Thursday, July 29, 2010

GOING GAGA?

Peridance Capezio Center, in collaboration with Ohad Naharin, is thrilled to announce:

Gaga Classes
Offered exclusively in NYC at Peridance!
Starts August 2nd!

Gaga is a movement language developed by Ohad Naharin, Artistic Director of Israel’s Bat Sheva Dance Company. Dancers and non-dancers alike reconnect to the way they move as individuals and humans. The technique emphasizes tension release, harnessing your imagination, finding your own passion for movement, and understanding the body as an intrinsic source of power and energy.

Trisha Brown Dance Company Technique and Repertory

Former soloist of 7 years and director of re-staging leads a workshop based on Trisha Brown's infamous style and repertory.

Aug 2, 2010 - Aug 6, 2010; Mon - Fri
Technique: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Repertory: 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM


Mariah Maloney a teacher, choreographer and artist brings her strong experience and teaching style to this exciting workshop. In the technique class participants learn movement as the company does with attention to detail, spatial clarity, performance quality and awareness of ensemble. Ms. Maloney places focus on breath and body awareness in order for students to develop proper alignment and a full range of motion, greater coordination and stability. The key lessons learned are applied during the repertory class.

Trisha Brown's choreography has garnered acclaim for pushing the envelope and changing modern dance forever. She has received numerous awards, titles, and honorary doctorates for her work. Her company is regularly seen performing at famous venues world wide.

Register Today!

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Shen Wei Dance Arts Workshop

Learn from the company behind the captivating choreography of the 2008 Olympic Opening Ceremony!

Aug 2, 2010 - Aug 6, 2010; Mon - Fri
Technique: 3:00 PM - 4:30 PM
Repertory: 4:30 PM - 6:00 PM

A unique opportunity to work with founding member Sara Procopio and the Director of Outreach Kate Jewett. Shen Wei Dance Arts, known for its distinct interdisciplinary cross-cultural style, fuses together theater, Chinese opera, and visual art. Meant for the forward-looking audience, the company continually receives invitations to perform at famous venues worldwide.

The workshop is separated into two classes. The first, a technique class, forges a pathway for the mind and body to approach dance in a new way. Dancers investigate movement ideas which include breath, internal energy, and momentum. In the repertory class students do not only learn selections from company repertory, but they continue exploration. True to Shen Wei's own process, students will draw compositional and movement inspiration from various art forms. Individual and collective research give dancers the opportunity to work on group and solo material within the class.

Register Today!

Florida Dance Theatre Workshop and Audition


Explore freedom and dynamics through imagination and intention.

August 16th - 20th
4:00-6:00


Ferdinand De Jesus, Associate Artistic director of Florida Dance Theatre, will be leading a workshop and audition. De Jesus' style pushes the dancer's physical potential and challenges the artist to explore possibilities and open the mind.

The workshop can also serve as a pre-audition for those looking to join the company. (Interested dancers should email Artistic & Founding Director Carol Erkes at floridadancetheatre@gmail.com for further information)

Monday, July 26, 2010

Contemporary Jazz with Braham Crane!

Braham Crane leads three classes at Peridance this week!

July 27th-29th (Tue, Wed, Thu)
4:00-5:30pm

Braham Crane a cutting edge choreographer, master teacher and artistic director has been lauded for his unique style. By fusing all genres of dance, he has earned a strong reputation for taking the art-form into the future. He has worked and collaborated with numerous companies and industry fixtures ranging from Bolshoi Ballet to Bad Boys of Dance.

Seize the three days and take this unique opportunity!


Thursday, July 22, 2010

Nathan Trice Rituals Workshop

Nathan Trice, artistic director and founder of Nathantrice/Rituals Project-by-Project Dance Theater leads a workshop on his unique modern technique!

Jul 26, 2010 - Jul 30, 2010; Mon - Fri
11:00 AM - 1:00 PM


The New York based dancer and choreographer
has worked with Momix, Donald Byrd, Complexions, Kevin Jeff and continues to freelance with other artists.
A former Navy crew member, Mr. Trice combines stunning athleticism and power with musicality and emotional vulnerability, resulting in thrilling choreographic compositions.

Register Today!

Anna Sokolow Repertory Workshop

Jim May, Artistic Director of Sokolow Theatre Dance Ensemble, teaches a two part workshop this August!


Aug 16, 2010 - Aug 20, 2010; Mon - Fri
Technique: 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM
Repertory: 11:30 AM - 1:00 PM

Jim May will teach exerts from Anna Sokolow's repertory. Under his guidance, students will explore the dramatic contemporary imagery of this renowned artist. The workshop consists of a technique class followed by a separate repertory class.

