Cherylyn Lavagnino Dance's "Mythologies" & "The Winter's Tale"
Company:
CHERYLYN LAVAGNINO DANCE
Cherylyn Lavagnino Dance (CLD)'s Salon Performance at New York City Center Studios will feature a reimagined reprise of Mythologies, Cherylyn Lavagnino’s (2021) choreographic work inspired by the stories of Ancient Greece, and a first look at CLD’s newest theater-dance work in process, The Winter’s Tale, based on one of Shakespeare’s last great plays. Tickets can be purchased in advance only through BrownPaperTickets, $25 per person, $15 per student with proof of ID. Visit: https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/5576773
Mythologies, which premiered in 2021, features sensual sirens, ferocious Amazonian warriors, and the devoted Band of Thebes in this reimagined dance work. Mythologies considers the interchanging nature of gender roles, with Amazonian warriors demonstrating how strength, grace, and femininity can co-exist in a single body by using the percussive and ethereal qualities of the pointe shoe. Lavagnino intermingles her characters in a partnering section bringing the male and female warriors into combative, ardent, and tender coupling, congruent with the fluid sexual practices during this period.
Mythologies is set to a commissioned score composed by Scott Killian (keyboard), Jacob Lawson (violinist), and Carol Lipnik (vocalist). The beautiful and mysterious music, intermingled with text by writer and dramaturge Brian Sostek, creates a sonic voyage for Lavagnino’s choreography.
The November City Center Salon will also include a sneak peek at Cherylyn Lavagnino’s work in process, The Winter’s Tale. Based on one of William Shakespeare’s last great plays, The Winter’s Tale is the story of improbabilities, loyalty, love and forgiveness, themes which align with Lavagnino’s long history of illuminating the various societal challenges faced by women. Her research into the main themes of The Winter’s Tale surround sexual politics and gender norms; at times a comedy and others a tragedy, the plot resides in a patriarchal society in which the role of women is constantly thwarted and limited by male dominance.
In The Winter’s Tale, Lavagnino uses gestures to make the choreography more human and universal. “In the context of theater-dance, familiar gestures can distill a dance vocabulary, guiding the audience toward shared experiences and diverse entry points into the work,” says Lavagnino. “Utilizing poignant gestures assists in defining a character’s attributes, aiding in the identification of the various figures in Shakespeare’s complex plots.” Inspired by the film Drive My Car, Lavagnino researched specific signed language to inform the choreography.
The Winter’s Tale is CLD’s third collaboration between choreographer Cherylyn Lavagnino and renowned composer Martin Bresnick. Bresnick will compose the score in the coming year; during this creative development period, the company is using the music of Max Richter.
Dancers at the CLD Salon are Justin Faircloth, Barrington Hinds, Philip Strom, Michael Wayne Miles, Jr., Dervla Carey-Jones, Corinne Hart, Erin Gallagher, Dorothea Garland, Alexis Branagan, Emma Pajewski, and Gwen Gussman.
HEALTH AND SAFETY PROTOCOLS:
Proof of vaccination required, with all patrons required to wear a mask while inside the performance facilities. Physical vaccine card, photo of vaccine card, or Excelsior pass accepted upon entry. Proof of a negative Covid test within 72 hours of performance time is required in lieu of vaccination.
CHERYLYN LAVAGNINO DANCE SALON PERFORMANCE - MYTHOLOGIES and THE WINTER’S TALE
Sunday, Nov. 27, 2022, at 3pm - New York City Center Studios – Studio 5 - 130 West 56th Street, NY, NY 10019 $25 per person, $15 per student with proof of ID.
Tickets: https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/5576773
Admission to advance ticket holders only – must purchase by 12pm, Nov. 27 - Ticketing phone: 800-838-3006
ABOUT CHERYLYN LAVAGNINO, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR/CHOREOGRAPHER
Cherylyn Lavagnino earned an MFA in Dance under the mentorship of Lawrence Rhodes from New York University’s (NYU) Tisch School of the Arts, as well as a BA in Philosophy from the University of Southern California. Lavagnino’s professional dance career spanned worldwide as a soloist with the Pennsylvania Ballet, a principal dancer with Arizona Ballet Theatre, as well as a principal dancer with Ballet del Espacio in Mexico City under the direction of Michel Descombey. She has performed a range of classical repertoire and contemporary work by choreographers including George Balanchine, Jerome Robins, Jose Limon, John Butler, Hans Van Manen, Lynne Taylor-Corbett, Margo Sappington, John Butler, and Tere O’Connor. The diversity of these experiences has informed the dialogue between classical and contemporary in her work with Cherylyn Lavagnino Dance. Ms. Lavagnino is an Alpert Award nominee for choreography. Lavagnino has had successful commissions at Princeton University, Intermezzo Dance, Indianapolis City Ballet, Southern Methodist University, University of Utah, and Repertory Dance Theatre, as well as recipient of a space grant residency from the Baryshnikov Arts Center. Lavagnino served as Chair of the Dance Department at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts from 2006–2014 and as a full-time faculty member from 1987-2022. In recognition of her superior work, Lavagnino won NYU’s prestigious David Payne Carter Award for Excellence in Teaching (2003). Lavagnino served as Visiting Professor of Dance at the University of Utah for the 2021-2022 academic year. She teaches professional ballet locally in NYC and internationally, instructs summer residency programming and company class for Abraham.In.Motion, the professional training program at Ballet Hispanico and masterclasses in Tokyo, Beijing, Seoul, and Prague. She continues to develop a creative exchange with the Beijing Dance Academy and the Conservatory and Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. Lavagnino received NYU's prestigious Global Research Institute grant for travel and research in Prague (2018).
“Eloquence must be something Lavagnino asks of her dancers. You often feel the movement as it courses through their bodies gently or fiercely. The distortions don’t look like examples of the new virtuosity, and at their best, they seem to proceed from emotional states. The dancers gaze intently at one another and the space, while the choreography bends the ballet choreography to suit whatever possesses them or invades them from the music.” - Deborah Jowitt, Arts Journal
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