Elisa Monte Dance in Joe Celej’s Portals and Passageways, Photo: Matthew Murphy

Elisa Monte never fails to surprise me and the surprise for this year’s performance at the Ailey Citigroup Theater was Unstable Ground. When Unstable Ground premiered in 2012, I thought it an interesting work, it was good, but not as good as what I knew Ms. Monte is capable of creating.

But that was a year ago. When a choreographer creates and premieres a new work it is done for more than the audience to witness. The first performances are the testing, the evaluating, it is when the choreographer sits back and sees the work in full performance. In essence, when a new work is premiered it is not till a year later that you truly get the finished work.

Clymene Baugher & Prentice Whitlow in Elisa Monte’s Unstable Ground, Photo: Matthew Murphy

Well, Unstable Ground was a year old and what a difference that year made. Unstable Ground has the emotional depth and intelligence that has been a hallmark of Ms. Monte’s works since the creation of Treading in 1979.

Lois V. Vierk’s Red Shift is used as the score; with its sliding tones of one off the other it immediately lends a sense of movement, a sense of shifting transitions. Unstable Ground, explores the feeling of universal instability permeating the world due to unexpected shifts in our environment and economy.

Elisa Monte Dance in Elisa Monte’s Terra Firma, Photo: Matthew Murphy

The movement of Unstable Ground reflects just that, a constant shifting of the body’s weight in space and questing limbs reaching out. Dancers come together and join into complex knots, always moving, always seeking a way out only to become entangled again. It is an outstanding work that explores not just movement but also the transitions into those movements. A year can make a lot of difference after a new work is premiered and this evidenced by the growth and maturity of Unstable Ground.

Ms. Monte latest work, Terra Firma also looks at shifts and transitions but in a slightly different manner. Working with composer Rubin Kodheli whose score was inspired by the music of Meredith Monk, Terra Firma is a requiem to the many friends and colleagues who have passed on but are still present in Ms. Monte’s accumulated memories.

Elisa Monte Dance in Tiffany Rae-Fisher’s Identity, Photo: Matthew Murphy

While Terra Firma does have a certain darkness to it there are also moments of hope and intimacy. The male quartet performed by Prentice Whitlow, Joe Celej, Ricardo Battaglia and Justin Lynch was one of the many highlights of the evening. Couples both male-female and same-sex would come together with a blend of passion and tenderness that spilled over the stage.

Tiffany Rae-Fisher’s Identity featured new music by Kevin Keller and explores the many aspects of who we are as opposed to how we are perceived by others. Lisa Peluso has a fluidity and strength of movement that makes her every moment of stage memorable. She is at the center of a group of dancers who alter, prohibit or seek to entangle her moves. She remains separate from them and their attempts, keeping true to who she is as opposed to who they seem to perceive her as.

Elisa Monte Dance in Joe Celej’s Portals and Passageways, Photo: Matthew Murph

Joe Celej’s Portals and Passageways, with music by Amina, proposes that memories are like ghosts, distorted and haunting, and ever so gradually fading away. Clymene Baugher was beautiful as she moved through a series of dreamlike scenes, independent in her choices and confident in choosing her own fate.

The Elisa Monte Dance Company has again shown New York City why it is in such high demand in the dance venues around the world. The company’s work is always solid and each dancer in the company stands out as a soloist in their own right.

Elisa Monte Dance 32^nd Anniversary Season performances Thursday April 11^th through Saturday April 13^th at the Ailey Citigroup Theater.  The program has past repertory including Run to the Rock, Volkmann Suite (excerpt), and Unstable Ground.  We will also present three premieres; Portals & Passageways by Joe Celej, Identity by Tiffany Rea-Fisher, and Terra Firma by Elisa Monte.

The Annual EMD Gala will be held on Friday April 12^th and will include a special performance lineup, followed by dinner and reception at Le Parker Meridien.

April 11 – 13, 2013

Tickets are available online for purchase through

Smart Tix.

Prices for performances range from $15 – $50.

Tickets for the Saturday matinee are $15 for general admission.

Thursday & Saturday performance tickets are $25.

Gala night performance-only tickets are $50.

Gala Tickets & Info email info@elisamontedance.org.

