Blog Archives

Fall Events!

9/19/2016

By Aisha Cruse

It's fall, and that means that for most of your favorite Boston dance companies, the performance season is just beginning! I've rounded up a few events to keep in mind between now and December, but I'll be back in October with monthly picks. Let's dive into dance like dogs into leaf piles!

Blue Circle. White Text reads: Highland Street Foundation Presents ARTWEEK BOSTON

Friday, Sept 30 - Sunday, Oct 9
Artweek Boston
Presented by Highland Street Foundation
and Citi Performing Arts Center
Greater Boston
Price varies, often free!
So much dance, and so much of it free! Check out Around the world in 80 Dances at the Puppet Showplace Theater, Argentine Tango at Dance Union in Union Square, Urbanity Dance Open Rehearsal at Urbanity Dance in South End Boston, Street Pianos, and of course the opening night pARTy! Go to the website to check out the full list of events, and you can sort by dance, music, visual art, or their special series, Art of Food. There's really something for everyone.

Silhouette of upside down dancer. Text reads: Stakes is High, a shared evening of dance featuring Jacksonville Dance Theatre & James Morrow/The Movement October 21 & 22, 2016. at 8:00PM

Friday & Saturday, Oct 21 & 22 @ 8pm
Stakes is High, a shared evening of dance
Featuring Jacksonville Dance Theatre & James Morrow/The Movement
At the Julie Ince Theater in The Dance Complex
Central Square, Cambridge
$15 students/seniors, $20 bda, $25 general
I'm excited pretty excited to see theses two companies working in one place. From the Dance Complex press release: "Stakes is High will feature a variety of works from James Morrow, JDT resident choreographers Rebecca R. Levy (a Boston native) and Tiffany Santiero, and other notable artists."

Five people onstage, two stand, two sit on bench, one stands and leans off of bench

Saturday, Nov 5 @ 8pm
Planted
by Exit Dance Theater
At Green Street Studios, Central square, Cambridge
$20 general
This company hails from Newburyport, MA, and they've been dancing for 30 years. I've never seen them and they've been given such a glowing review that I'm pretty keen to see them for myself. Get tickets while you can, and check out the review at the link.

Pink and red background with white images of dancers. Black Text reads: Portal: Stories from the Edge

Friday & Saturday, Nov 11 & 12 @ 8pm
Portal: stories from the edge
Presented by Luminarium Dance
At BU Dance Theater, Boston
$22 students/seniors, $27 general
Luminarium is at it again, bringing us an evening-length show of their stunning work at Boston University Dance Theater. This year's offerings include musical collaborations with composer Christos Zevos and singer/songwriter Mali Sastri of Boston-based band Jaggery. Come watch this Monkeyhouse favorite in action.

Mark your calendars for December! 12 Dancers Dancing and the Winter Wonder Festival will be returning to the Dance Complex with a new fun line up of wonderful companies and choreographers!

Friday & Saturday, Dec 16 & 17 @ 8pm Tuesday, Dec 27 - Friday, Dec 30 @ 8pm 12 Dancers Dancing Winter Wonder Festival Performances
At the Dance Complex in Central Square At the Dance Complex in Central Square

0 Comments

ChoreoFest Interview: Getting to Know Allison Campbell

9/9/2016

0 Comments

Allison Campbell is the second Endicott College dancer joining us tonight. Allison and yesterday's interviewee, Emma, were both in the piece Mokeyhouse set for last spring's concert as well as in a piece Nicole set for Rep 10. It's exciting being able to work with them again!

N: What is your affiliation with Endicott College?
AC: I attended Endicott for four years for undergraduate studies and received a Bachelor's degree in Hospitality Management with a concentration in Event Management and a minor in Dance. I still attend Endicott now as I am perusing my Master's degree in Business Administration. I took as many dance classes as I could on top of what was required for my Hospitality degree. As a result of this, I finished my Minor by my Junior year but continue to take dance classes at Endicott because I enjoy them.

N: Outside of your time at Endicott, have you had any other performance or choreography opportunities? If so, what?
AC: Outside of Endicott I teach at a dance studio in Natick, MA. I have taught contemporary, ballet and jazz here and have had the opportunity for choreography with students as well as some performance opportunities myself.

N: What is your favorite performance you've been part of?
AC: This is a hard question as I have liked different performances for different reasons; however, I would have to say that one of my favorite performances to be apart of was the Dance Ensemble show, Rep 10. We brought back works from previous years, some that I had been in originally and some that I had not. I felt that I gained a lot through this because it gave me a new perspective on works that were familiar and experience with work that was totally new to me.

N: What is the most important lesson you feel you learned during your time working with Endicott's dance program?
AC: By far the most important lesson I have learned while being a part of the dance program at Endicott is how essential dance is to my life and daily well being. I have learned that it is a passion of mine and much more than just an activity I participate in. With my college experience came many hardships that I truly do not think I would have coped with as well had I not possessed this outlet. In addition to this, having come out of undergrad and immersing myself in a full time job just a week after graduating, dance was not as present in my life as it had been and I quickly felt the repercussions of this. I am now involving myself in this and many other dance opportunities to find a balance that suits me!

