Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater presents two exhilarating programs: Classic Ailey and a repertory program, Best Of—including a new production of Judith Jamison’s Hymn with text by actor/playwright Anna Deavere Smith

A highly acclaimed oratorio:
Following previous sold-out BAM engagements, Jonathan Miller’s powerful staging of Bach’s glorious St. Matthew Passion returns to the Harvey Theater

A dynamic UK theater production:
Director Edward Hall and the vibrant, all-male troupe Propeller return with a staging of Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice—in its U.S. premiere

 

---

Joseph V. Melillo, executive producer of the Brooklyn Academy of Music, announced programming for the 2009 Spring Season, which runs from Jan 2–June 14, 2009. The Season comprises eight theater, dance, and music engagements, and features BAMcinématek series, BAMcafé Live weekend music performances, artist talks, visual art exhibitions, and literary events.

Spring Season subscriptions are on sale Oct 27 for the general public (Oct 20 for Friends of BAM). Single tickets for The Bridge Project (The Cherry Orchard and The Winter’s Tale) are on sale Nov 24 (Nov 17 for Friends of BAM). Single tickets for all other Spring Season events are on sale Jan 21 (Jan 14 for Friends of BAM). For information, call BAM Ticket Services at 718.636.4100 or order tickets online at the newly redesigned BAM.org.

BAM Executive Producer Joseph V. Melillo commented, “Our Spring Season features a wealth of artistic achievement, new work by esteemed creative colleagues, and groundbreaking events. The Bridge Project, the result of our partnership with The Old Vic and Neal Street Productions, is a multi-year, international theater engagement with an unprecedented U.K./U.S. cast under the direction of Sam Mendes. We welcome back the highly inventive and accomplished theater company Propeller and director Edward Hall in a U.S. premiere. Our season’s dance presentations include a world premiere in celebration of dance legend Merce Cunningham’s 90th birthday; longtime colleague Trisha Brown and Trisha Brown Dance Company with world and U.S. premiere dances; the return of renowned choreographer Ohad Naharin and Batsheva Dance Company of Israel; a highly anticipated Brooklyn performance by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and the 32nd year of BAM’s longest running program, DanceAfrica. And by popular demand, we will present an unprecedented fourth engagement of Jonathan Miller’s staging of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion.”

Melillo concluded, “In addition to BAM’s diverse mainstage engagements, I invite you to explore the rich variety of experiences on our campus—critically acclaimed BAMcinématek series, informative and entertaining Artist Talks and literary programming, free music shows each weekend at BAMcafé Live, and BAM’s ongoing commitment to exhibiting new visual artists.”

BAM President Karen Brooks Hopkins said, “BAM would like to thank Bloomberg L.P. for sponsoring our Spring Season for the fourth time. We appreciate their enthusiasm for BAM’s artistic mission and their amazing commitment to New York City’s cultural vitality. We are grateful for the generous support of all our Spring Season donors.”

BAMcinématek
The highlights of BAMcinématek spring programming include films by past winners of the prestigious Prix Louis Delluc, including directors such as Jean Renoir, François Truffaut, Eric Rohmer, and others. This annual award, inaugurated in 1936, is given by French film critics to the best French film of the year and is given in memory of the French film critic Louis Delluc (1890-1924). In addition The African Diaspora Film Festival returns for its seventh year of award-winners and audience favorites from its sold-out festival. The ADFF features comedies, dramas, and documentaries from around the world that open windows on the cultures of Africa and the African Diaspora. In addition, BAMcinématek will screen Marco Ferreri’s Dillinger is Dead (Dillinger è morto) (1969)—starring Michel Piccoli—for a week, with a new print courtesy of Janus Films. Spring programming also includes a retrospective of director Carl Dreyer.

BAM Rose Cinemas and BAMcinématek will be celebrating their 10th Anniversaries in 2009. BAM Rose Cinemas has altered the city’s film landscape by providing the flourishing Brooklyn population with first rate independent and foreign films. BAMcinématek, the acclaimed repertory program that has presented major retrospectives of cinematic giants like Michelangelo Antonioni and Yasujiro Ozu, has also introduced New York audiences to contemporary artists such as Nuri Bilge Ceylan, Arnaud Desplechin, and Hong Sang-soo. This celebration will feature special screenings and events that not only look back on BAM Rose Cinemas’ past but also towards its future.

