VIM VIGOR DANCE COMPANY presents the World Premiere of SEPARATI choreographed by Shannon Gillen at Gelsey Kirkland Arts Center January 28 - 30, 2016

VIM VIGOR DANCE COMPANY presents the World Premiere of Separati at Gelsey Kirkland Arts Center, 29 Jay Street, Brooklyn, NY, from January 28-30, 2016.  Performances: Thurs-Sat at 7:30pm. Tickets are $25 for general seating and are available at http://vimvigorgka.bpt.me/.

Separati, a new work by Shannon Gillen, in collaboration with the performers, features dancers Jason Cianciulli, Martin Durov, Laja Field, Lavinia Vago, and Emma Whiteley, set to original scores by Martin Durov in collaboration with Gillen, with costumes by Joey Blaha, set design by JC Machine and Tool company, and lighting design by Barbara Samuels. The running time is 60 minutes.

Separati enters the turbid psychic space of highway travel and anonymous companionship. Caught up at a midway point, five characters travel through the past, present and dark hallucinatory projections of the future. Stilled periods of waiting juxtapose wild physical bouts of surreal movement, as reality gives way to the imagination. What is the distance between where we have come from and where we want to go? Between what happens to us and who we are? Can the space between bodies and ideas ever be joined? And if not, can we exist in the middle ground of separation?

Separati was co-commissioned by New Jersey Dance Theatre Ensemble's AiR® 2015 Program, a residency providing artists with an incubator for collaborative exchange.

For more information, 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

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College and Anton Krilloff present The Snow Maiden

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College will team up once again with producer Anton Krilloff present a Russian holiday fairy tale, The Snow Maiden (Снегурочка), on Sunday, December 20, 2015 at 4pm. Ticket prices range from $35 to $60 and can be purchased at BrooklynCenter.org or by calling the box office at 718-951-4500 (Tues-Sat, 1pm-6pm). The running time is 1 hour and 10 minutes with no intermission. The Snow Maiden is performed in Russian with English subtitles.

In this magical Russian Christmas version of the Cinderella story, Grandfather Frost (the Russian Santa Claus) transforms a poor young girl into the beautiful Snow Maiden after proving her worthiness. This delightful children's extravaganza incorporates traditional Russian songs, dances and elaborate costumes to create a winter wonderland. At the end of the performance, every child in the audience will receive a Christmas candy gift box. 

The festivities begin with a musical interlude of Russian folk music played by the ensemble Barynya, followed by entertainment and riddles by skomorokhi, traditional Russian clowns who historically traveled from town to town, performing in the streets and at fairs, singing comedic songs and acting out satirical sketches. As the pre-show comes to a close, Grandfather Frost (the Russian Santa Claus) is introduced, who acts as a type of narrator for the musical fairy tale to follow.

The Snow Maiden premiered in 2008 in Moscow. The creative team on this show includes an honored Russian writer and director Boris Boreyko (The Bremen Town Musicians), director and choreographer Andrey Ivanov, and costume designer Tatyana Kudryavtseva. All costumes were created by the Mariinsky Theatre tailors. www.thesnowmaiden.com.

Visit BrooklynCenter.org for a complete season lineup.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts

Whitman Theatre at Brooklyn College

2 train to Brooklyn College/Flatbush Avenue

Online orders: BrooklynCenter.org

Box Office: 718-951-4500, Tuesday-Saturday, 1pm-6pm

NEW YORK THEATRE BALLET presents Keith Michael's The Nutcracker at Florence Gould Hall

New York Theatre Ballet will perform Keith Michael's The Nutcracker from December 11-13, 2015 at Florence Gould Hall, 55 East 59th Street, NYC (between Park and Madison Avenues). Performances are Friday at 12pm; Saturday at 11am, 1pm, and 3:30pm; and Sunday at 11am, 1pm, and 3:30pm. Tickets are $24 for children 12 and under and $34 for adults, and are available online at www.nytb.org, via Ticketmaster at (800) 982-2787, or in person at the Florence Gould Hall box office at (212) 355-6160. For group sales: 212-679-0401 or email groups@nytb.org.

New York Theatre Ballet (NYTB) returns for a fifth year of Keith Michael's The Nutcracker, an enchanting holiday ballet. From clockwork imps to a luminous owl that flies above the audience, mice dressed in polka dots and dancers dancing with huge chopsticks, this timeless re-imagined classic bursts with energy and excitement. This holiday ballet, danced to Tchaikovsky's beloved score, is set in Art Nouveau style circa 1907 with innovative choreography by long-time NYTB choreographer, Keith Michael, set design by Gillian Bradshaw-Smith, and costumes by Metropolitan Opera's Resident Costume Designer Sylvia Taalsohn Nolan. This one-hour ballet is perfect for ages 3 and up! 

PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE:

  • Friday, December 11, 2015 at 12 pm
  • Saturday, December 12, 2015 at 11am, 1pm, and 3:30pm
  • Sunday, December 13, 2015 at 11am, 1pm, and 3:30pm

For more information, visit: www.nytb.org

Theater Resources Unlimited announces 2015 TRU Love Benefit: Making Our Gardens Grow

Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) will celebrate its 24th year as a not-for-profit service organization with its annual gala, the TRU Love Benefit. This year's theme is Making Our Gardens Grow, recognizing three people who are each helping to change the landscape of theater in highly individual ways. The 2015 TRU Spirit of Theater Award, given to a member of the producing community who has demonstrated exceptional generosity, support and kindness to others in the business, will be awarded to producer Patrick Blake (The 39 Steps, Bedlam Theatre's Hamlet/St. Joan, Play Dead, My Life Is a Musical, The Exonerated, In the Continuum), also the founder of Rhymes Over Beats, a game-changing new hip hop theater company; the TRU Humanitarian Award will be presented to Teresa Eyring on behalf of one of American theater's pre-eminent service organizations, Theatre Communications Group (TCG); and the TRU Entrepreneur Award, given for consistency, unique thinking and innovation, will be presented to Linda Amiel Burns for 38 years of The Singing Experience, a unique cabaret workshop that helps ordinary people blossom into singing "stars."

The celebration will take place Sunday November 8th at legendary Sardi's, 234 West 44th Street, between 7th and 8th Avenue. It will begin at noon with wine, drinks and hors d'oeuvres, followed by a 3-course luncheon at 1pm and the awards ceremony and performances at 1:45pm. Tickets are on sale now at http://www.truonline.org/TRULove15.htm.

