Theatre Speech and Dance
The Green Bird
THE
SEAGULL
THE GREEN BIRD
ANNA
KARININA
VALPARAISO
FALL DANCE CONCERT
SIX CHARACTERS IN SEARCH OF AN AUTHOR
AS FIVE YEARS PASS
SPRING DANCE CONCERT
THE SEAGULL
by Anton Chekhov
OCTOBER 10-13, 17-19, 2002 8PM October 20 3PM
STUART THEATRE
CATHERINE BRYAN DILL CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
Directed by Lowry Marshall
Set Design by Michael McGarty
Costume Design by Phillip Contic
Lighting Design by Tim Hett
CAST
(in order of appearance)
MEDVEDÉNKO Justin Slosky ‘03
MASHA Charise Smith ‘05
SÓRIN Mac Vaughey ‘03
KONSTANTÍN Lance Rubin ‘04
YÁKOV Jed Resnick ‘06
NINA Emily Young ‘03
PAULINA Vanessa Gonzalez Echarte ‘04
DORN Nicholas Hoge ‘05
SHAMRÁYEV Daveed Diggs ‘04
ARKÁDINA Stacey Yen ‘03
TRIGÓRIN Abraham Smith ‘04
COOK Caitlin Marshall ‘05
MAID Gloria Huwiler ‘06
HIRED MAN Patrick Sheehan ‘06
Time: Turn-of-the-Century, Russia
Place: The action takes place at Sorin’s country estate.
Act I On the Grounds
Act II On the Lawn
Act III In the Dining Room
Act IV The same, Two years later
There will be one ten-minute intermission between Acts II and III.
Produced by special arrangement with Helen Merrill Ltd.
Production Manager Laura E. Smith
Technical Director Tim Hett
RidiculousSublime
The first memory I have of Chekhov or his plays is from a cartoon in my college newspaper. The drawing was of a playgoer studying the title page of a theatre program that read "The Seagull, a comedy by Anton Chekhov." The caption below: "Yeah, I bust a gut." From the sublime, the ridiculous!
For more than a century the debate has raged: are Chekhov's plays comedies, as the playwright would have it, or are they tragedies, as Constantine Stanislavski, Chekhov's director at the Moscow Art Theatre, styled them. Except for THE THREE SISTERS, which Chekhov called a "drama," each of the five major plays has the word "comedy" added to its title.
Long before he started writing full-length pieces for the stage, Chekhov was revered in Russia for his short stories and brief comic sketches. Storytelling came easily to him, and though times were tough and his life never free of struggle, this grandson of a serf was able to put himself through medical school largely on the proceeds of his writing. For most of his life, Chekhov divided his time between doctoring and writing, but to this acknowledged master of short form fiction, the theatre always sang the siren song. Playwriting was a craft that fascinated and frustrated him, precisely because of its level of difficulty.
Determined to re-invent the dramatic form and get away from the melodramatic theatre popular in late 19th century Russia, Chekhov moved, with each of his major plays, closer to the Symbolists, the "decadent" writers with whom he strongly identified. Given an opportunity, he told a friend, he'd start a decadent theatre himself. Yet all his life, theatre both attracted and repelled him. Chekhov was a great letter writer, and his correspondence is a window into the mind of this droll, humorous and, above all, human man.
"One may not like the theatre, even criticize it, and at the same time have one's plays produced with pleasure. I like to have a play produced as much as I like catching fish and crayfish: you put out your line and wait. And you go to the office of the society for your fees and to the theatre with the same sensation as you go to look at the net or creel. It is an amusing pastime."
But less than two weeks earlier he had written, "The modern theatre is a skin disease, a sinful disease of the cities. It is unwholesome to love it."
Chekhov was rarely if ever satisfied with the productions of his plays. His letters are filled with complaints: the rehearsal times were ridiculously brief, the actors were poorly cast and didn't know their lines, the audiences were shallow and easily misled, the critics were foolish. After the production of his first major play IVANOV, he wrote to one of his supporters:
"I write to you, having finished my term of hard labour. Ah, why did you approve of my IVANOV in the committee? What witless demons inspired Fiodorov to produce my piece on his benefit night? I am exhausted, and no fee can redeem the galley-slave strain which I felt the whole of last week. When I have finished with my IVANOV I will settle down and write [stories]. Fiction is a quiet and sacred thing. The narrative form is a legal wife, and the dramatic a showy, noisy, impertinent and tiresome mistress."
Chekhov's relationship to "my IVANOV" is clear. The play is a wayward child he cannot help but love and shelter. Weeks later, he writes to his friend and publisher, A. S. Souvorin:
"As after a display of fireworks I am blinking in a darksome scullery. I feel a strong desire for my modest and humble writing of stories, but a laziness suffuses my whole body that is really awful. I experience the condition that follows intoxication."
THE SEAGULL was the next product of Chekhov's intoxication with the theatre. The history of his first commercially successful play is among the best theatre stories I know. First produced in Petersburg, it was an abject failure due to poor casting and preparation, but THE SEAGULL rose from its ashes to become the signature production of the Moscow Art Theatre, an institution that would change the face of theatre in Russia. Again, Chekhov's anguish over the process is made clear in his letters to family and friends.
"Well now I have finished the play. I am more dissatisfied than satisfied with it and reading over my newborn piece, I become once more convinced that I am not a playwright at all. …I have ordered two copies to be typed on a Remington. "
A year later, after the disaster of the first performance in Petersburg, he described that night:
"I have not seen it played all through, but what I did see was unusually depressing and extremely strange. The actors did not know their parts, they played woodenly, without resolution, and they were nervous. … And the theatre was as hot as hell."
To his friend Souvorin he wrote, " Stop the publication of my plays." And to his brother, "The play came a cropper and fell with a crash. Throughout the theatre was a strained feeling of perplexity and disgrace. The actors played abominably, stupidly. The moral is: I must not write plays."
And again to Souvorin, "[My sister] hurried home from Petersburg possibly thinking I would hang myself." But of course, he did not hang himself. He went on to become Russia's greatest playwright. Comedies or tragedies, call them what you will, Chekhov's plays are among the highest achievements of the theatre. As complex as human experience (funny, tragic, ridiculous, sublime!) they are above all, uniquely inspired. Chekhov put it best, "I do not know who speaks through my lips, God or someone worse."
Lowry Marshall
October, 2002
This production is also sponsored in part by the Vicki and Peter Halmos Family Fund for Theatre Arts.