Leadership support for BAMcinématek is provided by Joseph S. and Diane H. Steinberg Charitable Trust.

Eat, Drink & Be Literary
BAM’s popular Eat, Drink & Be Literary program, presented in partnership with The National Book Awards, brings major contemporary authors to BAMcafé for evenings featuring intimate dinners, readings, and discussions. Authors for Spring 2009 include Louise Erdrich (Jan 15), Nathan Englander (Jan 22), Art Spiegelman (Feb 5), Jimmy Breslin (Feb 19), A.M. Homes (Mar 12), Germaine Greer (April 2), Richard Price (April 23), and Ha Jin (May 7). Tickets, priced at $50 per event (including dinner, wine, tax, and tip) go on sale Nov 17 (Nov 10 for Friends of BAM).

Bloomberg is the presenting sponsor for Eat, Drink & Be Literary. Pine Ridge Wine is generously donated by Joseph S. and Diane H. Steinberg. The New York Times Community Affairs Department is the media sponsor.

Artist Talks
BAM’s Artist Talks are an informal series of discussions, conversations, and demonstrations with BAM’s innovative theater, dance, and music artists. Cultural commentators, scholars, and critics interview the artists, providing provocative and spirited discourse. Post-show Talks are free for same-day ticket holders and take place in the performance venue. Pre-show Talks are $8 ($4 for Friends of BAM), unless otherwise noted and take place in BAM venues listed below.

Tom Stoppard on Anton Chekhov, interviewed by David Remnick Nov 11 at 7pm (Hillman Attic Studio)*
Stephen Greenblatt (The Winter’s Tale), Feb 15 at 1pm (BAMcafé)
The Bridge Project company (The Winter’s Tale), Feb 19, post-show
The Bridge Project company (The Cherry Orchard), Feb 25, post-show
Francine Prose and Sam Mendes (The Cherry Orchard), Feb 26 at 5:30pm (Hillman Attic Studio)
Ohad Naharin and dancers (Max), Gaga demonstration, Mar 3 at 7pm (Hillman Attic Studio)
Trevor Carlson (executive director of Merce Cunningham Dance Company) and artists (Merce Cunningham at 90), April 17, post-show
Jonathan Miller (St. Matthew Passion), April 18 at 5pm (Hillman Attic Studio)
Trisha Brown and Susan Rosenberg (Trisha Brown Dance Company), artist talk and demonstration, April 30 at 6pm (BAM Rose Cinemas)
Propeller company (The Merchant of Venice), May 7, post-show
*Tickets for Tom Stoppard Talk are $10 ($5 for Friends of BAM)

MetLife Foundation is the presenting sponsor for Artist Talks.

BAMfamily
BAMfamily, BAM Education & Humanities’ spring weekend series for children and adults, features arts programming as diverse and adventurous as BAM’s mainstage productions. Now entering its eleventh season, BAMfamily was created to share innovative or unfamiliar art forms with families at an affordable price.

This season BAMfamily begins on Feb 7 at 2pm in the Howard Gilman Opera House with a performance by Guy Davis entitled Stories and Songs of the Blues—a Black History Month celebration that explores music from the early blues to the songs of the Civil Rights Movement. Tickets are priced at $15. The season also includes the popular BAMkids Film Festival on Feb 28 & Mar 1. Presented in association with the Chicago International Children’s Film Festival, the two-day event features the best children’s films from around the world, as well as live music, face-painting, and more. Tickets go on sale in late January.

The BAMfamily Book Brunch, a junior version of the successful Eat, Drink & Be Literary series will take place on April 4. The afternoon will include a kid-friendly buffet lunch, live music, and a reading by an acclaimed children’s author (to be announced), followed by a Q&A, and a book signing. Tickets are $22 for adults, $17 for children fifteen and under (including lunch, tax, and tip). Visit BAM.org for details.

MetLife Foundation is the presenting sponsor for BAMfamily programs. Target is the presenting sponsor for BAMkids Film Festival.

Metropolitan Opera: Live in HD
BAM will participate in the third season of the successful Metropolitan Opera: Live in HD performance transmissions. Each screening in BAM Rose Cinemas is preceded by a delicious brunch in BAMcafé, an engaging and entertaining discussion with a noted opera luminary, and an audience Q&A. Brunch attendees also receive priority seating in the cinemas and a complimentary glass of champagne. Tickets for screenings are $22 ($20 for BAM and Met Members); tickets for brunch with a screening are $44.