This eclectic event brings together the very different worlds of resident and commercial theater, rap and cabaret, and will be co-hosted by cabaret legend Sidney Myer of Don't Tell Mama, and TV rapper Power Malu. It will include appearances by Jermaine Paul, winner of TV's "The Voice," Obie-winner and TCG board member Nikkole Salter (In the Continuum), preeminent magician Todd Robbins (Play Dead), Howie Michael Smith

(My Life Is a Musical) and cabaret singer Lynn DiMenna, with other performances tba, highlighting the achievements of the three honorees.

"This year's honorees represent the level of selfless support and cultivation of others that we value," states TRU president Bob Ost. "We honor friend Pat Blake for pushing politically relevant subjects into the theater conversation with shows like The Exonerated and In the Continuum. Equally significant is his current commitment to nurturing artists of diversity and bringing hip hop into commercial theater through his company Rhymes Over Beats. And he has been dedicated to this even before Hamilton burst on the scene." Blake is also acknowledged for his dedication to TRU as a program director for their Producer Development and Mentorship Program, and for serving on the TRU Board of Directors.

Theatre Communications Group and executive director Teresa Eyring are honored for their efforts to nurture resident theaters around the country, strengthening them and offering a crucial bridge for development of new works that have nourished and fed the commercial theater and all theater. On a personal note, Ost states, "TCG serves as a standard and role model for all arts service organizations, and the work they have done is an inspiration for what TRU hopes to achieve on a much smaller grassroots level here in New York." Executive director Teresa Eyring has also made it a personal mission and organizational priority to champion a more equitable, diverse and inclusive theater field throughout the country.

Linda Amiel Burns will receive the TRU Entrepreneur Award for providing an artistic voice and confidence to hundreds of individuals by getting them out of their shells and up on a stage in her workshop The Singing Experience, which she has been tirelessly offering for 38 years. "Linda was also one of our original board members and helped us find our voice in our early development," adds Ost. 

The Benefit Honoree Committee lending their names and support to this year's event include Tim Sanford of Playwrights Horizons, Georgia Buchanan of York Theatre Company, Brent Buell of Rhymes Over Beats, performers Sidney Myer and Lynn DiMenna, reviewer Sandi Durell, and producers Michael Alden, Doug Denoff, Jane Dubin, David Elliott, Patricia Klausner, Martin Platt, Ron Simons and Cheryl Wiesenfeld. The Benefit Producing Committee includes TRU vice-president Cheryl Davis, plus Kimberly Eaton, Wendy Leopold, Tom Polum and Courtney Sweeting.

The proceeds from this event directly benefit the programs of Theater Resources Unlimited, a not-for-profit service organization that educates people in the business of the arts, with a focus on producers, emerging theater companies and self-producing artists. Programs include monthly panels, workshops, a Producer Development and Mentorship Program, a new plays and new musicals reading series and a community e-newsletter of jobs, services, resources and theater events.

Tickets for the event will be $200 Premium Patron Level reserved seating on the first tier near the stage and $175 ($150 for TRU members) for Patron Level reserved seating on the first tier sides and second tier. Non-reserved General Admission tickets, which also include luncheon, may be purchased for $125 ($110 for TRU members). Tickets, VIP tickets, journal ads and tables are available through the TRU Store at http://www.truonline.org/store.html

For more information about TRU membership and programs, visit www.truonline.org or call 212-714-7628.

Theater Resources Unlimited and The Playroom Theatre present the September TRU Panel

  • An Introduction to TRU: A Free-for-Everyone Seasonal Kick-off plus Networking Meet-and-Greet
  • Tuesday, September 29, 2015 at 7:30pm

Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU), and The Playroom Theatre, present the September panel, An Introduction to TRU: A Free-for-Everyone Seasonal Kick-off plus Networking Meet-and-Greet, on Tuesday, September 29, 2015 at 7:30pm at The Playroom Theater, 151 W. 46th Street, 8th floor, NYC 10036. Doors open at 7pm for networking and refreshments; roundtable introductions of everyone in the room will start at 7:30pm.

Meet the program directors and illustrious board members of Theater Resources Unlimited, including director of writer programs Diana Amsterdam, producer/board member Michael Alden (Disgraced, Grey Gardens, Becoming Dr. Ruth; director of our Producer Development program), producer/board member Patrick Blake (The 39 Steps, Bedlam Theater Hamlet/St. Joan, Play Dead, The Exonerated, In the Continuum; artistic director of Rhymes Over Beats,director of our Producer Development program), TRU literary manager Cate Cammarata, TRU co-founder and Vice-President Cheryl L. Davis, Esq. (offering free legal consultations for new members), not-for-profit consultant/co-chair of YPAC Kimberly Eaton, producer/board member David Elliott (Broadway: Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike; off-Broadway: Bedlam Theater Hamlet/St. Joan, In the Continuum), attorney Eric Goldman, Esq. (offering free mediation services and counsel to TRU members), producer/videographer Jeremy Handelman (On the Town, F#%king Up Everything, White's Lies, The King's Speech on stage), producer Patricia Klausner (Shotgun Productions; Scottsboro Boys,Pippin, The Trip to Bountiful; director of our Producer Development program), producer/co-chair of YPAC Molly Morris (My Life Is a Musical, PopUpTheatrics), producer/board member Tom Polum (The Toxic Avenger, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, All Shook Up; head of TRU Voices selection committee), financial advisor Bailie Slevin (TRU Pathways presenter, offering free financial consultations to TRU members), board member Courtney Sweeting, entertainment industry creative consultant and career coach Joanne Zippel (TRU Pathways presenter, offering free career consultations to TRU members).

Learn about our programs, including our Producer Development & Mentorship Program, the TRU Voices Reading Series, Mediation Workshop and other Producer Boot Camps, Speed Dates and Actor Workshops, Writer-Producer Speed Date, Director-Writer Communications Lab, our new How to Write a Musical That Works Workshop and more. Meet our newly formed Young Patrons & Artists Circle (YPAC), and learn if you are eligible to join them. Come with questions. And let us know what we don't offer that you wish we did.