PRODUCTION STAFF
Assistant Director Freddy Gonzalez ‘03
Stage Manager Katie O’Connor ‘04
Assistant Stage Manager Rosie Dent ‘06
Assistant Technical Coordinator Jason Bloom
Assistant Technical Director Alonzo Jones
Technical Assistants Henry Clarendon ‘06, Ariel Engelman ‘06, Larissa Korhun ‘04, Michelle Levy (RISD)
Running Crew Zaynab Ahsan ‘06, Chris Bremner ‘06,
Christie Gibson ‘06, Weldon Ledbetter ‘06, Daniel Perry ‘06, Cassie Ramirez ‘06, Jenna Sciuto ‘06,
Daniel Sinnreich ‘06, Jaclyn Vocell ‘06
Costume Shop Managers Linda Peterson, Henry DuBois
Costume Shop Assistants Gabriela Gorgano, Amy Komarnicki ‘03, Vanessa Meikle ‘03, Meryl Pressman ‘03,
Jillian Waid ’04, Caroline Wright ‘04
Cutter/Draper Linda Peterson
Wigmaster/Milliner/Costume Props Henry DuBois
Makeup Henry DuBois
Makeup and Hair Assistants MeiLi Coon ’03, Allison M. Geffner ‘03
Costume Construction TA 27
Set Crew TA25, TA3
Sock and Buskin Production Liaison Benjamin N. Sugar ’03.5
Box Office Manager/Publicity Karen Longest
Box Office Assistants Matt Biagini ‘05, Ellen Darling ’03,
Catherine Tylke ‘05
Poster Designer Andy Rah ‘04
Publicity Photographer Karen Longest
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Sheila Hogg and the Orwig Music Library Staff, Trinity Rep. Co., Stephen Berenson, Brian McEleny, Jim Barnhill, Alexandra Zachmann, William Beeman, Phil O’Hara
SOCK & BUSKIN BOARD
Rebecca Low (Chair), Benjamin Sugar (Vice-Chair), Adam Immerwahr (Secretary), Lucy Boyle, Diana Fithian, Freddy Gonzalez, Laura Jellinek (on leave), Jeffrey Kurtz, Mac Vaughey, Emily Young
THE GREEN BIRD
by Carlo Gozzi
Translated by Albert Bermel and Ted Emery
NOVEMBER 7-10, 14-16, 2002 8PM NOVEMBER 17 3PM
LEEDS THEATRE
CATHERINE BRYAN DILL CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
Directed by Yann-Pierre Montelle
Assitant Director, Eliza Collins
Set Design by Michael McGarty
Costume Design by Julie Heneghan
Lighting Design by Adam Griska ’04
Sound Design by Jason M. Bloom
Prologue: The Love of Three Oranges
by Yann-Pierre Montelle
Performed by Zack Fuller MA’03 as Pierrot
With Jaime Green ’04, Nate Goralnik ’06 and Ellen Darling ‘03
CAST
(in order of appearance)
PANTALONE Adam Lewis ‘03
BRIGHELLA Joe Miller ‘04
ZANNI Ryan O’Grady ‘05
TRUFFALDINO Benjamin Sugar ‘03
SMERALDINA Didi Ilkson ‘03
RENZO Austin Campion ‘06
BARBARINA Lucy Boyle ‘03
NINETTA Ellen Darling ‘03
GREEN BIRD Alison Bodenstab ‘03
CALMAN Elan Gepner ‘05
TARTAGLIA Nate Goralnik ‘06
TARTAGLIONA Liz Sklar ‘03
SERPENTINA Annabel Topham ‘06
DEMON Sarah Waldman ‘05
SINGING APPLES Rachel Bonds ’05, Debbie Friedman ’05, Aaron Prosnitz ‘05
THREE SISTERS Blanche Case ’06, Jaime Green ’04, Anika Schwarzwald ‘06
DANCING WATER Sarah Goldstein ’05, Jessica Schwartzberg ‘05
STATUE Anna Stubblefield ‘03
POMPEA Juliana Moreno ‘03
There will be one ten-minute intermission.
Produced by special arrangement with Helen Merrill Ltd.
Production Manager Laura E. Smith
Technical Director Tim Hett
DIRECTOR’S NOTES
The ordeal: Note that the divide between now and then, here and there, is a small humble step on the planks of a wooden stage. If yesterday is tomorrow and now is never, then where are you? Are you here or are you there?
Appropriate one hundred square meters in the desert, discard an old rotten freight hauler truck bed, incorporate a pre-existing sewage system, make your structures out of ready-made material, add a few oversized tires, and you have a theatre —a raw theatre.
Recipe for a philosophical tale: In the caldron, boil Rousseau. Season with a psychoanalytical discourse. Add a few layers of unconnected realities. Top with a good amount of “as if”. Broil for a few rehearsals. Ready to serve.
Theoretical backdrop: GROTESQUE: 1) decorative sculpture with fantastic interweaving of forms; 2) fantastically extravagant; 3) ludicrous, incongruous. Do you see where this is going?
Interlude to set the stage: Playing with the fragile mechanism of a suspended disbelief. Can you love 3 Oranges and still follow a Green Bird? We’ll see!
Fold #1: An old forgotten poem by Alexander Blok. Something about a creaking wagon on a muddy road where the fog does not lift. Add a few planks and there you have it, a faded old show…
Fold #2: Driving nails with a hammer.
Fold #3: (for the connoisseurs) … a theatre is a theatre is a theatre is a theatre … a multiplied mise en abyme
Fold #4: Where the face is a mask and the mask … a face. Who’s who? Who’s doing what? You will have to figure this one out quickly. Don’t get lost in the shifts.
Fold #5: A Sunday picnic in your favorite desert. Where a dysfunctional family reaches the discursive point where hypocrisy fragments under the weight of revelation.
Fold #6: A green bird speaking to a decrepit princess who once was a sexual object in the hands of an adolescent king.
Fold #7: Rite of passage between realities? It’s easy. Get yourself a pebble and throw it in a mirror. Did you do it? Good on you! Now look around. You see these angry faces? Aren’t they beautiful masks? Well, now, don’t try to escape. It’s too late, and the initiation [read: the show] must go on.
Confused? All right, I’ll stop unfolding the subtext of this performance for you [fearing a potential spoil]. However, I would like you to keep in mind that there is a lot more than what meets the eye in the raw matrix of theatricality. Layers added to layers. Pay close attention to Brighella, the so-called ‘poet’. Watch Smeraldina. Tonight, she will portray for you the misery of human condition. Watch Truffaldino. He will personify vileness — a comic portrait of a depraved victim of servitude. Watch them all, and watch them carefully — they will play with your disbelief and you could easily end-up plucking the butt feather of a green bird… Enjoy!
- YPM
This production is also sponsored in part by the Vicki and Peter Halmos Family Fund for Theatre Arts.