La Rondine (Puccini), Jan 10 at 1pm (11am brunch features discussion with Fred Plotkin)
Orfeo ed Euridice (Gluck), Jan 24 at 1pm (11am brunch features discussion with Robert Marx and James F. Ingalls)
Lucia di Lammermoor (Donizetti), Feb 7 at 1pm (11am brunch features discussion with Arthur Kaplan)
Madama Butterfly (Puccini), Mar 7 at 1pm (11am brunch features discussion with Marc A. Scorca)
La Sonnambula (Bellini), Mar 21 at 1pm (11am brunch features discussion with Fred Plotkin)
La Cenerentola (Rossini), May 9 at 12:30pm (10:30am brunch features discussion with Arthur Kaplan)

BAMcafé Live
The BAMcafé Live series on Friday and Saturday nights presents performances by stylistically diverse artists—both established and up-and-coming. Additional BAMcafé Live highlights include a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. (Jan 16 & 17); BAM Jam, which brings musicians, composers, and singers together for new musical adventures (Feb 20, Apr 10, and Jun 19); and the BAMcafé 10th Anniversary celebration, featuring a mix of BAMcafé veterans, fresh faces, and revered artists. BAMcafé Live events have no cover charge and no drink minimum, making these eclectic events completely free of charge.

BAMart
BAM presents an exciting array of exhibitions this spring including the solo presentations of works by two Brooklyn-based artists: Chris Piazza, known for her large-scale Commedia dell’Arte-inspired sculptures that often reside in architecturally elaborate glass boxes; and Greg Lindquist, a young painter who creates poignant depictions of the borough’s decaying, post-industrial landscapes. BAMart will also present exhibitions in conjunction with BAM programs including DanceAfrica. Also taking place this spring is the 5th annual BAMart Silent Auction, featuring works from emerging artists to modern masters, with all funds going to support BAM. For complete information, please visit BAM.org/BAMart.

Support for BAMart is provided by the Robert Lehman Foundation.

For Tickets and Information
For tickets to or information about the 2009 Spring Season, call BAM Ticket Services at 718.636.4100 or visit BAM.org (for press information contact BAM Communications at 718.636.4129 or press@bam.org).

General admission tickets to BAM Rose Cinemas are $11. Tickets are $7.50 for students 25 and under (with valid I.D. Monday–Thursday, except holidays), seniors, children under twelve, and $7 for BAM Cinema Club members. Tickets are available at the BAM Rose Cinemas box office, by phone at 718.777.FILM (order by “name of movie” option), or online at BAM.org. For more information, call the BAMcinématek hotline at 718.636.4100 or visit BAM.org. (For press information, contact Molly Gross at 718.636.4129 x3 or mgross@BAM.org.)

BAMcafé Live events have no cover charge and no minimum. For information and updates, call 718.636.4100. (For BAMcafé Live press information, call Phaedra Athanasiou at 718.636.4129 x2 or pathanasiou@BAM.org.)

The Bridge Project
Produced by BAM, The Old Vic, and Neal Street Productions

The Winter’s Tale                       World Premiere
By William Shakespeare

The Cherry Orchard                   World Premiere
By Anton Chekhov
A new version of the play by Tom Stoppard

Directed by Sam Mendes
Set design by Anthony Ward
Costume design by Catherine Zuber
Lighting design by Paul Pyant
Sound design by Paul Arditti

Music by Mark Bennett

Casting by Nancy Piccione, C.S.A. and Maggie Lunn

Featuring Simon Russell Beale, Michael Braun, Selina Cadell, Morven Christie, Sinead Cusack, Richard Easton, Rebecca Hall, Josh Hamilton, Ethan Hawke, Paul Jesson, Charlotte Parry, Gary Powell, Tobias Segal, and Jessica Pollert Smith

Production Stage Manager, Jane Pole. 
Assistant Stage Managers:  Kevin Bertolacci, Cat Fiabane

Tour Producer, Claire Béjanin

Simon Russell Beale, Selina Cadell, Morven Christie, Sinead Cusack, Rebecca Hall, Paul Jesson, Gary Powell, and Jessica Pollert Smith are appearing with the permission of Actors' Equity Association. Michael Braun, Richard Easton, Josh Hamilton, Ethan Hawke, Charlotte Parry, and Tobias Segal are appearing with the permission of UK Equity, in corporating Variety Artistes' Federation, pursuant to an exchange program between American Equity and UK Equity.  The Producers gratefully acknowledge Actors' Equity Association for its assistance of this production.

