Lavagnino's romance

Cherylyn Lavagnino Dance presents three dances by the richly talented Lavagnino this week in its DANCE: Access program at Danspace Project. It's a 90-minute evening filled with some of the loveliest choreography and performing I've seen this season.

Ménage, a serene and sensual nocturne from 2009, establishes the Lavagnino look: dancers with ravishing, expressive arms and torsos firmly anchored below, the women in pointes that, deployed sparingly, turn them into classical sheroes rather than classical sprites. Lavagnino shows us women's strength even in the midst of beautiful, musical imagery and romantic rapture. Partnering ideas run to the eccentric, resembling nothing you've seen before, except, perhaps, a forest's tangle of fallen limbs. Bit by bit, tints and washes of character and story flow through the space--not so distinct as to be distracting, just romantic impressions. But we meet these impressions with a rush of human feeling equal to their own. The choreographer and performers (coached in acting by Kay Cummings) build up this sensation of individual lives and narratives with fine attention to detail and remarkable technique. Somehow, they manage to transform a performance space into a THEATER, with all the heightened magic implied, and chief among them in this witchery is Laura Mead.

The recent Deax en Peu duet finds an attentive Joshua Palmer under the sway of a noirish glamour puss (Selina Chau) whose clockwork-like approach to the musical cues (Schubert's Andante con moto, Trio in E Flat Major) gives this piece real bite. I hope I was reading something of Chau's character, not the dancer herself, in her sealed-off manner, because I thought the duet was missing the chemistry that's so clear in most of the interactions in Ménage. But that might be a deliberate move. Matters end with Palmer (wonderful in all of Lavagnino's work as elsewhere) kneeling close by as Chau settles into her final preening pose. He turns his head slightly to cast a dazed glance in a different direction, as if thinking, "What was THAT all about?"


ABOVE: Trailer for Ménage

BELOW: Duet from Triptych performed by Laura Mead and Justin Flores


In accord with the scrumptious live music and countertenor singing in Triptych, the world premiere, Lavagnino's dancers breathe life and authenticity into every movement and interaction. The work's choral work, costuming and decor (the last, by artist Betsy Weis, evoking hazy, rural graces) seem, to me, a subtle homage to the ancestral era of modern dance. I think you will find this new work intriguing and satisfying.

With dancing by Sarah Bek, Michael G. Cameron, Selina Chau,  Justin Flores, Giovanna Gamna, Christine McMillan, Laura Mead, Joshua Palmer, Samuel Swanton, Claire Westby and Eric Williams

Live musical ensemble for Triptych includes Jane Chung (baroque violin), Kenneth Hamrick (musical director; organ, harpsicord), Paula Rand (baroque bassoon), Motomi Igarashi-de Jong (viola da gamba), Andrew Trombley (basse de violon) Eric S. Brenner (counter tenor) and Nicholas Tamagna (counter tenor)

Lighting by Kathy Kauffman

Lavagnino's show continues tonight and Saturday at 8pm. For information, click here. Purchase tickets here or by calling 866-811-4111. Bring your hand fan. In hot weather, it can get slightly steamy inside St. Marks.

Danspace Project
St. Mark's Church
131 East 10th Street (2nd Avenue), Manhattan
(directions)

Job Opening: work for iLAND

Part-Time Managing & Program Director Sought

Application deadline: July 15

iLAND is seeking a part-time Managing & Program Director to lead the organization into its next phase of programmatic growth. A perfect opportunity for an enthusiastic and motivated not-for-profit manager interested in contemporary dance and environmental issues, the position will involve working with renowned choreographer Jennifer Monson as well as support staff. The ideal candidate will be able to work independently and take initiative, yet work within a strong team to expand the organization's programs and services in the areas of rural residencies, international residencies, mentorship, environmental justice, interdisciplinary collaboration, and partnerships with both cultural and environmental organizations. This is an exceptional chance for someone with a long-term view to create a strong platform for an organization poised to expand its visibility and impact. The position will initially be part-time with the goal of increasing the budget significantly towards a full time role.