Jim May is a former member of the José Limón Dance Company. He received a Bessie Award for lifetime achievement and has been on the faculty of Juilliard, SUNY Purchase and Princeton University. He also teaches advanced-intermediate Limón at Peridance.

*** Please note drop in classes are not permitted for repertory, participants must register for the full week.

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Sign Up With Dance Informa!

Win $4,000 and an Apple Ipad!

Sign up online with Dance Informa and you too could be jumping for joy!

Dance Informa is a free online information hub for dancers. The site features audition information, articles, advice, and other dance related features. Jazz Teacher, Jack Chambers was featured in the most recent edition!


Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Peridance Faculty Showcase Summer 2010!

You see extracts from their choreography in class..
Now you have the opportunity to see more!


Enjoy a Saturday night witnessing work from the emerging and established choreographers that make up Peridance's Faculty. With styles ranging from Hip-Hop to Ballet, the program offers something for everybody.

Learn More!



Friday, July 9, 2010

Bagua Workshop with Joseph Zeisky

Develop your inner strength, agility, and calm your mind by exploring Bagua!

Jul 18, 2010, Sunday
9:00 AM - 1:30 PM

Bagua is an internal martial art based on Taoist principles and natural movement. Participants use spiraling motion while simultaneously walking in a circle, making multiple changes in their dynamics and direction. It is a calmed form of self-defense (much like its sister Taichi), however is more athletically and animatedly challenging. Joseph Zeisky, master instructor, teaches Bagua regularly at Peridance, however this workshop will be a one day intensive for beginners. Students take various classes that focus on specific fundamentals.

Register today for this perfect opportunity to explore the basics!

Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Coloring Movement with Camille A. Brown


Experience movement in a new way with Camille A. Brown, the first woman to receive the Princess Grace Award in Choreography!

Jul 13, 2010 - Jul 15, 2010
4:00 PM - 5:30 PM

The class aims to create a dialogue about issues pertaining to the human spirit and its lively journey. The class includes a warm up and a repertory portion. Focus will be placed on movement dynamics and dancers' will be challenged in their approach to dance.

Learn More and Register Today!

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

July Teacher Feature: Anabella Lenzu!

Anabella Lenzu teaches Barre-a-Terre at Peridance on Wednesday at 1:00 and Sunday at 4:30. To class Ms. Lenzu brings her strong, diverse background of performing,choreographing, and teaching. Ms. Lenzu is also the artistic director of Anabella Lenzu/DanceDrama and the founder of L’Atelier Centro Creativo de Danza, a dance school in Argentina .

Read on to discover the powerful meaning behind her class and company!

What prompted you to begin studying dance? Did you know you always wanted to become a professional, or did this emerge?
I always knew that dance is what I wanted to do for a living. Ever since the age of four, I wanted to dance. My mom put me into a school that only taught Flamenco, in my hometown, Bahia Blanca, Argentina. Soon after, I began studying ballet and continued until the age of 18, when I became a certified ballet teacher. My dream became a realization when I opened my dance school in Argentina in 1994. Previously, I had danced with other Ballet and Flamenco companies, but from this point on I directed my own company which started touring and performing. I haven’t stopped dancing, choreographing and teaching since.