Co-commissioned by and produced in association with Athens & Epidaurus Festival, THE EDGE®, Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen, The Singapore Repertory Theatre, Teatro Español de Madrid

BAM Harvey Theater (651 Fulton St)
Jan 2–Mar 8 (The Cherry Orchard) / press opening: Jan 14
Feb 10–Mar 8 (The Winter’s Tale) / press opening: Feb 20
The Bridge Project Benefit (The Winter’s Tale): Feb 17
Complete list of performance dates below
Tickets: $30, $60, $90

Artist Talks
Tom Stoppard on Anton Chekhov, interviewed by David Remnick
Nov 11 at 7pm, Hillman Attic Studio
Tickets: $10 ($5 for Friends of BAM)

Stephen Greenblatt on The Winter’s Tale
Feb 15 at 1pm, BAMcafé
Tickets: $8 ($4 for Friends of BAM)

The Bridge Project company
The Winter’s Tale
Feb 19, post-show (free for same-day performance ticket holders)

The Bridge Project company
The Cherry Orchard
Feb 25, post-show (free for same-day performance ticket holders)

Francine Prose & Sam Mendes on The Cherry Orchard
Feb 26 at 5:30pm, Hillman Attic Studio
Tickets: $8 ($4 for Friends of BAM)

Director Sam Mendes directs a transatlantic company of actors in a double-bill of classic works for The Bridge Project’s inaugural 2009 season, which pairs a new version of The Cherry Orchard by Tom Stoppard with Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale. A formidable transatlantic company and creative team will create these two new productions for six internationally renowned theaters. Simon Russell Beale leads the British/American cast, playing Lopakhin in The Cherry Orchard and Leontes in The Winter’s Tale. He is joined by Sinead Cusack as Madame Ranevskaya and Paulina, Richard Easton as Firs and Old Shepherd, Rebecca Hall as Varya and Hermione, Josh Hamilton as Yasha and Polixenes, Ethan Hawke as Trofimov and Autolycus, and Paul Jesson as Gaev and Camilo.

The Bridge Project is a unique series of co-productions from Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), The Old Vic, and Neal Street Productions. Each year a single British/American company will perform a double-bill of classic works at BAM and at The Old Vic, and make several international visits. In year one, the company will travel to Auckland, Singapore, Madrid, Recklinghausen, and Epidaurus.

The Bridge Project is presented by Bank of America and produced by Kevin Spacey for The Old Vic, Joseph V. Melillo and Karen Brooks Hopkins for BAM, and Caro Newling for Neal Street Productions. The project places the exchange of ideas, talent, and creativity between London and New York at the heart of the process, and is borne out of Sam Mendes’, Joseph V. Melillo’s, and Kevin Spacey’s shared desire to produce large-scale, classical theater for international audiences.

Rehearsals for The Cherry Orchard and The Winter’s Tale commence this month in Brooklyn. The plays will run at BAM from January–March 2009 then embark on an international tour, taking residencies at The Singapore Repertory Theatre, in Auckland at THE EDGE® Performing Arts Centre, in Madrid at Teatro Español de Madrid, and in Germany at Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen before arriving for a season of both plays in rep at The Old Vic from May–August 2009. The 2009 dates will conclude at Epidaurus, Greece as part of the Athens & Epidaurus Festival.

The Cherry Orchard performance schedule. Note: press opening Jan 14
Jan 2 & 3, Jan 6–10, Jan 13–17, Jan 20–24, Jan 27–31, Feb 24–27, Mar 1 & 7 at 7:30pm
Jan 4, 11, 18, 25, and Feb 1 at 3pm
Feb 28 and Mar 8 at 2pm

The Winter’s Tale performance schedule. Note: press opening Feb 20
Feb 10–14, Feb 18–21, Feb 28, Mar 4–6, and Mar 8 at 7:30pm
Feb 17 at 8pm*
Feb 15 & 22 at 3pm
Mar 1 & 7 at 2pm
*The Bridge Project Benefit

Max                                    New York City premiere

Batsheva Dance Company
By Ohad Naharin

Music by Maxim Waratt
Costumes by Rakefet Levy
Sound by Moshe Shasho
Lighting by Ave Yona Bueno (Bambi)

