Programs
Community Engagement
Photo by Christopher Duggan, Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival Post Performance Discussion 2008
The Company seeks to educate and engage not only dancers, but all members of the communities we interact with. Our community engagement programs offer dancers and non-dancers the opportunity to engage in dialogue with the Company and gain insight into our creative process. Contact us for more information.
Classes for Non-Movers
These classes explore movement as a broad and general topic unattached to any particular tradition (ballet, modern, etc.). Focus is on guiding participants through movement exercises that can be accessed without prior dance training or experience.
Post Performance Discussions
Company members engage in a dialogue with the audience immediately following a performance. The content of the discussion is driven entirely by audience questions and responses to the piece.
Lectures
Bill T. Jones, a Tony award winning choreographer and MacArthur "Genius" Award winner, is widely recognized as one of the most engaging speakers of our times. Topics for lectures can include specific details about his work or a more general discussion of his creative process.
Bill surrounds himself with impressive collaborators and guest artists to create his multi-disciplinary works. Collaborators can join Mr. Jones in a panel discussion addressing the creation of a particular work. All lectures include opportunities for the audience to engage in dialogue with Mr. Jones by asking questions and furthering the discussion.
Special Projects
We are happy to discuss special projects that will help connect the needs and interests of your community to the company's work in exciting and creative ways. Read on for information on 100 Migrations, a recent community project in Charlottesville, VA.
As part of the process of developing Fondly Do We Hope... Fervently Do We Pray, the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company visited The University of Virginia where they asked: "Had Lincoln lived, what would we be like today?" During the week-long residency the University hosted lecture/demonstrations, panel discussions, and masterclasses exploring the legacy of Abraham Lincoln. Through workshops, a diverse group of local community members and musicians joined the company members to create and perform a site-specific event with movement, text, and music drawn from the participants' own gestures and memories relating to a historical figure "hiding in plain sight."
"100 Migrations remains as one of the greatest experiences of my life."Visit UVa's 100 Migrations site, and click here to read one student's editorial about the project's ability to bring communities together.
Penny Chang, 100 Migrations participant
–– Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Monday, July 27, 2009
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