Doors open at 7pm for networking and refreshments, roundtable introductions of everyone in the room will start at 7:30pm - come prepared with your best one-minute summary of who you are, and what you need. Free for TRU members; usually $12 for non-members, but free for everyone for this season opener. Please call at least a day in advance (or much sooner) for reservations: 212/714-7628; or e-mail

For more information about TRU membership and programs, visit www.truonline.org or call (212) 714-7628.

NYTB's BALLET SCHOOL NY announces 2015-16 training program beginning Monday, Sep 21

Ballet School NY, the official training school of New York Theatre Ballet, is pleased to announce its 2015-16 training program, beginning Monday, September 21, 2015 at NYTB's home studio, located at St. Mark's Church-in-the-Bowery, 131 E. 10th Street, 2nd Floor, New York City. Classes will be offered Monday through Saturday. Cost ranges from $1,075 to $3,940 per year, depending on the age and level of the student. An annual recital on June 11, 2016 will conclude the 2015-16 training program.

Qualified children will perform with New York Theatre Ballet throughout the year in special roles created for student dancers. The studio trains in the Cecchetti method, a technique founded by Italian ballet master Enrico Cecchetti. The school teaches dance as a total art form, developing strong technical skill and discipline. Following the Cecchetti syllabus, classes emphasize music, theatricality, gesture and style. Well-trained Cecchetti dancers have purity of line and simplicity of style, which enables them to take their place in dance companies throughout the world. For the advanced students, a once-a-week workshop is part of the curriculum. Offerings, including jazz, theater dance, modern dance, partnering, change every six weeks.

"There is always a teaching assistant in every class and we teach to the individual child," said Diana Byer, Founder and Artistic Director of NYTB. "Every child gets personal attention in each class."

The Company's 2015/2016 season will include repertory performances at the Schimmel Center Pace University (September 19-20, 2015), Danspace (October 1-3, 2015), and New York Live Arts (February 24-27, 2016). NYTB maintains its association with the New York Pops at Carnegie Hall (December 20, 2015), and the Company's Once Upon A Ballet series for children will continue at Florence Gould Hall throughout the year. NYTB will also continue to offer its Free Ticket Program for families who are unable to afford to attend performances.

For registration and more information, visit www.nytb.org/ballet-school-ny.

NEW YORK THEATRE BALLET Announces 2015-16 Season

New York Theatre Ballet announces the 2015-16 season, which will include repertory performances at Schimmel Center at Pace University (September 19-20, 2015), Danspace Project (October 1-3, 2015), and New York Live Arts (February 24-27, 2016). NYTB maintains its association with the New York Pops at Carnegie Hall, and the Company's Once Upon A Ballet series for children will continue at Florence Gould Hall throughout the year. NYTB will also continue to offer its Free Ticket Program for families who are unable to afford to attend performances.

New York Theatre Ballet's 2015-16 Season includes:

· September 19-20, 2015 - Schimmel Center at Pace University

· October 1-3, 2015 - Danspace Project

· December 6, 2015 - Keith Michael's The Nutcracker at Tarrytown Music Hall

· December 11-13, 2015 - Keith Michael's The Nutcracker at Florence Gould Hall

· December 19, 2015 - Keith Michael's The Nutcracker at The Colonial Theater

· December 20, 2015 - A Charlie Brown Christmas with The New York Pops at Carnegie Hall

· February 24-27, 2016 - Glass Project at New York Live Arts

· April 10-11, 2016 - Cinderella at The Egg Center for the Performing Arts, Albany, NY

· April 17, 20156 - Cinderella at Florence Gould Hall

· April 28-29, 2016 - Legends & Visionaries at Keihin Auditorium, Tarboro, North Carolina

· May 1, 2016 - The Alice-in-Wonderland Follies at 92Y

New York Theatre Ballet at Schimmel Center at Pace University

September 19 and 20 at 7:30 (Legends & Visionaries) and September 20 at 3pm (Cinderella)

Tickets: $29 for the evening shows; $20 for Adults and $10 for Students for Cinderella

Box office: 212-346-1715; Ovation Tix 866-811-4111; www.schimmel.pace.edu

New York Theatre Ballet brings fresh insight into classic revivals paired with the modern sensibilities of both established and up-and-coming choreographers. Featured choreographers include Merce Cunningham, Nicolo Fonte, Agnes deMille,and Pam Tanowitz. Cinderella, a perennial favorite of NYTB audiences, features a dancing clock, two wacky stepsisters, and everyone's favorite rags to riches princess. This enchanting story, with choreography by Donald Mahler, set design by Gillian Bradshaw-Smith, and costumes by Resident Costume Designer of the Metropolitan Opera, Sylvia Taalson Nolan, will delight the whole family.

New York Theatre Ballet at Danspace Project; Legends & Visionaries

October 1-3, 2015

Tickets: $20, $15 for Danspace Members

Box office: 866-811-4111; www.danspaceproject.org

New York Theatre Ballet performs a mixed bill at Danspace Project featuring Two Timing, Cross Currents, and Lois Bewley's PiR2.Based on Steve Reich's Clapping Music, Two Timing is choreographed by David Parker with costume designs by Pei-Chi Su and lighting design by Serena Wong. Merce Cunningham's Cross Currents is set to music by Conlon Nancarrow with lighting design by Beverly Emmons. These performances are presented through Community ACCESS, which provides subsidized off-season rental opportunities for Danspace Project community members.

New York Theatre Ballet performs Keith Michael's The Nutcracker at Tarrytown Music Hall

December 6, 2015 at 2pm and 5pm

Box office: 877-840-0457; www.tarrytownmusichall.org

New York Theatre Ballet performs Keith Michael's The Nutcrackerat Florence Gould Hall

December 11 at 12pm, December 12 & 13 at 11am, 1pm, & 3:30pm

Tickets: $35 via www.ticketmaster.com; Group Sales: 212-679-0401 or email groups@nytb.org

New York Theatre Ballet (NYTB) returns with Keith Michael's The Nutcracker, an enchanting holiday ballet. From clockwork imps to a luminous owl that flies above the audience, mice dressed in polka dots and dancers dancing with huge chopsticks, this timeless, re-imagined classic bursts with energy and excitement. This holiday ballet, danced to Tchaikovsky's beloved score, is set in Art Nouveau style circa 1907 with innovative choreography by long-time NYTB choreographer, Keith Michael; set design by Gillian Bradshaw-Smith; and costumes by Resident Costume Designer of the Metropolitan Opera, Sylvia Nolan.  Ages 3-9. 