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House (30 Lafayette Avenue)
March 4–7 at 7:30pm
Tickets: $20, 35, 45, 55

Artist Talk with Ohad Naharin and Dancers
Gaga demonstration
March 3 at 7pm
Hillman Attic Studio (30 Lafayette Avenue)
Ticket price: $8 ($4 for Friends of BAM)

“… stunningly flexible limbs and spines, deeply grounded movement, explosive bursts and a vitality that grabs a viewer by the collar …”—The New York Times

Israel’s Batsheva Dance Company and artistic director/choreographer Ohad Naharin ascend to a new level of intensity with Max, a riveting exploration of the pains and pleasures of being alive. Naharin challenges the body’s limits, always pushing his dancers to risk more. Set to an original score by Maxim Waratt, the movement veers from clenched and concentrated to lush and expansive. Described by The Jerusalem Post as “an evening to remember,” Max’s power lies in the accumulation of images and emotions, gathering steam through the juxtaposition of bodies in motion and at rest, alone and together.

Since its founding in 1964 by Martha Graham and Baroness Batsheva De Rothschild, Batsheva Dance Company has become one of the most influential cultural institutions in Israel. The appointment of Ohad Naharin as Artistic Director in 1990 honed Batsheva’s mission: to strengthen common human values through the power of creativity. A compact yet dynamic organization, Batsheva presents over 200 performances a year in Israel, as well as across the world’s most renowned theaters and festivals. Batsheva's artistic innovation has earned the company its reputation as one of the world’s most sought-after companies—a beacon on the global map of performing arts. Batsheva appeared most recently at BAM during the 2007 Next Wave Festival with Three.

Merce Cunningham at 90                    World Premiere

Merce Cunningham Dance Company
Choreography by Merce Cunningham

Décor by Benedetta Tagliabue
Lighting by Brian MacDevitt
Costumes by Romeo Gigli

Music composed and performed by:
John Paul Jones
Takehisa Kosugi
Sonic Youth

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House (30 Lafayette Ave)
April 16 at 7pm*, April 17 & 18 at 7:30pm. April 19 at 3pm
Tickets: $25, 45, 65, 75
*BAM Spring Gala. For information contact BAM Patron Services at 718.636.4182

Artist Talk with Trevor Carlson (Executive Director, Merce Cunningham Dance Company) and artists
April 17, post-show (free for same day ticket-holders)

The Merce Cunningham Dance Company returns to BAM in celebration of the revered choreographer’s 90th birthday. The program features the U.S. premiere of a dazzling evening-length work created in collaboration with indie rock legends Sonic Youth, former Led Zeppelin bassist John Paul Jones, and mixed-media sound composer Takehisa Kosugi. With an intriguing, multi-tiered décor by world-renowned architect Benedetta Tagliabue, lighting by Tony and Obie Award-winning designer Brian MacDevitt, and costumes by Romeo Gigli, this work underscores the eternal imagination of an artist on the cusp of his ninth decade.

Merce Cunningham has always tested boundaries, explored new territories, and questioned his surroundings. From the formation of his company in the early 1950s at the artist colony Black Mountain College, to the beginning of the 21st century, he has remained a leading force in American contemporary culture. From his early collaborations with artists Robert Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns, as well as his long association with composer John Cage, to his work in the late 1990s with digital artists Shelley Eshkar and Paul Kaiser, Merce Cunningham has significantly shaped public perception of contemporary dance.

Born in Centralia, Washington, Merce Cunningham received his first formal dance and theater training at the Cornish School (now Cornish College of the Arts) in Seattle. From 1939 to 1945, he was a soloist in Martha Graham’s company. During that time, he began to choreograph independently, presenting his first New York solo concert with John Cage in April 1944. In the summer of 1953, he founded the Merce Cunningham Dance Company, for which he has choreographed nearly 200 works to date. In 2000, the Library of Congress recognized Merce Cunningham as a Living Legend for the lasting contribution he has made in enriching our national heritage. Merce Cunningham Dance Company made the first of its many groundbreaking BAM appearances in 1954. The Company most recently appeared at BAM during the 2003 Next Wave Festival in celebration of its 50th anniversary season; the program featured the world premiere of Split Sides (featuring music by Radiohead and Sigur Rós) and the N.Y. premiere of Fluid Canvas.

