tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59731814696014247712023-11-16T01:00:55.997-06:00Aud BlogThe Auditorium Theatre began entertaining Chicago in 1889. Find out what we're doing today.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger469125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-13546388171226932652014-10-03T11:12:00.000-05:002014-10-03T11:12:01.276-05:00American Ballet Theatre's April Giangeruso - My Time With ABT<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">Hello, Chicago! My name is April Giangeruso and I am a Corps de Ballet dancer with American Ballet Theatre. This upcoming tour will be my third time performing with ABT at the gorgeous Auditorium Theatre. My first time dancing here was in 2010 in </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">Swan Lake</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">, and subsequently in 2012 in </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">Giselle</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">. During the 2010 tour I was a very new 3-month member of ABT, and I remember being so excited to perform my favorite ballet for the first time. It was a surreal experience realizing that I was once a baby ballerina aspiring to one day be in ABT’s </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">Swan Lake</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">, and now it was really happening. I will always have a soft spot for that particular tour. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">One of the best parts of being a dancer with ABT is our touring schedule. Not only do we live and rehearse in one of the most exciting cities in the world, but we also get to see the rest of it doing what we love. Every corner of the world has a special character and unique culture, which always bestow priceless memories on each of us dancers. In August, ABT had its first ever tour to Australia! It was a privilege and an honor to be a part of a historic tour for the company during our 75th Anniversary Season, not to mention getting to hold a koala and pet kangaroos. Above all, the ABT family is truly special. Getting to visit all of these beautiful places, with the best people is something I could never replace. There may be societal notions that dance is sometimes competitive and hostile, but I can truly say that ABT is both a supportive and loving environment.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;"><br />My career thus far at ABT has been nothing short of a dream come true. Born in Maryland, I attended ABT’s </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">Swan Lake</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;"> when I was 5 years old and told my mom I wanted to be a ballerina. Even at a very young age, teachers practically had to drag me out of the studio when class was finished. I just didn’t want to leave! I moved to NYC, shortly thereafter joined the JKO School at ABT, then ABT II, the former junior company, and after two years joined ABT in 2010. I have worked extremely hard in my 4 years with the company, always wanting to perform more roles that I feel will challenge me, make me improve, and show my capabilities as a dancer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">In the Saturday matinee at 2PM and Sunday matinee at 3PM, I will have the privilege of performing one of the Principal couples in Twyla Tharp’s </span><i style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">Bach Partita</i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">. This is my first Principal role with the company, which is so exciting to me and my family who will be attending the performances. Tharp’s choreography is a full mind and body experience, the process has been so rewarding and getting to work so closely with Susan Jones, ballet mistress at ABT, is invaluable to my growth as a ballerina. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">I hope that my career with ABT will be a long and great one; I have never even imagined dancing anywhere else. 890 Broadway is where I feel my home really is, we may need a few fresh coats of paint on the walls, but even so, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else Tuesday-Saturday 10am-7pm. Simply put, ballet is what I wake up for, what I think about, and what makes me the person I am. At 23 years old, I can only hope that the next 23 years will be just as thrilling, hopefully still with ABT, and inspiring the next generation of dancers as this generation has inspired me. </span></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">April performs with American Ballet Theatre during their run at the Auditorium, October 3 – 5. </span><a href="http://theaud.us/ABTAllAmerican"><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;">http://theaud.us/ABTAllAmerican</span></a></i><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 13pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Auditorium Theatrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06325526160806692428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-15752223101462508502014-09-25T10:47:00.000-05:002014-09-26T10:52:18.483-05:00Help Us Reach WWII Veterans<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF-NQxUagRELi6_vYLqtw28nppG_Uq2lv96HetHWYFzDCSzpVkIaFKyLE_PZc5goOz7Jm_BFPhKu5I5UBj5P6DhSfUcG_IEa0O5wiGQJ-_lXRM3REJoX7H2ODzjYehIRXhERzAMOiUe8M/s1600/Service+Center.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF-NQxUagRELi6_vYLqtw28nppG_Uq2lv96HetHWYFzDCSzpVkIaFKyLE_PZc5goOz7Jm_BFPhKu5I5UBj5P6DhSfUcG_IEa0O5wiGQJ-_lXRM3REJoX7H2ODzjYehIRXhERzAMOiUe8M/s1600/Service+Center.JPG" height="296" width="400" /></a></div>
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We are only a week out from the opening of our <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/125.php" target="_blank">125th Anniversary Season</a> and the festivities are starting to roll. Auditorium received the <a href="http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/fifthstar.html/" target="_blank">5th Star Award</a> from the city in a free ceremony in Millennium Park on September 17th, street banners heralding our anniversary have gone up on Michigan Ave (later our banners will take over State Street), and preparations are underway for a spectacular December 9 Gala, a journey through the life of our theater called <i>Living The History</i>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzDjgTucmooIJFoWDOL7UH78i8hY_uDn2dvhht9r-Qs7yasUp7WADT0_LSQUnUQcGikgkqPmAQXlNdqpKJFFiaLy9cU4YbZtqsvTXgM-fMtOf4SR3qCtITkKEv3ID4IV4VBCfDmHzTwTA/s1600/4+-+ATRU+Bowling+Pic+2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzDjgTucmooIJFoWDOL7UH78i8hY_uDn2dvhht9r-Qs7yasUp7WADT0_LSQUnUQcGikgkqPmAQXlNdqpKJFFiaLy9cU4YbZtqsvTXgM-fMtOf4SR3qCtITkKEv3ID4IV4VBCfDmHzTwTA/s1600/4+-+ATRU+Bowling+Pic+2.JPG" height="257" width="320" /></a>Did you know that during WWII Auditorium Theatre was used by the United States Military as a Servicemen’s Center, providing free services to our troops in training? You may know the iconic photo of the bowling alley that occupied our stage at the time. Although it wasn’t about the amazing art that normally takes our stage, we are very proud of this part of our history, and we will be paying special tribute to our veterans during our December 9 Gala.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitBQfoTkAY39nE3ROefh-6Q_pkgxa3MdKnSkLGlNIv6ikU0BLTFWC1q1zKAow9duBL1avcHGilDsoXjci3UydZL6BwbWEaccus7d7f2-aLpm4kayZiLHvMXqZS0kBmayLE84XF5KvNeSo/s1600/Don+Farley.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitBQfoTkAY39nE3ROefh-6Q_pkgxa3MdKnSkLGlNIv6ikU0BLTFWC1q1zKAow9duBL1avcHGilDsoXjci3UydZL6BwbWEaccus7d7f2-aLpm4kayZiLHvMXqZS0kBmayLE84XF5KvNeSo/s1600/Don+Farley.JPG" height="200" width="169" /></a>As part of our efforts to use this year’s celebration to preserve our past, we are reaching out to any veterans, volunteers, or staff that were part of this time in our history. In fact, a few weeks ago we had the privilege of sitting down with Don Farley, a veteran that was inducted into the Army in the Summer of 1942 and sent to Chicago to train at a radio operating school. A musician himself, Mr. Farley fondly recalls taking advantage of the Servicemen’s Center’s offerings of tickets to Chicago Symphony Orchestra and dancing with volunteers at events hosted in our building. It was remarkable to talk with someone who had experienced this part of our story and we are eager to find more people to talk to.<br />
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We plan to capture interviews with as many of these veterans and volunteers as we can throughout our anniversary season, <b>but we need assistance getting the word out. Can you help?</b> We are putting out the call below to the world. We are asking everyone to post it, or email it, or just shout it from the rooftops so that we can reach as many people as possible. You never know who you know who knows someone who knows someone. We need to make sure this part of the history of our country and building is preserved. If you can help us out, we would greatly appreciate it.<br />
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<b>A Call for Veterans Who Trained in Chicago During WWII </b><br />
<b>and the Volunteers and Staff who made their training possible</b><br />
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The Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University is looking to make contact with any WWII veterans, volunteers, or staff that worked in Chicago and were at Auditorium during WWII, when our theater was used as the Servicemen’s Center from 1941-1945. We hope to conduct in-person interviews with anyone who was involved in this part of our history. We would also be interested in locating a small number of those who are now based outside of Chicago.<br />
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Any veterans, volunteers, or staff that respond will be asked to do a short interview on camera. If that is not possible, phone interviews may be an option. These volunteers will also be invited to our gala performance on December 9, featuring a special tribute to this part of our history.<br />
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<b>Interested parties may respond to:</b><br />
Will Rogers<br />
Project Manager, 125 Anniversary<br />
Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University<br />
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Email: <a href="mailto:Wrogers01@auditoriumtheatre.org">Wrogers01@auditoriumtheatre.org</a><br />
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Phone: 312.341.2331<br />
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Mailing Address:<br />
50 E. Congress Parkway<br />
Chicago, IL 60605Auditorium Theatrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06325526160806692428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-48367068077146553322014-07-31T12:22:00.001-05:002014-07-31T12:29:34.590-05:00Internship Conclusion - Luke Bandoske<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0in;">
To say this summer flew by would be a vast understatement. Though my time at the Auditorium Theatre was short-lived, I can honestly say that I have never enjoyed myself more while getting the hands-on experience of arts administration in the marketing realm. Not only has this internship made what I’ve learned in classes relevant while extending my knowledge past the books, but it also made me grow on a professional and personal level.<o:p></o:p><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcev4oeowaLQeNSwFkyKWDhGUiW8uGSl4jN-Ial9BPyt0k3Nbm8JGfbcu6IJfFinyFhAijwbDNqKOXqRmf4e7Ok9iRa5ICVdhEy877vfndf5U0mxfMz730RlumNZAtZ5K_o7_WIhqMv90/s1600/BlogPic1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: .5em; margin-right: .5em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcev4oeowaLQeNSwFkyKWDhGUiW8uGSl4jN-Ial9BPyt0k3Nbm8JGfbcu6IJfFinyFhAijwbDNqKOXqRmf4e7Ok9iRa5ICVdhEy877vfndf5U0mxfMz730RlumNZAtZ5K_o7_WIhqMv90/s1600/BlogPic1.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a>Putting the work-load aside for a moment, the history of the Auditorium Theatre is incredible. As the largest theatre in Chicago and one that will be celebrating its 125<sup>th</sup> Anniversary this December, the Auditorium Theatre is unlike any other around. I was lucky enough to learn the history very fast by not only attending one of the two weekly tours that Patron Services hosts, but also creating my first internship project: a historical timeline in PowerPoint for a Press Tour Conference.<o:p></o:p><br />
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Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler, the dynamic and famous architectural partnership, both brought their unique brilliance together to create Chicago’s Landmark Stage™, which originally opened in 1889. On the press tour, I was educated at how acoustically sound the theatre is. Christina Bourn<em><span style="background: white; font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-style: normal; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: Arial; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">é</span></em>, the Director of Education as well as a beautiful soprano voice, sang “Home Sweet Home” from the stage, which was the same song that Adelina Patti sang on opening night. Without a microphone and with all of the press on the 6<sup>th</sup> floor gallery, every word that she sung was heard without confusion. It was INCREDIBLE! <o:p></o:p><br />
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Aside from being acoustically sound, the theatre has an endless amount of unique features like being the first theatre with air conditioning, using 3,500 electric incandescent light bulbs, the decorative golden arches, politically-positioned boxes, and a lot more! From being a hotel and office to a bowling alley to a World War II servicemen’s center to closing down and being reopened, the Auditorium Theatre’s history is a rich one. The stage has seen array of different artists ranging from Broadway tours to premier ballet companies to rock stars such as Bob Marley, Bruce Springsteen and most recently Jack White. Being surrounded by something so beautiful with an extensive historical story is sort of an overwhelming feeling and I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to market such a wonderful place.<o:p></o:p><br />
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If I were to explain everything I learned and took part in throughout this experience, you would be reading this blog for quite a few hours. Instead, I will share some of the highlights of my time here. The most prominent responsibility that comes to mind was social media. I monitored and engaged consumers on multiple different social networking platforms, input a social media plan into the calendar, helped create the “125<sup>th</sup> Anniversary Season T-Shirt Contest” campaign, live-tweeted events such as the Floyd “Money” Mayweather Press Conference and even created graphics and updated their website at times.<o:p></o:p><br />
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Other responsibilities of mine included attending and working special events like the Summer Solstice party and the Group Leader Party, helping with upcoming merchandise for the 125<sup>th</sup>, learning how to order brochures and other marketing materials, researching potential audiences and even brainstorming for upcoming production’s. I also was able to attend many meetings with different promotional organizations like See Chicago Dance and WXRT to discuss and understand ad buying.<o:p></o:p><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKhze3K4OgG-DhH74pQmUJIxbanYEUycO3VpMpMIJxDxrWv3XdaNW6epdVEr-Jddnv_tykwupHkS4L9_wVoF8ZnofaCKBTui9XXuM5OxQwDMztQIAF7YfNPoA5ZscOMLbwcZ0eH_lErIM/s1600/blogpic2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: .5em; margin-left: .5em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKhze3K4OgG-DhH74pQmUJIxbanYEUycO3VpMpMIJxDxrWv3XdaNW6epdVEr-Jddnv_tykwupHkS4L9_wVoF8ZnofaCKBTui9XXuM5OxQwDMztQIAF7YfNPoA5ZscOMLbwcZ0eH_lErIM/s1600/blogpic2.png" height="240" width="320" /></a>Lastly, I was asked to participate in the creation of two different film projects. Both projects were tons of fun! The first video we filmed was for <a href="http://theaud.us/AudNDD14" target="_blank">National Dance Day</a> since the Auditorium Theatre hosts many, many dance companies. We filmed in the beautiful theatre, in the company’s offices and even filmed in our staff meeting. The second video was filmed the day after and will be used as a promotional American Ballet Theatre video. I’m not going to give many details away, but let’s just say that I was required to wear a sailor outfit and dance around Chicago!</div>