New York Theatre Ballet performs Keith Michael's The Nutcracker at The Colonial Theater

December 19 at 2pm and 5pm

Box office: 603-352-2033; www.thecolonial.org 

New York Theatre Ballet performs with The New York Pops in A Charlie Brown Christmas at Carnegie Hall

December 20, 2015 at 3pm

Tickets: $10, $18, and $25

Box office: 212-247-7800; www.carnegiehall.org

New York Theatre Ballet joins Steven Reineke, The New York Pops and John Bolton bringing holiday spirit to Manhattan with classic tunes from Charles M. Schulz's hit franchise.  

New York Theatre Ballet at New York Live Arts; Legends & Visionaries

February 24-27, 2016 at 7:30pm, February 27, 2016 at 2:30pm

Tickets: $30, $15 students/seniors

Box office: 212-924-0077; www.newyorklivearts.org

New York Theatre Ballet returns to New York Live Arts with its highly acclaimed Legends & Visionaries series. The program includes a world premiere choreographed by San Francisco choreographer Milissa Bradley and former New York City Ballet dancer Antonia Franceschi to live accompaniment of Piano Etudes by Philip Glass. NYTB will also present a revival of Jerome Robbins' Antique Epigraphs, which had its premiere on February 2, 1984 at the New York State Theater. The performance will feature original lighting design by Jennifer Tipton, and original costume design by Florence Kotz. The return of Richard Alston's Such Longing, with music by Frederic Chopin, will conclude the evening.

New York Theatre Ballet at The Egg Center for the Performing Arts, Albany, NY; Cinderella

April 10, 2016 at 3pm; April 11 at 10:15am (school performance)

Box office: 518-473-1845; www.theegg.org 

New York Theatre Ballet at Florence Gould Hall

April 17, 2016 at 11am, 1pm, 3:30pm

New York Theatre Ballet at Keihin Auditorium, Tarboro, North Carolina; Legends & Visionaries

April 28-29, 2016

Box office: 252-823-5166, ext. 187; www.edgecombe.edu

New York Theatre Ballet at 92Y; The Alice-in-Wonderland Follies

May 1, 2016 at 3pm

Tickets: $35 adults, $25 children

Box office: 212-415-5500; www.92y.org

New York Theatre Ballet brings The Alice-in-Wonderland Follies with choreography by Keith Michael to 92Y! Follow Alice's adventures through Wonderland as she meets some of the most beloved characters in children's literature.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts 2015-16 Season: Dance

Featuring Step Afrika!, Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, and Moscow Festival Ballet

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College is pleased to announce its 2015-16 World Dance series. Since the inception of the dance series in 1966, more than 175 regional, national and international companies have premiered new works as a part of this series. This year's lineup includes Step Afrika! featuring stepping dancers led by the artistic director Mfoniso Akpan, Nai-Ni Chin Dance Company performing a Lunar New Year Celebration, and Moscow Festival Ballet's Romeo and Juliet / Carmen Suite.These companies reflect the artistic excellence and cultural diversity to which Brooklyn Center is dedicated. Tickets to Brooklyn Center's World Dance series range from $20-$45 and can be purchased at BrooklynCenter.org or by calling the box office at 718-951-4500 (Tue-Sat, 1pm-6pm).

Brooklyn Center will also present an annual presentation of Dance Theatre in Westchester's family-friendly The Colonial Nutcracker.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts' 2015-16 dance events include:

· Dance Theatre in Westchester's The Colonial Nutcracker

· Step Afrika!

· Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company's Lunar New Year Celebration: Year of the Monkey

· Moscow Festival Ballet's Romeo and Juliet / Carmen Suite

The Colonial Nutcracker

Sunday, December 13, 2015 at 2pm

Tickets: $18

An annual holiday favorite, Dance Theatre in Westchester performs its family-friendly, full-length version of Tchaikovsky's ballet set in wintry colonial Yorktown, complete with a red-coated mouse army, an enchanted nutcracker prince, and simultaneous narration to help young audience members enjoy this timeless classic. 

Step Afrika!

Saturday, January 23, 2016 at 2pm

Tickets: $20

Experience Step Afrika!, the world's first professional company dedicated to stepping, a unique art form born at African American fraternities and based in rich African traditions. Incorporating intricate rhythmic patterns of kicks, stomps, claps, and chants, the dancers use their bodies as instruments, creating an enthralling, high-energy performance that has been praised by The Village Voice as "a jubilation of rhythm and spirit that harks back to the essence of dancing." 

Third Annual
Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company
Lunar New Year Celebration - Year of the Monkey

Sunday, January 31, 2016 at 3pm

Tickets: $25/$12.50 (children 12 and under)

Brooklyn Center is thrilled to partner once again with the prestigious Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company in an all-new celebration of Chinese arts and culture commemorating the Year of the Monkey, a year characterized by cleverness, curiosity, and playful mischief. Thrilling choreography, traditional music, and dazzling acrobats showcase the rich traditions of one of Brooklyn's most vibrant communities at this festive, family-friendly event. 

Moscow Festival Ballet

Romeo and Juliet / Carmen Suite

Saturday, March 5, 2016 at 8pm

Tickets: $36-$45
The power of love and the finality of death collide as two of the greatest tragic masterpieces of all time are reinvented in this double-bill of one-act ballets. The program begins with a new restaging of Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet, set to the music of Tchaikovsky and choreographed by legendary Bolshoi principal dancer Elena Radchenko. This is followed by Alberto Alonso's fiery Carmen Suite, inspired by Bizet's sensuous and spirited opera.

Visit BrooklynCenter.org for a complete season lineup.

Multibuy discounts (four or more shows) save 15% off individual ticket prices (not applicable for Alexander, Who's Not... Going to Move). Multibuyers enjoy flexible ticket exchanges and discounted parking for purchased performances. 50% discount for children ages 12 and under for select performances. Discounts also available for seniors, students, Brooklyn College faculty/staff/alumni, and groups. $10 student rush tickets available day-of-show.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts

Whitman Theatre at Brooklyn College

2 train to Brooklyn College/Flatbush Avenue

Online orders: BrooklynCenter.org

Box Office: 718-951-4500, Tuesday-Saturday, 1pm-6pm

Groups of 15 or more: 718-951-4600 x3331

Zullo/RawMovement presents The Architecture of Proximity

Zullo/RawMovement presents The Architecture of Proximity at the Theater at the 14th Street Y from Wednesday - Saturday, October 28-31, 2015 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, November 1, 2015 at 3 p.m. at the 14th Street Y, 344 E. 14th Street, 10003, NYC.  Tickets are $30 ($25 for students and seniors) and can be purchased at www.14streety.org, by calling (646) 395-4310, or in person at the 14th Street Y.   The Architecture of Proximity is presented in association with the Dance Series at the 14th Street Y. 

