EVENT: Louise Reichlin & Dancers/ LA Choreographers & Dancers in "Baggage"
'Mourning Light', 'Tap Dance Widows Club', 'Remembrance'
'Woman Sleeping' (revival 1981), Conversation with the audience
WHERE: Alvas Showroom
1417 W. 8th St, San Pedro 90732
WHEN: Sunday March 20, 2011 @ 1:00 and 4:00 pm
ADMISSION: $15 general, $13 for students, seniors, DRC with ID
Reservations, ticket sales & information: 213-385-1171
or 800-403-3447
www.LAChoreographersAndDancers.org (click on News)
ABOUT: A user and artist-generated multimedia dance piece that explores the positive baggage we carry with us after a loved one has passed, and our changing perception of death when a loved one is no longer corporal but still present.
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BAGGAGE, A NEW DANCE & MULTIMEDIA SUITE On Sunday, March 20th, 2011, Louise Reichlin & Dancers, a performing company of Los Angeles Choreographers & Dancers, presents a first look at their new work, "Baggage", and a revival of the 1981 theatre piece, "Woman Sleeping". Join us at Alvas Showroom in San Pedro, California. Both performances include a dialogue with the audience as the new work develops. Louise Reichlin is Director/Choreographer; Audri Phillips is Visual Artist, creating new media for the works. Dancers include Sung-Yun Park, Angelina Prendergast, Angela Todaro, Zsolt Banki, Brittany Midiri, Sarah Nordquist, Anne-Marie Talmadge, Mao Yagi, and Steven Nielsen.
Reichlin was inspired to create this piece after the passing of her husband and partner of 39 years, Alfred Desio, nearly four years ago. Reichlin believes her husband's support and spirit of his vitality has remained with her even though he is no longer physically with her. While no two people grieve identically, one commonality of grief is the baggage we carry with us after losing a loved one. This piece focuses on the positive baggage of continuing life after the loss of a loved one while still feeling their presence and influence. Since the loss of her own husband, Reichlin has become aware that perhaps half of our culture shares this kind of presence after their personal losses, although death and this common bond are rarely mentioned. One of her goals for this piece was to encourage the audience to think about how their lost loved one has enhanced their life and changed their outlooks and perceptions.
Baggage is composed of multiple dances, including a revival of a 1981 piece, "Woman Sleeping". A centerpiece in the new "Baggage" is called "Tap Dance Widows Club". Louise Reichlin (widow of Alfred Desio) contacted Loretta Zerby (widow of Jon Zerby) and Katherine Hopkins-Nicholas (widow of Fayard Nicholas). These three ladies' meetings, combined with sharing their memories, photos, and videos of their well-known husbands, and moving forward with their lives without their husbands' physical presence, are both hilarious and moving in their coincidences and differences. Their conversations become the audio with media including some of the photos and videos.
The multimedia content for "Remembrance" in "Baggage" is user-generated through a Facebook campaign in which users are encouraged to share photos and stories about lost loved ones. They also share their perceptions on death and integrating the experience of artifacts and emotions that remain when their loved one has passed.
Now moving into its 31st year, Louise Reichlin & Dancers was founded in 1979, using the nonprofit base of Los Angeles Choreographers & Dancers. LA C&D has presented both Reichlin's company and Zapped Taps(tm)/Alfred Desio and has a long history of creating works for families, as well as educating children and youth. The company tours to many schools, is a founding member of the LAUSD Arts Community Partnership Network and Director Louise Reichlin is on the Steering Committee for the new LA Arts Consortium: http://laartsconsortium.org. The company has twelve programs featured on the LA County arts resource web site, www.LAArtsEd.org. Some of Reichlin's other well-known works include "The Tennis Dances", "Celtic Suite", "Urban and Tribal Dances", the multimedia "The E-Mail Dances" and "The Patchwork Girl of Oz", and the choreography from the cirque-music show "Dream Scapes". Most recently Reichlin produced the Dance Showcase 2010 for the Western Arts Alliance annual conference for 18 dance companies, and is dance coordinator for the TriArt Festival last fall featuring 12 companies.
The general theme of The Reality Series is to use ubiquitous ideas, objects, and movement that we usually don't pay too much attention to in order to raise our awareness of the world around us. Other performances in the series have been in more traditional theatres including the Madrid Theatre, the Warner Grand, and the Steelworkers Auditorium. Louise Reichlin's recent work called "The Better To Bite You With" premiered at the Jazz Bakery, and was presented by the City of Fontana, the TriArt Festival in San Pedro, and at the Edye Second Space (The Broad Theatre) in Santa Monica.
LA C& D is funded in part by a grant from the California Arts Council, a state agency, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. Also the City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs, and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors through the Los Angeles County Arts Commission.
Alvas Showroom is located at 1417 W. 8th St., San Pedro, CA 90732. Tickets are $15 General, and $13 Students/Seniors/DRC with ID and are available for purchase on company web site: http://www.LAChoreographersAndDancers.org where you will also find video clips.
Reservations at (800) 403-3447 and at (213) 385-1171.
HI REZ .JPGS/PHOTOS AVAILABLE # # #