Elisa Monte Dane, Photo by Roy Volkman

The Ailey Citigroup Theater’s Joan Weill Center for Dance

405 W. 55th St., on the corner of 9thAve.

New York, New York

American Dance Guild Gala & Performance Festival 2012
September 6-9, 2012

Thursday, September 6 @ 8:00 pm (followed by reception)
Friday, September 7 @ 8:00pm
Saturday, September 8 @ 8:00pm
Sunday, September 9 @ 7:00pm

Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theater
The Joan Weill Center for Dance
405 W. 55th Street (at 9th Avenue)
Subways: A, C, E, D, B and 1 to 59th St.
R,N,Q to 57th St.

ADG Performance Festival 2012 presents 32 artists from around the globe along with tributes to two modern masters.

Admission:
Gala

$30, $25/ADG Members, Students, Seniors.  

Group rate: $22/person for groups of 10 or more in advance

Friday-Sunday:

$22, $17/ADG Members, Students, Seniors. 

Group rate: $15/person for groups of 10 or more in advance.

Festival Pass:  

$50 general/$45 Members, Students, Seniors.  

Add $10 for Gala

Reservations: 800-838-3006 ext.#1

and/orwww.brownpapertickets.com/event/253476

American Dance Guild’s annual performance festival offers a unique view of the rich diversity of contemporary modern dance. The Opening Night Gala on Thursday September 6th celebrates two highly distinguished leaders of modern dance

Elaine Summers & Dianne McIntyre

Elaine Summers will present “Windows in the Kitchen,” a 1976 intermedia work with Douglas Dunn performing live with composer/performer Jon Gibson, alongside dancer Matt Turney on film.“Windows in the Kitchen,” will be presented on Thursday & Friday

Dianne McIntyre will present “Life’s Force,” a signature work of Sounds in Motion, the first company she formed in NYC in 1972 which became known for innovative work in dance and live music. Jazz trumpeter Ahmed Abdullah leads the band and a cast of 12-20 members old and new who will joining in this celebratory reunion performance to mark the 40th anniversary of Sound in Motion. “Life’s Force” will be Presented on Thursday & Saturday.

John Pennington “Dances Before God” Photo byTammy Abbott

Other highlights include on Thursday night, John Pennington (virtuosic Bella Lewitzky soloist now running his own company in Pasadena, CA) will perform “Dances Before God “ of Harald Kreutzberg, the legendary German dancer whose performance galvanized both Jose Limon and Erick Hawkins to pursue professional dancing;

Molissa Fenley duet. Photo Ian Douglas

-Two features on Sunday’s program are Molissa Fenley performing a duet “100 Vessels;” and Joseph Mills in “Circlewalker”, a breathtaking solo with moving sculpture.

As well, the Festival boasts a host of artists from emerging to mid-career reflecting the ADG’s unique position as both promoter of the new and preserver of the living history of Modern Dance as an art form.

Each evening in the lobby videos of works by

Elaine Summers & Dianne McIntyre will be shown.

American Dance Guild has served the dance field in many capacities over the past 56 years, including conferences, festivals & publications. This festival continues the Guild tradition of bringing together artists from across the nation and internationally for performances and master classes. ADG offers performance opportunities that range from gala productions to bare-bones and on-site events. In addition, it serves members through an annual Student Scholarship for summer study at Jacob’s Pillow, scholarly resources such as the New Dance Group Gala Video and publications such as Branching Out: Oral Histories of Six National Dance Organizations and Dance Scope. ADG has an interactive website www.americandanceguild.org.

"Unstable Ground" Elisa Monte Dance Photo by Tim Townsend Photography

The 2012 season at The Ailey Citigroup Theatre of the Elisa Monte Dance was the company’s 31^st anniversary season. The performances offered  the world premieres of  three new pieces, “Unstable Ground,” with commissioned music by Lois Vierk; “In Absentia” featuring new music by Kevin Keller; and “Outside In” with original music by Ben Doyle, as well the revival of “Pigs and Fishes” (1982) and an excerpt from “Amor Fait” (1999).

Seeing “Pigs and Fishes” again was like seeing an old friend unexpectedly, you do not realize how much you missed them till you see them. First commissioned by Alvin Ailey for his company in 1982, it has become, along with Treading, a signature work of Ms. Monte. Set to the music of Glenn Branca, it is a testament to Ms. Monte’s commitment to innovation in movement.

