Putnam Fall for Dance - Performance - Moved to Sunday 10/8

Weather Note: 

Unfortunately, the weather does not seem to be promising with 93% chance of rain all day. So we are moving the performance to Sunday at 3 PM.  Please join us then. 

Putnam County Dance Project presents Putnam Fall for Dance which features 2 well known dance companies, The Erick Hawkins Dance Company and Dances by Isadora/NYC.  The 2 day event, October 7th & 9th, at 3 PM, highlights American Modern Dance pioneers as well as contemporary new works. Performances will be on the outdoor dance stage, at Arts on the Lake.

A Benefit Reception will follow the Saturday performance (approximately at 5 PM), with the proceeds supporting the Putnam County Dance Project.  We encourage everyone to attend to meet the dancers,  choreographers and fellow dance enthusiasts. Ticket prices are listed below, with a Special Supporter discount available.

Putnam Fall for Dance has two unique performances.The Saturday matinee presents: the Putnam County Dance Project (PCDP), Dances by Isadora/NYC, and the The Erick Hawkins Dance Company, while the Monday "Open Stage" performance at 3 PM, features new and in-progress works by a variety of regional choreographers followed by conversation and commentary.

For the Saturday, October 7th performance at 3 PM, PCDP invited these two celebrated companies to join with them in presenting an afternoon dedicated to modern dance pioneers, Isadora Duncan and Erick Hawkins. PCDP founders Marie Carstens and Erin Hunter Jennings are each, respectively, members of these noted dance companies, Dances by Isadora/NYC, and the The Erick Hawkins Dance Company They are delighted and honored to have both companies' participation with both Catherine Gallant and Katherine Duke performing.

Dances by Isadora/NYC directed by Catherine Gallant, will perform 3 pieces created by the “mother of modern dance”, Isadora Duncan. Gallant herself will perform the short solo, “Prelude.” “Grande March”, created by Duncan after the tragic deaths of her children in 1913, will be danced by Faith Kimberling as the central figure, as the chorus, comprised of Natalia Alonzo-Brillante, Marie Carstens, Charlotte Hendrickson, Anne Parichon-Buoncore, Megan Minturn, Jasmine Oton, surround her mourning. Originally set to the music of Franz Schubert, it has been reimagined here to the music of African-American composer, George Walker. In contrast, the vibrant Valse-Brilliante (Chopin) brings dancers Amelia Sanders and Jessie King into a quartet with Kimberling and Parichon for a powerful new generation of dancers.

Gallant says “Dance is for everyone. Our priorities emphasize the unique powerful movement qualities of each performer as they relate to the technique and repertoire. Our practice is led by ongoing inquiry, consistent and probing feedback and an openness to new ideas and approaches that will engage our expanding audience”.

Isadora Duncan combined the use of simple natural movement with a vibrant musicality. She sought a vocabulary that would illuminate the human spirit and its connection to nature and she was the first to create dance to existing music, including works of Beethoven, Chopin, Brahms and Scriabin.

She inspired the development of dance as an art form, igniting the imagination of choreographers such as Jose Limon, Katherine Dunham and Martha Graham. The company has brought her work to life for audiences in the US and abroad since 1989. Information about the company may be found here: https://www.dancesbyisadora.com/#/

The Erick Hawkins Dance Company will perform three choreographic works: "Show Me" performed by Jeff Lyon and Erin Jennings wrestling with the feelings of love and, strikingly, revealing that no matter how much we as lovers and human beings evolve those feelings emerge over and over again unchanged; a solo "Blood in my Ears" performed by Katherine Duke as an ephemeral prayer in response to our excessive commoditization and addiction to convenience; and finally "Elusive Pierce" (excerpts) performed to an original string quartet composed by founding composer Lucia Dlugoszewski.

Erick Hawkins was a leading American modern choreographer and dancer who danced with George Balanchine and Martha Graham before starting his own company in 1952, which had a unique and modern aesthetic vision. Similar to the direction abstract painters were taking art, Hawkins’ aesthetic was detached from realistic psychology, plot, social or political agenda, or simple musical analogue. Important influences were dances of American Indians, Japanese and Zen aesthetics, Greek classics, and the exploration of the relationship between sound and choreography. Lucia Dlugoszewski, composer in residence and later artistic director, revolutionized the practice of creating music for dance through her sound compositions, philosophical writing and instrument inventions.

Katherine Duke made her professional debut with the company at Lincoln Center in 1986 dancing to critical acclaim before becoming artistic director in 2001. Perpetuating and preserving the musical, compositional and choreographic legacies of both Dlugoszewski and Hawkins, Duke has directed the company for many seasons in New York City and on tour facilitating the reconstruction of classic repertory and new works for universities and professional companies including White Oak Dance Project and the American Dance Festival. For more information about the company please visit https://www.erickhawkinsdance.org.

Putnam County Dance Project was created in 2018 when dancers Marie Carstens and Erin Jennings joined forces after leaving NYC for the beauty of the Hudson Valley. Having both danced professionally in NYC and beyond, they co-created PCDP to bring quality dance performance and events to surrounding communities.

For this show, they included two companies they concurrently dance with and are thrilled to bring these three companies together. PCDP members will present dance repertory to classical music of Brahms, Nevins and Sibelius, and to more current music of The Lovin Spoonful and local-global musician Pierre de Guillande/Body Kite.

PCDP has created dance events and workshops including Global Water Dances, All Aboard”, & Taking Flight at various venues with Arts on the Lake, Phillipstown Depot Theater (Garrison’s Landing), & Cultural Arts Coalition (Old Town Hall as well as Studio Around the Corner). The company enjoys working collaboratively and this weekend's event includes Melisa Chilo, MaryBeth Hraniotis, Steven Jeltsch, Faith Kimberling, & Jasmine Oton as part of the PCDP presentation.

These concerts are made possible by our supporters and in part through the Putnam Arts Council's Arts Link Grant Program with Public Funds provided from the Putnam Count and through the New York State Council on the Arts with support from the Governor's office and the NY State Legislature.

Tickets for the Saturday afternoon show at 3 PM are $25. The Monday afternoon "Open Stage" has a suggested donation of $10 for audience members. 

The Reception following the Saturday event, is also $25.  A Supporter ticket for both is $40.  All proceeds are to benefit the PCDP.