St. Matthew Passion                                       

Music by Johann Sebastian Bach
Conducted by Paul Goodwin
Directed by Jonathan Miller

Lighting design by R. Michael Blanco
English singing translation by Robert Shaw
Originally produced by Ron Gonsalves

With tenor Rufus Müller (Evangelist), bass Curtis Streetman (Jesus), mezzo-soprano Phyllis Pancella, soprano Suzie LeBlanc, countertenor Daniel Taylor, tenor Nils Brown, and baritone Stephen Varcoe

BAM Harvey Theater (651 Fulton St.)
April 17, 18, 21, 22, 24 & 25 at 7:30pm
Tickets $30, 55, 80, 90

 

Artist Talk with Jonathan Miller
April 18 at 5pm
Hillman Attic Studio (30 Lafayette Ave.)
Tickets: $8 ($4 for Friends of BAM)

Following highly acclaimed and sold-out BAM engagements in 1997, 2001, and 2006, Sir Jonathan Miller’s staging of Bach’s glorious St. Matthew Passion returns as part of the BAM 2009 Spring Season. This casual-dress, English language production of St. Matthew Passion was described by The New York Observer as “the most exhilarating [and] most important musical and dramatic event to be seen hereabouts in some time…the greatest piece of sacred music ever composed has been made new again.” Paul Goodwin returns to conduct a renowned group of soloists including tenor Rufus Müller (Evangelist), bass Curtis Streetman (Jesus), mezzo-soprano Phyllis Pancella, soprano Suzie LeBlanc, countertenor Daniel Taylor, tenor Nils Brown, and baritone Stephen Varcoe.

One of the most frequently performed and recorded works of J.S. Bach, the St. Matthew Passion has been a highlight of concert seasons and festivals around the world for more than 150 years. Featuring original baroque instrumentation, Miller’s stripped down production—without sets or costumes, and with minimal props—peels away traditional performance trappings and allows the work’s core words, passion, and humanity to emerge.

Director Jonathan Miller’s career spans many different fields: author, lecturer, television producer, and presenter, and director of theater, opera, and film. He has also directed operas for the English National Opera, La Scala, the Metropolitan Opera, the Vienna State Opera, the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden, and Glimmerglass Opera. In addition to 1997, 2001, and 2006 performances at BAM of St. Matthew Passion, Miller directed a production of Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea in 1996, Mozart’s Così fan tutte in 2003, and Cimarosa’s Il matrimonio segreto in 2008. Miller’s theatrical career has included many memorable productions—The Merchant of Venice with Sir Laurence Olivier and Joan Plowright, The Taming of the Shrew (Royal Shakespeare Company), The Seagull (Chichester Festival Theatre), A Long Day’s Journey Into Night (Haymarket Theatre), and The Emperor (Royal Court). Most recently, Miller directed La Clemenza di Tito in Zurich, Don Pasquale at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, and Così fan tutte at Seattle Opera. Miller is also a medical doctor, a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, and Foreign Member of the American Academy of Arts and Science.

Trisha Brown Dance Company                   U.S. Premiere / World Premiere

Choreography by Trisha Brown

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House (30 Lafayette Ave)
Apr 29–May 2 at 7:30pm
Tickets: $20, 35, 45

Artist Talk with Trisha Brown and Susan Rosenberg
Apr 30 at 6pm
BAM Rose Cinemas
Tickets: $8 ($4 for Friends of BAM)

“From her involvement in pioneering postmodern movements like Judson Dance Theater to her decades-long collaboration with the artist Robert Rauschenberg, Ms. Brown’s innovations and influence are hard to overestimate.” – The New York Times

New York’s celebrated Trisha Brown Dance Company returns to BAM with a career-spanning program of new works and revivals. Often referred to as the grande dame of postmodern dance, Trisha Brown has established a unique place in the field with her gravity-bending, fluid, yet unpredictable geometric style. Her revolutionary approach to movement has forever changed the way we look at dance. The BAM season includes Planes (1968). First performed in a gallery, the piece has been re-worked for the stage and features a soundtrack by Simone Forti along with Jud Yalkut’s impressionistic film of New York projected onto a wall scaled by three dancers. The bill also includes Glacial Decoy (1979), Brown’s first large-scale collaboration with Robert Rauschenberg; the set includes a visual landscape of projected images of homespun Americana.