The Architecture of Proximity combines elements of post-modern dance, voguing, gestural, and impulse generated movement. It is an immersive dance work that explores the relationship between architectural spaces and their physical and psychological effects on the body. The work examines what happens when the proximity between audience and performer is erased and investigates how boundaries and borders define a sense of "ownership" of self and space. Zullo uses the collected essays in Space & Psyche, edited by Elizabeth Danze and Stephen Sonnenberg from the Center for American Architecture and Design at The University of Texas at Austin, to further consider how spaces effect the body both physically and psychologically. Composer David Engelhard creates an original and interactive sound score that responds to the performers' choices.

The Architecture of Proximity was performed alongside Mana Hashimoto's Stories of Blind-Light, Shadow and Wind on January 29, 2015 at FLICfest at the Irondale Center.

RawMovement dancers: Bong Ian Dizon, Sarah Eichler, Hana Goldstone, Heidi Morgan, Jillian Sawyer, and guest performers Brittany Beyer, Nicole Loeffler-Gladstone, Liz Little, Dale Ratcliff, Kat Sullivan.

Collaborators: Visual Artist Sarah Crespo, Composer David Engelhard, Visual Technology Artist Kat Sullivan

"Zullo awakens all of the senses through the experiential nature of The Architecture of Proximity." - Dance Enthusiast

"Dance enthusiasts look for innovation and a style that delivers something new to the art. In their weekend performances at Danspace Project at the St. Mark's Church, Zullo/RawMovement did just that with unique choreographies and passionate performers." - Marina Kennedy, Broadway World

"Zullo is to be applauded for bringing his work and his collaborators' contributions to us so creatively." - Times Square Chronicles

"John's choreography clothes elements of contemporary dance in a gritty patina; the edgy aspects of his style are well-expressed by his dancers, and while the movement is always well- mapped-out there is also a feeling of spontaneity in each dancer's unique delivery of the steps and gestures." - Philip Gardner, Oberon's Grove


John J Zullo is originally from the Bronx, New York and currently resides in NYC. He graduated from American University in 1996 with a B.A. in Anthropology and 1999 with an M.A. in Dance. John danced with many artists while at American University. While there,  he performed in a work by Ohad Naharin, presented his choreography at Dance Place in Washington, D.C. and was awarded the Arts Club of Washington's Award for Outstanding Choreographer 1999. 

In January 2010 Zullo/RawMovement began performing at various venues in NYC. Zullo/RawMovement was one of six artists selected for FLICfest 2015 at the Irondale Center in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. There they premiered The Architecture of Proximity, an evening length immersive work where the boundary between performer and spectator is erased. Zullo/ RawMovement presented the Memory Suite evening of works at the Dance Complex in Cambridge, Massachusetts in June 2014 where it was a Boston Globe pick of the week. Zullo/RawMovement presented its 2013 season at Danspace Project at St. Mark's church as part of the Dance:Access series. The evening of works, the Memory Suite, included "this Exquisite diversion/mysterious Skin" (2013), "ALL what THIS do HAS you HAPPENED see? BEFORE" (2012), & project Xiii (2013). Zullo/RawMovement was presented for a sold out run at the LaMaMa Moves! Festival 2013 and invited to perform in the Dumbo Dance Festival 2013.

Zullo/RawMovement was presented at the LaMaMa Spoleto Open in Spoleto, Italy September 2012. Dixon Place presented an evening of Zullo's work in November 2012 as well as a Split Bill in June 2012 and the July 2012 Moving Men Series as part of the HOT! Festival. Zullo/RawMovement was presented at Green Space 2010 & 2011. DanceNOWNYC presented Zullo/RawMovement for the RAW Festival in April 2011 as well as the Evolve Festival in Tarrytown, New York and the IndepenDance Festival at City Center Studio 5, 2010. Zullo/RawMovement had its first New York Season at Theater for the New City in April 2011 and Zullo/RawMovement was presented at BAM for the 3rd annual EveryBooty LGBTQ Pride event June 2015.

Zullo currently teaches Raw Movement Labs for the Guest Artist Program at Gibney Dance Center. He has taught at the Modern Guest Artist Series at Dance New Amsterdam in NYC since 2012. Zullo has also taught and lectured at New York University, The Greenwich Academy in Connecticut, Coppin State University in Baltimore, Maryland,the Dance Complex and Green Street Studios in Cambridge, Mass,  American University, The Washington Ballet at THEARC in Washington, D.C., Adelphi University, Hunter College, Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, Wells College and the YMCA/Evolve Dance in Tarrytown, New York.

General Mischief Dance Theatre presents the World Premiere of Up and Away

General Mischief Dance Theatre presents the World Premiere of Up and Away - Dances for all Hours. Performances will take place on October 11 at 1pm and 6pm at the Goldman-Sonnenfeldt Family Auditorium, JCC Manhattan, 334 Amsterdam Avenue, NYC.

Tickets: $25 ($20 in advance, $15 for students and seniors, $10 for children 10 and under), available at www.BrownPaperTickets.com or by calling (212) 714-4694.

The program highlight is a collaboration with actor and sculptor Kevin Reese, who shares his talents with schools and communities across the country. Reese will be designing and making an overhead mobile that General Mischief will assemble and then elevate in the course of the dance.  Thanks to generous support from the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, the mobile he produces is going to be built in Washington, D.C. by hundreds of volunteers as part of the Atlas Arts Center's "Mobilizing Our Community" project.

The piece is set to music by flautist/composer Donna Viscuso from San Francisco. Choreographer Emily Smyth Vartanian will use some of Viscuso's songs from Vnote as well as a score Viscuso wrote with General Mischief in mind, called Milo's Ballet.  The process will be guided by creative consultant and director Amanda Friou.

General Mischief Dance Theatre is dedicated to reinforcing the power that joy and laughter have in communicating ideas. The company's mission is to create and present theatrical dance works that engage audiences emotionally, socially, and kinesthetically. Combining aerial work with more earthbound forms of movement, the company removes spatial and physical limits from theatrical dance.