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The Auditorium Theatre administrative staff is committed to creating an educational and real-world internship program. I’m a public relations major with a minor in theatrical studies and since they knew of my background they made it a priority for me to attend weekly meetings with Carol Fox & Associates, their out-of-house public relations firm. Additionally, I attended other departmental meetings and helped where I could to leave me with a more well-rounded understanding of arts administration. I can’t thank the administrative staff enough for all of the insight and tools they have given me, and I definitely cannot wait to return for some of their 125<sup>th</sup> Anniversary Season productions!<o:p></o:p></div>
Auditorium Theatrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06325526160806692428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-80628128347010232612014-07-25T11:41:00.001-05:002014-07-25T11:42:32.912-05:00Auditorium Employee Retires After 47 Years<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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After 47 years, our long-term employee Frank Romeo is retiring. His last day at the Auditorium is this coming Sunday. We found this fantastic article about Frank in the Summer 2007 issue of Roosevelt University Magazine. Thank you for your years of service Frank! <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/media/2013-2014/Frank_Romeo_Retirment.pdf" target="_blank">Click here to read the article.</a></div>
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<br />Auditorium Theatrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06325526160806692428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-4376916749684807162014-07-02T12:42:00.000-05:002014-07-31T12:01:34.792-05:00125th Anniversary T-Shirt Design Contest<br />
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<b><u><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt; text-transform: uppercase;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/auditoriumtheatre/app_599788450050788" target="_blank">125th Anniversary T-Shirt design Contest</a></span></u></b></h2>
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<b>An Open Call to All Artists and Creatively-Inspired Individuals!</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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In celebration of the Auditorium’s 125<sup>th</sup> Anniversary Season, we are excited to launch the <b>#MyAudTShirt</b> Design Contest! Whether you are inspired by the building’s rich history and architectural grandeur, the wonderful performers that have graced the stage, or the upcoming 125 Anniversary celebration all season long, we are looking for fresh, new ideas on what we should be wearing this upcoming season! <span class="msoIns"><ins cite="mailto:colleen" datetime="2014-06-18T12:11"><o:p></o:p></ins></span></div>
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<b>Need more inspiration? Check out the 125 things that inspire us in the video below!<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/c2Ap9b5asco?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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The first round of the contest launched on June 30, and will remain open through August 15. Contestants must enter a photograph of their t-shirt design with a<span class="msoIns"><ins cite="mailto:Luke%20Bandoske" datetime="2014-06-19T12:21"> </ins></span>short explanation as to why they feel it celebrates the Auditorium’s rich 125 year history. A judging panel, taking into consideration popular vote, will determine the top five contestants to move on to the final round. The final round will start on August 19 and remain open through September 1, with one winner selected by popular vote. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><u>Grand Prize</u></b></h3>
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<li>Two tickets to every Auditorium Theatre show in our 2014-2015 Season (limited to Auditorium Theatre presentations only)</li>
<li>Compensation of $125</li>
<li>Your design printed in limited run and sold at the merchandise counter throughout the 125 Anniversary Season (2014-2015 Season)</li>
<li>Your shirt printed and ready to wear in the size of your choice!</li>
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<u>Rules:</u></div>
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<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">One entry per person</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Please specify what color shirt you’d prefer your design printed on</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Design can be hand drawn or digitally designed</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Only one side of the shirt will be printed on</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">Submitted designs will become sole property of the Auditorium Theatre.</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">The artists will be compensated for any design printed for merchandise.</span></li>
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<u>Contest opens:</u> June 30</div>
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<u>Round one closes:</u> August 15<sup> </sup>at 11:59pm</div>
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<u>Top 5 contestants announced/voting for final round opens:</u> August 19</div>
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<u>Final round closes:</u> September 1<sup> </sup>at 11:59pm</div>
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<u>Winner Officially Announced:</u> September 2</div>
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<u>Must hashtag:</u> <b>#MyAudTShirt</b> AND <b>#Aud125 </b>(both!) when entering, sharing and promoting your design via social networks.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://www.facebook.com/auditoriumtheatre/app_599788450050788" target="_blank">Click here to enter the contest!</a></h3>
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Auditorium Theatrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06325526160806692428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-42226766637086750172014-05-23T11:47:00.000-05:002014-05-23T11:47:45.348-05:00Reflecting on My Internship - Omane Adu-BrakoI came in like a wrecking ball! Just kidding. I did begin my internship in the marketing department at a really great time. Things were hectic, crazy, and actually quite fun! It was during the theatre’s longest running performance – Alvin Ailey Dance Theater. What a treat! I had not seen that company since I was in high school. I fell in love all over again. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaTwAtIwfNxvhkF38gDfMAqKhRb5nMbmHOdaAFvDiGGcKdZeowhvflxDg4Do_niWCk1GpCUb5GnPpX1obgPvNits4FpQ9zi_xdkNRbRe70b5Rc6Z0bfP_Srl9hghFC7NOeFwsoCCJIdkg/s1600/Omane-with-Arch-Cooling-Panel.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaTwAtIwfNxvhkF38gDfMAqKhRb5nMbmHOdaAFvDiGGcKdZeowhvflxDg4Do_niWCk1GpCUb5GnPpX1obgPvNits4FpQ9zi_xdkNRbRe70b5Rc6Z0bfP_Srl9hghFC7NOeFwsoCCJIdkg/s1600/Omane-with-Arch-Cooling-Panel.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a>First things first, during my first week I received a semi-private, hour-long tour of the theater. It’s crazy <br />
because I have walked past the theater’s “secret door” entrance plenty of times as a student without even realizing the magic within. Of course, I can’t disclose the location to said door; that part of the mystery you will have to come and see for yourself. I’m a history lover, so the tour guide had me at hello. I was aghast that the Auditorium Theatre only became registered as a National Historic Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior in 1975. Equally astonishing is that the Auditorium, during hard times, almost became a parking lot! The building was completed in 1889 equipped with 4200 seats; the original seats are still in the upper balcony. The architecture was designed by the famous architects Dankmark Adler and Louis Sullivan. Frank Lloyd Wright was an apprentice of theirs during the building of the Auditorium. Two more history facts and I’m done, I promise. In a time of no air conditioning the Auditorium figured out a way to keep their patrons cool using air ducts and ice in the ceiling of the theater. The last fact is a direct quote from one of its founders. Sullivan said “If you want to see, you will sit in the middle, if you want to be seen you will sit in the box seats.” This retort was in response to the upper class patrons who expected to sit away from the other patrons. This perfectly summarizes a place whose ideals of inclusion are not just limited to where patrons sit, but to the variety of artists that are brought to its stage.<br />
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So what have I done here? I’ve had the pleasure of telling people about our performances in a variety of ways. My first project was to reach out to local businesses for our Alvin Ailey performances. I sent out letters, solicited eblast trades with like organizations, and made plenty of phone calls. I helped out at our Young Professionals pre-show event, where our Junior Board made appeals for membership. I was able to attend the opening of Alvin Ailey, I had never been to any show’s opening so this was thrilling! I was ecstatic that I could bring my mom and aunt to share in this experience with me. The Alvin Ailey dancers were quite simply stunning. After the show there was post work to be done. The marketing team stayed after to capture audience reactions from the show in order to upload the video to our YouTube page (I hope you are a subscriber to the channel!) Also, I created a tracking report which allowed me to analyze the tickets sold for the Ailey performances. Through this I categorized specific inventory of all the discount codes and special pricing offers. Seeing the revenue produced from the show was great, since sometimes as an intern you are removed from this sort of information. Part of the duties of being an intern is doing ad clippings. This means cutting out and filing all of the advertisements the theatre places for its shows. For the Ailey performance run, I had the additional responsibility to create a fine-tuned scan binder of all of the advertisements where our sponsors were featured. <br />
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Also during this internship I contributed ideas that were utilized for social media campaigns. I created advertising placements with a major magazine and radio station, which I was really excited about. In addition, I also tweaked copy for these opportunities. Without going into a laundry list of things I accomplished, I will say that I felt that my time here was impactful. <br />
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While here, my desk was located in the Department of Creative Engagement so I was able to hear action items important to that department as well, namely securing teachers and resources for our ArtsXchange and Hands Together, Heart to Art (HTHTA) program. Right now they are gearing up for HTHTA summer camp. Additionally, I was able to speak to the other department heads (Development and Operations) in order to achieve a more rounded internship experience. Today is my last day, sigh… but I had the opportunity to see so many wonderful performances while here. Did I mention this excellent perk? :)<br />
<br />Auditorium Theatrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06325526160806692428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-68027781952578515662014-05-15T13:17:00.000-05:002014-05-15T13:17:32.060-05:00A Look Back: Israeli Folk Dancing, Idan Raichel and My Year Spent in Israel<br />
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<i>Tonight at 7:30 pm, The Idan
Raichel Project graces our landmark stage for a night of world-music and a
wonderful blend of cultures. After
tonight’s two-hour concert, we also invite audience members to join the Chicago
Israeli Dancing organization in our Katten/Landau Studio for an interactive
Israeli folk dance class. <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=451" target="_blank">Click here</a> for more information about the performance tonight.<o:p></o:p></i></div>
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<b>A Look Back: Israeli Folk
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By Auditorium Theatre Production Associate Matthew Tepperman <o:p></o:p></div>
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In anticipation of tonight’s performance of The Idan Raichel Project at
Auditorium Theatre and the subsequent post-show, folk dancing event in the Katten/Landau
Studio held by the Chicago Israeli<o:p></o:p></div>
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Dancing organization, I would like to share a story about myself.<o:p></o:p></div>
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I am not a professional dancer or ballerina at all. In fact, if you met me in person, you’d say
I’m as graceful as an elephant. And
you’d probably be right at that, too; however, there’s something about Israeli
Folk Dancing that makes me feel like I have been a dancer all my life. <o:p></o:p></div>
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When I was eleven years old, I learned about Israeli Folk Dancing
at Camp Ramah in Wisconsin. As campers, my
friends and I each participated in a quick dance class as we were sampling
through all of the arts activities. We learned a few easy dances for the week
before moving onto the next activity. At
the end of the week before the lunch hour, the camp took a half hour of free
time to perform these dances at a large area down by the lake. At that point, those who knew or wanted to
learn the dances would all participate in a really fun afternoon of Israeli Folk
Dancing. There were campers and staff of
all ages that joined in and soon enough, the whole area was filled with folk dancers! I remember as a camper, or even later as a
staff member at Camp Ramah, if it was a Friday afternoon before lunch, I would
be dancing down by Lake Buckatabon with more than half the camp while the rest
watched on. And even after all these
years, I still remember those dances.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Let’s then flashback to eight years ago. I had recently graduated high school and made
the decision to defer my freshman year of college to study and live in Israel
for the year. One of my first memories
of living in Israel is of participating in a great night of Israeli Folk
Dancing. A handful of my friends and I
were walking through Emek Rafaim in Jerusalem and went to one of the school
halls nearby that hosts many nightly programs for adults. When we got there the
room was already full of people dancing in a giant circle. It took a minute to understand
the choreography mid-dance, but as soon I picked it up, I jumped right in and
felt like I had been doing it for years. That’s the great thing about folk dancing: it’s very communal, very fun to
participate in, and anyone can do it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAf0WTY5kVDYD-FoCsvAPRldvAAvak1CxFarKgpd-ME-ZId8TqLVTzduqQyGzH2jqE6OqSviQ8u5fF25qm-j8VG3RxlxXxV-8K1WyejstJO0UczAmA_DXiR6L7RhCHrtwkALS78cf2kIg/s1600/Photo+of+Matt+and+Idan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAf0WTY5kVDYD-FoCsvAPRldvAAvak1CxFarKgpd-ME-ZId8TqLVTzduqQyGzH2jqE6OqSviQ8u5fF25qm-j8VG3RxlxXxV-8K1WyejstJO0UczAmA_DXiR6L7RhCHrtwkALS78cf2kIg/s1600/Photo+of+Matt+and+Idan.jpg" height="200" width="150" /></a>As someone who has lived in Israel and experienced the
culture and even seen The Idan Raichel Project live in Israel before, I can’t
help but think back to those fond memories. This is mainly because everything The Idan Raichel Project does
musically is so memorable. I can still
recall the past two times I saw him live and what I was doing. The collaboration of additional cultures into
melodies that the group produces, and the amount of energy the singers put into
their performance is almost unparalleled. They always make the experience not just intimate and enjoyable, but
very meaningful as well. As a fan of The
Idan Raichel Project and as someone who has experienced the culture, I cannot
be more thrilled that they will be performing at Auditorium Theatre.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Auditorium Theatrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06325526160806692428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-90247358635899315652014-05-12T16:38:00.001-05:002014-05-12T17:31:52.483-05:00Illinois Native Michael J. Novak – Dancer for Paul Taylor Dance Company<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Being a dancer in the Paul Taylor
Dance Company, I am so very blessed to travel the world doing what I love. I
will soon be entering my fifth year with this organization and I have traveled
to 64 cities and 6 countries. But in all those travels no city can
compare to the city where I grew up: Chicago. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Now, in truth I was raised in the
northwest suburbs, first living in Elk Grove Village and eventually in Rolling
Meadows where I spent most of my childhood.
