EMERGE125's 2022 NYC Season
Company:
EMERGE125
EMERGE125's 2022 NYC Season at The Flea Theater
Thursday, May 26 at 7:30 pm
Friday, May 27 at 7:30 pm
Saturday, May 28 at 2:30 pm
Saturday, May 28 at 7:30 pm
Sunday, May 29 at 2:30 pm
Black, Female-Led Dance Company Announces Inaugural Season as
Resident Company for the Iconic Off-Broadway Flea Theater
Featuring Company Premieres and Inspirational, Empathic Explorations of History
Accessibly-Intentioned Tickets to All Shows are $25, $10 for Students
Downtown Manhattan's The Flea Theater proudly announces the inaugural season program for their first-ever resident dance company, EMERGE125, including the world premieres of Behavioral Synchrony and Poly String Theory, the works-in progress John Brown Lives and Rights of Renaissance, and a revised revival of the company favorite Spirit Celestial.
Shows are scheduled for evenings at 7:30 pm on May 26, May 27, and May 28 with 2:30 pm matinees on May 28 and May 29. In keeping with both The Flea and EMERGE125's guiding light of inclusivity and accessibility, seats for all performances are $25 and $10 for students.
EMERGE125 - a hub for dance performance, dance creation, and dance education - is helmed by Executive Artistic Director Tiffany Rea-Fisher. "I can't imagine a more appropriate setting for our company than The Flea," Rea-Fisher says. "Their re-focused mission on the work of Black creators, humanistic art, explicitly anti-racist performance, and innovative art aligns perfectly with us."
Niegel Smith, The Flea Theater's Artistic Director, says "As we chart a path forward for The Flea, I am so pleased to have EMERGE125 join us as our ongoing partner. The unique modalities and artistry of dance will provide new means of creative access for our audience and fresh opportunities for new audiences to engage with the theater."
Rea-Fisher continues, "The past two years of COVID have wrought immense damage to the performing arts community, but perhaps there is some silver lining in our immediate moment of universal disquiet. I believe dance can provide empathic engagement in times of great difficulty. On the heels of the pandemic, I see an opportunity for greater connection, while the pain and our shared understanding of oppression in all forms is still raw. These commonalities, connected across artistic experience, may yet unite us."
A complete show program for these dates follows. Tickets are $25 or $10 for students and can be purchased online now. The Flea Theater is located at 20 Thomas Street, New York, NY 10007. For program changes and up-to-date scheduling for EMERGE125 programming, visit emerge125.org.
EMERGE125 at The Flea: PROGRAM CREDITS
Behavioral Synchrony: 2022 World Premiere
Choreography: Tiffany Rea-Fisher
Music: Halluci Nation
Original Lighting: Christopher Brusberg
Costumes: Rachel Dozier-Ezell
Dancers: Alisa Gregory, Mikayla Klein, Madelyn LaLonde, Erik Ostrkil, and Tiffany Terry
The sonic focal point for this piece is the drum. Inspired after reading a 2020 neuroscience article proving that “drumming in a group stimulates behavioral and physiological synchronization, and contributes to the formation of social bonds and the ability to cooperate,” Rea-Fisher felt percussive rhythm might provide a lifesaver for her company to get through the pandemic together. In workshops, the dancers' instructions were to hold each other close, throw everything they had physically, mentally, and spiritually into the work, and try to synchronize their heartbeats. This idea resulted in this high-pace and physically intense quintet.
John Brown Lives: Work-in-Progress
Choreography: Tiffany Rea-Fisher
Music: Erica “Twelve45” Blunt
Voices: Tiffany Rea-Fisher and Erica “Twelve45” Blunt
Original Lighting: Christopher Brusberg
Costumes: Rachel Dozier-Ezell
Dancers: Katherine Files, Dennzyl Green, and Erik Ostrkil
In the summer of 2020, Rea-Fisher was invited to visit the family farm of abolitionist martyr John Brown, who was hung for treason after raiding the U.S. Arsenal at Harpers Ferry. Rea-Fisher would subsequently create a dance film about the farm and participate in several on-site events related to the Black Lives Memorial installation created by artist Karen Davidson Seward. Now, Rea-Fisher brings these points of inspiration back to her NYC family for this work-in-progress piece.