Lisa Peluso was superb; with Glenn Branca’s pulsating score as her guide she commanded the stage. With one arming moving from side to side, her body undulating as she stepped first forward and then back, she clasps her hands over her head and spins only to repeat the movements again. Ms. Peluso seemed to pull the music into her body and then exploring it with her soul. Pigs and Fishes is one of the great hallmarks of contemporary dance in America.

Early in her career Ms. Monte was encouraged and mentored by both Alvin Ailey and Martha Graham, and in that mode of encouragement and mentorship she is “strongly committed to identifying and nurturing new talent”. Joe Celej and Tiffany Rea-Fisher are both fortunate recipients of Ms. Monte’s commitment.

"Outside In" Elisa Monte Dance Photo by Tim Townsend Photography

Outside In, choreographed by company member Joe Celej with original music by Ben Doyle is a work for three dancers, Clymene Baugher, Liz Beres and Prentice Winslow.  The stage opens and it is subtly lit and slightly foggy, Mr. Winslow is seated as he cradles Ms. Beres and Ms. Baugher with great intimacy. It is a dance that is tender and gentle.  The three dancers are always touching; if one separates they are pulled back as if the three were and always will be a whole. The work is a sculptural and intimate exploration of our relationships with one another.

The dancers’ movements are mirrored by real time video that is being projected on the screen behind them. The video is fuzzy, lacking the ability to determine features, but still there is brightness to the imagery. It’s as if there are ghosts dancing in the background, it is a startling and brilliant effect.

In Absentia choreographed by the company’s Associate Artistic Director Tiffany Rae-Fisher is the exploration of romantic relationship and timing. It expounds upon the quote ““If I never met you, I wouldn’t like you. If I didn’t like you, I wouldn’t love you. If I didn’t love you, I wouldn’t miss you. But I did, I do, and I will.”

There is social commentary here, people looking for a connection to another. It is a work for six dancers with Joe Celej and Clymene Baugher as the central couple. They are two lovers who at times seemed to have trouble communicating, not always seeing eye to eye, but still remembering they love each other. The three couples try to resolve there differences, they separate but still move in sync; seeking the moment they can move as one again. In the end, Ms. Baugher leaps into Mr. Celej arms remembering what is at the core of their relationship.

"In Absentia" Elisa Monte Dance Photo by Tim Townsend Photography

The premiers of both Mr. Celej’s and Ms. Rae-Fishers works were made possible by the commission of Carolyn Dilworth and the Junior Board of Elisa Monte Dance through their New Choreographers Fund, which seems to promise the work of young choreographers into the company’s future repertory.

Unstable Ground, Elisa Monte’s newest work “explores the feeling of universal instability permeating the world due to unexpected shifts in our environment and economy”. The work is centered on its use of the floor, Chivas Merchant-Buckman lies on stage, Mr. Celej rolls on to meet him and they begin a duet that is both somber and beautiful.

As one dancer rolls on stage the other dancers as a unit roll towards them and they are absorbed into the group that has become a wreathing knot of movement. They move as if they are a single entity, shifting across the stage. Standing they separate into pairs, the women being lifted or climbing on the men as the dance builds in intensity, the movements growing larger.

We see the dancers shadows projected on the back wall, giving the work greater depth. Occasionally a dancer seems as if they are in conflict and try to break away from the group only to meet resistance by the others.

Unstable Ground, with original music by Lois Vierk, highlights our dependency on structures, both natural and manmade, that no longer may be able to help sustain our current way of life.

Elisa Monte utilizes her movement vocabulary to search for deeper understanding of the human experience. She is unafraid to express what she finds, whether it be positive or disturbing, but it is always original and will always make you think.

MADboots dance co. Photo by Miguel Anaya

Cool New York Dance Festival is a two-week dance extravaganza with a mixture of 60 choreographers and dance companies. They presented 64 original works with 295 performers from across the United States and abroad. It takes place in DUMBO (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass) at the John Ryan Theater. Of the eight programs plus 2 days for family matinees, I was fortunate to be able to witness Program H.

MADboots dance co. Photo by Miguel Anaya

To open the program was MADboots dance co., the brain child of Jonathan Campbell and Austin Diaz. What an opening it was indeed! They seemed as dark twins dressed in all black as they performed a duet entitled “and they say romance is dead”. Filled with unexpected movements, small gestures and intense bouts of athleticism, it was a portrait of a relationship that was at war with itself, a seeming constant battle of functional versus dysfunctional. Campbell and Diaz’s movements are intuitive and not over analyzed, they take everyday gestures and break it down to its base functions, than exploring and expanding, creating new meaning and new vocabularies of movement. At the end, Diaz’s solo was both haunting and real in its quiet expressiveness as he backs off the stage in his tidy whiteys and his tee-shirt pulled over his head to Elvis Presley’s Love Me Tender.

