HERE's "Bearshow"

The cozy and blessedly air-conditioned HERE Arts Center in Soho is presenting Johanna S. Meyer’s Bearshow for one more night as part of The American Living Room annual festival of emerging arts. Bearshow is described as a “humorous and allusive work that explores images of real women, from courtesans to movie stars, while focusing on the Roman myth of the Big Dipper, in which a jealous god’s wife turns his mistress into a bear.” Sandwiched between two brief one-act plays, this avant-garde duet of poetic scrambles and nonsequitors features absorbed and absorbing performances by fake-fur-clad Alejandra Martorell and Jennifer Monson, both looking as scrubbed down and down-to-earth as can be, a few indicators of the trappings of lust and luxury notwithstanding. Watching them wind their way through this dance is like linking all the stars in a constellation.

Despite New York’s rain-wracked transit troubles, the theater was packed, and seats might be once again hard to get this evening. Call 212-352-3101 after 4pm today or click HERE.

Results of "Your favorites?" poll

Your favorites?

classical ballet: 3 (25%)
contemporary ballet: 7 (58%)
ballet-modern fusion: 4 (33%)
traditional modern dance: 5 (41%)
postmodern dance: 9 (75%)
contact improvisation: 2 (16%)
African/Afro-Atlantic (e.g. Caribbean, Afro-Brazilian): 3 (25%)
flamenco: 4 (33%)
South Asian: 2 (16%)
Middle Eastern: 2 (16%)
other world dance/folk dance: 2 (16%)
jazz/Broadway: 0 (0%)
tap: 4 (33%)
Latin dancing: 5 (41%)
other social dancing: 3 (25%)
other: 2 (16%)

Votes:12
Poll closed as of 8/5/07

Memorial for Sekou Sundiata -- August 22

Two announcements from Bernadine Jennings of Attitude: The Dancers' Magazine

A special memorial for Sekou Sundiata takes place on Wednesday, August 22, 2007 (his birthdate), at Tishman Auditorium, New School University, 66 West 12th Street, exactly from 6pm to 8pm, with poets, musicians, family and friends...

African Voices magazine [africanvoices@aol.com] is looking for poems and short comments from friends and fellow artists who were influenced and inspired by Sekou Sundiata.

Publisher Carolyn Butts and Editor Layding Kaliba are looking to publish as many dedications to him as possible; therefore, no submission should be longer than 500 words. African Voices also wants to include photographs to accompany the dedications.

All submissions should be sent to African Voices [africanvoices@aol.com] no later than midnight, August 20, 2007, in order to include materials gathered in the very next issue.

Interested parties may submit materials via email and/or call African Voices at 212-865-2982.

Chi Kung with Laura Shapiro

Announcement from Laura Shapiro
quicksilverdance@yahoo.com

Dear Movers, Meditators, Healers,
 
This is to let you know about a NEW, small group, chi-based movement class for people who want individual attention and feedback as they cultivate more flexibility, strength and energy.
 
The class will be held on Friday mornings, 9-10:30am at New Dance Alliance, a lovely dance studio at 182 Duane Street, 3rd floor (walk up two flights), in Tribeca. The classes will be designed for the particular concerns and interests of the people attending and will be offered in two 6-week series: September 14-October 19 and October 26-December 7 (no class the Friday after Thanksgiving). The cost is $105 for each series, $200 if you attend both. NEW STUDENTS MAY TRY THE FIRST CLASS FOR $15. 

In addition, the Monday night class at West Side Family Pre-School, 63 West 92nd Street, will CONTINUE in September, also with two 6-week series: September 14-October 22 (no class on Columbus Day) and October 29-December 3. The cost is also $105 for each series, $200 if you attend both. NEW STUDENTS MAY TRY THE FIRST CLASS FOR $15. 
 
Below you will find more information about Chi Kung. Please let me know if you are interested in attending one of the classes and feel free to pass this on to friends and colleagues.
 
Best wishes,
Laura

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ABOUT CHI KUNG

Traditionally, in China, Chi Kung/aka Qi Gong was an intrinsic aspect of martial arts, medicine and meditation. Often translated as “life force energy practice,” Chi Kung uses separate gentle movements, specific postures and the breath to circulate and revitalize energy, improve balance and coordination, increase flexibility and cultivate inner strength of body, mind and spirit. It can be adapted for every body.
 
The full benefits of Chi Kung reveal themselves with ongoing regular practice over an extended period of time. Once the movements, postures and breathing become familiar, their repetition allows the nervous system and the muscles, the mind and emotions to calm down, generating feelings of peace, harmony and well being, and allowing us to be more fully present.

LAURA SHAPIRO is a dancer/choreographer with over three decades of experience teaching people of all ages and ability. She currently teaches for Fu-Yu International Foundation, the Center for Kinesthetic Education, the Arthritis Foundation and McBurney YMCA as well as privately.

It's a jungle in there!

You've probably missed the Wendy Osserman Dance Company--amiable and talented performers--exploring and responding to conceptual artist Federico Uribe's HUMAN NATURE exhibition at Chelsea Art Museum (August 2). But you can still see this exhibition now through August 18 and perhaps visualize some jungle-y dancing of your own amid the gallery of sculptures of wild flora, fauna, landscape and weather conditions, all imaginatively constructed from pieces of PUMA footwear. The show is irresistible and fun but tense and cautionary, too. That prowling panther has a stuffed toy monkey dangling from its jaws dripping blood made of red laces, but Uribe fully implicates humans--with our devastating effect on the environment--in that red-in-tooth-and-claw business.

Ailey bloggers

Dancer Matthew Rushing and choreographer Camille A. Brown have begun blogs about their personal experiences working with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Access these blogs by becoming an Ailey e-club member (free) at the site.

Kids take on the greats

[Editor's Note: In addition to being a dancer and choreographer, Tara O'Con is a graduate of my Spring 2007 Writing on Dance course at Dance Theater Workshop. Here's a snippet of her feature piece about Kids Company, a project of Diane Jacobowitz's Dancewave, just published in the Brooklyn Eagle. Click here for the complete article.]

clipped from www.brooklyneagle.com from "A Modern Dance Tree Grows in Brooklyn" by Tara O'Con Make no mistake, the terrain of the teenage years is nothing short of a battlefield. However, if adolescence is such a battle, then time spent with Dancewave’s Kids Company can be thought of as a cease-fire. Quite simply, when ambitious and talented teenage dancers, ages 12-18, are put into a room with a renowned professional dance artist, a transformation happens.