The program will also include a new suite of dances, The Love Trio, featuring the music of Paul Tillotson and Suite Shel, a one-act suite of dances inspired by the poems of Shel Silverstein, choreographed by Madeline Hoak, Celine Rosenthal, and Emily Smyth Vartanian, and set to the music of Lizzie Hagstedt.   The cast includes Jane Abbott, Ellen Henry, Madeline Hoak, Wendy Lechuga, Saki Masuda, Jaisson Restrepo, Andrea Steiner, and Emily Smyth Vartanian.

"Question: What's the difference between a performance by General Mischief Dance Theatre and entertainment at a child's birthday party? Answer: Nothing. Except that the party isn't just for children, the performers are highly competent dancers, and you go to see them at a theater. And it's much better... Intelligent silliness....entertainingly performed." - Ballet-Dance

Amanda Friou is a Brooklyn based director and multidisciplinary artist whose highly theatrical and intellectually rigorous work is distinguished by the organic and inclusive process by which she develops productions. She is particularly interested in non-traditional creative collaborations. Favorite directing projects include the NY premiere of Naomi Wallace's No Such Cold Thing and a site specific production of Martha Boesing's Pimp which she also designed. She has worked nationally at ART, La Jolla, CTG, The Guthrie, Asolo Rep, Geva Theatre Center, and the University of Iowa, and in NYC for Ars Nova, NYU, HERE, and Second Stage; including assisting directors Jo Bonney, Henry Wishcamper, and Tony winner Warren Carlyle. An accomplished puppet builder, she also frequently collaborates with puppeteer Basil Twist. In 2013, her production of Avenue Q was a KCACTF honoree. Friou is a 2011 Drama League Fall Directing Fellow, and is devising a puppetry infused dance/theatre piece as one of their 2015 Resident Artists.  She is also a member of the 2015-2016 St. Ann's puppet lab where she is collaborating with puppeteer Kate Brehm on an abstract puppet show about technology and theoretical math. Proud alum of Macalester College. Member SDC. 

Donna Viscuso is an experienced performer, composer and educator who has been part of the San Francisco Bay Area music scene for over 20 years. Playing flute, alto saxophone and harmonica, Donna has performed, recorded and toured with many groups including The VNote Ensemble (formerly The Snake Trio); Jackeline Rago and The Venezuelan Music Project; Altazor; Wild Mango; the KTO project; Chelle and Friends; Violist Mimi Dye; Brazilian singer Adriana Moreno, Storyteller Diane Ferlatte and Chilean singer/songwriter Lichi Fuentes. She has composed music for several award-winning documentaries: My Home My Prison, Sex Is, and Chuck Solomon Coming of Age.  Her compositions can also be heard on the popular "Living Books" collection of educational CD-Roms including The ABC Book, Green Eggs and Ham, Harry and the Haunted House and Arthur's Reading Race. Since 2001 Donna has introduced San Francisco elementary school children to multi-cultural music experiences through the Adventures in Music (AIM) program, sponsored by the San Francisco Symphony. Donna studied music at San Francisco State University and Laney College and traveled to Venezuela to further her musical studies. While there, she performed and recorded with several renowned musicians including percussionist Alexander Livinalli and members of the Fundacion Bigott (Venezuela's Folkloric Institute). In addition she has recorded with Venezuelan musicians Aquiles Baez, Gonzalo Grau, Marco Granados, and Leo Blanco.

Emily Smyth Vartanian is a lifelong dancer and has produced dance events for over fifteen years. She loves moving, telling stories with movement, and merging different dance vocabularies to tell each story in the most effective way. Her training facilitates this multi-lingual approach; she is a graduate of the Dance Concentration in the World Arts and Cultures program at UCLA as well as a student of Ann Reinking's Broadway Theatre Project, the Diavolo Intensive workshop, and the Oakland Ballet. Her choreography has been presented nationally at venues ranging from the Freud Playhouse, Kaufman Hall, Highways Performance Space, and the House of Blues Sunset Strip in Los Angeles to Manhattan Movement and Arts, the JCC, Alvin Ailey, the Connelly Theater, Theater for the New City, The Zipper Theater, Medicine Show Theater, and the Kumble Center for the Performing Arts in New York. Her work ranges from more grounded contemporary movement and body music to the airborne styles of Lindy Hop and rope harness and bungee. As a producer, she is a graduate of multiple Commercial Theater Institute programs, including the 14-Week Program, as well as a member of the production team for the 2009 Frankie 95 Celebration at the Manhattan Center and the New York residency of Kybele Dance Theater among other projects. She takes great pride in the company's efforts to make each General Mischief performance a positive adventure for both the performers and the audience.

Paul Tillotson is an acclaimed jazz pianist and has been celebrated for many successes - from his self produced recordings to his live shows.  He's performed across America with such renowned performers as Gene Harris, Lynn Seaton, Vernel Fournier, Mike Merritt (Conan O'Brien Show), James Wormworth (Conan O'Brien Show), Lew Soloff (Blood, Sweat & Tears), Chris Minh Doky, Luther Hughes, Paul Kreibich, Matt Wilson, Aton Fig (David Letterman Show), Shawn Pelton (Saturday Night Live Band), Mark Pender, Jerry Vivinno, Red Hollaway, Jimmy Norman (The Coasters), Ernie Watts and Dispatch. Paul has performed his music in The Montreux Jazz Festival,  The Den Haag Jazz Festival,  The Jazz in the Canyon Festival, The Gene Harris Jazz Festival, Sun Valley Jazz Jamboree, The Rochester International Jazz Festival, and Levon Helm's Midnight Ramble.

For more information, please visit www.generalmischief.com.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts Announces its 2015-16 Season

Tickets now on sale for Michael Feinstein, the Vienna Boys Choir,

Clifford the Big Red Dog™ -- Live!, Moscow Festival Ballet, Darlene Love, and more!

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College announces its 2015-16 Season of music, dance, theater, and family programming, reflecting the multicultural diversity of Brooklyn. Hailing from Austria, Russia, China, Canada, and across the United States, the awards-winning artists include both Brooklyn Center premieres and returning favorites. Tickets can be purchased at BrooklynCenter.org or by calling the box office at 718-951-4500 (Tue-Sat, 1pm-6pm).

