Bausch troupe eyes the future

The Next Steps for the House of Pina Bausch
by Daniel J. Wakin, The New York Times, July 12, 2009

Snake dance

Friction Gives Snakes A Smooth Slither
by Rachel Ehrenberg, Science News, July 4, 2009

"We are a dance band!"

Benjy Fox Rosen (left, bottom); Rima Fand (right)
(c)2009, Eva Yaa Asantewaa


Rima Fand (left), Sarah Alden (right)
(c)2009, Eva Yaa Asantewaa


Yes, they are.

That would be Brooklyn's Luminescent Orchestrii, with their waltzes for the proletariat, their mashups of klezmer and Jimi Hendrix, their transformation of what they called Andy Statman's "quiet mandolin thing" with its droning, pleasing dragginess into something raucous, their Yiddish songs that proclaim things like "I can't dance/my shoes are broken/I will dance in my socks!" These musician/singers are peppery and irresistible, and it did my heart good to see a couple of totally unselfconscious dads twirling and frolicking with their joyful tots right in front of the stage. Any band that can get a couple of (presumably straight) guys to cut loose like that will surely stir your weary ass, too.



Rima and Sarah (left); Sxip Shirey (right); Sarah (bottom)
(c)2009, Eva Yaa Asantewaa


Sxip (c)2009, Eva Yaa Asantewaa


So, if you missed today's show at World Financial Center Plaza, you can catch Luminescent Orchestrii at Celebrate Brooklyn, where they will open for the Kronos Quartet in a free show on Thursday, July 16 (7:30pm).

Check out some LO music here.

DTW looks forward

Dance Theater Workshop's 2009-2010 season will present a diverse and breathtaking spectrum of projects sure to excite and challenge audiences. Today, artistic director Carla Peterson announced her roster of participating artists, including Miguel Gutierrez and the Powerful People, Raimund Hoghe, Neal Medlyn, Tere O'Connor, Urban Bush Women, Kimberly Bartosik/daela, Bruno Beltrão/Grupo de Rua, koosil-ja/danceKUMIKO, Sahar Javedani, Yasuko Yokoshi, Faye Driscoll, Nora Chipaumire, Pat Graney Company and many others.

With reduced ticket prices, a new fee-free ticketing policy and expanded socializing/education initiatives that include a pioneering Dance Docent program, DTW hopes to make some of the world's most innovative dance enticing and accessible to far more people. Hooray!

From September 8, 2009 through June 2010, the savvy dance fan might find him- or herself tempted to set up household at DTW.

Connect with this re-energized, forward-moving DTW at its website and blog and on Twitter.

Waag taps out a space for tap

Tony Waag, director of the American Tap Dance Foundation (ATDF), has signed a 10-year lease for a studio/rehearsal space exclusively for tap--the new American Tap Dance Center. The 3000 square foot space, located on Christopher and Washington Streets, will house three studios for tap classes and rehearsals, as well as the foundation's administrative offices.

"The reality is that for more than a century, tap has fought for its place on the legitimate stage," Waag notes. "Appropriate venues where dancers, both aspiring and professional, can perfect their craft are limited. Even necessities, such as the special floor and the shoes, add to the complexity of trying to legitimize the art form. There is also the deep-seated notion that tap lacks composition and, in turn, training and artistry, because improvisation is so much a part of the art form."

ATDF is one of only a handful of dance organizations committed to ensuring that tap's great performers receive recognition, alongside the masters of ballet and modern and jazz dance.

News of the lease-signing comes as ATDF swings into its wildly-popular New York City summer festival--Tap City. For further information on Tap City events and resources, click here.

Sangare at SummerStage

Oumou Sangare - Giving Voice to Those Who Often Go Unheard
by Ben Ratliff, The New York Times, July 7, 2009

Collaboration on the "Corner"

Here are a handful of my photos from the premiere of Untitled Corner, a site-specific work by Jonah Bokaer and Judith Sánchez Ruíz (choreographers/performers) with Daniel Arsham (visual designer/performer) and Alexis Georgopoulos/ARP (original sound score).

Sitelines 09
at One Chase Manhattan Plaza

All photos (c)2009, Eva Yaa Asantewaa
InfiniteBody (http://infinitebody.blogspot.com)

Above Chase Manhattan Plaza

Jonah Bokaer & Judith Sánchez Ruíz
in “Untitled Corner”

Bokaer with Daniel Arsham


Untitled Corner will be performed again on July 10, 13 and 17 at 12:30pm and on July 8 and 15 at 7pm.

One Chase Manhattan Plaza faces Nassau Street, between Liberty and Cedar Streets. Take the 2/3/4/5 to Wall Street.

Admission is free. Chairs and other seating options are available, but come early.

Sitelines 09 is a presentation of Lower Manhattan Cultural Council and the River to River Festival.