One of the highlights of the program is the U.S. premiere of O złożony/O composite, a 20-minute dance created for three principals of the Paris Opera Ballet. It marks Brown’s first foray into the ballet lexicon and is the only dance she has created for a company other than her own. The piece is a quiet mixture of the classical and the modern, bringing together poets Czesław Miłosz and Edna St. Vincent Millay, composer Laurie Anderson, and painter Vija Celmins. Completing the program is the world premiere of a Baroque-influenced dance work that will serve as the creative foundation for Brown’s staging of Rameau’s opera Hippolyte et Aricie, which will premiere in France in 2010.

Trisha Brown is considered the most widely acclaimed choreographer to emerge from the postmodern era. Brown began showing her work with the Judson Dance Theater in the 1960s and pushed the limits of what could be considered appropriate movement for choreography. Soon, no setting was exempt as a stage—including rooftops, the sides of buildings, and interior walls; collaborators include Robert Rauschenberg, John Cage, and Laurie Anderson. She founded the Trisha Brown Dance Company in 1970 and has flourished by exploring ideas in cycles of, typically, three dances and by collaborating on large-scale theatrical productions and operas. Brown was awarded a MacArthur Foundation Fellowship, two John Simon Guggenheim Fellowships, and numerous awards from the National Endowment for the Arts and other organizations. Brown has a long affiliation with BAM that began in 1976 and includes presentations in 1997, 1981, and 1983 during the first Next Wave Festival. Subsequent BAM seasons include Trisha Brown at 25: Post Modern and Beyond (1996), and the opera L'Orfeo (1999).

The Merchant of Venice             U.S. Premiere

By William Shakespeare
Watermill Theatre (UK) and Propeller production
Directed by Edward Hall

Set design by Michael Pavelka
Lighting design by Ben Ormerod

BAM Harvey Theater (651 Fulton Street)
May 6–9, 12–16 at 7:30pm
May 10 & 17 at 3pm
Tickets: $25, 45, 65

Artist Talk with Propeller
May 7, post-show (free for same-day ticket holders)

William Shakespeare would delight in the compelling, audaciously cheeky theater of Edward Hall and his award-winning company Propeller. Last at BAM with The Taming of the Shrew and Twelfth Night (2007 Spring Season), comedies that revel in the trials and inevitable tribulations of romantic love, Propeller returns with a new staging of The Merchant of Venice, a work that poses still-incendiary questions about truth, morality, and prejudice. The story revolves around Shylock, an observant Jewish moneylender caught between his faith’s strictures and the demands of Christianity. In this astute production, Hall and the company reveal the play’s underlying absurdities—the virtue in vice and vice in virtue—while delivering an unsparing rendition of the harrowing bargain at its core.

The renowned British theater company Propeller seeks to rediscover Shakespeare by staging his plays with great clarity, speed, and imagination. Their adherence to the original men-only policy onstage underscores Shakespeare’s intricate tanglings between the sexes, and animates the physical life of the production with the poetry of the text. Propeller’s interpretations are replete with mask work, animation, classic and modern film, and music from all ages. Propeller has toured internationally in 19 countries, and has performed A Midsummer Night’s Dream and an adaptation of the Henry VI trilogy in London’s West End. The company was honored with a 2007 Obie award for The Taming of the Shrew.

Artistic Director Chuck Davis
Lighting Design William H. Grant III
 
Tatjj Drama ‘N’ Dance Ensemble
Farafina Kan
and
BAM/Restoration DanceAfrica Ensemble

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House (30 Lafayette Ave)
May 22 at 7:30pm
May 23 at 2pm & 7:30pm
May 24 & 25 at 3pm
Tickets: $20, 30, 40, 45 (Half price for children 16 and under)

DanceAfrica Bazaar: GGMC parking lots at Lafayette Avenue and Ashland Place,
May 23 from 12 noon–10pm; May 24 from 12 noon–8pm; May 25 from 12 noon–8pm; free admission

BAM’s longest running performance series—and one of America’s largest and most vibrant celebrations of African and African American dance, music, and culture—continues with the 32nd DanceAfrica festival. Created in 1977 to heighten awareness of African culture, the festival has evolved into a positive, high-spirited Memorial Day Weekend tradition that brings together the entire community. Under the artistic direction of Founding Elder Chuck Davis, DanceAfrica 2009 Rhythmic Reflection: African Legacies Revealed features the DanceAfrica debuts of visiting Ghanaian company Tatjj Drama ‘N’ Dance Ensemble and Washington, DC’s Farafina Kan along with the return of the BAM/Restoration DanceAfrica Ensemble—featuring student performers from BAM’s longest running youth program.