When I was growing up, “going downtown” meant an adventure, usually
because it was saved for special occasions: holidays with the grandparents;
seeing the Christmas windows at Marshall Field’s; or day-trips to the museums. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOqbAjl96FkTZPEaVWK2mEbTUAKEMDXB69HDNmNKKb-DFRlMLls-2zKvYLZwldYmZd49h3t1jlb06zDzc20Ta8uyS0kcokj6fPqSiu8O6M69dPCXm2YSnyrX74txDN7ywj_1u_U-VPxYs/s1600/DSC_0258rt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOqbAjl96FkTZPEaVWK2mEbTUAKEMDXB69HDNmNKKb-DFRlMLls-2zKvYLZwldYmZd49h3t1jlb06zDzc20Ta8uyS0kcokj6fPqSiu8O6M69dPCXm2YSnyrX74txDN7ywj_1u_U-VPxYs/s1600/DSC_0258rt.jpg" height="214" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Funny enough, the Auditorium Theatre
holds a very special place in my heart. When I was about nine, my parents took
me to see my first Broadway musical - "The Phantom of the Opera" –
at, of all places, the Auditorium Theatre.
We sat very close to the stage that night, and, being so young and
impressionable, I was taken away by how such a fantastical world felt so real
and accessible. I don’t think I knew that I wanted to be a performer that
night. But I knew I never wanted that
experience the end. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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As I grew older I eventually started taking dance classes at the Bonnie
Lindholm School of the Dance in Palatine, IL. Chicago, however, stayed in
the periphery as every year our dance troupe went downtown during Thanksgiving
to perform for the Magnificent Mile Lights Festival. The temperatures were
usually frigid, but dancing downtown, especially along Michigan Ave for the
Tree-Lighting Parade, is a very special memory for me. There was something
about the magic of Christmas in the city (not to mention the magic of dancing
alongside Mickey Mouse and Goofey) that made me so happy. It was literally
the stuff dreams are made of.<br />
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When I started attending William Fremd High School, the Drama Department became
my home away from home. I loved doing theater, but dance – true dance –
started to become a calling for me, and I started to shift my focus to my
dancing. Once I was old enough I would ride the train downtown to take the
professional classes at Lou Conte Dance Studio. Of course, I had no clue what I
was doing in those advanced classes. Honestly, I would just stare at the
Hubbard Street company members. I remember being so distracted by their
brilliance I never actually learned the combinations in class. Afterwards, I
would spend the rest of the day downtown: always stopping by The Palmer House
Hilton then walking to the Art Institute, north along Michigan Ave to Water
Tower Place and spend the late afternoon at the Ohio Street Beach. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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A lot has happened since those long days strolling downtown as an aspiring
dancer. There have been many adventures, injuries, unexpected surprises, and
struggles...lots and lots of struggles. It took almost ten years for me to find
a dance company where I felt home, but the search was not in vain. At the
age of 27, I was asked to join the one and only company I yearned to dance for:
the Paul Taylor Dance Company. </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">What is it about Paul Taylor’s
company? Well, the repertory is remarkably vast; it’s emotionally
sophisticated, and it can be as dark and disturbing as it is glorious. Then
there are the dancers. No one can dance like Taylor dancers dance. They
understand the beauty and thrill of a simple walk, run, fall, and jump, and
they execute them with a reckless abandon that is truly spectacular. To
dance among those accomplished artists and find myself grow with them is truly
a dream come true. And to work with a master like Paul Taylor in the studio?
Well, it's life changing, honestly.<br />
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I have not performed in Chicago since 2001, and to be returning as a member of
the Paul Taylor Dance Company... to be dancing at the Auditorium Theatre... and
to be staying at the Palmer House downtown? It's going to be a surreal
experience! I'm looking so forward to showing my friends and family what
I've been doing for the past 13 years, that it's been worth it, and that Paul
Taylor's company is where I am home. But I think deep down there's something
else I'm looking forward to: walking around the city as a critically acclaimed
dancer of one the world's best dance companies and saying, "Remember me
Chicago? Well, I’m proud to say I finally made it."</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">Michael J. Novak performs with Paul Taylor
Dance Company at the Auditorium on May 17 – 18. <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=449" target="_blank">Visit the website</a> for tickets and information.<span style="font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: italic;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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Auditorium Theatrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06325526160806692428noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-74538958231664178722014-05-09T11:09:00.000-05:002014-05-09T11:10:59.964-05:00Dancing in Chicago - Thodos Dance Chicago's Tenley Dorrill <div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>The Auditorium Theatre is so thrilled to bring a collection
of Chicago dance professionals together for the week of June 23 – 28 to teach
our first annual “Made In Chicago” Dance Intensive, a week long summer camp for
dancers age 10+ with at least two years of dance experience. We kick off our
“Made In Chicago” Dance Intensive blog series with a peek at Thodos Dance
Chicago’s teaching artist, Tenley Dorrill!</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDA5nn6nCzPiB8FunvynyIYikQMT9Gaxh5NQLlvw-2ScCiEBimUmp3zlPxKbnx121SUsk7W6vwugFP0tC8xKzeQowcZ6qAK2jKCR-UJUqt2jw-N2Gc01Pyk9151PrmM-4_gMZC82EPOug/s1600/Tenley+Dorrill.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDA5nn6nCzPiB8FunvynyIYikQMT9Gaxh5NQLlvw-2ScCiEBimUmp3zlPxKbnx121SUsk7W6vwugFP0tC8xKzeQowcZ6qAK2jKCR-UJUqt2jw-N2Gc01Pyk9151PrmM-4_gMZC82EPOug/s1600/Tenley+Dorrill.jpg" height="256" width="320" /></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Dancing in Chicago: As a senior in
college I feared graduating without an answer to the question everyone was
asking, "What are you doing after graduation?" I knew of many dance
companies that I would love to be a part of, but I wasn't sure where to
audition. I had attended Hubbard Street's dance intensive the summer before and
had heard of Thodos Dance Chicago. After a few months of researching I came
back to the company and discovered how well it matched what I wanted. Located
in the city of Chicago, I knew that I would have the opportunity to take open
class, teach dance, and be a part of a large dance community. Thodos stated
that they valued dancers who were also choreographers, and they offered their
own unique outlet for dancers to create, teach, and perform. The audition was
intense with four cuts narrowing the group to four people (three of whom are
now company members). Melissa Thodos asked those auditioning to perform a
self-choreographed solo then sit for an interview. The interview questions were
very thoughtful and I could tell that they knew what they were looking for,
which is something I respect. I was given an offer to be a "dancer apprentice"
in the company. I was thrilled! I knew how lucky I was to have the opportunity
to live and dance with such a great company in this wonderful city.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I began to prepare for life in Chicago by
finding two roommates from Craig's List and applying to teaching positions. I
applied all over the city and only heard back from a handful. I accepted jobs
at Thodos's youth program, North Suburban School of Dance, and Chicago
Contemporary Dance Theater. Thodos started in August and I don't think we
ever stopped until our Harris show in March! Learning so many dances in such a
short time proved to be a great challenge. In many of the dances I was the only
person who had not performed the piece, and I needed to learn extremely fast.
At SMU we had many performances but usually focused on only a few dances during
a semester. At Thodos, the company was working on over ten concert works, two
story ballets, and two educational shows over the course of a few months. The
pressure was great but I had the most wonderful season working with the
incredibly talented company members and leaders who constantly inspired and
encouraged me every day. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thodos threw me into many parts that
challenged me in new ways. The most significant was the role of Helen Keller in
"A Light in the Dark." Only after my first performance did I believe
I could embody this complex character. The story is very emotional with highs
and lows shifting moment by moment. I got some great advice about portraying
Helen from one of the members of Thodos, Natalee Cooney, who has a BFA in
Theater from NYU. She told me to always think about what Helen wants. Does she
want love and comfort when she thrashes in anger? Does she want to find truth
when she feels her teachers’ hands? This completely changed the way I
approached the emotional range of Helen. Instead of thinking, "Ok, this is
when I'm supposed to be happy" I thought about why Helen would be happy.
This feedback from Natalee has also influenced the way I want to perform in
other non-character driven pieces. Every piece has a tone or persona to convey.
I want to always pursue honesty on stage and asking why I, the dancer, want to
move in a certain way. I hope to find more integrity and transparency in my
performance by constantly asking myself, “What do I want for this
piece?” Once this question is answered, I understand where my purpose is
and how I can give myself to the roll in an authentic way. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My greatest challenge in the transition to
professional life is finding joy and satisfaction in everything I do as a
student, teacher, and performer. Dance is almost like a truth serum in
that the observer can always tell your intention. Dancers are always on
display and the constant criticism can cause damaging effects to an artist's
confidence. Throughout this year, I have at times felt lost in knowing my
purpose as a dancer and teacher. The thing that gets me out of this funk
is shifting my mindset from focusing on my own needs and instead working for
the greater good of others. One of my favorite quotes is by Lewis
Carroll, “One of the secrets of life is that all that is really worth the doing
is what we do for others.” Great art and satisfaction comes from the act of
giving and not taking. Dancers are, in some ways, naturally inclined to take
and be selfish artists. We take instruction and criticize its impact, we
take choreography and judge its value, we take the stage from others through
our desire to be seen. This result is emptiness because dance is a
fleeting fulfillment. If we constantly seek to give ourselves to this craft
through a strong presence in class, a positive and engaged response to the
choreographer, an active connector to fellow performers, we can feel more
fulfilled and less selfish in our art. The career of a dancer is never stable
or consistent. The task must be to find consistency in an understanding
of your reason to pursue dance. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is so important to keep reminding yourself
why you dance and why you can meet the demands of performing professionally. We
are constantly seeking approval from others and will rarely get the feedback we
want to hear. Instead of seeking acceptance from others, seek to find
satisfaction in the moment. Find what encourages you every day whether it is
helping others or creating art. Whenever I begin to doubt myself in a
rehearsal I often imagine that my close college friends are in the room and
supporting me. It takes me back to my safe place at the SMU dance facility
where I felt comfortable to do anything. I am seeking to find comfort in this
new home. A dancer always needs to be improving and learning from others, while
also maintaining our integrity to what makes us unique. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>For more information or registration for our “Made In
Chicago” Dance Intensive, <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=533" target="_blank">click here</a> or contact Katie Brown at <a href="mailto:kbrown@audiotirumtheatre.org">kbrown@audiotirumtheatre.org</a> or
Kristen Smiley at <a href="mailto:ksmiley01@auditoriumtheatre.org">ksmiley01@auditoriumtheatre.org</a>.</b></span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Auditorium Theatrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06325526160806692428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-30826570354915700682014-04-14T18:01:00.001-05:002014-04-15T09:59:01.601-05:00Auditorium Theatre Junior Board Kicks-off Membership Drive<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The dress circle of the <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre</a> was packed with young Chicagoans this past Saturday night as the Junior Board hosted a private reception before watching River North Dance Chicago take to the theatre's historic stage. The Junior Board, a diverse group of young professionals committed to furthering the mission of the Auditorium Theatre, is devoted not only to helping fund the restoration and preservation of our National Historic Landmark Auditorium Theatre, but also to raise awareness and generate support for the Auditorium’s educational outreach efforts and world-renowned programming. Part of this goal will be expanded in 2014 as the board kicks off an initiative to develop a base of Members-at-Large throughout the city. Members-at-Large will have the opportunity to attend Junior Board events and fundraisers throughout the year, spread awareness about the theatre during the pivotal 125 Season which begins this September, and participate in volunteer activities.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The event this past Saturday showed the board is off to a promising start for the Members-at-Large campaign. Attendees at the River North reception came from all different types of professional backgrounds. One of the great parts about being an Auditorium Theatre supporter is the interaction it provides for young Chicagoans with a variety of interests. The Junior Board currently consists of architects, marketing executives, attorneys, bankers, artists, and graphic designers among others, and is expanding rapidly to include a host of young professionals who are helping to bring great things to the city. Among the upcoming projects for the board is a renovation project to provide an accessible entryway for the theater at 50 E. Congress Parkway, as well as a fundraiser on June 10 for the theatre's <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/education/hthta-summer-camp.php" target="_blank"><i>Hands Together, Heart to Art </i>performing arts summer camp for children who have lost a parent.</a> The Junior Board and Members-at-Large will also be working to promote an upcoming “Made in Chicago” Film Series for the 125th Anniversary Season. The film series will be free to the public and give the board a great chance to showcase the breathtaking theatre to a widespread audience. Stay tuned for the possibility to vote on one of the movies that will be screened.</span><br />
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<b><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you are interested in becoming a
Member-at-Large, please contact Amanda Martinez Byrne at 312.341.2364 or <a href="mailto:abyrne@auditoriumtheatre.org">abyrne@auditoriumtheatre.org</a>. <o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="background-color: white;">Tuesday, June 10, 2014:</span></b><span style="background-color: white;"> Trivia Night at Diversey Yacht Club – proceeds support the
Auditorium’s <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/education/hthta-summer-camp.php" target="_blank"><i>Hands Together, Heart to Art</i> summer performing arts camp for children who have lost a parent.</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="background-color: white;">Friday, July 18 & Friday, August 1, 2014:</span></b><span style="background-color: white;"> <i>Hands Together, Heart to Art </i>Junior Board volunteer
days.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><span style="background-color: white;">Friday, September 26, 2014:</span></b><span style="background-color: white;"> </span><i>The Devil’s Ball</i> – Another perk included in the Membership-at-Large program is a ticket to the Junior Board’s annual <i>Devil's Ball</i>, so mark your calendars for September 26, 2014 so you can party with us Chicago-style, take backstage tours of the theatre, and bid on auction items while sipping champagne! </span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-76369223906405910062014-04-04T14:12:00.002-05:002014-04-04T15:49:35.453-05:00Jonas Friddle and the Majority - Live at the Auditorium<br />
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The <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre</a> is excited to welcome <a href="http://www.jonasfriddle.com/" target="_blank">Jonas Friddle and The Majority</a>, the winning band in our <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=454" target="_blank">Chick Corea and Bela Fleck</a> contest! The band was one of over 30 to enter for a spot to perform in the historic Auditorium lobby proceeding <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=454" target="_blank">Chick and Bela's concert on April 5</a>.</div>