N: Who are some of your favorite choreographers?
AC: Paul Taylor, Sarah Mae Gibbons, Bruce Weber, Crystal Pite.

0 Comments

ChoreoFest Interview: Getting to Know Emma Limperis!

9/8/2016

0 Comments

Monkeyhouse is thrilled to be working with dancers from Endicott College during ChoreoFest this weekend. Nicole took some time to interview each of the dancers joining us tomorrow night. Meet Emma Limperis!

Tickets for Saturday's shows are still available! Get yours today before they sell out!

ChoreoFest takes place Friday/Saturday September 9/10! Get more information and your tickets to this year's ChoreoFest concerts here!

N: What is your affiliation with Endicott College?
EL: I am a Junior at Endicott currently in the undergraduate program.

N: Outside of your time at Endicott, have you had any other performance or choreography opportunities? If so, what?
EL: I was recently involved in a dance program in Orange, CA this past summer, the Backhausdance Summer Intensive. At the end of the program I got a chance to perform beside the company members in their renowned piece, Incandesent. This experience helped me branch out from what I've been focusing on as a dancer and it also helped me see my personal dancing in a new light.

N: Since Endicott does not have a dance major, you are taking/took a full load of dance classes on top of all the work required for another program. What is your major?
EL: My major is English and Creative Writing. Though dance is a huge part of my life and is what I want to pursue after college, writing has always been extremely important to me as well. It helps me express myself through powerful combinations of syllables and lyrics. I would love to write fiction books one day and am currently building a portfolio of self-reflective poetry.

N: What is your favorite performance you've been part of?
EL: Getting to perform in the opening number at the Arts in Motion Invitational in New York City was pretty spectacular. Performing in New York gives you this crazy adrenaline like no other.

N: What is the most important lesson you feel you learned during your time working with Endicott's dance program?
EL: I think learning that every dancer's movement vocabulary is different was a special lesson for me at Endicott. For years I spent so much time trying to dance and choreograph exactly like the someone else in the room, but this lesson helped me see that there are valuable parts of my quirks because they add unique elements to my dancing.

N: Who are some of your favorite choreographers?
EL: Currently, some choreographers I am hooked on are Hope Boykin, Andrew Bartee, and Leconte Banks.

0 Comments

ChoreoFest Interview: Getting to Know Karen Krolak, Part I

9/6/2016

0 Comments

Monkeyhouse LOVES ChoreoFest and we are thrilled to be so involved with this year's festival. Karen will be returning as "Choreographic Guru" this year. Here's the first half of our interview with Karen about what it means to mentor other choreographers.

ChoreoFest takes place Friday/Saturday September 9/10! Get more information and your tickets to this year's ChoreoFest concerts here!

N: What is your goal as the "choreographic guru"?
kK: I just want to be able to offer another set of eyes and ears for the choreographers. Having participated as a choreographer in Choreofest, I understand how overwhelming the process can be and know that sometimes all a person needs is a friendly voice to say, "This looks amazing." My early experiences as a pee wee cheerleader in Nashville and Atlanta are great assets over the course of the night. However, if somebody needs more, I am happy to help sort through tangled up moments too. I think it is important, however to respect the each choreographer's creative process and not to impose my own onto them.

N: What is a "choreographic guru"?
kK: I like to think of the choreographic guru as being a mentor at large for the event. Someone who can remind you of tools/ideas/resources that people may forget about when they get stuck at 4 AM. Part of the reason that we put guru in the title was to make things less serious sounding...more playful. Trust me, I know how hard it can be to ask for help on a creation when it is in those early stages.

N: Is there a way that choreographers can prepare themselves and you for a productive mentoring moment?
kK: Yes, ask direct questions rather than "What do you think?" or "Do you like it?" If someone comes to me and says, " Do you think that this section is too scattered and people will not know where to focus their attention?" then it is really easy to give feedback. Just be prepared for me to ask questions in response like "Where do you want them to focus?" or " Do you want the focus to become clearer as the section evolves?" rather than a yes or no answer. Frankly, it does not matter whether I like it. What is most important to me is whether the choreographer is articulately expressing her own ideas.

photo by Stephanie Sune

N: Why is mentoring so important to you?
kK: I have been really fortunate to have found many wonderful mentors in my life several of whom have since passed away. Can you imagine what quagmires I would still be stuck in without them? More importantly, my mentors did not try to mold me to be like them or to create the same way that they did. They nudged, cajoled, and sometimes kicked my toukas but they let me discover my own voice, own weird way of wrestling with ideas. Passing on their ways of guiding people and sharing their advice is my way of keeping their legacy alive.

0 Comments

C2C Blog

Fall Events!

ChoreoFest Interview: Getting to Know Allison Campbell

ChoreoFest Interview: Getting to Know Emma Limperis!

ChoreoFest Interview: Getting to Know Karen Krolak, Part I

Categories

Archives