Situ, Inc Photo by Miguel Anaya

Situ, Inc in Real and Burrowed Personas was a study in the workings of the creative process. Choreographed by Elaine Shipman with text written and performed by Austin Alexis, it exposes the inner landscape of the artist mind. The essence of art is questioned; the relationship between master and student, maestro and muse is explored. It is an abstract and multi-layered, flows and develops as voices and movement grow. It is a valuable piece of dance.

Cori Marquis & Alexander Dones Photo by Miguel Anaya

F=Gm1m2/r^2 (Universal law of Gravitation) choreographed by Cori Marquis and Alexander Dones was a powerhouse of a performance. It was haunting and arresting and possessed an intensity that was sensual and passionate. Filled with daring partnering that was based on a joint trust that was evident. This is a very personal journey we are witnessed, she trust him and he is always there for her.

Joe Celej’s Echoes and Coral was a solo danced exquisitely by Robert Moore. Filled with strong athleticism, Mr. Celej is willing to bend the rules, he is willing to explore and express. Echoes and Corals was a piece of majestic masculinity, mystery and daring.

F Train Choreography by Joe Celej Damced by Robert Moore

Special Thanks to Miguel Anaya for the Photos

MiguelAnaya.com

MADboots dance co.

 Choreography: Jonathan Campbell & Austin Diaz

Music: Nancy Sinatra

CoolNY Dance Festival 2012

All performances will be held at WHITE WAVE’s John Ryan Theater,

located at 25 Jay Street in DUMBO.

Subway directions: F to York Street, or A or C to High Street. For driving directions

Performance Schedule

Elisa Monte Dance Photo by Roy Volkman

I was invited to Elisa Monte Dance Fall Showing and what a treat it was. Held at 890 Broadway at Gina Gibney Dance, the fall showing was an opportunity to present excerpts from three of the company’s 2012 premiere pieces plus the viewing of the resurrection of Pigs and Fishes, a work original commissioned by Alvin Ailey.

The evening began with company member Joe Celej’s newest chorographic endeavor, set to the music of Ben Doyle, a work as yet untitled. Set as a trio it begins in silence, the dancers’ movements are slow and sensual, hands on legs than expanding to more of the body, an act of exploration. Mr. Celej investigates the body’s capacity for movement and as a canvas for expressive architecture.  The dancers come together and reject each other, at times, the bodies are utilized as if a child’s jungle gym, exploring and pushing new shapes.  The work has great feeling and exhibits both connectedness and loss.

Pigs & Fishes Photo by Joyce Dopkeen The New York Times

The next offering was the beginning solo from Pigs and Fishes; choreographed by Ms. Monte in 1982 with Music by Glenn Branca. Pigs and Fishes was the first major commission for Elisa Monte; the signature piece was commissioned by Alvin Ailey for his legendary troupe. The solo was danced superbly by Lisa Peluso, who seemed consumed by the pulsing rhythms and undulating movements. It is hypnotic and captivating. I have seen the piece dance by Ms. Monte and must say that Ms. Peluso does both the choreographer and the dance great justice.

Tiffany Rea-Fisher, the company’s assistant artistic director is also presenting a new work. It is also at the moment untitled, set to the music of Kevin Keller. Ms. Rea-Fishers choreography is always a delight. The piece, being a work in progress, at the moment begins in silence, starting as a duet that becomes a solo, then changes to three pairs of dancers on the stage. The dance is fluid in its musicality and athleticism. The dancers slide and roll, with legs extended and arms turning. There are moments of conflict and resolution. The duets are strong as the dancers leap and swing each other, twisting and exploring levels of trust. There is a great sense of humanism in the work.