Responsibilities:
    Oversight of organizational operations including fundraising, budgeting and financial management and communications;
    Management of the annual iLAB residency program;
    Development and management of the annual iLAND symposium;
    Production of the creative work of Artistic Director Jennifer Monson.

Qualifications:

    Minimum 2-3 years training and experience in management in the performing arts and/or environmental science;
    Excellent organizational, administrative and computer skills;
    Ability to work both independently and as part of a team;
    Passion for and/or work experience in the area of environmental activism, research, science or policy;
    Excellent oral and written communication skills;
    Ability to initiate and nurture relationships with a variety of people from different backgrounds and fields;including but not limited to scientists, artists and advocacy groups;
    Proficiency with a range of MAC-based computer software;
    Communication skills via social media;
    A great sense of humor.

For additional information on iLAND's programs, visit www.ilandart.org.

Salary commensurate with experience.

Application deadline: July 15th

Please email a resume, three references and cover letter with Managing Director as the subject of your email to info@ilandart.org

Interviews will take place between July 20-22 with final candidates' interviews on August 6-7.

The Bessie Awards to hold cocktail party and press conference

An announcement from The New York Dance and Performance Awards (The Bessies) in partnership with Dance/NYC

The Bessie Awards Steering Committee--Cora Cahan, Beverly D'Anne, Lane Harwell, Judy Hussie-Taylor, Carla Petterson, Elizabeth Streb, Martin Wechsler, and Reggie Wilson--invite you to an evening of cocktails and hors d'oeuvres.

Immediately following the Cocktail Party, all nominees of the 2011/2012 award year will be announced at a Press Conference, and the Juried Bessie Award will be presented.

Wednesday, July 18 (5pm-7pm)

French Institute Alliance Française
Le Skyroom
22 East 60th Street (between Park and Madison Avenues), Manhattan
 
Tickets are $50 and can be purchased here.

Yvonne Rainer, Lar Lubovitch, and Jawole Willa Jo Zollar will announce their choice for the Juried Bessie Award. This jury of acclaimed choreographers is chosen each year by the Bessie Steering Committee. Together they have chosen a single work or a choreographer that exhibits the most interesting and exciting ideas happening in dance in New York City today. The honored dance maker will tour their work to one or more regional theaters outside the city.

This annual affair has become one of the most anticipated dance events in New York City.

The Bessie committees look forward to raising a glass with you!

The New York Dance and Performance Awards, aka The Bessie Awards, have saluted outstanding dance work since 1984. They were founded by David White and named for the treasured teacher of dance and composition, Bessie Schonberg. The 2012 awards ceremony will be held October 15, 2012 at the legendary Apollo Theater.

Dance/NYC is a branch of the national dance service organization Dance/USA. Dance/NYC's mission is to bolster the support structure for dance in New York City-serving as a voice, guide, and infrastructure architect for all local dance artists and managers.

Dancer Nora Chipaumire: exile and identity

Irene Borger, Director of the Alpert Award in the Arts, has posted a new interview with the brilliant, charismatic Nora Chipaumire, 2012 Alpert winner for Dance.

Meet Marjuan Canady. She's almost every woman.

Marjuan Canady

Girls! Girls? Girls.

Read that a few times in different ways.

Or maybe read it ten times to account for the ten Black women that actress/playwright/producer Marjuan Canady deftly transforms herself into in her one-woman play, Girls! Girls? Girls. Presented tomorrow night by Sepia Works at Harlem Stage, Canady's satirical show "critiques the power of the media, celebrity culture and challenges society’s negative notions of black female identity."

Directed by Noelle Ghoussaini

On two programs showcasing new works by Harlem Stage's commissioned artists who include:

June 27 Amma Whatt, Roberto Villanueva and Maurice Chestnut
June 28 Maija Garcia, Canady and Eric Lockley

For further information and ticketing for these Fund for New Work shows, visit Harlem Stage's Web site here.

For more information on Marjuan Canady, click here.

Harlem Stage: The Gatehouse
150 Convent Avenue (West 135th Street), Manhattan
(directions)