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<a href="http://www.jonasfriddle.com/" target="_blank">Jonas Friddle and the Majority</a> has a huge sound that combines string quartet, horns and rock and roll drums for a melody filled, dance inspiring result. Jonas' arrangements and songwriting are heavily rooted in traditional American music. His passion for old-time style banjo from his native North Carolina leads to rhythmic and rolling compositions. At the same time this founder of The Barehand Jugband pulls from the raucous sounds of 1920s blues and string bands for dance inspiring tunes. Friddle has received recognition as a songwriter, including Song of the Year in the John Lennon Songwriting Competition and First Place in the Great American Song Contest. He is joined by the Majority, a group of talented multi-instrumentalists that found each other at Chicago's Old Town School of Folk Music. The full band has been playing together since 2012 and includes drums, a string quartet and horns for a unique and huge sound. Following the example of new folk groups like Crooked Still, Abigail Washburn and Old Crow Medicine Show, Jonas Friddle and the Majority look to re-invent traditional songs.<br />
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Connect with Jonas Friddle and the Majority on <a href="https://twitter.com/intent/user?original_referer=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jonasfriddle.com%2F&profile_id=1345140224&screen_name=JonasFriddle&tw_p=embeddedtimeline&tw_w=430037863980208128" target="_blank">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Jonas-Friddle-Music/204452666263811" target="_blank">Facebook</a>, and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/barehandedproduction" target="_blank">YouTube</a>.</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="253" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/ygQ9JQ-wiFY" width="450"></iframe>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-23013197846853450242014-03-19T16:29:00.000-05:002014-03-19T16:31:46.187-05:00Behind the Scenes of Aladdin: Christopher Gray Flies High as the Djinn of the Lamp<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By Stephanie Brown, Houston Ballet Public Relations Intern</span><br />
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Christopher Gray as the Djinn (Genie) with artists of Houston Ballet; Aladdin; Photo by Amitava Sarkar</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">David Bintley’s <i><a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=456" target="_blank">Aladdin</a></i>, which runs March 22&23 at the <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre</a>, has a way of enchanting the audience with beautiful, unique props and exquisite, colorful costumes. Below are some photos for your viewing pleasure!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of my favorite characters in <i>Aladdin</i> is the Djinn of the lamp (the Genie), and demi soloist <a href="https://www.houstonballet.org/Inside_Houston_Ballet/Dancers/Christopher_Gray/">Christopher Gray</a> dances his heart out in this role. I was intrigued by his experience in creating his own version of the the Djinn of the lamp (the Genie), so we asked a few questions about the role.<br />
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Watch video of Christopher Gray as the Djinn in <i>Aladdin.</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Houston Ballet: </b>Tell us about dancing as the Djinn of the lamp (the Genie). What are the most challenging aspects? What are the most exciting?</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://houstonballet.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/christopher-gray_photo-amitava_2012.jpg" sl-processed="1" style="color: #306754; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-decoration: none;"><img alt="Christopher Gray_Photo Amitava_2012" class="wp-image-2629 aligncenter" src="http://houstonballet.files.wordpress.com/2014/02/christopher-gray_photo-amitava_2012.jpg?w=216&h=270" height="270" width="216" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; line-height: 14px;">Christopher Gray; Photo by </span>Amitava<span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; line-height: 14px;"> </span>Sarkar</td></tr>
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<b>Christopher Gray:</b> Hands down, one of the most challenging things is that some of the magical reveals were hidden in set pieces for long periods of time before some pretty difficult dancing. So it’s the opposite of what you would normally do, which is to stay moving, keep yourself loose and then go out and dance. Being crouched down in a small space before having to dance is pretty difficult.<br />
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For the most exciting thing, this is my third time flying in ballet, and I always love doing that. The audience always really appreciates it. On opening night during the first scene with the levitation, everybody applauded. It was great! So that’s always exciting for me. It’s a challenge as well because you’re at the mercy of the wire when you’re up there. There’s not too much you can do to keep yourself from spinning or swinging, so it’s learning how to do those small adjustments without putting yourself in a counter rotation.<br />
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<b>Houston Ballet:</b> Explain your wardrobe. How do you feel about being painted completely blue?<br />
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<b>Christopher Gray:</b> Fortunately, it’s not completely blue. I don’t have to paint my legs. This in terms of ballet costumes is not so difficult to dance in, which I always like. Sometimes we have pounds and pounds of clothing and wigs we have to deal with, so this is relatively simple. [I wear] just a small vest and baggy pants</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 10px; line-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Artists of Birmingham Royal Ballet; Aladdin; Photo by Bill Cooper</span></span></td></tr>
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Any time you don’t feel constricted by a costume, which I don’t because there are even shirtless scenes for me, it’s a lot easier to deal with. I prefer pants over tights any day of the week! In terms of wigs, Amanda, our wig and makeup person, has done a great job of making a wig that fits really flush to our heads. We just have a little bit of hair, like a top knot pony tail, which I don’t feel impedes my ability to turn and it doesn’t knock me off center, which is often a problem with costumes.<br />
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Being painted blue is hard. I’m there around 6:15 for a 7:30 start time. And that includes not even being on stage until a good 40 minutes into the first act. Overall, I face about an hour and a half worth of body makeup, face makeup, and wigs. It’s difficult and, once again, the opposite of how you would want to get ready for a show…you know, standing there half naked for an hour and a half. I do throw warm-up clothes back on top, but you don’t want to sweat the makeup off. It’s a fine line you have to deal with. I’m getting pretty used to being painted, though. I think this is my third or fourth color!<br />
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<b>Houston Ballet: </b> What do you do to get in character for the the Djinn of the lamp (the Genie)?<br />
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<b>Christopher Gray:</b> As the body makeup and especially face makeup and wig come along, I feel like that’s part of my transformation. We have these wicked eyebrows and drag queen style makeup. So it’s hard not to look at yourself with a little bit of humor when you see the character staring back at you.<br />
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If anything, the one thing that I have been doing is going over the mime section to try to create an aura of power, confidence, mystery, and a little bit of humor as well. Trying to work the fake eyebrows has been fun. As the shows progress, you find more time and space for that on stage and then the character grows from there.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; line-height: 14px;">Artists of Houston Ballet; Aladdin; Photo by </span>Amitava<span style="background-color: white; font-family: verdana, arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; line-height: 14px;"> </span>Sarkar</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Houston Ballet:</b> What do you like about the props and costumes for <i>Aladdin</i>?<br />
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<b>Christopher Gray:</b> One of my favorites is probably the most simple: the lamp that lights up. I think it’s very effective on stage. Those few times Aladdin lifts it up and then there’s a big crescendo in the music when it turns on and starts glowing…I think that’s fantastic! Also, the magic carpet is done really well.<br />
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I wish I could see the show from the front, but unfortunately that’s not in the cards for me. The lion dance in the second act is a big crowd favorite, and I also dance the head portion of the lion. It’s a lot of fun to do that. It does pose a problem because it’s difficult to hear the music, though. When you start shaking the head all you hear is rattling!</span></div>
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Auditorium Theatrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06325526160806692428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-68966658472046161942014-03-05T15:50:00.004-06:002014-03-05T15:50:56.964-06:00Night Creature, Pas de Duke, The River, Revelations - Alvin Ailey Chicago Program C<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater</a> visits the Auditorium Theatre for 10 performances, February 28 -March 9, 2014. The company will bring three programs, each featuring different pieces from their repertoire. Learn about the pieces in Program C below!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For tickets and information, click <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">HERE</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>Night Creature/ Pas de Duke / The River / Revelations</i></b><br />Running time: approximately 2 hours and 15 minutes<br /><a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">Wednesday, Mar 5 at 7:30PM</a><br /> <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">Saturday, Mar 8 at 2PM</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.alvinailey.org/about/company/alvin-ailey-american-dance-theater/repertory/night-creature" target="_blank"><i>Night Creature</i> - Choreography by Alvin Ailey</a></b><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">Alvin Ailey’s </span><i style="border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Night Creature</i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"> is a bubbly champagne cocktail of a dance, a perfect fusion of Ailey’s buoyant choreography and Duke Ellington’s sparkling music. At once wistful and sassy, it beckons viewers into a nocturnal world populated by jazz babies and night owls.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ellington said that “night creatures, unlike stars, do not come OUT at night– they come ON, each thinking that, before the night is out, he or she will be the star.” This large ensemble work is full of such stars — strutting, leaping and slinking through a variety of dance idioms as they flaunt and flirt with each other and the audience. They hold their hands like paws, as if they’re cats on the prowl, then slide seamlessly into balletic allegro jumps, Martha Graham-like contractions and Lester Horton layouts. It’s the definitive dance homage to the exuberance of The Duke’s sophisticated symphonic work.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u><a href="http://www.alvinailey.org/about/company/alvin-ailey-american-dance-theater/repertory/pas-de-duke" target="_blank"><i>Pas De Duke - </i>Choreography by Alvin Ailey</a></u></b></span><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="253" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/77603188?portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="450"></iframe> <br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://vimeo.com/77603188">Alvin Ailey's PAS DE DUKE</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3212993">Alvin Ailey</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</span><br />
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<em style="border: 0px; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Pas de Duke</em><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"> is Alvin Ailey’s spirited modern dance translation of a classical pas de deux, originally created in 1976 as a showcase for Judith Jamison and Mikhail Baryshnikov. She was a reigning star of modern dance; he was one of the world’s most famous ballet dancers, having defected from the Soviet Union two years earlier. Ailey made brilliant use of the dancers’ physical and stylistic differences, crafting an elegant, flirtatious work that showed off their exuberance and virtuosity as they engaged in a playful game of one-upmanship. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The work is comprised of five solos and duets that require extraordinary technical facility, flawless timing, and strong acting skills. Since its premiere nearly 40 years ago, it has been performed by generations of dancers who have each put their own unique twist on the choreography, and it has stood the test of time in part for how perfectly it captures the timeless sophistication of Duke Ellington's jazz music. <em style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The New York Times</em> has praised it as “one of those special dances that lives in new ways with each new set of performers.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><u><a href="http://www.alvinailey.org/about/company/alvin-ailey-american-dance-theater/repertory/river" target="_blank"><i>The River - </i>Choreography by Alvin Ailey</a></u></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="253" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/78301787?portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="450"></iframe> </b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://vimeo.com/78301787">Alvin Ailey's THE RIVER</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3212993">Alvin Ailey</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By turns muscular and lyrical, </span><em style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The River</em><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"> is a sweeping full-company work that suggests tumbling rapids and meandering streams on a journey to the sea. Ailey’s allegory of birth, life and rebirth abounds with water references, from the spinning “Vortex” solo to the romantic “Lake” duet, and from the powerful “Falls” quartet to the joyful “Giggling Rapids.” The choreography demonstrates Ailey’s admiration for classical ballet, but retains the modern and jazz influences found in all his work. “</span><em style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The River</em><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"> shows Mr. Ailey at his inventive best,” declared </span><em style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The New York Times</em><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;">.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The grandeur of the dancing is matched by the music, which was Duke Ellington’s first symphonic score written for dance. Ailey and Ellington collaborated closely on the piece.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This new production has been restaged by Associate Artistic Director Masazumi Chaya, the foremost living expert on Ailey’s repertory. He believes that the ballet feels fresh each time around because “each audience member can make a story of their own from <em style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The River</em>. Alvin was very clever; he created something that can be applied to one’s entire life — birth, a relationship with a child, or even one’s impression of a flower. It is what the audience makes of it. It is what it means to the individual.”</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.alvinailey.org/about/company/alvin-ailey-american-dance-theater/repertory/revelations" target="_blank"><i>Revelations</i> – Choreography by Alvin Ailey</a></span></b><br />
<b><br /></b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="253" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/10185543" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="450"></iframe></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://vimeo.com/10185543">Alvin Ailey's REVELATIONS</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3212993">Alvin Ailey</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Using African-American spirituals, song-sermons, gospel songs and holy blues, Alvin Ailey’s <i>Revelations</i> fervently explores the places of deepest grief and holiest joy in the soul. More than just a popular dance work, it has become a cultural treasure, beloved by generations of fans.Seeing <i>Revelations </i>for the first time or the hundredth can be a transcendent experience, with audiences cheering, singing along and dancing in their seats from the opening notes of the plaintive “I Been ’Buked” to the rousing “Wade in the Water” and the triumphant finale, “Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ailey said that one of America’s richest treasures was the African-American cultural heritage —“sometimes sorrowful, sometimes jubilant, but always hopeful.” This enduring classic is a tribute to that tradition, born out of the choreographer’s “blood memories” of his childhood in rural Texas and the Baptist Church. But since its premiere in 1960, the ballet has been performed continuously around the globe, transcending barriers of faith and nationality, and appealing to universal emotions, making it the most widely-seen modern dance work in the world.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-27277593829418921952014-02-25T16:45:00.001-06:002014-02-25T16:46:59.826-06:00Journey to Bodhgaya - Cloud Gate Artistic Director & Founder Lin Hwai-min<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By Lin Hwai-min</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 16pt;">I do
not know when the name Bodhgaya first entered my mind. For a few years I wanted
to go there badly, even if I didn't know what I would do once I got there. I
only knew it was in Bodhgaya that Buddha attained his enlightenment under a
bodhi tree. In the summer of 1994, when I finally had a few free days, I
hurriedly booked an air ticket. Still I did not know why I had set my mind on
going.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bodhgaya
was a village with only a muddy track for access. Little shops and open-air
stalls gathered around the compound of Mahabodhi Temple to form a market.