PRODUCTION STAFF
Stage Manager Ezra Flam ‘05
Assistant Stage Manager Mary Elston ‘06
Assistant Technical Coordinator Jason M. Bloom
Assistant Technical Director W. Keith Crowder
Technical Assistants Henry Clarendon ‘06, Ariel Engelman ‘06, Larissa Korhun ‘04, Michelle Levy (RISD)
Assistant to the Set Designer Alicia Wolcott
Scenic Charge Larissa Korhun ‘04
Properties Assistant Laura Jellinek ’04
Running Crew Emily Drumsta ’06, Samantha Gorman ’06,
Shula Grossman ’06, Krista Knight ’06, Katharine Leaird ‘06, Steven Levenson ’06, Blair Nelsen ’06, Benjamin Samit ’06, Angelica Scherer ’06, Alexandra Stratos ’06, Rhea Papanicolaou ’06
Costume Shop Managers Linda Peterson, Henry DuBois
Assistant Costume Designer Kassie McDonald (RISD)
Special Effects Ann Barylick ’03
Apple Costumes Michelle Levy (RISD)
Statue Costumes Gwendolyn Frederick (RISD), Melizza Santram (RISD)
Pierrot Costume Kaori Fuller
Costume Shop Assistants Amy Komarnicki ‘03, Vanessa Meikle ‘03,
Meryl Pressman ‘03, Jillian Waid ’04, Caroline Wright ‘04
Cutter/Draper Linda Peterson
Wigmaster/Milliner/Costume Props Henry DuBois
Makeup Henry DuBois
Makeup and Hair Assistants Meryl Pressman ’03, Mei Li Coon ‘03
Costume Construction TA 27
Set Crew TA25, TA3 and cast
Sock and Buskin Production Liaison Jeffrey Kurtz ‘03
Box Office Manager/Publicity Karen Longest
Box Office Assistants Matt Biagini ‘05, Ellen Darling ’03,
Catherine Tylke ‘05
Poster Designer Andy Rah ‘04
Publicity Photographer Tracy Schultz ’03
Banner Design Emily Young ‘03
Singing Apples Music composed by Aaron Prosnitz ’05, Debbie Friedman ’05, Rachel Bonds ‘05
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
John Emigh, Ronald Martinez, Trinity Rep. Co., Phil O’Hara, Ben Sugar, Zack Fuller, S&B Board, Connie Crawford, Clemency Williams. Jay Atwood, Peter Hurowitz, Didi Ilkson
SOCK & BUSKIN BOARD
Rebecca Low (Chair), Benjamin Sugar (Vice-Chair), Adam Immerwahr, (Secretary), Lucy Boyle, Diana Fithian, Freddy Gonzalez, Laura Jellinek (on leave), Jeffrey Kurtz, Mac Vaughey, Emily Young
ANNA KARENINA
Book, Music and Lyrics by Jillian Tucker ‘04
DECEMBER 5- 7, 2002 8PM DECEMBER 8 3PM & 8PM
STUART THEATRE
CATHERINE BRYAN DILL CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
Directed by Jeffrey Kurtz ‘03
Musical Direction by Andrew Hertz ‘04
Choreography by Claudine Lott ‘05
Set Design by Gayle MacDonald ’04 and Erica Saleh ‘04
Costume Design by Jillian L. Waid ‘04
Lighting Design by Michael Linden ’03
Sound Design by Adam Green ‘05
Technical Direction by Henry Clarendon ‘06
Music Arranged and Orchestrated by Andrew Hertz ‘04
CAST
PRINCESS DARYA ALEXANDROVNA (DOLLY) .................... Rebecca Miller ‘03
PRINCE STEPHAN ARKADYICH OBLONSKY .................... Stephen Kidd MA’03
MATVEY ....................................................................... Daniel Finkel ‘06
KONSTANTIN DMITRICH LEVIN .......................................... Jason Siegel ‘03
PRINCESS SHCHERBATSKY ............................................... Diana Jeffery ‘04
PRINCESS KATERINA ALEXANDROVNA (KITTY) ............ Allison Jill Posner ‘05
COUNTESS NORDSTON .................................................. Maura Finigan ‘05
PRINCESS MYAKAYA .................................................... Dana Kroplick ‘06
PRINCESS BETSY.............................................................. Farra Ungar ‘06
MAID............................................................................. Leela Davies ‘05
COUNT ALEXEI KIRILLOVICH VRONSKY ............................... Jed Resnick ‘06
PRINCE ALEXANDER DMITRIEVICH SHCHERBATSKY ........ Patrick Sheehan ‘06
COUNTESS VRONSKAYA ............................................... Naomi Gingold ‘05
ANNA ARKADYEVNA KARENINA ................................... Caitlin Marshall ‘05
TRAIN MAN ................................................................... Andrew Hertz ‘04
ALEXEI ALEXANDROVICH KARENIN .............................. Gregory Shilling ‘04
DOCTOR ....................................................................... Daniel Finkel ‘06
AGAFYA MIKHAILOVNA .................................................. Jennifer Gold ‘05
PESTOV ........................................................................ Daniel Finkel ‘06
ANNUSHKA .................................................................. Dana Kroplick ‘06
MARYA NIKOLAEVNA ....................................................... Farra Ungar ‘06
NIKOLAI DMITRICH LEVIN .......................................... Graham Norwood ‘03
COUNTESS LYDIA IVANOVNA ........................................ Danielle Kantor ‘05
KAPITONITCH ................................................................. Leela Davies ‘05
SERGEI ALEXEICH KARENIN (SERYOZHA) ........................... Jennifer Gold ‘05
MARYA EFIMOVNA ....................................................... Maura Finigan ‘05
SERVANT ................................................................ Graham Norwood ‘03
SOCIETY: Leela Davies, Maura Finigan, Daniel Finkel, Naomi Gingold,
Jennifer Gold, Diana Jeffery, Danielle Kantor, Dana Kroplick, Graham Norwood,
Patrick Sheehan, Farra Ungar
Place: Moscow, St. Petersburg, and the Russian countryside
Time: The late 19th Century
There will be one ten-minute intermission
Production Manager Laura E. Smith
Technical Director Tim Hett
This production is sponsored in part by the Vicki and Peter Halmos Family Fund for Theatre Arts.
DIRECTOR’S NOTE
“Vengeance is mine; I will repay.”
-Romans 12:19, Tolstoy’s epigraph to Anna Karenina
“Morality is a venereal disease. Its primary stage is called virtue; its secondary stage, boredom; its tertiary stage, syphilis.”
-Karl Kraus
“If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?”
-Alexander Solzhenitsyn
What else must we live for but compassion.