You currently teach Barre A Terre at Peridance. What led you to train in body conditioning as well as dancing?
Body conditioning and dance were never two separate things for me, they were always integrated and this is the way I teach my barre a terre. During my training as a young dancer, I had to study and learn a vocabulary of movement with precision. I see barre a terre as an opportunity to explore the anatomy of movement further; to find out what muscles you’re working and what is the job of each particular muscle or muscle group. You have to know your body. You can’t play the piano without knowing what the notes are. When I moved to New York in 2005, I felt that my students needed a special class where they could not only work their muscles and bones, but find a place to channel their energy as artists. I feel that sometimes dancers in regular class don’t have time to think about the fundamentals because they are thinking about the result, and not about the process. I’m teaching where and how the energy is flowing through the different parts of the body, the integration of mind-body, the emotional interconnection and the exploration of their personal Kinesphere. These are the basics for any kind of dance style or technique the human body is One. My barre a terre class is a time and a space where students can really focus and appreciate the integration of all these.
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In addition to being on faculty at Peridance, you founded L’Atelier Centro Creativo de Danza in 1994, a dance school in Argentina. Currently, you serve as Artistic Director of Anabella Lenzu / DanceDrama, a dance theater company based in New York. Both promote dance where expression melds with the mind. What led you to focus on this socially and politically conscious art? Where do you gather many of your inspirations?
Through working with a variety of artists and living in Argentina, Italy and the US, I began to understand dance as an integral part of our
society. I became interested in using dance to improve our human condition by making the audience feel, think and emote. I developed a mission to introduce people to dance-theatre and engage in a cultural, educational and artistic exchange, especially between the New York community and other cultures, specifically Argentina, Italy and Chile. Francoise Delsarte, Isadora Duncan, Mary Wigman, Doris Humphrey, Jose Limon, Martha Graham, Anna Sokolow, Maurice Bejart and my husband Todd Carroll are sources for my continual inspiration. I like character driven drama, and break apart quotidian social gesture, so I strive to create a vocabulary of movement utilizing each.
As far as “socially and politically conscious art” this stems from what I’ve seen and experience in my life. Themes range from 1) The relationship between the individual and society: communication, identity, memory and spirituality. 2) The relationship between people and environment. 3) Women’s concerns and beliefs. 4) The struggle for a woman’s identity and role in society. 5) The nobility of the body as a temple for our mind, soul and heart.
Your company has a repertory encompassing several different styles ranging from ethnographic folk traditions, to theatre, to ballet to modern. How do you bring such different forms together? How does your diverse performing background influence your own repertory?
The different cultures I have lived in are the fire that purifies my choreographic ideas. My current work is not a patchwork quilt of easily discernable styles. Rather, it is a new movement vocabulary that integrates the entirety of my dance background (ballet, modern, folk dance, theater) with current ideas dealing with people and how they relate to their environment/society
Since training in and teaching Barre-a-Terre how has this changed your own dancing and choreographing?
It has made me much more aware, detailed and specific when I am teaching choreography to my company dancers.
With dancers constantly expected to push physical limits, how does this affect approach to cross-training? Do you find that the current exercises will remain essentials, or will the technique have to alter to accommodate the new physical demands? Since starting, have you seen any changes, in the format of class?
Teaching in New York is a unique experience because students come and go and there isn’t often a group of dancers consistently taking class over a long period of time. The students come from a wide variety of dance backgrounds and are training in many different techniques. The exercises I use in my class are designed to acquaint the dancer with his or her musculature and how they’re using that for expression. I constantly find myself repeating “It doesn’t matter what technique you are dancing….Vagonova, Cecchetti, Horton, Graham, Cunningham … (demonstrating arms in second position)…
this is your second…maybe it shifts stylistically from one technique to the next ….higher…lower… but your arms are always connected with the scapula, and the back is always supported by the latissimus dorsi.
There is only one human body.

The diversity of New York is fascinating because there is an opportunity to teach and communicate with people from all over the world, coming from different cultures and artistic backgrounds. I am constantly learning from my students, even after 20 years of teaching! The relationship with my dancers and students is by nature profound. 
I search for each dancer’s individual voice, bringing out their potential & creativity. I love to work in an atmosphere of creativity, respect, responsibility, honesty, independence and freedom. In my classes, I feel lucky to work with people that have a deep necessity to express themselves and explore the language of dance as an instrument- and, in teaching barre a terre and ballet it’s my job to give them the tools so that they can fully explore the possibilities of their instrument.


Any updates you would like the Peridance community to know?
I’m working on a full evening length show with my company Anabella Lenzu/DanceDrama entitled, “The Grass is Always Greener…”, which is a piece
that explores themes of immigration, roots, and memory that will be premiered in October, 2010 at the Merce Cunningham Studios. Also, I am organizing a Tango Tour to Buenos Aires, Argentina December 28th and January 3rd of this year. It’s a chance to experience the birthplace of Tango, dance in exotic Milongas, and see the sights in Buenos Aires, the “Paris of South America”.

Experience Barre-A-Terre and discover the difference!

For more information visit:
www.AnabellaLenzu.comPhotos courtesy of Todd Carroll: www.toddcarroll.me

Friday, July 2, 2010

Theater Dance With Bill Hastings

"This class is not for the faint-hearted!"

The workshop will be rescheduled, please check the

This theater dance workshop will incorporate traditional modern technique with contemporary music and performance. Students will be challenged in unexpected ways and pushed not only physically, but artistically. Dancers are encouraged to enjoy dance and have a good laugh all while improving their technique.

Bill Hastings' lengthy resume includes performing in over fifty musicals and plays, choreographing for multiple occasions, and teaching at universities and festivals throughout the world! More details can be found on our website.

This unique opportunity is not one to miss, so register today!

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Absolute Beginning Jazz Workshop

Be introduced-or reintroduced-to Jazz!

Jul 6, 2010 - Jul 17, 2010
Tuesday/Thursday: 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
Saturday: 2:30 PM - 4:00 PM

Courtney Wissinger, accomplished performer and choreographer, has students start from scratch with this popular technique.
Class begins with a traditional warm up to guide students on proper stretching and strengthening methods. After, participants learn the fundamentals of center work and the secrets of leaps and turns. The workshop culminates in a fun final choreography.
Questions are encouraged!


Register Today!