Constructed in the sixth century, the Mahabodhi stupa, a stone structure, was
50 meters tall. Standing in the temple courtyard, it ascended towards the blue
sky. To the back of the stupa stood a bodhi tree, a fourth generation
descendent in 2,500 years; its trunk spreading into infinity, and its leaves
and branches shielding over mortal souls. The Diamond Seat of Buddha sat
beneath the tree; a fence had been set up around it. Monks and pilgrims of
different nationalities sat on the ground outside the fence. Under the guidance
of the monks, the pilgrims chanted Buddhist scriptures. Between the rising and
falling of the chanting, one could hear birds twittering from near and afar.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In
the afternoon I would sit on the banks of the Neranjra River outside of the
Temple compound and stare blankly at it. The water was muddy and seemed
motionless. From time to time, a big bubble would break out and pop, to remind
one of the turbulent life coursing underneath the smooth surface of the river.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I
suppose that the Neranjra river which Buddha saw would have been flowing in
much the same way. It was in the grove of trees on the opposite shore that
Prince Siddhartha engaged in six years of ascetic practice on a daily diet of
sesame seeds and a grain of wheat, at last reducing himself to skin-and-bones
before realizing that this consuming desire to be enlightened was the biggest
obstacle to his enlightenment. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So
Prince Siddhartha accepted the offerings of a village maiden. He crossed the
river to take his place in the diamond seat that destiny had prepared for him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I
stood on the river bank and marveled at Buddha's determination to cross the
river.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To turn
away from the world and become self-reliant, to live the life of a hermit and
practice asceticism, is completion of the self. To receive, to accept another
person's bodily warmth was for Buddha, at the moment of receiving, a return to
the world of birth, old age, illness and death. Having crossed the river
himself, Buddha would now guide humanity to cross it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The Agama
Scripture tells us that, at the time of his nirvana, Buddha did not, as popular
Buddhist mythology would have us believe, take leave of the world easily. He
summoned his beloved disciple, Ananda, to give him detailed instructions on his
cremation and the construction of the stupa. It was too much for Ananda to
bear, and he ran into the woods to cry. Buddha heard him crying and called him
back to his side and comforted him. There is infinite beauty within the beauty of
nirvana – the reluctance to leave, and the reluctance to let go.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On
the bank of the Neranjra River, I realized for the first time in my life that
Buddha was an ordinary mortal who also endured human confusion and struggle.
Out of his compassion, he practiced asceticism and meditation, and pointed out
to us the path of salvation. I felt warmth and was filled with love and
admiration for Buddha.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I sat
quietly under the bodhi tree, shoulder to shoulder with the monks. I opened my
eyes, and saw sunlight coming from the top of the stupa through the branches to
land directly on my forehead. My heart became full of joy; I felt a quietude
that I had never experienced.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Back
in Taipei, I often remembered the cool bodhi tree, and the Neranjra River that
ran quietly through time. Every day the dancers of Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of
Taiwan meditated. I created <i>Songs of the Wanderers</i> with great ease, a
work about practicing asceticism, the river's mildness, and the quest for
quietude.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I
review this piece of work from 1994, it feels as though I am studying an entry
in my diary. The memory of the journey to Budhgaya causes my heart to be
overcome with joy, which I hope can be shared with the audience of <i>Songs of
the Wanderers.</i></span><span style="font-size: 13pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>For tickets and information on Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan - Songs of the Wanderers, visit the <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=457" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre website.</a></i></span><br />
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-5081266308392711452014-02-21T16:26:00.000-06:002014-02-21T16:26:31.635-06:00LIFT, D-Man in the Waters, Revelations - Alvin Ailey Chicago Program B<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater</a> visits the Auditorium Theatre for 10 performances, February 28 -March 9, 2014. The company will bring three programs, each featuring different pieces from their repertoire. Learn about the pieces in Program B below!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For tickets and information, click <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">HERE</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Win tickets to see Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater by entering our <a href="https://a.pgtb.me/5tKgkK" target="_blank">Facebook Contest</a> or our <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/166281411215909141/" target="_blank">Pinterest Contest</a>.</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><i>LIFT* / D-Man in the Waters** / Revelations</i></b><br />Running time: approximately 1 hour and 55 minutes<br /><a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">Saturday, Mar 1 at 2PM </a><br /><a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">Saturday, Mar 1 at 8PM </a><br /><a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">Friday, Mar 7 at 7:30PM </a><br /><a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">Sunday, Mar 9 at 3PM </a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">* Chicago Premiere</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">** Company Premiere</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /><b><u><a href="http://www.alvinailey.org/lift" target="_blank"><i>Lift - </i>Choreography by Aszure Barton</a></u></b></span><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="253" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/79704122?portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="450"></iframe> <br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://vimeo.com/79704122">The Making of Aszure Barton's LIFT</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3212993">Alvin Ailey</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This propulsive world premiere by in-demand choreographer Aszure Barton accentuates the vitality and physical prowess of the Ailey company. Driven by the dancers’ passion, skill and collective power, the work was created over a 5-week developmental process with the entire Company. The percussive score, composed by Curtis Macdonald, is infused with the infectious energy and heart that she observed in her initial encounters with the Ailey dancers.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Barton’s exhilarating new work, her first commission for Ailey, celebrates and challenges the dancers with its markedly intricate rhythmic patterns and mercurial structure. A much sought-after dance maker whose choreography ranges from Baryshnikov to Broadway, Barton has a style that is “vulnerable and feisty, brightly adept yet peculiar, witty and impetuously wild” (<em style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Dance</em>magazine).</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“<em style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">LIFT</em> embodies an atmosphere and energy created by our time spent together in collaboration. I feel very welcomed by the Ailey family and am honored to be working with such a wonderful group of artists. "<br />- Aszure Barton</span></span></div>
<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u><a href="http://www.alvinailey.org/d-man-waters-part-i" target="_blank"><i>D-Man in the Waters - </i>Choreography by Bill T. Jones</a></u></b><br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="253" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/79986796?portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="450"></iframe> <br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://vimeo.com/79986796">Bill T. Jones' D-MAN IN THE WATERS (PART I)</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3212993">Alvin Ailey</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In this exhilarating work by Kennedy Center Honoree, MacArthur Grant awardee and Tony Award-winner Bill T. Jones (<em style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Fela!, Spring Awakening</em>), rigorous formalism and musicality embody resilience and triumph over loss. The piece captures the infectious energy, innocence and will to survive of a beleaguered generation, and though it deals with sorrow, it maintains a defiantly celebratory tone.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Felix Mendelssohn’s soaring <em style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Octet for Strings</em> propels the non-stop momentum, sending the dancers hurling across the stage in a whirlwind of leaps, rolls, and slides. Jones has said that the fact that Mendelssohn was just 16 years old when he composed the work resonated strongly with him. “This piece was created when we were dealing with a lot of death,” he said. “So creating this work was for us a way of dealing with grief, by finding the joy in the music this 16-year-old boy created.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Jones’ tour-de-force was awarded a New York Dance and Performance (“Bessie”) Award and is praised for being one of the finest examples of the post-modern dance aesthetic. <em style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The New York Times</em> called it “a stylish, impassioned outpouring of movement.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“In a dream you saw a way to survive and you were full of joy.”<br />– conceptual artist Jenny Holzer</span></div>
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.alvinailey.org/about/company/alvin-ailey-american-dance-theater/repertory/revelations" target="_blank"><i>Revelations</i> – Choreography by Alvin Ailey</a></span></b><br />
<b><br /></b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="253" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/10185543" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="450"></iframe></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://vimeo.com/10185543">Alvin Ailey's REVELATIONS</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3212993">Alvin Ailey</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Using African-American spirituals, song-sermons, gospel songs and holy blues, Alvin Ailey’s <i>Revelations</i> fervently explores the places of deepest grief and holiest joy in the soul. More than just a popular dance work, it has become a cultural treasure, beloved by generations of fans.Seeing <i>Revelations </i>for the first time or the hundredth can be a transcendent experience, with audiences cheering, singing along and dancing in their seats from the opening notes of the plaintive “I Been ’Buked” to the rousing “Wade in the Water” and the triumphant finale, “Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ailey said that one of America’s richest treasures was the African-American cultural heritage —“sometimes sorrowful, sometimes jubilant, but always hopeful.” This enduring classic is a tribute to that tradition, born out of the choreographer’s “blood memories” of his childhood in rural Texas and the Baptist Church. But since its premiere in 1960, the ballet has been performed continuously around the globe, transcending barriers of faith and nationality, and appealing to universal emotions, making it the most widely-seen modern dance work in the world.</span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-5732779502005242292014-02-14T15:52:00.003-06:002014-02-14T15:52:29.877-06:00Chroma, Four Corners, Revelations - Alvin Ailey Chicago Program A<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater</a> visits the Auditorium Theatre for 10 performances, February 28 -March 9, 2014. The company will bring three programs, each featuring different pieces from their repertoire. Learn about the pieces in Program A below! </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For tickets and information, click <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank">HERE</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Win tickets to see Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater by entering our <a href="https://a.pgtb.me/5tKgkK" target="_blank">Facebook Contest</a> or our <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/166281411215909141/" target="_blank">Pinterest Contest</a>.</i></span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>Chroma** / Four Corners* / Revelations</i></span></b><br />
<a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Friday, Feb 28 at 7:30PM </span></a><br />
<a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sunday, Mar 2 at 3PM </span></a><br />
<a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Thursday, Mar 6 at 7:30PM</span></a><br />
<a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=455" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Saturday, Mar 8 at 8PM</span></a><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">* Chicago Premiere</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">** Company Premiere</span><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.alvinailey.org/chroma" target="_blank"><i>Chroma </i>- Choreography by Wayne McGregor</a></span></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="253" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/83723888" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="450"></iframe> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://vimeo.com/83723888">Wayne McGregor's CHROMA</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3212993">Alvin Ailey</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The groundbreaking British choreographer's contemporary ballet is full of sensory suprises: sumptuous movement, a driving score by Joby Talbot with orchestrations of songs by The White Stripes, and a luminous set by minimalist architect John Pawson.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“Often in my own choreographies I have actively conspired to disrupt the spaces in which the body performs. Each intervention, usually some kind of addition, is an attempt to see the context of the body in a new or alien way. On reading John Pawson’s <i>Minimum</i> I was captivated by this notion of subtraction, the ‘essential’ space, which seems to reduce elements to make visible the invisible. Intriguingly, although Pawson’s designs do give definition to space(s), they are somehow always boundary-less. This potential ‘freedom space’ would be an extraordinary environment for a new choreography, where the grammar and articulation of the body is made crystal clear, graphic and unmediated. It could be a space where the body becomes absolutely architectural. At the same time, in creating volume(s) of tone for the choreography to inhabit the body can behave as a frequency of colour – in freedom from white: CHROMA."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“I heard Joby Talbot’s Hovercraft piece for orchestra and felt its immediate physical impact – visceral, unsettling, hungry and direct. These short five minutes became our keystone to unlocking a strangely seductive score that tensions the aggressive force of the White Stripes with the enigmatic beauty of Talbot’s own compositions.” </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-Wayne McGregor</span><br />