-JK
ORCHESTRA
Andrew Hertz, conductor
Andrew Hertz ‘04 Piano
Clotilde Hainline ‘05 Violin
Gillian Cantor ‘04 Viola
Demetrious Harrington ‘05 Cello
MUSICAL NUMBERS
Act I
“Russia Society
“Parents” Princess and Female Ensemble
“Russian Waltz” Orchestra
“Kitty's Song Kitty
“Nothing Was Said” Anna
“Vronsky's Vow” Vronsky
“Tomorrow Anna and Vronsky
“Anna Karenina” Anna and Countess Vronskya and Society
“One Must Live” Agafya
“Dolly's Plea Dolly and Alexei
“The Proposal” Levin and Kitty
Intermission
Act II
“There Was A Time” Vronsky
“Go Away” Anna
“Life Moves One Way" Levin, Kitty, Marya
“Alexei Won the Nevsky” Alexei and Society
“Seryozha's Lullaby” Anna
“Our Mistress is Back” Kapitonitch, Marya Efimovna, Servant
“I Beg You” Levin and Anna
“The Final Fight” Anna and Vronsky
“Anna Karenina” (reprise) Society
“Russia” (reprise) Society
Finale Orchestra
PRODUCTION STAFF
Stage Manager Lauren Robbins ‘05
(Brownbrokers) Production Manager Maya Bruhns ‘05
Assistant Stage Managers Alison Hwong ’05, Kara Munoz ‘06
Dramaturg Jeffrey Kurtz ‘03
Master Carpenter Ariel Engelman ‘06
Master Electrician Didi Ilkson ‘03
Assistant to Costume Designer Johanna Tower ‘06
Light Board Operator Adam Lewis ‘03
Sound Engineer/Sound Board Operator Adam Green ‘05
Running Crew Jackie Vocell ‘06, Briel Steinberg ‘06, Blanche Case ‘06,
Matthew Perlmutter ‘06,Michael Ferguson ‘06, Eliana Gutman ‘06,
Anika Schwarzwald ‘06,Daniel Perry ‘06, Steven Levenson ‘06,
Adam Lewis ’03, Nathan Goralnik ‘06
Costume Shop Managers Linda Peterson, Henry DuBois
Costume Shop Assistants Amy Komarnicki ’03,Vanessa Meikle ‘03,
Meryl Pressman ’03, Jillian Waid ’04, Caroline Wright ‘04
Costume Construction TA 27
Set Crew Ben Asriel ‘03, Caitlin Marshall ‘05,
Adam Green ‘05, Jim O’Neill, Brad Naylor, Jed Resnick ‘06,
Jeb Havens ‘03, Rebecca Melsky ‘03,
Rosie Dent ’06, TA 25
Electrics Crew Didi Ilkson ’03, Adam Lewis ’03, Gayle MacDonald ’04,
Nina Mamikunian ’04, Adam Green ’05, Rebecca Melsky ’03,
Benjamin Sugar ‘03
Faculty Advisors Tim Hett, Michael McGarty
Brownbrokers Board Liaison Rebecca Melsky ‘03
Box Office Manager/Publicity Karen Longest
Box Office Assistants.. Matt Biagini ’05, Ellen Darling ’03, Catherine Tylke ‘05
Poster Designer Amanda Cheung ‘05
Publicity Photographer Tracy Shultz ‘03
Banner Artist Emily Young ‘03
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Brownbrokers board, James Egelhofer, Lowry Marshall, Spencer Golub, John Emigh, Michael McGarty, Tim Hett, Musical Forum, Sock and Buskin, Cast and crew of West Side Story, Phillip Contic, Mark Cohen, 63 Governor Street, Ben Sugar, Donna DiNovelli, Trinity Rep Co., Cathy Aprea, Stan Gillespie, Elizabeth Koe, Allison Posner, Lance Rubin, Aaron Prosnitz, Todd Goldstein, Leo Tolstoy, Laura Smith, Adam Griska, Mac Vaughey, Phil O’Hara
BROWNBROKERS BOARD
Rebecca Melsky ’03 (Chair), Mac Vaughey '03, Rebecca Low '02.5,
Jeb Havens '03, Brad Naylor '03, Emily Young '03, Cari Cymanski ’03,
Adam Green ’05, Holly Mendillo ’03, Rebecca Melsky (Chair), James Egelhofer ‘04
VALPARAISO
by Don DeLillo
FEBRUARY 19-22, 2003 8PM FEBRUARY 23 3PM
LEEDS THEATRE
CATHERINE BRYAN DILL CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTSDirected by Benjamin N. Sugar ‘03
Set Design by Adam Griska ‘04
Costume Design by Vanessa Meikle ‘03
Lighting Design by Gayle MacDonald ’04
and Nina Mamikunian ‘04
Media Design by Mojo Lorwin ’06
Technical Direction by Ariel Engelman ‘06
CAST
(in order of appearance)
TEDDY Matt Biagini ‘05
INTERVIEWER Rebecca Rouse ‘04
MICHAEL MAJESKI Abraham Smith ‘04
INTERVIEWER Nicholas Hoge ‘05
LIVIA MAJESKI Claire Karpen ‘04
DELFINA TREADWELL Stacey Yen ‘03
There will be no intermission during this production.
Time and Place: The Present
Produced by special arrangement with Dramatists Play Service, Inc.
Brown University Theatre
Production Manager Laura E. Smith
Technical Director Tim Hett
This production is also sponsored in part by the Vicki and Peter Halmos Family Fund for Theatre Arts.
PRODUCTION STAFF
Production Manager Christie Gibson ‘06
Stage Manager Blair Nelson ‘06
Assistant Director Andrew McClain ‘03
Assistant Stage Managers Susan Abraham ’05, Patrick Sheehan ‘06
Assistant Technical Director W. Keith Crowder
Assistant Technical Coordinator Chris O’Neil
Production Assistant Technical Director John Anderson-Lynch ‘06
Technical Assistants Henry “Ben” Clarendon ‘06, Ariel Engelman ‘06,
Larissa Korhun ‘04, Michelle Levy (RISD)
Master Electrician Dana Kroplick ’06
Media Consultants Solon Barocas ’03, Mark Domino ’03,
Sarah Kessler ’03, Daniella Spinat ’03
Sound Consultant Alden Eagle ’03
Costume Shop Managers Linda Peterson, Henry DuBois
Costume Design Assistants Amy Komarnicki ’03, Jillian Waid ‘04
Costume Shop Assistants Hilary Farrell ’05, Gabriela Gargano ’05,
Amy Komarnicki ’03, Vanessa Meikle ‘03,
Meryl Pressman ‘03, Jillian Waid ’04
Cutter/Draper Linda Peterson
Hair and Makeup Design Henry DuBois
Makeup and Hair Assistants Meryl Pressman ’03, Mei Li Coon ‘03
Costume Construction TA 28
Running Crew Elliot Epstein ’06,
Dan Hernandez ’06, Lisa Jacobson ’06, Simon Salgado ’06,
Jane Mee Wong ‘06
Set Crew Henry “Ben” Clarendon ’06, Christie Gibson ’06,
Adam Griska ’04, Allison Posner ’05,
Ben Sugar’03, TA25, TA3
Electrics Crew Ben Asriel ’03, Austin Campion ’06, Andrew Horesh ’04
Victoria Pilkington, Dade Veron ‘06
Fight Choreographer Dov Lebowitz-Nowak ‘04
Faculty Advisor John Emigh
Sock and Buskin Production Liaison Adam Immerwahr ‘05
Box Office Manager/Publicity Karen Longest
Box Office Assistants Matt Biagini ‘05, Ellen Darling ’03,
Catherine Tylke ‘05
Poster Designer Michael Black ‘05
Publicity Photographer Tracy Schultz ’03
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Tim Hett, W. Keith Crowder, Laura Smith, Michael McGarty, Karen Longest, Lowry Marshall, Hollie Mendillo and BTV, Brown AV, MCM Department, John Emigh, Phillip Contic
[back to the top]
Body & Sole and Brown University Theatre present
FALL DANCE CONCERT 2002
November 21-24, 2002 ASHAMU STUDIO 8PM
CATHERINE BRYAN DILL CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
…AND THEN THERE WAS TAP
Choreography by Sheela Prasad
DANCERS: (What’s On Tap)
Jennifer Burke, Scott Franco, Michelle Fujimoto, Camille Gerwin, Serena Hon, Annie Keilman, Kate Leaird, Sheela Prasad, Stacy Richardson, Ilissa Schild, Maxine Sharavsky, Anna Stern, Alexa Van Brunt
No, tap dancing is not about sequins and top hats. Throughout its history, tap has been an expression of community, femininity, musicality, energy and the innate human need to make loud noise. In this piece, you’ll see the evolution from folk, to Show, to Rhythm tap, as well as tap’s ethnic influences.
Thank you to Denise Richardson for covering our derrières and to my tappers for their humor and insight.