Poly String Theory: 2022 World Premiere
Choreography: Tiffany Rea-Fisher
Music: Kaiser Quartet
Original Lighting: Christopher Brusberg
Costumes: Rachel Dozier-Ezell
Dancers: Alisa Gregory, Hannah Gross, Sarah Kleinke, Caitlyn Morgan, and Nikiao Thomashow
Rea-Fisher's love for the music of The Kaiser Quartet provoked her to make a movement piece that was as frenetic and visceral as their music. Inspired by her dancer's dedication, motivation, determination and strength, this study in applied pressure has quickly become a favorite piece of repertoire within the company.
Rights of Renaissance: Work-in-Progress
Choreography: Tiffany Rea-Fisher
Music: Organized by Erica “Twelve45” Blunt
Voices In order of appearance: Tracy Dunbar, Mikayla Klein, Alisa Gregory, Daniela Funicello, Caitlyn Morgan, Jenny Hegarty-Freeman, and Madelyn LaLonde
Original Lighting: Christopher Brusberg
Costumes: Rachel Dozier-Ezell
Dancers: Katherine Files, Alisa Gregory, Dennzyl Green, Hannah Gross,Sarah Kleinke, Madelyn LaLonde, Caitlyn Morgan, Erik Ostrkil, and Nikiao Thomashow
This work began when Rea-Fisher uncovered audio footage while working on a 2020 Harlem Stage dance film commission about the Harlem Renaissance. Dancers in the company were given a Time Magazine article by antiracist activist Ibram X. Kendi which they then discussed with a partner. “Though the dancers' voices can be heard throughout the piece," Rea-Fisher explains, "at no point does any dancer show up on stage while their voice is featured. The implication is that those not having a specific lived experience have to sit with, understand, and actually care about what others are experiencing, whether that is their lived experience or not. I believe that is how empathy is built.”
Spirit Celestial: Section 1, NYC Premiere, Section 2 (2018)
Choreography: Tiffany Rea-Fisher
Music: Kevin Keller
Original Lighting: Christopher Brusberg
Costumes: Rachel Dozier-Ezell
Dancers: Madelyn LaLonde (soloist) and Caitlyn Morgan
Spirit Celestial, Rea-Fisher’s physical response to the work of visual artist Sarah Yomen, was commissioned by the Lake Placid Center for the Arts as a gift for Jon Donk who brought the two artists together. The creation started with the ending solo, which Rea-Fisher began in 2017, but was always intended as a trilogy. This duet work serves as the bridge between the 2018 dance and its beginning movement, which will be completed in 2023.
EMERGE125 Company Members
Katherine Files, Alisa Gregory, Dennzyl Green, Hannah Gross, Mikayla Klein, Sarah Kleinke, Madelyn LaLonde, Caitlyn Morgan, Erik Ostrkil, Tiffany Terry, Nikiao Thomashow. Understudy: Alyssa Manginaro
About EMERGE125
EMERGE125 is a Black and female-led hub for dance performance, creation, and education. The organization is based out of both Harlem and Lake Placid, NY, and serves audiences both locally and around the world. EMERGE125 has established itself as a leader by setting new standards for dancer care; creating innovative, cross-disciplinary collaborations with leading artists; and using movement as a catalyst for community building by expanding the reach, purpose, and impact of the art of dance. From community dance classes to stadiums filled with thousands of spectators, EMERGE125 demonstrates that modern dance is accessible and relatable to people of all ages and socioeconomic backgrounds.
About Executive Artistic Director Tiffany Rea-Fisher
Tiffany Rea-Fisher is a 2022 Toulmin Fellow, an NDP Award winner, a 2021 Toulmin Creator, a John Brown Spirit award recipient, and was awarded a citation from the City of New York for her cultural contributions. She subscribes to the servant leadership model and uses disruption through inclusion as a way to influence her company's culture. She has extensive experience in choreographing and curating concert dance. As a choreographer, Tiffany has had the pleasure of creating numerous pieces for her company as well as being commissioned by Dance Theater of Harlem, Dallas Black Dance Theater, NYC Department of Transportation, Utah Repertory Theater, The National Gallery of Art in D.C., and having her work performed for the Duke and Duchess of Luxembourg. Her works have been seen on many stages including the Joyce, the Apollo, Joe's Pub, Aaron Davis Hall, and New York Live Arts. Tiffany was the first Dance Curator at the interdisciplinary arts organization The Tank, where she now sits on their Board of Trustees. She also curates the Bryant Park Dance Summer Series, which provides free art access to thousands while simultaneously exposing upcoming and established artists to a wider audience.
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