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.alvinailey.org/four-corners" target="_blank"><i>Four Corners </i>- Choreography by Ronald K. Brown</a></b><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="253" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/79986798?portrait=0" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="450"></iframe> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://vimeo.com/79986798">Ronald K. Brown's FOUR CORNERS</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3212993">Alvin Ailey</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In Ronald K. Brown’s Four Corners, 11 dancers depict spiritual seekers amid four angels standing on the corners of the earth, holding the four winds. In creating his fifth commission for the Ailey company since 1999, the celebrated choreographer turned to the song “Lamentations” by his friend, recording artist Carl Hancock Rux. Drawing from West African and modern dance influences, Brown uses grounded, earthy movements to portray figures who are burdened by grief but ultimately find peace, solace, and freedom with the aid of “the angels in their corners” mentioned in Rux’s text.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">While <i>Four Corners</i> is not a literal interpretation of Rux’s lyrics, Brown drew inspiration from the text to manifest storytelling through choreography. Brown expressed his love for poems, stating: “There’s something about the rhythm, and something about the richness of the spoken word that goes right into my heart. When I’m dreaming about movement or seeing movement, poetry comes out.” Though the friendship between Brown and Rux began decades ago, <i>Four Corners </i>provided the first opportunity for choreographer and composer to create a dance work together.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Halfway through the work, there is a palpable shift in energy as the music changes to an undulating, pulsing lullaby by North African vocalist Yacoub, indicating that the winds of change are blowing. Brown also makes use of music by Rahsaan Roland Kirk. Costume designer Omotayo “Wunmi” Olaiya, a long-time collaborator, created flowing garb in rich purples, grays, and blacks. <i>The New Yorker </i>recently hailed Brown as “the choreographer best able to give the virtuosic dancers of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater works as powerful as their technique. His compositions are hard to resist.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The ballet is inspired by text from recording artist Carl Hancock Rux’s "Lamentations":</span><br />
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<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Away they fall</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">All who stand</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">At the four corners of the earth</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With blades and sheaths</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">These</span></i><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i><br />
</i> <i>Yours is simply this</i></span><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Command and stand up</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Stand</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You are beautiful</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And lovely</span></i><br />
<i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Beautiful and lovely</span></i><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.alvinailey.org/about/company/alvin-ailey-american-dance-theater/repertory/revelations" target="_blank"><i>Revelations</i> – Choreography by Alvin Ailey</a></span></b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="253" mozallowfullscreen="" src="//player.vimeo.com/video/10185543" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="450"></iframe> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://vimeo.com/10185543">Alvin Ailey's REVELATIONS</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user3212993">Alvin Ailey</a> on <a href="https://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Using African-American spirituals, song-sermons, gospel songs and holy blues, Alvin Ailey’s <i>Revelations</i> fervently explores the places of deepest grief and holiest joy in the soul. More than just a popular dance work, it has become a cultural treasure, beloved by generations of fans.Seeing <i>Revelations </i>for the first time or the hundredth can be a transcendent experience, with audiences cheering, singing along and dancing in their seats from the opening notes of the plaintive “I Been ’Buked” to the rousing “Wade in the Water” and the triumphant finale, “Rocka My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Ailey said that one of America’s richest treasures was the African-American cultural heritage —“sometimes sorrowful, sometimes jubilant, but always hopeful.” This enduring classic is a tribute to that tradition, born out of the choreographer’s “blood memories” of his childhood in rural Texas and the Baptist Church. But since its premiere in 1960, the ballet has been performed continuously around the globe, transcending barriers of faith and nationality, and appealing to universal emotions, making it the most widely-seen modern dance work in the world.</span>Auditorium Theatrehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06325526160806692428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-34338733475482543972014-01-14T16:32:00.001-06:002014-01-14T16:32:06.121-06:00 Too Hot to Handel CPS Poetry Contest<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsMGXoKUe4F0Tlv8OpSM9mXL6s1vR7IwNTAFAm7Vtg58dPK3zd8lWYZlrOjozGDgS9Nff78_i4DHulpwNQZZD5k6JXAKkEbfZe2wvEfD01PuW9FKEVNJiXcP9qINGKf7IauLZ9_565rQs/s1600/Photo+of+Martin+Luther+King+Jr.+Orator1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="161" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsMGXoKUe4F0Tlv8OpSM9mXL6s1vR7IwNTAFAm7Vtg58dPK3zd8lWYZlrOjozGDgS9Nff78_i4DHulpwNQZZD5k6JXAKkEbfZe2wvEfD01PuW9FKEVNJiXcP9qINGKf7IauLZ9_565rQs/s200/Photo+of+Martin+Luther+King+Jr.+Orator1.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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Each January,
the <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre</a> presents <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=452" target="_blank">Too Hot To Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah</a> as a
celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. For the fifth consecutive year, we
have invited Chicago Public School students in grades 3-12 to write an original
poem celebrating Dr. King's vision of the beloved community. The grand prize
winner and runner up will each receive four tickets to see <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=452" target="_blank">Too Hot to Handel,</a> limo
service to and from the theatre, and will have the opportunity to read
their poem to the <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=452" target="_blank">Too Hot</a> audience.
Their poems will also be published in N'DIGO Magazine and every audience
member will receive a copy to take home with them. This year, over 200 students from all over
the city entered the contest to share their hopes and dreams for a beloved community. <o:p></o:p></div>
<br />
Here are our finalists for our poetry contest:<br />
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<b> </b><b> </b></div>
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<b>Beloved Community<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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By: Kellvin
S. – 6<sup>th</sup> grade<o:p></o:p></div>
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Harold
Washington Elementary School <o:p></o:p></div>
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A beloved community stands together<o:p></o:p></div>
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A beloved community helps each other<o:p></o:p></div>
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We’re all one and one is all<o:p></o:p></div>
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Let’s strive together from winter to fall<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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A beloved Community works as a team<o:p></o:p></div>
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Even though we have different dreams<o:p></o:p></div>
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We all have suggestions we like to share<o:p></o:p></div>
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So we come together because we care<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>“Untitled”<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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By: Thomas
R.—6<sup>th</sup> grade<o:p></o:p></div>
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Harold
Washington Elementary School<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Our beloved community<o:p></o:p></div>
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We are a unity<o:p></o:p></div>
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Where we can have fun<o:p></o:p></div>
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And be serious when fun is done<o:p></o:p></div>
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We will smile together<o:p></o:p></div>
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Til the day is done<o:p></o:p></div>
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And we will join together in the sun<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>“Untitled”<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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By: Joshua
J. – 3<sup>rd</sup> grade<o:p></o:p></div>
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Frank
Reilly Elementary School<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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A lovely city in the world <o:p></o:p></div>
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Not cruel or nasty<o:p></o:p></div>
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The heart in the world of beauty<o:p></o:p></div>
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And not junky<o:p></o:p></div>
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Saving the world in my body<o:p></o:p></div>
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Night and day will be lovely<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><br />Lights to Equality<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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By: Jeanie
H. – 5<sup>th</sup> grade<o:p></o:p></div>
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Philip
Rogers Elementary School<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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It’s time to walk hand in hand,<o:p></o:p></div>
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It’s time for a world of equality,<o:p></o:p></div>
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It matters not what you are, or whom you claim to
be,<o:p></o:p></div>
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You’re you, and that’s good enough for me.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Can’t we see who we are,<o:p></o:p></div>
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Our hearts have strayed too far.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Everyone wants happiness,<o:p></o:p></div>
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No one wants pain.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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But you can’t have a rainbow,<o:p></o:p></div>
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Without a little rain.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Martin Luther King Jr.<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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By: Coura
M. – 5<sup>th</sup> grade<o:p></o:p></div>
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Phillip
Rogers Elementary School<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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Martin, Martin, Martin<o:p></o:p></div>
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What good you have done<o:p></o:p></div>
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We have all come together<o:p></o:p></div>
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United as one<o:p></o:p></div>
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Love, peace, and respect<o:p></o:p></div>
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You have brought to us<o:p></o:p></div>
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Without your courage, and bravery<o:p></o:p></div>
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Who might we trust<o:p></o:p></div>
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Thank you for your hard work<o:p></o:p></div>
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Risking your life for us<o:p></o:p></div>
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You will be in our hearts forever</div>
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<br /></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-9902902085159835552013-12-05T13:00:00.003-06:002013-12-19T13:49:42.761-06:00Holidays at #theAud Photo Contest<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; mso-line-height-alt: 15.0pt; text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 24pt;"><span style="color: #333333;">Holidays at</span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #333333;"> </span><span style="text-decoration: none;"><a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank"><span style="color: #990000;">#theAud</span></a></span><span class="apple-converted-space" style="color: #333333;"> </span><span style="color: #333333;">Photo Contest</span></span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: orange; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 18.0pt;">Enter to win a pair of tickets to</span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=489" target="_blank"><span style="color: #990000;"><b><i><u><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;"><span style="text-decoration: none;">Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah</span></span></u></i></b><b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18pt;">!</span></b></span></a><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">How to Enter:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Photograph yourself, your friends, or your family at the
<a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre</a> this holiday season. Post the photo on your favorite social
media sites following the instructions below to enter. <u> Be sure to make
your post "public" so that we can see your entry!</u> You may
enter as many times as you like - the more photos, the more chances to win!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Please note:
Photos may be taken in the lobby or <i>after the performance</i> inside the
theatre. No photos may be taken inside the theatre before or during the
performance. </span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt;"><br />
<b><br />
There are three ways to enter:</b></span><b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";"><o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt;">Facebook
– </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11.5pt;"><span style="color: #333333;">tag the </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/auditoriumtheatre" target="_blank"><span style="color: #990000;">Auditorium Theatre</span></a><span style="color: #333333;"> in your post or photo</span><br />
<b style="color: #333333;">Twitter -</b><span style="color: #333333;"> tag </span><a href="https://twitter.com/AuditoriumChgo" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: #990000;">@auditoriumchgo</span></span></a><span style="color: #333333;"> and #theaud</span><br />
<b style="color: #333333;">Instagram – </b><span style="color: #333333;">tag @auditoriumtheatre and #theaud<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt;">Prizes:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt;">Two winners will be randomly selected.
Each winner will receive two (2) free premium tickets to<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><i><a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=489" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: #990000;">Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah</span></span></a></i>, January 18
& 19 at the Auditorium Theatre.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15.0pt;">
<b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt;">Contest
Rules:<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span style="color: #333333; font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 11.5pt;">No purchase
or payment necessary to enter or win a prize. Must be 18+ years of age.
Contest ends December 31, 2013 at noon. The submitter certifies he or she has
obtained permission from all persons appearing in the entry; however, only the
entrant submitting the entry is eligible to win the prize. Photo must not
contain material which is sexually explicit, obscene, violent, illegal, or
offensive. Photo must not include 3rd party trademarks, logos, or insignias.