GRIPPING TIDE
Choreography by Ruth Streiter
Music by Toumani Diabate with Ballake Sissoko, New Ancient Strings
Sound Design by Tom Farrell
DANCERS: (The Brown Extension) in order of appearance
Dusie Hoagland, Caedra Scott-Flaherty, Jessica Waters, Niki Applebaum, Wen-Chuan Dai, Sarah Kahn, and Ruth Streiter
Special thanks to Julie Strandberg, Annamaura Silverblatt, Tom Farrell, Tom Gillette, Deborah Friedes, Zoe Jackson, and my amazing dancers for their support, contributions, and inspiration.
THE STICK DANCE
(preliminary version premiered in December 2001)
Choreographed and performed by Kyle Shepard
Music: Unknown (if you have any information on this music, please let me know at Kyle_Shepard@Brown.edu - thanks!)
Thanks to everyone in TA 32 Fall 2001 for creating the creatively fertile atmosphere in which this piece was born.
GIMME A BEAT
Choreography by Audrey McIntyre and Connie Wu
Music: Medley of music by Janet Jackson
DANCERS: Members of Fusion Dance Company (Performed Friday and Sunday)
A tribute to the most inspirational artist in music and dance of the past two decades.
LINEAGE
Choreography by Jessica Shepardson
Music: “Doot Doot”, Freur, “El Distorto de Melodica”, Everclear,
“Dear Prudence”, The Beatles
DANCERS:
Jessamin Anderson, Megan Furnari, Kate Moller, Amanda Norman
(la creación) más azul
Choreography by Lauren Linder
Music: Pan Piper, Miles Davis
DANCERS: (Performed Friday and Sunday)
Jesús Hernandez, Lauren Linder, Briana Masterson, Heather McLeod
This piece is the first in a series (to be continued at the Fusion show March 2003). It’s my take on the Creation story, with a special nod to africanamerican culture. Enjoy. Special thanks to my dancers who inspired and created movement, and to my family – the Linders, Fusion, and BTF.
COMPLACENT
Choreography by Members of RCJ DANCE
Kimberly Insel, Olivia Ma, Aimee Palladino, Claudine Lott
Music: “Enjoy”, Björk
DANCERS: (RCJ DANCE)
Kimberly Insel, Olivia Ma, Aimee Palladino, Claudine Lott, Thomas Roache, Ricardo Santiago
RCJ Dance would like to thank our founders for their inspiration and for bringing us together as a group, and all our members for their passion, energy and dedication.
v I N T E R M I S S I O N v
TRIPTYCH
Choreography by Benjamin F. Asriel
Music: Selections from “Te Deum” by Arvo Pärt
DANCERS: (in order of appearance)
Sasha Rubel, Karlín Krause-Nazario, Katie Del Guercio, Ariela Ronay-Jinich, Nicole Corea, Blanche Case, Maria Kasparian, Hanae Fujii-Rios, Wen-Chuan Dai
Special thanks to Kyle Shepard, Body & Sole, Karen Longest, Laura Smith, Jason Bloom, Tim Hett, the extended Asriel Family, my 9 beautiful compatriots, and 84 Hope.
THIS
Choreography by Caedra Scott-Flaherty
Music: “Idioteque”, Radiohead
DANCERS:
Niki Applebaum, Blanche Case, Chad Ebesutani, Sarah Kahn, Claudine Lott, Caedra Scott-Flaherty
LIFE ACCORDING TO BROWN
Choreography by Tisola Logan
Music: “Human Nature”, Madonna
DANCERS: (FUSION DANCE COMPANY) (Performed Friday and Sunday)
Jody Green, Jesus Hernandez, Lauren Linder, Tisola Logan, Audrey McIntyre, Briana Masterson, Sean Thomas, Cliff Voigt
We are imitating life…or maybe it’s the opposite. This writterly text takes the signifiers of the signified’s signification to create what exists: hypocrites. Selfishness. Contradiction. Incoherence. Consequence. All in a coherent time line. Do not read this for due to human error I always never make sense. Or I never always make sense. How significant. Thank you and love you – Moomoo, Dada, Godz, Sander, & Bear.
BABEL
Choreography by Kyle Shepard
Costumes designed by Phillip Contic
Music: Piano Sonata No. 23, Op. 57, 2nd movement, Beethoven
Pianist: Richard Goode
DANCERS:
Jessamin Anderson, Hilda Hei Nam Leung, Kimberly Insel, Caedra Scott-Flaherty, Rachel Siemons, Mia Simring
This is the second section of a three-part work. The third section, entitled “Dissolution” premiered in May 2002 and I anticipate part one to premiere in May 2003.
Thanks to Deborah Friedes for her constant support and critical eye.
NERVOUS BREAKDOWN
Choreography by Chad Ebesutani and Yasuhiro Takayama
Music: Freestyler Breakdance Mix
DANCERS: (Breakdancing Club)
Jeffery Bloch, Channa Srey, Wen-Chuan Dai, Murtuza Gunja, Chad Ebesutani, Yasuhiro Takayama, Ken Miki
Special thanks to Team Expression, (Seoul, Korea), B-boy Nervous and Leung Gallery.
Body & Sole, founded last fall, is Brown's student dance board. Our mission is to coordinate student dance at Brown by increasing communication and interaction among student dance groups, acting as a voice for student dance on campus, and making dance more accessible to the Brown community. Board members include: Camille Gerwin, Deborah Friedes, Ben Asriel, Kimberly Insel, Briana Masterson, Sean Thomas, Scott Franco, and Kyle Shepard.
TECHNICAL CREW
Faculty Advisor Julie A. Strandberg
Production Manager Laura E. Smith
Technical Director Tim Hett
Assistant Technical Coordinator Jason M. Bloom
Run Crew Vivian Asare, Austin Campion, Benjamin Feignenberg,
Nathan Goralnik, Adam King, Daniel Rizzotto
Box Office Manager/Publicity Karen Longest
Box Office Assistants Matt Biagini, Ellen Darling, Catherine Tylke
Publicity Photos Tracy Schultz
Poster Design Michael Black and Kimberly Insel
Funded in part by the Guarnaschelli’s Family Theatre Endowment
and
the Vicki and Peter Halmos Family Fund for Theatre Arts
SIX CHARACTERS IN SEARCH OF AN AUTHOR
by Luigi Pirandello
Translated by Domenico Pietropaolo
MARCH 6-9, 13-15, 2003 8PM MARCH 16 3PM
STUART THEATRE
CATHERINE BRYAN DILL CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
Directed by Kevin Moriarty and Steve Kidd MA ‘03
Set Design by Michael McGarty
Costume Design by Phillip Contic
Lighting Design by Deb Sullivan
Sound Design by Peter S. Hurowitz
CAST
(in alphabetical order)
Michael Seth Benn MA’04
Rachel Bonds ‘05
Austin Campion ‘06
Wen-Chuan Dai ‘06
Lucy Devito ‘05
Jaime Green ‘04
Didi Ilkson ‘03
Steven B. Levenson ‘06
David Myers ‘03
Matt Pearlmutter ‘06
Michael E. Smith ‘05
Laura Wood ‘04
Eric Emigh guest
Britney Gianquitti guest
This production is performed without an intermission.
Produced by special arrangement with Domenico Pietropaolo.