"Brooklyn Center is excited to continue to represent and reflect the vibrant diversity of Brooklyn through our upcoming 2015-16 season of live performances," says Jon Yanofsky, the Director of Brooklyn Center. "From the Gershwins and the Beatles to classical ballet and step dancing, the 61st season at Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts will celebrate the best of classic and contemporary arts and culture with world class artists in music, dance, theater, and family programming.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts' 2015-16 Season includes:

  • Michael Feinstein: The Gershwins and Me
  • Black Violin
  • Art of Time Ensemble - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
  • The Vienna Boys Choir - Christmas In Vienna
  • Dance Theatre in Westchester's The Colonial Nutcracker
  • Step Afrika!
  • Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company's Lunar New Year Celebration - Year of the Monkey
  • Moscow Festival Ballet's Romeo and Juliet /Carmen Suite
  • The Golden Dragon Acrobats
  • The Robert Glasper Trio
  • Darlene Love
  • Rhythm Revue: A Latin Soul Celebration featuring Joe Bataan and DJ Felix Hernandez
  • Regina Carter's Southern Comfort
  • Clifford the Big Red Dog™ - LIVE!
  • Ninth Annual National Grid Earth Day Celebration
  • Straighten Up & Fly Right: The Nat King Cole Tribute
  • Alexander, Who's Not Not Not Not Not Not Going to Move

Michael Feinstein: The Gershwins and Me

2015-16 Season Opener

Saturday, October 24, 2015 at 7:30pm

Tickets: $36-$65
Emmy- and Grammy-nominated entertainer Michael Feinstein brings his impeccable piano skills and unparalleled interpretations to some of the greatest selections in the entire American Songbook, peppered with personal anecdotes from his autobiographical book The Gershwins and Me, which reflects upon his six-year collaboration with the great Ira Gershwin.

Black Violin

Saturday, November 14, 2015 at 2pm

Tickets: $18
Back by popular demand, virtuoso violinists Kev Marcus and Wil B return to Brooklyn with their electrifying mash-up of hip-hop, classical, and pop tunes. With appearances ranging from the Apollo Theater and the Billboard Music Awards to three NFL Super Bowls and President Obama's official Inaugural Ball, this dynamic duo never fails to take audiences by storm with their unique spin on music for strings.

Art of Time Ensemble

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

Saturday, November 21, 2015 at 8pm

Tickets: $30

With hits including "When I'm Sixty-Four," "With a Little Help From My Friends," and the title song, The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band has been designated "the most important rock and roll album ever made" by Rolling Stone magazine. Toronto's Art of Time Ensemble brings this iconic collection to life in a fusion of high art and pop culture that reveals the universal and timeless qualities that lie at the heart of all great music.

The Vienna Boys Choir - Christmas in Vienna

Saturday, December 12, 2015 at 8pm

Tickets: $36-$45

This illustrious group of young musicians has been delighting music lovers across the globe for six centuries with their purity of tone, distinctive charm, and crowd-pleasing repertoire. Christmas in Vienna showcases these gifted musicians in an extraordinary program featuring Austrian folk songs, classical masterpieces, popular songs and, of course, holiday favorites.

The Colonial Nutcracker

Sunday, December 13, 2015 at 2pm

Tickets: $18

An annual holiday favorite, Dance Theatre in Westchester performs its family-friendly, full-length version of Tchaikovsky's ballet set in wintry colonial Yorktown, complete with a red-coated mouse army, an enchanted nutcracker prince, and simultaneous narration to help young audience members enjoy this timeless classic.

Step Afrika!

Saturday, January 23, 2016 at 2pm

Tickets: $20

Experience Step Afrika!, the world's first professional company dedicated to stepping, a unique art form born at African American fraternities and based in rich African traditions. Incorporating intricate rhythmic patterns of kicks, stomps, claps, and chants, the dancers use their bodies as instruments, creating an enthralling, high-energy performance that has been praised by The Village Voice as "a jubilation of rhythm and spirit that harks back to the essence of dancing."

Third Annual
Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company
Lunar New Year Celebration - Year of the Monkey

Sunday, January 31, 2016 at 3pm

Tickets: $25/$12.50 (children 12 and under)

Brooklyn Center is thrilled to partner once again with the prestigious Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company in an all-new celebration of Chinese arts and culture commemorating the Year of the Monkey, a year characterized by cleverness, curiosity, and playful mischief. Thrilling choreography, traditional music, and dazzling acrobats showcase the rich traditions of one of Brooklyn's most vibrant communities at this festive, family-friendly event.

Moscow Festival Ballet

Romeo and Juliet / Carmen Suite

Saturday, March 5, 2016 at 8pm

Tickets: $36-$45
The power of love and the finality of death collide as two of the greatest tragic masterpieces of all time are reinvented in this double-bill of one-act ballets. The program begins with a new restaging of Shakespeare's tragedy Romeo and Juliet, set to the music of Tchaikovsky and choreographed by legendary Bolshoi principal dancer Elena Radchenko. This is followed by Alberto Alonso's fiery Carmen Suite, inspired by Bizet's sensuous and spirited opera.
Golden Dragon Acrobats

Sunday, March 13, 2016 at 3pm

Tickets: $25/$12.50 (children 12 and under)

Recognized internationally as today's premier Chinese acrobatic touring company, The Golden Dragons combine award-winning acrobatics, spectacular costumes, and ancient and contemporary music and theatrical techniques to present an unforgettable show of breathtaking skill and beauty, representing the best of a time honored tradition that began more than twenty five centuries ago.

The Robert Glasper Trio

Saturday, March 19, 2016 at 8pm

Tickets: $35

More than ten years after making his debut at the legendary Blue Note, 2015 Grammy-winning pianist Robert Glasper graces the Whitman stage with an intimate concert combining original jazz compositions and selections from his June 2015 album Covered, which draws from some of Glasper's favorite songs by artists including Joni Mitchell, John Legend, and Radiohead.

Darlene Love

Saturday, April 2, 2016 at 8pm

Tickets: $40

Pop icon Darlene Love has been captivating audiences worldwide for decades with her warmth, grace, and electrifying performances.  She has sung with legends including Marvin Gaye, Elvis Presley, and Aretha Franklin, lit up the Broadway stage in such musicals as Grease and Hairspray, and was featured in the 2014 Academy Award-winning documentary 20 Feet From Stardom. From her No. 1 hit, "He's A Rebel," to her induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, she continues to blaze a trail of success, proving why Rolling Stone magazine calls her "one of the greatest singers of all time."