Elisa Monte Dance Photo by Roy Folkman

The culmination of the evening was Ms. Monte’s newest work. The working title for the piece is Unstable Ground, set to music by Lois Vienk. I have long stated that Shattered is my favorite piece in Ms. Monte’s repertoire. This new piece may challenge that! The piece begins with Prentice Whitlow on the floor with Joe Celej slowly rolling onto the stage, Mr. Whitlow reaches out to him and they begin a delicious duet with Mr.Celej climbing and eventually laying across Mr. Whitlow’s shoulders. Others slowly roll on to the stage and begin to touch and join with pulses of exploration. The partners are mysterious and unexpected in their movements, coming together and separating only to rejoin with someone else. There is assistance with lifting of the dancers by other dancers. At one point it is as if they are a root system, they are conjoined with no beginning or ending in evidence. One is not sure where one body begins and another stops. All the time the piece builds in tempo and passion into a pounding energy that must be released. Even as a partially finished piece, it is a work of intensity and excitement that will be another jewel within Ms. Monte’s repertory.

The New York season for Elisa Monte Dance will be at the 

Ailey Citigroup Theater

April 12-14th

Elisa Monte – Artistic Directory

Tiffany Rea-Fisher – Assistant Artistic Director

Dancers

Clymene Baugher

Liz Beres

Joe Celej

Chivas Merchant-Buckman

Lisa Peluso

Hsing-Hua Wang

Prentice Whitlow

Maria Ambrose (apprentice)

Lisa Borres (apprentice)

Lisa Greenberg (apprentice)

Elisa Monte Dance
481 Eighth Avenue, Suite 543
New York, New York 10001
Phone: 212 868-4488
Fax: 212 868-4494
info@elisamontedance.org

Dancer Kiki Lucas; Photography by Ben Doyle, Runaway Productions

Serving up the menu of a mixed program can be tricky. I’ve seen what goes on in the background on the reality show Hell’s Kitchen. There’s a science to arranging dishes and getting them out on time. Open the oven too early and the soufflé drops. Houston Metropolitan Dance Company cooked up a flavorful bill of fare on Saturday night when they tried Mixing It Up, Again.

As usual in my case, the dessert course was the highlight. Delivering the strongest male performance of the evening, Kerry Jackson is trapped in a box of light. His passionate tirade in Consumed, an introduction to Kate Skarpetowska’s slightly scary world of driven conformists. Leaping from the stage he escapes an army of “suits” that urge surrender to their worker bee mentality. A Julliard alumni, Skarpetowska has danced for David Parsons, Lar Lubovitch, and newly named Alvin Ailey Artistic Director, Robert Battle. These influences are clear in athletic choreography, rich with human peculiarities. The work captivated through to a humorously disturbing finish. An odd sort of dessert I suppose, this was Houston Met at its most gritty and menacing, in no small part aided by Meredith Monk’s eccentric vocals and a pulsating score by Richie Hawthine. Dramatic and robust, the supercharged work accentuated the company’s prime attributes. Not a bad way to send the audience out the door… appetite satiated.

A patchwork of lyrically stirring appetizers, Braham Logan Crane’s History introduced the full company. The piece though, did not come into its own until the majority dispersed and sheer curtains of fabric rained down on female soloists, Kiki Lucas, Lisa Wolff, and Jocelyn Thomas. The choreography twines and twirls around a pristine vocal/piano by Angela Ai, a singer-songwriter with inflections akin to Tori Amos and Kate Bush. The dancers’ performances tightened during the latter half of this collection of excerpts as the songs build to a joyous finish. Joe’l Ludovich and Will Matthews’ well-coordinated visuals of ancient rock, architecture, and surging water filled the expanse of the Cullen stage.

In Kiesha Lalama White’s Unsung Moment, Marlana Walsh-Doyle, Terrill Mitchell, and Lucas depicted fear, denial, and confrontation (respectively) with clarity in this study of the underlying emotional conflicts provoked by war. Unfortunately, odd choices in projection and musical transition were occasionally disruptive.

The optimist in me lost the internal bet I’d waged that a work titled Bound would not include a tether. Convention aside, Houston Met veterans Walsh-Doyle and Lucas are engaging performers and this duet by Joe Celej did not overstay its welcome.

In her turn as choreographer, Lucas infused Semi Detached with powerhouse moves and grooves. There is meticulous structure reinforcing this clever battle for control over a chair. A short, sweet sorbet, Pattie Obey’s Passada provided a tinge of romance, its sensual rhythms kindling a triangle of longing and flirtation.

These four world premieres were diverse enough in scope and theme to keep Houston Metropolitan Dance Company’s full-course meal interesting and the program zipping along.

Reprinted from Dance Source Houston