Production Manager Laura E. Smith
Technical Director Tim Hett
This production is also sponsored in part by the Vicki and Peter Halmos Family Fund for Theatre Arts.
The original text remains in tact for anyone who may want to re-read it at home for his own edification; those who want to be entertained by it will go to the Theatre, where it will be presented to them devoid of those portions which have lost their freshness, modernized where its language is outmoded, readapted to current tastes.
Why is this legitimate?
Because in the Theatre a work of art is no longer the work of the author [which after all can always be preserved in some other way], but an act of life
realized on the stage from one moment to the next,
with the cooperation of an audience that must find
satisfaction in it.
--Luigi Pirandello
PRODUCTION STAFF
Production Manager Dov Lebowitz-Nowak ‘04
Stage Manager Allison M. Geffner ‘03
Production Assistants Michael Ferguson ‘06, Nicholas Rosenblum ’03.5
Assistant Stage Managers Emily Drumsta ’06, Michael Perlman ‘05
Assistant Technical Coordinator Chris O’Neil
Assistant Technical Director W. Keith Crowder
Technical Assistants Henry Ben Clarendon ‘06, Ariel Engelman ‘06,
Sarah Hoopes (RISD), Larissa Korhun ‘04,
Mike Peart ’06, Dade Veron ‘06
Assistant to the Set Designer Laura Jellinek ‘04
Scenic Charge Larissa Korhun ‘04
Guest Scenic Artist Philip Creech
Master Electrician Mac Vaughey ‘03
Running Crew Lindsey Albertson ’06, Russell Benner ’06,
Andrew Charbin ’06, Chloe Dugger ’06,
Zohar Glassberg ’06, Laurabeth Greenwald ’06,
Seth Meyer ’06, Rosa Miller ’06, Katy Tsai ’06
Costume Shop Managers Linda Peterson, Henry DuBois
Assistant Costume Designer Kassie McDonald ’04 (RISD)
Costume Shop Assistants Hilary Farrell ’05, Gabriela Gargano ’05,
Amy Komarnicki ’03, Vanessa Meikle ‘03,
Meryl Pressman ‘03, Jillian Waid ’04
Cutter/Draper Linda Peterson
Wigmaster/Milliner/Costume Props Henry DuBois
Makeup Meryl Pressman ’03, Meili Coon ’03.5
Costume Construction TA 28, TA129
Set Crew TA25, TA3
Fight Choreographic Assistance Allison M. Geffner ’03 and
Dov Lebowitz-Nowak ‘04
Sock and Buskin Production Liaison Katie O’Connor ‘05
Box Office Manager/Publicity Karen Longest
Box Office Assistants Matt Biagini ‘05, Ellen Darling ’03,
Catherine Tylke ‘05
Poster Designer Michael J. Black ‘05
Publicity Photographer Tracy Schultz ’03
Banner Design Claire Karpen ‘04
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Trinity Repertory Company, Anna Guercio, Mac Vaughey, Phil O’Hara, Gabe Kahane, Domenico Pietropaolo, Dedda DeAngelis
SOCK & BUSKIN BOARD
Emily Young (Chair), Benjamin Sugar (Vice-Chair), Jaime Green (Secretary), Lucy Boyle, Austin Campion, Diana Fithian, Freddy Gonzalez, Adam Immerwahr, Claire Karpen, Jeffrey Kurtz, Katie O’Connor, Allison Posner
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AS FIVE YEARS PASS
by Federico García Lorca
Translated by Caridad Svich
APRIL 10-13, 17-19, 2003 8PM APRIL 20 3PM
LEEDS THEATRE
CATHERINE BRYAN DILL CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
Co-Directed by Michelle Bach-Coulibaly and John Emigh
Set Design by Michael McGarty
Costume Design by Phillip Contic
Lighting Design by Garland McQuinn ‘05
Music Composed by Tom Farrell
CAST
(in order of appearance)
OLD MAN Graham S. Norwood ‘03
YOUNG MAN Mahdi Salehi ‘04
TYPIST Adriana López ‘04
SERVANT/MAID Andre(a) Thompson ‘05
FIANCEÉ/GIRL/MAID Elizabeth Forsyth ‘06
FIRST FRIEND/FOOTBALL PLAYER/CARD PLAYER Dov Lebowitz-Nowak ‘04
BOY Ariela Ronay-Jinich ‘06
CAT/MANNEQUIN/ENSEMBLE Zack Fuller MA ‘03
SECOND FRIEND/CARD PLAYER/ ENSEMBLE Adam Shulman ‘03
FIANCEÉ/CARD PLAYER/ ENSEMBLE Sarah Burns ‘04
FATHER/CARD PLAYER/ ENSEMBLE Alexis Scott ‘04
HARLEQUIN/ ENSEMBLE Maythinee Washington ’03.5
CLOWN/ ENSEMBLE Kira Neel ‘05
YELLOW MASK/ ENSEMBLE Georgia Cohen ’04.5
There will be one ten-minute intermission.
Produced by special arrangement with Smith and Krauss, Inc. and the heirs of Federico García Lorca.
Production Manager Laura E. Smith
Technical Director Tim Hett
DIRECTOR’S NOTE
Lorca started As Five Years Pass in New York in 1929. He finished it on August 19th, 1931 in his hometown of Granada, five years to the day of his execution there by a paramilitary force at the start of the Spanish Civil War. He was anti-fascist; and, by then, he was openly gay. The play was unproduced during Lorca’s lifetime and he sometimes referred to it as an example of “impossible theatre.” As Caridad Svitch writes, it is “part opera, part ritual, part comic strip.” Lorca was convinced that his impossible play, more than the better-known poetic tragedies set in Andalucia that followed, carried with it the seeds for a new theatre. It is an intensely personal work, a waking dream in which characters split and merge, issues of desire and gender haunt both past and future, and intimations of death intertwine with the passions of the living.
Svitch remarks, “the breath and tone of Lorca that lives inside the language of his work is playful and profound, and the translation process has illuminated for me the powerfully intricate and mysterious nature of collaboration.” The last word is surprising and apt. The text resists translation and interpretation; it demands collaboration.
This is not the first time that Lorca’s life and imagination have become enmeshed with my own. As a freshman in college, I had no plans to become either a theatre director or a university teacher. I did, though, want to learn Spanish, and hoping to shore up my beginner’s grasp of the language, I took a class that started with a short play by Lorca. The play was a revelation to me: the beauty and power of the words, the force and vitality of the imagination, the pairing of desire with both humor and tragedy. Extraordinary stuff. I quit college the following year and went to Spain to translate some of Lorca’s lesser-known plays, talking with many of his old friends, hearing stories about his life, and unearthing a censored manuscript. Since no one else wanted to direct my translations, I went back to school, took a theatre class, and produced one of them myself – with indifferent results, if truth be told. Still, I had found an avocation, and perhaps a profession. My debt to Lorca runs deep. And now, 44 years later, I am once more trying to give life on stage to Lorca’s enticing and sometimes elusive words.