Rhythm Revue: A Latin Soul Celebration
Featuring Joe Bataan and DJ Felix Hernandez
Saturday, April 9, 2016 at 8pm

Tickets: $25

Renowned DJ/producer Felix Hernandez, creator and host of the widely popular Rhythm Revue radio show and dance parties, teams up with the "King of Latin Soul," Joe Bataan, for an evening of live music and DJ'ing that celebrates the musical genre known as Latin Soul and Boogaloo. Originating in Spanish Harlem in the 1960s, this fusion of mambo and Latin jazz with African American R&B, soul, and doo-wop resulted in a highly danceable and distinctively urban form of music that reflects the amazing multicultural fabric of New York City.

Regina Carter's Southern Comfort

Saturday, April 16, 2016 at 8pm
Tickets: $35
Violin virtuoso and MacArthur fellow Regina Carter is considered the foremost jazz violinist of her generation, putting her indelible stamp on collaborations with artists as diverse as Wynton Marsalis, Mary J. Blige, and Dolly Parton. Her latest recording, titled Southern Comfort, pays a tender tribute to her paternal grandfather, an Alabama coal miner, as it draws from Appalachian fiddle tunes, church hymns, and the joyous Southern folk music that infused her childhood.

Clifford the Big Red Dog™ - LIVE!

Sunday, April 17, 2016 at 2pm
Tickets: $18
Embark on a new adventure with loveable Clifford, the big red dog with the heart of gold. Based on the classic children's books by Norman Bridwell, this brand new musical celebrates the timeless values of sharing, respect, and cooperation.

Ninth Annual National Grid Earth Day Celebration

Sunday, April 17, 2016 at 3pm
Tickets: FREE event, no tickets issued

Children and adults alike will enjoy live music, arts and crafts, and street performers at this free community festival, where interactive family activities highlight the need to create a more sustainable future and care for the earth.

Straighten Up & Fly Right: The Nat King Cole Tribute
Featuring Ramsey Lewis and John Pizzarelli

Sunday, May 1, 2016 at 3pm
Tickets: $40
As a singer, Nat King Cole was called "the best friend a song ever had," but he was essentially a jazz performer at heart. Three-time Grammy Award-winning pianist Ramsey Lewis and singer/guitarist John Pizzarelli join forces in this tribute to the titan of fifties vocal pop, performing favorites including "Route 66," "Mona Lisa," "Unforgettable," and more.

Alexander, Who's Not Not Not Not Not Not Going to Move
Sunday, May 15, 2016 at 2pm
Tickets: $12
The rest of Alexander's family is moving a thousand miles away, but there's NO way Alexander is going to leave his best friend, his favorite babysitter, or all the places and people he's known all his life. Never. Not ever. No way! Based on Judith Vorst's best-selling Alexander... series, this new family musical teaches us home isn't a house or a place on a map-it's wherever you are when you're with the people who love you.

Multibuy discounts (four or more shows) save 15% off individual ticket prices (not applicable for The Snow Maiden or Alexander, Who's Not... Going to Move). Multibuyers enjoy flexible ticket exchanges and discounted parking for purchased performances. 50% discount for children ages 12 and under for select performances. Discounts also available for seniors, students, Brooklyn College faculty/staff/alumni, and groups. $10 student rush tickets available day-of-show.

For more details, please visit: BrooklynCenter.org

Manhattan Youth Ballet Announces Fall Auditions - September 9, 2015

Manhattan Youth Ballet will hold Fall Auditions on Wednesday, September 9, 2015.

  • Audition class schedule is Ages 7-9: 4:00-4:45pm, Ages 10-12: 4:45-6:00pm, and Ages 13 & up: 6:00-7:30pm.
  • Dancers should arrive 30 minutes prior to their audition class. 
  • Registration opens at 3:15pm.
  • Audition fees are $30 pre-registration and $35 on day of registration.
  • Pre registration forms are available at www.manhattanyouthballet.org.
  • Dancers must bring a headshot and first arabesque photo.

For more information, visit www.manhattanyouthballet.org.

ChEckiT!Dance announces Fifth Annual ChEck Us OuT Dance Festival

NOTE- THIS EVENT IS RESCHEDULED TO: Sunday, July 19, 2015, 5pm

ChEckiT!Dance presents the fifth annual ChEck Us OuT Dance Festival: A Celebration of Female Choreographers, an eco-friendly evening of dance celebrating female choreographers, at Solar One on the East River, NYC.

Admission is free.

The evening will include works from more than 10 female choreographers, at various stages in their careers, from across the United States and abroad.

Presenting Choreographers/Companies include:

  • Cindy Sosa
  • Joya Powell/Movement of the People Dance Company
  • Jessie Sector/Tangent Dance
  • MJ/Innovate Dance
  • Bridge & Olive Dance
  • Ashley Sleeth
  • Cathy Allen/Red Desert Dance Ensemble
  • Victoria Brown/MashUp Contemporary Dance Company
  • Erica Hart
  • Jana Prager/Jana Prager Dance Theater
  • Kara Dudley/Kara Dudley Dance
  • InstaDance Collective
  • Allison Brzezinski/ChEckiT!Dance 

The fifth annual ChEck Us OuT Dance Festival sponsors include:

  • One on One NYC;
  • The Philly Knitters;
  • Speliotis Video;
  • Marcie Mauro, Speaker, Author and Intuition Coach;
  • Michael L. Campbell & Rie Poirier-Campbell; and
  • efpnyc bottlecharms.

The ChEck Us OuT Dance Festival is the culmination of all of ChEckiT!Dance's efforts to increase performance opportunities for female dance makers. This annual outdoor festival, now in its fifth year, is curated and produced by ChEckiT! Dance each July.  Summit Rock in Central Park has been the home of the past four festivals.  This year, the festival will be held at Solar One! on the East River. The ChEck Us OuT Dance Festival is a platform designed specifically to provide female choreographers the opportunity to share their work with an eager audience. The work is enriching, lively, and thrilling, and the eclectic styles of dance presented by performers hailing from all corners of the globe, builds a truly global community of female dance artists. In addition, the ChEck Us OuT Dance Festival is entirely green and entirely free of admission, providing access for all.

For more information visit www.checkitdance.com or email checkitdance@gmail.com.