The week-long celebration, centered around the dance performances at the BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, also includes the popular outdoor DanceAfrica Bazaar with over 250 vendors featuring crafts, food, and fashion; a film series at BAM Rose Cinemas; and African music performed live in the BAMcafé.

Tatjj Drama ‘N’ Dance Ensemble—one of the premiere dance troupes in Ghana—hails from the Volta region and actively promotes the rich Ewe culture worldwide through song and dance. Washington, DC-based percussion orchestra Farafina Kan—which literally translates to “the sound of Africa”—is a multi-generational company that presents traditional and contemporary works rooted in West African culture. An annual favorite as well as a symbol of youth involvement in the preservation of African heritage, the BAM/Restoration DanceAfrica Ensemble returns for its thirteenth year.

Continuing his mission to preserve and illuminate a distinct African artistic, spiritual, and cultural identity, DanceAfrica’s Artistic Director Chuck Davis brings diverse ensembles together to explore the African Diaspora and its influence on everyday, urban society. Under Davis’ leadership, BAM produced the first DanceAfrica in 1977, creating the nation’s first festival devoted to the rich legacy of African dance. Echoing the success of BAM’s festival, cities such as Chicago and Washington, DC now host annual DanceAfrica celebrations.

Morgan Stanley is a Major Sponsor for DanceAfrica 2009. DanceAfrica 2009 is part of Diverse Voices at BAM presented by Time Warner, Inc. 
Major support for BAM Dance is provided by The Harkness Foundation for Dance and The SHS Foundation.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater at BAM
Presented by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

Program A
Best Of
Jun 9 & 11 at 7:30pm
Jun 13 at 2pm & 7:30pm

Program B
Classic Ailey
Jun 10 & 12 at 7:30pm
Jun 14 at 3pm & 7:30pm

Judith Jamison, Artistic Director
Masazumi Chaya, Associate Artistic Director

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House (30 Lafayette Ave)
Tickets: Jun 9 & 10: $20, 40, 60, 70; Jun 11–14: $25, 55, 75, 85

Following a highly-anticipated return to BAM in June 2008 that resulted in sold-out performances, wildly enthusiastic audiences and rave reviews, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater is coming back to Brooklyn with two programs that continue to celebrate the artistry, grace, and vitality that have distinguished the Ailey Company for five decades.

The Best Of program showcases selections from the Company’s diverse repertory, including a new production of Judith Jamison’s award-winning tribute to Ailey entitled Hymn. In episodes ranging from quiet solos to explosive full company dances, Hymn reveals Ailey’s genius and humanity through narrative recollections from past and present dancers in text conceived, written, and narrated by actor/playwright Anna Deavere Smith.

Classic Ailey features excerpts from many of Alvin Ailey’s most popular and beloved ballets. Spanning every decade of his impressive career, this retrospective illustrates the range and resonance of one man’s legacy with rarely-seen gems and favorite works, from Blues Suite, the dance that launched the Company in 1958, to Opus McShann, his final piece 30 years later.

The inspiring finale to both programs will be Alvin Ailey’s quintessential masterpiece, Revelations, a galvanizing tour de force celebrating African-American cultural heritage that ranks as one of modern dance’s most affecting and beloved works.

Now celebrating its 50th Anniversary, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (AAADT), America’s Cultural Ambassador to the World, grew from a now fabled March 1958 performance in New York that changed forever the perception of American dance. Today, led by Artistic Director Judith Jamison, AAADT has performed for an estimated 21 million people in 48 states and in 71 countries on 6 continents, including two historic residencies in South Africa, promoting the uniqueness of the African-American cultural experience and the preservation and enrichment of the American modern dance. Alvin Ailey Dance Foundation, Inc. is the umbrella organization which includes AAADT; Ailey II (1974), a junior performing company of emerging young dancers and innovative choreographers; The Ailey School (1969), one of the most extensive dance training programs in the world; Ailey Arts In Education & Community Programs which brings dance into the classrooms, communities and lives of people of all ages; and The Ailey Extension, dance and fitness classes for the general public.

 
Visit BAM for tickets and more information.