This time, though, I have company. Good company. Caridad Svitch’s translation renders the text with its poetry, its dream-like logic, and its humor intact. Michelle Bach-Coulibaly also has a long-standing love of Lorca and is well tuned to his themes. Her first major choreographic work in New York, over 20 years ago, was of Lorca’s poetry set to George Crum’s music. We have been joined by others who respond to Lorca’s imagination at a deep and intuitive level; indeed, it was Phillip Contic’s enthusiasm for this play that made this production possible. We have approached Lorca’s play as an attempt at true collaboration: with Lorca, with each other, and with a student cast offering its own unique experiences, talents, and vantage points.
Collaboration. With the living and with the dead, with those who have gone before and those who will follow. With bits of memory and with figments of the imagination. Lorca’s imagination and memories first, then Caridad Svitch’s, next our own, and, finally, yours, as you make your own sense of Lorca’s unique, enticing, “impossible” play. JE
This production is also sponsored in part by the Vicki and Peter Halmos Family Fund for Theatre Arts.
PRODUCTION STAFF
Stage Manager James Egelhofer ’04 and Ariel Engelman ‘06
Assistant Technical Director W. Keith Crowder
Assistant Technical Coordinator Chris O’Neil
Technical Assistants Henry Ben Clarendon ‘06, Ariel Engelman ‘06,
Sarah Hoopes (RISD), Larissa Korhun ‘04,
Mike Peart ’06, Dade Veron ‘06
Assistant to the Set Designer Laura Jellinek ‘04
Flamenco Movement Coach Adriana López ‘04
Running Crew Afreen Akhter ’06, Kari Betts ‘06, Yael Horovitz ‘06,
Dana Kroplick ‘06,Katherine Meister ‘06, Matt Naylor ‘06,
Greta Pemberton ‘06, Morgan Schofield ‘06,
Chelsea Sharon ’06, Farra Ungar ‘06
Electrics Crew Benj Kamm ‘06
Costume Shop Managers Linda Peterson, Henry DuBois
Assistant Costume Designer Corey Jackson ‘04
Fabric Painting Mikaela Holmes ‘05, Amy Komarnicki ’03,
Amanda Norman ’04, Johanna Tower ‘06
Costume Shop Assistants Hilary Farrell ’05, Gabriela Gargano ’05,
Amy Komarnicki ’03, Vanessa Meikle ‘03,
Meryl Pressman ‘03, Jillian Waid ’04
Cutter/Draper Linda Peterson
Wigmaster/Milliner/Costume Props Henry DuBois
Makeup Henry DuBois
Makeup and Hair Assistants Meryl Pressman ’03, Mei Li Coon ‘03
Costume Construction TA 28, TA129
Set Crew TA25, TA3
Sock and Buskin Production Liaison Diana Fithian ‘04
Box Office Manager/Publicity Karen Longest
Box Office Assistants Matt Biagini ‘05, Ellen Darling ’03,
Catherine Tylke ‘05
Poster Designer Amanda Cheung ‘05
Publicity Photographer Tracy Schultz ’03
Banner Design Claire Karpen ‘04
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Trinity Rep. Co., Phil O’Hara, Angel Gil Orrios, Calvin Canon, Thom Throck Morton, Edwin Honig, Wadda Ríos-Font, Seth Bockley, Cari Cymanski, Kate Bornstein, New Works/World Traditions, Lee C. Lopez, Diana Jeffery, Jeff Kurtz, and Emily Young.
Large trees and hands by Erminio Pinque and Big Nazo Theatre Company.
Yellow Mask by Jorge Carlos Añon.
SOCK & BUSKIN BOARD
Emily Young (Chair), Benjamin Sugar (Vice-Chair), Jaime Green (Secretary), Lucy Boyle, Austin Campion, Diana Fithian, Freddy Gonzalez, Adam Immerwahr, Claire Karpen, Jeffrey Kurtz, Katie O’Connor, Allison Posner
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BROWN DANCE ENSEMBLE
SPRING CONCERT 2003
Michelle Bach-Coulibaly, Producer
Laura E. Smith, Production Manager
Tim Hett, Lighting Designer/Technical Director
May 1-3 8 p.m. May 4 3p.m. & 8 p.m.
STUART THEATRE
RUSH HOUR
Choreographed by Robert Battle
Reconstruction/Staging by Elisa Clark
Music by John Mackey
Costumes coordinated by Phillip Contic and Linda Peterson
DANCERS: The Dance Extension
Wen-Chuan Dai, Katharine Hoagland, Claudine Lott, Jude Sandy,
Ruth Streiter, Caedra Scott-Flaherty, Hentyle Yapp
Robert Battle, a member of the Parsons Dance Company from 1994 -2001, is the artistic director of Battleworks. A choreographer in high demand, Battle has been commissioned by Hubbard Street Repertory Ensemble, Ailey II, Dallas Black Dance Theater, The Parsons Dance Company and Paradigm to name a few.
ADRIFT
Choreographed by Kyle Shepard ‘04
Music by Ludwig von Beethoven, Piano Sonata no. 23 in F Minor, op. 57 1st Movement
Costumes designed by Phillip Contic
DANCERS:
Jessamin Anderson ’03, Benjamin Asriel ’03, Alexandra Fidler ’04, Deborah Friedes ’03, Hilda Hei-Nam Leung ’05, Hannah Schwadron ’04, Caedra Scott-Flaherty ’05, Kyle Shepard ’04, Rachel Seimons ’06, Mia Simring ’03, Susan Tolwinski ’04
This is the first part of a three-part work. The dance will be premiered in its entirety at the Commencement Dance Concert in Stuart Theatre on May 24th.
MOVEMENT APART
Choreographed by Hentyle Yapp ‘03
Music by Joaquín Rodrigo, Concerto de Aranjuez
Costumes designed by Linda Peterson
DANCERS:
Sarah Burns, Wen-Chuan Dai, Kate Moller, Jude Sandy, and Hentyle Yapp
Notes on this Piece: This piece connects the personal to the political, as the dancers work against and with each other to portray identity struggles. The movement and ideas are dedicated to those in the past and present who have had to silence internal identities in order to strive for a future justice -- to those who have resisted in order to give each of us a stronger voice. These voices are provided not only to express personal identities but also to speak out against war, injustice, and oppression.
Special Thanks: All of my dancers have amazed and inspired me – this piece comes from all five of us. Thank you Michelle, Annamaura and Julie for all of your support – I started dance 3 years ago and you have helped cultivate my passion. Many thanks to the technical crew and costume artists. My appreciation goes to all those in the past and present who have struggled in order to allow me to be here. Finally, thank you to my dear friends who have helped me release my inner cougar.
ANGELS IN THE ATTIC
Choreographed by Anne-Alex Packard
Reconstruction/Staging by Laura Bennett
Music composed by Kevin Packard
Costumes designed by Deb Newhall
DANCERS: The Dance Extension
Niki Applebaum, Blanche Case, Deborah Friedes, Katharine Hoagland, Sarah Kahn, Claudine Lott, Jude Sandy, Caedra Scott-Flaherty
Anne-Alex Packard launched her career with James Clouser's Space Dance Theater in Houston, Texas, later moving to New York City where she danced with Harry Streep's Third Dance Theater as well as free-lancing with other choreographers and presenting her own work. In Denver, Colorado she co-founded the Offshoot Ensemble, a performing dance collective. Packard received an MFA from Connecticut College, where she served as both faculty and Interim Chair. She also served on the faculty of the Dance and Theatre Department of the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and as director of Kinetics Dance Theatre. Her work has been presented by professional dance organizations throughout the U.S. as well as in China and Israel. As a dance educator she has worked with children, adults, actors, athletes, and the mentally ill. One of Packard's passionate interests is the study of dance and sports medicine, and the body therapies. She is a certified TRAGER Practitioner.