You must tag<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/AuditoriumChgo" target="_blank"><span style="color: #771100; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">@auditoriumchgo</span></a> or
#theaud in your Twitter post to enter. If you enter on Facebook, you must
tag the Auditorium Theatre Facebook page,<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/auditoriumtheatre" target="_blank"><span style="color: #771100; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;">Auditorium
Theatre of Roosevelt University</span></a>. Tag @AuditoriumTheatre or #theaud
on Instagram to enter. Posts must be made "public" to be entered to
win. Auditorium Theatre staff will contact winners via Facebook,
Twitter, or Instagram; failure to respond after 48 hours of notification may
lead to the forfeit of prize. Photo entries will be used by the Auditorium
Theatre to promote the contest, the Auditorium Theatre, and the programming at
the Auditorium Theatre. This contest is in no way sponsored by Facebook or
Twitter and is being run exclusively by the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt
University. Void where prohibited.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-10080504067722858822013-11-14T18:03:00.000-06:002013-11-14T18:03:07.297-06:00 Speaking the language of Hungarian folk dance<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By Tibor Horváth, Former Dancer with <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=453" target="_blank">Hungarian State Folk Ensemble</a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My passion for <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=453" target="_blank">Hungarian folk dance</a> can be attributed largely to two factors: my parents, and my dance instructors. My parents, because they passed on to me a love of Hungary and things Hungarian, and my dance instructors, because they taught me the language of Hungarian folk dance. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sándor Timár, one of the founders of the Hungarian táncház or “dance-house” movement, believed that the ability to learn Hungarian folk dance was comparable to learning a foreign language. First, you learn words, then phrases, then whole sentences. Once fluent, you can construct these sentences in any manner to express yourself. Such was the method by which I learned the dances of Hungary and Hungarians in Transylvania. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLsGiOk4CO3Gm4JnCjv5PiuI_Onj01Vqx3I8F2L8OOzTTApdTzMzDchkR9Hq-SSPc7PC2zpBqaDoEWbbIVZJQLUhnzC9r4FaB06_i8uFi1euPdiSH-u5rxYnq8HSOjAVHX9yXxI6Oiaag/s1600/30964949_CRW_6484.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img alt="Tibor Horvath, Hungarian Folk Dancer" border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLsGiOk4CO3Gm4JnCjv5PiuI_Onj01Vqx3I8F2L8OOzTTApdTzMzDchkR9Hq-SSPc7PC2zpBqaDoEWbbIVZJQLUhnzC9r4FaB06_i8uFi1euPdiSH-u5rxYnq8HSOjAVHX9yXxI6Oiaag/s200/30964949_CRW_6484.jpg" title="Tibor Horvath, Hungarian Folk Dancer" width="133" /></span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I grew up in Seattle, Washington, to parents who had emigrated from Hungary, and began dancing in my early teens with the local Hungarian dance group. While we learned choreographies to perform, the goal of the instructors in my group was to learn the dances inside and out, allowing us to dance freestyle, just as these dances were originally danced in the villages. In some places, most notably among Hungarians in Transylvania, they are still danced today at celebrations and village events. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Learning Hungarian folk dances allowed me an avenue to connect with my heritage. Each region has distinct costumes and step-work associated with it. The music, as collected by greats such as Béla Bartók and Zoltán Kodály, shows an amazing diversity from region to region. The folk costumes are equally diverse, and in some cases, are covered in intricate beadwork or embroidery. The men’s dances, in particular, demonstrate a virtuosity of complicated slapping and footwork that is not found elsewhere. I feel I learned more about the customs and people of Hungary through dance than I could have in any other way. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In the fall of 1990, following a tour of Croatia with a Seattle-area Croatian group with which I also performed, I travelled to Hungary to study on a scholarship with a university in Budapest. Shortly after arriving, I was afforded the opportunity to audition for the Hungarian State Folk Ensemble, then under the artistic direction of Sándor Timár. As nervous as I was, I was surprised that I didn’t fail the audition. Being the first foreign-born Hungarian to be awarded a contract, I felt extremely honored. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The next two years were difficult, but also rewarding. I had arranged to take my university classes in the evening, allowing me to go to rehearsal five days a week, from early morning to mid-afternoon. On days we had performances, I would leave class early and race back to the theater in time for group warm-ups and preparations before show time. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I still dance today, and especially enjoy dancing at táncház parties. The band plays cycles from different regions, and everyone dances that particular region’s dance freestyle, improvising motifs and footwork based on the appropriate “vocabulary” of that region. While I believe there is always more to learn, I consider myself to be quite fluent in the language of Hungarian folk dances. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was excited to learn that the <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/performances-events/performances.php?event_id=453" target="_blank">Hungarian State Folk Ensemble</a> would be performing in Chicago at the <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank">Auditorium Theater.</a> It gives me an opportunity to see some friends that still are with the company, but more importantly, it gives a chance for others to see the beauty and majesty of Hungarian folk dance. From the military-style “verbunk” or men’s recruiting dances, to the dizzying spinning of the women in many couples’ dances, the audience will see the variety of Hungarian dance and appreciate the years of training and hours of practice put in by each dancer. From the moment the dancers burst onto the stage, the audience will be treated to the sights and sounds of rural village life presented in a dazzling fashion. In so, they will begin to recognize the language of Hungarian folk dancing. </span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">-----------</span><br />
<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tibor Horváth has performed Hungarian folk dance for nearly thirty years in front of audiences in the Pacific Northwest, California, western Canada, and Hungary. His tours with the Hungarian State Folk Ensemble also allowed him to perform on stages across Europe. He has taught Hungarian dances to dancers and aficionados, both beginners and advanced dancers. A recent transplant to Chicago, he is currently dancing with the Borozda Hungarian Ensemble based in Norridge, IL. </span></div>
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-74813410885993884182013-11-12T15:38:00.001-06:002013-11-12T15:38:33.568-06:00The Arts: A Love that will Last a Lifetime<div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By Kelly Saroff, <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre</a> Intern</span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
Ever since I was five years old tagging along to my sister’s piano lessons, I have been intrigued by the arts. For almost as long, I have enjoyed organizing, scheduling, and communicating with others to make initiatives successful. So when I discovered Arts Administration as a career option, I was hooked.<br /><br /> </span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh00cZU08FQSxdZcT0Ec56OeB66aWF-6tMojW1DD6IOPZRsinDA3pOBFtnDLs3YqIxrHOkcEwl81uZ8RChQ5Jx26WPRnSCOyrt33CbVTqD2MvAvezOvsBILwF10NHcMV_uxCXR96FdCYXQ/s1600/Kelly+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><img alt="Kelly, Auditorium Theatre Intern" border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh00cZU08FQSxdZcT0Ec56OeB66aWF-6tMojW1DD6IOPZRsinDA3pOBFtnDLs3YqIxrHOkcEwl81uZ8RChQ5Jx26WPRnSCOyrt33CbVTqD2MvAvezOvsBILwF10NHcMV_uxCXR96FdCYXQ/s320/Kelly+3.jpg" title="Kelly, Auditorium Theatre Intern" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Music has always been my passion. I started playing piano in elementary school, but it was my dream to play flute. The instrument fascinated me, and I wanted to be able to produce its characteristically beautiful, singing sound. I was so excited when I entered the band program in sixth grade and was able to pick up the flute for the first time. It wasn’t quite the magical experience I had hoped for—in fact, it took me several weeks before I could actually make a sound on the instrument! However, I kept working through middle and high school and eventually progressed to making the District and All-State Bands as well as participating in elite area youth ensembles. I attended a summer intensive music festival, where I began to seriously consider music as a career. I grew in my skills as a performer and musician, and I learned to love music in an entirely new way. <br /><br />This experience inspired me to pursue a degree in Flute Performance at the Bienen School of Music at Northwestern University. I soon discovered that while I loved performing on the flute, I also enjoyed being active in student groups on campus. As the former president of my sorority and a current vice president for the Panhellenic Association, I have found that I really enjoy working with others and being involved in the administrative or management aspects of an organization. These interests led me to explore the field of Arts Administration and eventually pursue a minor in Arts Administration along with my degree in Performance.<br /><br />I have previously held Arts Administration internships at the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, South Arts, and The Atlanta Opera. All three internships gave me different opportunities in the broader field of Arts Administration, and all of them confirmed my interest in Arts Administration as a career path. I am thrilled to be working at the <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre</a>, where I am getting hands-on field experience at a very well-established arts organization in the heart of Chicago. I have already had the opportunity to assist with final preparations as well as attend two of the <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre</a>’s major events: The Devil’s Ball and the Gala. I am excited to see what else my internship has in store as I learn about Development in a theatre setting.<br /><br /> My love for flute, music, and the arts is one that will last a lifetime. Combining my skills and my different interests has led me to expand my field experience through an internship at the <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre</a>. As a college senior, I look toward the future as an opportunity to explore my love for the arts in a career in Arts Administration.</span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Click <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/pages/home/education/internships.php" target="_blank">HERE</a> to learn about internship opportunities at the Auditorium Theatre.</span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-33094270275533043462013-11-07T11:59:00.002-06:002013-11-07T11:59:17.584-06:00From Young Passions to Big City Ambitions<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By Amber Snearl, Marketing Intern </span><div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Wearing a nice dress, putting on my best hosiery, and pulling my hair back so nicely that I looked as good as those on stage was a routine as a child. Being a part of the audience was just as important to me as being on stage was to many performers. You see, I’ve always been a fan of the theatre and have utilized every chance that I had to be in attendance at shows. Growing up in the city of St. Louis led to great opportunities for me to attend live theatre events. Between attending Shakespeare in the Park every summer and seeing live musicals at the Fox Theatre on a regular, I was always able to get my dose of theatre just when I needed it.<br /><br /> As an elementary student, I was very musically inclined; I played the trombone for three years and even worked my way into the school’s jazz band by the time I was in the sixth grade! Each chance that I got, I was playing in a talent show, being the supporting sound to a choir performance or even writing my own tune to show to my instructor.<br /><br />While those years were fun, it wasn’t until I began my transition into middle school that I realized I no longer had a passion for being in the shows as much as wanting to know what went into producing them. As years passed I slowly came to the realization that I was more of a behind-the-scenes kind of girl! Marketing seemed to be right up my alley and I began to gear my education towards that while making it my major at Roosevelt University.<br /><br />Diving into the major related courses is what has really gotten me inspired to market! It was Business Communications, BCOM 301, to be exact that opened my eyes to all that I could do with a degree in Marketing. I was able to create visual ads and draw up plans that would allow for a product or company to be exposed to the world. I got some kind of rush out of those projects and my inspiration and creativity just got flowing and hasn’t stopped since! I’m glad that it hasn’t, seeing as I have landed an internship with the wonderfully historic <a href="http://www.auditoriumtheatre.org/" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University</a>. Within my first weeks already, I have been exposed to wonderful theatre. Seeing Ballet West perform <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151662532117175.1073741830.9776212174&type=3" target="_blank">The Sleeping Beauty</a> in Roosevelt’s very own Historic Landmark Theatre has been wonderful and has shown promise that I will enjoy my time here.<br /><br />Being here has allowed for that sweet memory of my childhood to spring back into the present while mixing my strong interest in Marketing all into one great experience. Being hired to intern here has not only helped me to gain a vision of what a possible career path could be like, but it has allowed for me to be back in the atmosphere of something that I have always enjoyed, and that is the theatre!</span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-73421622898838206362013-10-25T17:19:00.001-05:002013-10-25T17:19:17.554-05:00Intern Alix and the Role of the Arts Administrator<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By Alix de Commines, Auditorium Theatre Intern</span><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">As a kid, I played harp, took music theory classes, and
danced ballet in a Parisian Academy of music, so I grew up immerged in an
artistic atmosphere. If I live twice, I actually wish I could be a ballet
dancer, but this life had other plans for me as I happen to be better at
negotiating and following the business-oriented side of the arts. Promoting
dance, especially ballet, through an arts administration internship appeared to
be the best fit for me.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I feel like promoting the arts and working to broaden its
audience is essential for our society. Indeed, our generation is highly
specialized, and even though people are excellent at what they are doing, they
don’t necessarily have a broad cultural overview. It’s a shame because it helps
to build a balanced personality. By promoting the arts, your goal is to make
people feel something new, think about things differently, and broaden their
knowledge of artistic creation. I believe you cannot fulfill yourself without the
arts, either professionally or personally. Anything in life can be related to
the arts. It’s all about helping people build finer critical thinking skills,
find out who they are, and figure out their artistic tastes. It also helps
develop sensitivity to other cultures throughout the various types of ethnic dance
and music, including: contemporary, hip-hop, jazz, flamenco, ballet, and many
others. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The main message I want to work on at the Auditorium Theatre
is telling people that these shows are made for them—for everyone. The arts are
not as selective as they used to be. To make this audience broader, our mission
is to use business strategies to reach people in order to make them aware that
there is a huge cultural legacy that is not going to survive without them and
without their interest. The arts administration staff at the Auditorium Theatre
is doing an amazing job promoting dance and music. It’s a really good
experience for me to work side by side with people who have the same goal of
preserving and highlighting their 125-year-old building by attracting the most
diverse population through broad and multi-cultural programming.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This internship has been really beneficial for me for various
reasons. I have learned how a theater works, both backstage and front of house,
why certain shows come to certain places, and how the artistic life is
organized! You won’t have this opportunity twice in your life! So if you don’t
know the awesome staff of the Auditorium Theatre yet, if you’ve never walked to
the dress circle of one the most beautiful buildings in Chicago, if it has been
a long time since you’ve seen a dance performance, or if you want to become part
of the adventure, do it now and come to the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt
University! I will be more than happy and proud to give you a private tour!</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-59213119958916630902013-10-25T10:51:00.003-05:002013-10-25T10:51:36.140-05:00Sabrina Lenzi, Répétiteur Works With The Joffrey Ballet on La Bayadère<span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4; text-align: justify;">Sabrina Lenzi, native of Rome, Italy and former principal dancer, was hand selected by renowned choreographer </span><a href="http://www.houstonballet.org/Inside_Houston_Ballet/Artistic_Staff/Stanton_Welch/" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s; color: #009eb8; display: inline; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4; outline: none; text-align: justify; text-decoration: none; transition: color 0.3s;"><span lang="EN">Stanton Welch</span></a><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4; text-align: justify;"> to be the “<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R%C3%A9p%C3%A9titeur" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s; color: #009eb8; display: inline; outline: none; text-decoration: none; transition: color 0.3s;">répétiteur</a>” for The Joffrey Ballet’s upcoming production <i>of </i></span><a href="http://theaud.us/1apQZpp" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s; color: #009eb8; display: inline; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4; outline: none; text-align: justify; text-decoration: none; transition: color 0.3s;" target="_blank"><i><span lang="EN">La Bayad</span></i><i><span lang="FR">ère</span></i></a><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4; text-align: justify;">. (Learn more about the ballet </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Bayad%C3%A8re" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s; color: #009eb8; display: inline; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4; outline: none; text-align: justify; text-decoration: none; transition: color 0.3s;"><span lang="EN">here</span></a><span lang="EN" style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4; text-align: justify;">.)</span><br /><div class="article-content entry-content" itemprop="articleBody" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #333333; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue Light', HelveticaNeue-Light, 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4; margin: 10px auto 5px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-align: justify;">
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<b>Ms. Lenzi, tell us about yourself and how this shaped your dance journey to where you are today.</b></div>
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I was born in Rome, Italy and left Italy at 16 years old to pursue dancing. I eventually joined the Stuttgart Ballet in Germany for 11 years. After that, I worked with <a href="http://www.brb.org.uk/masque/?act=person&urn=674" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s; color: #009eb8; display: inline; outline: none; text-decoration: none; transition: color 0.3s;">David Bintley</a> at the Birmingham Royal Ballet as a principal dancer in London, where I met Stanton Welch. I got to dance some of the lead roles in his ballets including <i>Powder</i>. Later, Stanton was asked to be the Artistic Director of Houston Ballet and he had asked me to help him with <i>Baya</i><i><span lang="FR">dère</span></i>.</div>
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<b>How does Stanton Welch’s </b><b><i><span lang="FR">La Bayadère</span></i><span lang="FR"> </span>differ from the original Petipa version?</b></div>
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Stanton has an amazing sense of musicality; his ability to hear music is incredible. In this version, Stanton layered the original choreography – making some of the choreography more technically difficult, especially the men’s variations and the corps. He also layered upon the first pas de deux with Nikiya, making it more romantic. </div>
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<b>It’s interesting that Stanton has elaborated upon the dancing in the men's sections. It seems to be aligned with the evolution of ballet in that during Petipa’s time, the man’s role was more to highlight and accentuate the women whereas now, male dancing is becoming more central – establishing more of a sense of equality in the ballets. Do you think this is accurate?</b></div>
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Yes I do think that he is creating a sense of equality in the roles and in the dancing. He added more steps and dancing in the male roles as well as increased the level of technicality in their dancing as well.</div>
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<b>What is your favorite part of </b><b><i><span lang="FR">La Bayadère</span></i>?</b></div>
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I love the Kingdom of the Shades in Act III. Other favorites are the first pas de deux and the temple scene with all of the ladies. It has such a wonderful energy and atmosphere.</div>
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<b>What is the most technically difficult part in regards to either staging </b><b><i><span lang="FR">La Bayadère</span></i><span lang="FR"> </span>and/or the dancing itself?</b></div>
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In staging the ballet, the most difficult part is that it is a classic piece, but has a very specific style, which can be challenging to teach. For the dancer, they have to really become the character and not just “be” the character but build it from the beginning and follow through until the end. It is also challenging for the dancer to remain engaged in their role both technically and artistically from the beginning until the end. <span lang="FR">La Bayadère</span><span lang="FR"> </span>is truly an “endurance ballet.”</div>
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<b>Our audiences may be curious to know more about the live snakes (yes, real snakes!) and other props that play a role in this production. Can you tell us more about this?</b></div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3NUHLsOd3RRmPkkWOFyZ-xKFCc8OCEB7_VHtD0h8d0dEB7GBNqmYrxxeDpqNkmi5l0rJPJL21_Pu356BDfgwCTrE6NnD2IHQUkJmekNB-FAFgpp0x9RqpJscHNjZenOnahSCptUDrdXCS/s1600/La+Bayadere+snakes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s; color: #009eb8; display: inline; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; outline: none; text-decoration: none; transition: color 0.3s;"><img border="0" height="220" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3NUHLsOd3RRmPkkWOFyZ-xKFCc8OCEB7_VHtD0h8d0dEB7GBNqmYrxxeDpqNkmi5l0rJPJL21_Pu356BDfgwCTrE6NnD2IHQUkJmekNB-FAFgpp0x9RqpJscHNjZenOnahSCptUDrdXCS/s320/La+Bayadere+snakes.jpg" style="-webkit-border-image: url(data:image/png; border-image-repeat: stretch; border-image-slice: 9; border-image-source: url(data:image/png; border-image-width: 9px; border: 9px none; box-sizing: border-box; display: inline-block; height: auto; margin: 10px auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 8px; position: relative;" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 11px;"><b>Joffrey dancers Amber Neumann and Temur Suluashvili rehearse with live snakes</b></td></tr>
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This ballet is very exciting – it is a busy, lively production and there are lots of props including snakes. There is a snake handler in the ballet and we are working with a company to decide which ones to use <i>(they are in the 3-5 foot range and in case you are wondering, they are not venomous and have been hand raised, phew!)</i></div>
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From the dancers’ point of view, it can be very challenging to work with all of the props. For instance, in the temple scene, the women dance with large jugs and are wearing veils. Everything needs to be staged carefully so that the scenes run seamlessly. Additionally, in the Kingdom of Shades scene, there is a large ramp with lights involved in the scene, which adds to the effect for the audience, but for the dancers, it is difficult to remain focused and balanced.</div>
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<b>There is certainly a lot for audiences to see and enjoy- from the dancing to the props, scenery, costumes, and more! </b><b><i><span lang="FR">La Bayadère</span></i></b><b><span lang="FR"> is being performed at the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University, October 16-27. </span></b><a href="http://theaud.us/1apQZpp" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.3s; color: #009eb8; display: inline; outline: none; text-decoration: none; transition: color 0.3s;"><b><span lang="FR">Click here to purchase tickets</span></b></a><b><span lang="FR">.</span></b></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-78884872974578796302013-10-14T16:13:00.001-05:002013-10-14T17:27:53.653-05:00Tweet to Win Tickets @AuditoriumCHGO<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifKN1oJpjpMxa2pEZboMV0h8lWM4k3jGxXl1oR9EUr1IN31hSXh5PLvsOrr5gyZzAHh2BpxkUByrgSriMFcttgLzpawbXKNUbm_cAwBbtp9gL9N_PjoBKrGZIV3akTRauuArFrJUyBXgw/s1600/Twitter+contest+image-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifKN1oJpjpMxa2pEZboMV0h8lWM4k3jGxXl1oR9EUr1IN31hSXh5PLvsOrr5gyZzAHh2BpxkUByrgSriMFcttgLzpawbXKNUbm_cAwBbtp9gL9N_PjoBKrGZIV3akTRauuArFrJUyBXgw/s400/Twitter+contest+image-01.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Enter to win a pair of tickets to your favorite show during
our 13/14 Season! To enter, tweet and complete the phrase below. Click the link
next to your favorite show for a pre-made customizable tweet! <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The most creative tweet that represents or promotes the event best will win.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>“If I won tix to <event name> @AuditoriumCHGO, <fill in the blank>. #theaud”</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Performances in the 13/14 Season include:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span>Hungarian State Folk Ensemble, November 22 <a href="http://clicktotweet.com/TtJ7L" target="_blank">[Tweet]</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><i>Too Hot to Handel: The Jazz-Gospel Messiah</i>,
January 18-19 <a href="http://clicktotweet.com/1Oh8p" target="_blank">[Tweet]</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span>Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, February 28
– March 9 <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://clicktotweet.com/yjwsc" target="_blank">[Tweet]</a></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span>Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan <i>Songs of the Wanderers</i>, March 14-16 <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://clicktotweet.com/60c7Y" target="_blank">[Tweet]</a></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span>Houston Ballet <i>Aladdin</i>, March 22-23 <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://clicktotweet.com/70dtv" target="_blank">[Tweet]</a></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span>Chick Corea and Bé</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">la Fleck, April 5 <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><a href="http://clicktotweet.com/uO02r" target="_blank">[Tweet]</a></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span>River North Dance Chicago, April 12 <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://clicktotweet.com/fUbf4" target="_blank">[Tweet]</a></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span><i>The Idan Raichel Project</i>, May 15 <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://clicktotweet.com/mvOCd" target="_blank">[Tweet]</a></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">·<span style="font-size: 7pt;"> </span>The Paul Taylor Dance Company, May 17-18 <o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://clicktotweet.com/i_3VI" target="_blank">[Tweet]</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Contest Rules:</b> Only public tweets will be counted as
entries. Enter as many times as you like for more chances to win!<b><br />
</b><br />
One winner will be selected for each event and contacted via Twitter on
November 15. The most creative tweet that represents/promotes the event
will win.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5973181469601424771.post-65510215595135465872013-10-04T16:29:00.000-05:002013-10-04T16:32:00.713-05:00Living my Childhood Dream with Ballet West<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By Tom Mattingly, Ballet West Dancer</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I grew up in Ridgecrest, CA. It's a small town that
the billboard on highway 395 states is "the gateway to Death Valley."
It was mostly sand and tumbleweeds. The tallest building in town was
around three stories high. My father was a teacher and my mother an
artist. From an early age I loved dancing to music. Fred Astaire and Kurt
Browning were my idols (Michelle Kwan too). At four years old I was a regular
at dance school. Sierra Academy of Dance was a small studio, usually hovering
around 55 students total, with just one boy – me. </span></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTTxUNu3MB666m6EqvWS3xEsK7rVw0Xm3H1bkPYPPJNq1sIthYtcHrLj5S8PqdugaZ6_yOlaf4YqlJbCGYrzSpCX4dsuMnXz-96FaX7Anr5G8am46303C9IWFxXJJL9myLsHw3nHZQquY/s1600/Joffrey+Nutcracker+OCPAC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTTxUNu3MB666m6EqvWS3xEsK7rVw0Xm3H1bkPYPPJNq1sIthYtcHrLj5S8PqdugaZ6_yOlaf4YqlJbCGYrzSpCX4dsuMnXz-96FaX7Anr5G8am46303C9IWFxXJJL9myLsHw3nHZQquY/s320/Joffrey+Nutcracker+OCPAC.jpg" width="185" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Joffrey
Nutcracker tour to California. <br />Photo by Mark Goldweber</span></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I was eight or nine I learned about the Joffrey Ballet
and what it meant to be a professional dancer. I had no idea that dance could
be a career until then, and I knew instantly that that was what I wanted to do.
When I was 11 I auditioned for the Joffrey's tour of "The Nutcracker"
at the Orange County Performing Arts Center. I made the cuts and became “Party
Boy 4.” We had to learn the choreography quickly, stay in line and hope that
our props (mine was a wheeled toy bear on a string) had no snafus. A man named
Mark Goldweber was my rehearsal master and another (very tall) man named Adam
Sklute was my Drosselmeyer. Move ahead 10 years and I've been offered a corps
de ballet job with <a href="http://theaud.us/balletwest" target="_blank">Ballet West</a> by artistic director Adam Sklute and ballet
master Mark Goldweber. When I told Mark that I was a Party Boy years ago his
eyes lit up, and he excitedly said "I remember you! You had a little bowl
cut and just learned how to shimmy!" The next day he came to work with a
photo to prove it. It was me without any doubt. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHzl3fBG7SH-bjcgias-sGu1x20UswVdAzsJ9ix0gvzTOUMyLueWiL_VQtBCTZ7DLw4woaewBWtP-hHvGjL8X0EXLiuv1Zw0bLHHd0FAJvNTRc7WELF1kKloajS4i0nNrX0bZ9Pa36dSE/s1600/Bolero+jump.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHzl3fBG7SH-bjcgias-sGu1x20UswVdAzsJ9ix0gvzTOUMyLueWiL_VQtBCTZ7DLw4woaewBWtP-hHvGjL8X0EXLiuv1Zw0bLHHd0FAJvNTRc7WELF1kKloajS4i0nNrX0bZ9Pa36dSE/s320/Bolero+jump.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I've been to Chicago with Ballet West once before. We were
performing Jiri Kylian's "Sinfonietta" as a part of the Chicago
Dancing Festival. I was the traveling understudy. While it was great to visit
Chicago with a light schedule, I was sad to not be dancing with the rest of the
company. Adam promised me that next time we came to Chicago I'd be on stage. He
made true on his promise and I am going to be one busy guy this week! I'll be
dancing both casts of Prince Floristan in "Sleeping Beauty". It's a
classical pas de trois with an incredibly demanding "Speedy Gonzales"
type variation in the middle. Mark choreographed this on me when we premiered
"Sleeping Beauty" in Salt Lake in 2011. In the Gala performance
I'll be featured in Nicolo Fonte's "Presto" and Val Caniparoli's
"The Lottery." Fellow BW dancer Katie Critchlow and worked with Val
to create the solo in "The Lottery" last fall. Neither of us has
pulled the lot yet but I'm dying (pun) to choose the marked ballot this
weekend. "Presto" is not only a Chicago premiere but a world premiere
that Nicolo made in August. I'm in the unique position of exclusively
performing choreography that has been made especially for me – it almost puts
me in a comfort zone. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2a9hItDQeR0mAS2hzd3LPGDVv0GpNLx_YHq0TgfvUK0XceSq_RLFhxEB069SGE4vGA7WHqkNPz5FEr7Qutxkfqsvrq7h6pqpPU6C4mNaekRDyTy052LjYvBX2n1LpNwNBl5PAsD-oPXI/s1600/Lottery+with+Katie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2a9hItDQeR0mAS2hzd3LPGDVv0GpNLx_YHq0TgfvUK0XceSq_RLFhxEB069SGE4vGA7WHqkNPz5FEr7Qutxkfqsvrq7h6pqpPU6C4mNaekRDyTy052LjYvBX2n1LpNwNBl5PAsD-oPXI/s400/Lottery+with+Katie.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Performing at the <a href="http://theaud.us/1aTx94I" target="_blank">Auditorium Theatre</a> is special for another
reason as well. In May I had surgery to remove four bone spurs and a mass of
scar tissue from my right ankle. These performances in Chicago will be my first
with Ballet West since April. A tour of this nature might seem like an awful
lot of pressure, but I couldn't be happier. I came from a small desert town and
now I'm living my childhood dream and even getting paid to do it. I'm
dancing roles made especially for me by choreographers that I love and admire.
I can't wait to take on this challenge and to have a few thousand people loudly
smack their hands together when I'm done. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hopefully Mark will look down and smack his hands too. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">---- </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">For tickets and information please click <a href="http://theaud.us/1aTx94I" target="_blank">HERE.</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0