PHILADELPHIA, PA: Mandell Presents "Melting Ice/Changing Winds" by Jody Sperling with composition by Matthew Burtner (FREE!)
Company:
Jody Sperling/Time Lapse Dance
PHILADELPHIA, PA (April 14, 2022): In Fall 2021, Drexel University’s Department of Performing Arts, housed within the Westphal College of Media Arts & Design, announced the public launch of the Mandell Presents series as part of the 2021-2022 academic year. Mandell Presents expands on the mission of Drexel’s Department of Performing Arts to engage a broader University and community audience through an interdisciplinary series of theater, music, and dance productions. Featuring high caliber professional artists who engage with provocative ideas and innovative concepts through their work, the series delves deeply into contemporary issues impacting our community.
The second performance, Melting Ice/Changing Winds, is a collaboration between acclaimed choreographer Jody Sperling (Time Lapse Dance) and composer Matthew Burtner, inspired by Jody’s unique experience in the Arctic and addressing global climate change. The program has been described as “an unusually beautiful vision suggesting, at times, the effects of global warming, encompassing Sperling’s environmental concerns as well as her choreographic and design mastery.” (Dance Tabs)
The evening features Ice Cycle which expresses the fragility and dynamism of sea ice and transports the Arctic to the stage. Also featured is Wind Rose (“hypnotic,” World Policy Institute) which renders changing atmospheric patterns palpable to sight, sound, and touch. Sperling shares a solo excerpt from a new work-in-progress, American Elm(“breathtaking,” Dance Enthusiast), considering the relationship between trees and people.
“ICE CYCLE is an unusually beautiful vision suggesting, at times, the effects of global warming, encompassing Sperling’s environmental concerns as well as her choreographic and design mastery.” —Dance Tabs
“Engages the viewer’s senses of sight, hearing, and touch to draw you deeply into the moment. Indeed, the extent of its power can be hypnotic.” —World Policy Institute
“This type of dance is about power— channeling the spirit of the environment, and extending the agency of movement and the expressive power of the human body to it in kind.” —th_Eroses
To better realize President Fry's goal of Drexel becoming "the most civically engaged University in the United States," Mandell Presents operates under a radical funding model that offers all programming entirely for free. Drexel is grateful to the Mandell Foundation for its support in moving the Department of Performing Arts and the wider-Drexel community forward in its reach as innovative artist-citizens.
To register for this FREE event, visit the Mandell Theater’s ticketing website. For more information about the 2021-22 Mandell Presents season, visit the Department of Performing Arts website.
About Drexel University’s Department of Performing Arts
The Drexel University Department of Performing Arts is a dedicated community of artists, faculty and staff committed to providing a quality education in dance, music, and theater. The Department looks to expand students' knowledge and skills through academic course work, rigorous technical training, experiences with professional artists, innovative community outreach, and outstanding performance opportunities. The Department of Performing Arts is home to the dance, music and theatre programs at Drexel, including a dance major and eight minors. It is also home to over 20 performing ensembles across all three disciplines. For more information, visit http://drexel.edu/performingarts.
About Drexel University’s Westphal College of Media Arts & Design
The Drexel University Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts & Design is dedicated to the education of students in the areas of design, media and the performing and visual arts. The Westphal College offers 17 undergraduate and eight graduate majors, housed in award-winning, technologically-enhanced facilities, and taught by faculty who have worked at the top of their fields. The College values a studio approach that incorporates six months of required co-op work experience for all undergraduate students. The College is home to two theaters, an art gallery, a notable collection of over 17,000 historic costumes, a record label, and a television station. Students produce sophisticated work through creative, multi-disciplinary practices, and provide meaningful shared experiences that promote individual and communal growth. Twelve of the Westphal programs enjoy national rankings and the College is ranked one of the best Design and Applied Art schools in the nation. Musical Programs at Drexel are housed within the Department of Performing Arts and are open not only to Westphal students, but to students across all of Drexel’s fourteen colleges and schools. For more information, visit drexel.edu/westphal.
Connecting Performance, Education, and Community Through Creative Exploration
ABOUT THE SERIES
THE MISSION
The Mandell Presents series will expand on the mission of Drexel’s Department of Performing Arts to engage a broader University and community audience through an interdisciplinary series of theater, music, and dance productions. Featuring high caliber professional artists who engage with provocative ideas and innovative concepts through their work, the series will delve deeply into contemporary issues impacting our community.
MEDIA CONTACT
Galen Blanzaco
Department Assistant and Mandell Presents Marketing Manager
Department of Performing Arts
gob27@drexel.edu
215-895-2451
ABOUT MELTING ICE/CHANGING WINDS
“Melting Ice/Changing Winds” Public Performance
Friday, April 29, 2022 at 7pm
Mandell Theater, 3220 Chestnut Street
Free with Reservation
CREATIVE TEAM INFORMATION
CHOREOGRAPHY: Jody Sperling
LIVE/ORIGINAL MUSIC: Matthew Burtner
DANCERS: Alex Bittner, Morgan Bontz, Jenny Campbell, Carly Cerasuolo, Maki Kitahara, Jody Sperling, Nyemah Stuart & Frances Barker (understudy)
LIGHTING: David Ferri
COSTUMES: Mary Jo Mecca
Pictured: "Ice Cycle" by Time Lapse Dance
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