FLAMMA, FLAMMA:The Fire Requiem (excerpts) – (2003)
Choreographed by Michelle Bach-Coulibaly
Music composed by Nicholas Lens
Sections XI: Ave Ignis. “Hail Purifying Fire, Hail Expiating Fire, Pervading and Moving the World. The Heavens are Full of Your Heat”.
Section V: Complore Filiae. “Cry Daughters for Your Mother and for the Fate of Your Own Beauty”.
Costumes designed by Phillip Contic
Cutters/Drapers: Amy Komarnicki ’03, Jillian Waid ’04
Glass Musical Sculptures by Bohyun Yoon
Slides by Dale Chihuly
DANCERS: New Works, World Traditions
Tisola Logan, Sarah Burns, Adriana Lopez, Lynnette Freeman, Hannah Schwadron, Isabelle Kalubi, Elizabeth Ochs, Adianez Albelo, Kani Romain
This segment of FLAMMA FLAMMA is the second installation of the Fire Requiem created in collaboration with myself, Phillip Contic, and RISD glass artist Bohyun Yoon. The Rhode Island State Council on the Arts honored us this year with an Artist Grant to continue our work on this portion of the opera. This new work will be presented at the May 25th WaterFire/Providence in accordance with WaterFire creator Barnaby Evans for Brown University’s Commencement Weekend ceremonies.
Intermission
/ASUNDER (Thursday, May 1 and Friday, May 2)
Choreographed by Yin Mei
Music by
Costumes designed by
DANCERS:
Yin Mei with Kyle Shepard
“I cannot remember, but I think you
Were there, whoever you were.” ---Mark Strand
Why is this piece called “/ASUNDER”?
I can provide one answer. This piece is about the struggle of “opposites” to reconcile with – to recognize – one another. Man, Woman. Image, Movement. “Downtown” dance, Tai Chi. Eastern tradition, Western innovation. This piece is about the struggle to connect.
Also, I started out wanting to do something about love – specifically, to explore how a lover projects love onto the beloved; to visualize the disjunct between the object and the subject. Thus, /ASUNDER offers a meditation on romantic love as both a wounding force and a path to spiritual awakening.
Yin Mei’s performance is being sponsored by The Francis Wayland Collegium for Liberal Learning, and is part of the Contemplative Studies Initiative at Brown.
SONG OF MIRIAM
(a musical setting of a Biblical Poem by Rabbi Ruth H. Sohn)
Choreographed by Annamaura Silverblatt
Choreographer's assistant: Ryan Smith’02
Music by Andrea Jill Higgins, for Solo Soprano, Women's Chorus, Flute, Cello and Piano
Costumes coordinated by Vanessa Meikle ’03
Water dresses designed and built by Vanessa Meikle ’03
DANCERS: The Dance Extension
Sarah Kahn, Niki Applebaum, Claudine M. Lott, Abigail Jones, Benjamin Asriel, Dusie Hoagland, Hentyle Yapp, Blanche Case
This is a feminist interpretation of the exodus from Egypt. Miriam, sister of Aaron and Moses leads the Israelites from slavery to freedom. During the flight she sings her praises to the Lord, but is stymied by feelings of inadequacy and uncertainty and freezes with panic. She experiences the fear of failure and she reaches the depths of despair. She then joyously rediscovers her theme, regains self-confidence and overcomes her fears. Ultimately, she is able to lead the people and "sing a new song unto the Lord."
Special thanks to Ryan Smith, whose generosity in allowing me to set the vocabulary for this work, had no bounds. The dancers, whose devotion to me and my work, have made me very proud.
INSOMNIA
Choreographed by Chad Ebesutani ‘03
Compilation of music by various artists
Costumes by Chad Ebesutani
DANCERS:
Jeffrey Bloch, Wen-Chuan Dai, Chad Ebesutani, Brian Huang, James Hwong, Ken Miki, Channa Srey, Yasuhiro, Takayama
We hope our piece evokes images of the sleep state, of dreaming, of waking, and of the ambiguity between the two. A special thanks to all those who help support the creation of the Breakdancing club at Brown University over the past year, and to all those who continue to appreciate its art form.
SEWADON (2003)
(a Dance of peace and solidarity in the Mande tradition)
Choreographed by Michelle Bach-Coulibaly with traditional Malian artisans M’Ba Traore, Seydou Coulibaly, Salimata Soumanou and Ibrahima Doumbia
Music by Troupe BaDenya:
Seydou Coulibaly (joun-joun), Issa Coulibaly (lead jembe), Abdoulaye Diallo (accompanying jembe)
Costumes designed by Phillip Contic and Michelle Bach-Coulibaly
DANCERS: New Works, World Traditions
Adianez Albelo, Lynnette Freeman, Oneca Hitchman, Isabelle Kalubi, Tisola Logan, Adriana Lopez, Ramel Murphy, Yara Perez, Kani Romain, Hannah Schwadron, Avery Sherrod, Alethea Vasilas, Sandra Vines, Hentyle Yapp
About the Dance Extension
Founded in 1979, THE DANCE EXTENSION, a touring repertory company, was established by founding director of dance, Julie A. Strandberg, on the premise that the training of dancers must include the opportunity to perform, teach, and revisit masterworks. While the dancers in the company are encouraged and supported to create their own work, they also have the rare opportunity to work with some of our most revered choreographers and some of our most exciting contemporary innovators.
About New Works, World Traditions
Since its inception, many members or NEW WORKS/WORLD TRADITIONS have had the opportunity to study Mande culture through travel to Mali, West Africa as participants in traditional mask and danced ceremonies of the Bamana, Wasalu and Dogon people of Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso.
PRODUCTION STAFF
Stage Manager Allison Geffner ‘03
Assistant Technical Director W. Keith Crowder
Assistant Technical Coordinator Chris O’Neil
Assistant Lighting Designer Whitney Braumstien ‘04
Technical Assistants Henry Ben Clarendon ‘06, Ariel Engelman ‘06,
Sarah Hoopes (RISD), Larissa Korhun ‘04,
Mike Peart ’06, Dade Veron ‘06
Costume Shop Supervisors Linda Peterson, Henry DuBois
Costume Shop Assistants Hilary Farrell ’05, Gabriela Gargano ’05,
Amy Komarnicki ’03, Vanessa Meikle ‘03,
Meryl Pressman ‘03, Jillian Waid ’04
Costume Construction TA28, TA129
Cutter/Draper Linda Peterson
Running Crew Jasmine Bauknight ‘06, Samantha Delson ‘06,
Takiyah Gray ‘06, Kara Munoz ’06, Jedd Resnick ‘06,
Morgan Schofield ‘06, Annabel Topham ‘06
Set Crew TA25
Box Office Manager/Publicity Manager Karen Longest
Box Office Assistants Matt Biagini ‘05, Ellen Darling ’03,
Catherine Tylke ‘05
Poster Designer Amanda Cheung ‘05
Publicity Photographer Tracy Schultz ’03