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Home , Ann Marie DeAngelo, Jennifer Tipton, Twyla Tharp

Advance Program Notes 50th Anniversary Tour Friday, March 3, 2017, 7:30 PM

These Advance Program Notes are provided online for our patrons who like to read about performances ahead of time. Printed programs will be provided to patrons at the performances. Programs are subject to change.

Twyla Tharp 50th Anniversary Tour

John Selya Matthew Dibble Ron Todorowski Amy Ruggiero Ramona Kelley Kaitlyn Gilliland Reed Tankersley Kara Chan Mary Beth Hansohn Michaela Rae Mann Peter Chursin Dominic Santia

Preludes and Fugues was commissioned by The , New York with funds from the Estate of John L. Klebanoff and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington D.C. (lead commissioners); Auditorium of Roosevelt University and Ravinia Festival Association, ; TITAS Presents in association with AT&T Performing Arts Center, Dallas; and the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, Beverly Hills.

This work was also made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts National Dance Project, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, with additional support from the National Endowment for the Arts.

The Twyla Tharp Dance Foundation gratefully acknowledges Jay Franke and David Herro, Bill and Catherine Miller, Patsy and Jeff Tarr, Stephen and Cathy Weinroth, and Vicente Wolf for their generous support, with special thanks to Tam O’Shaughnessy, in memory of Sally Ride, for sponsorship of Preludes and Fugues. Program PRELUDES AND FUGUES Dedicated to Richard Burke Premiered 2015 in Dallas, Texas

Choreography by Twyla Tharp Music by Johann Sebastian Bach Music performed by David Korevaar and Angela Hewitt Costumes by Lighting by James F. Ingalls Staged by Rika Okamoto

The company

Well-Tempered Clavier Volume 1 recorded by MSR Records, Volume 2 recorded by Hyperion Records Ltd.

INTERMISSION

NINE SINATRA SONGS With appreciation to Sinatra Enterprises and the Foundation Premiered 1982 in Vancouver, Canada

Choreography by Twyla Tharp Songs sung by Frank Sinatra Original costumes by Oscar de la Renta Original lighting by Original scenics by Santo Loquasto Staged by Shelley Washington

I. Softly As I Leave You VI. All the Way Chan and Santia Gilliland and Selya

II. Strangers in the Night VII. Forget Domani Gilliland and Selya Ruggiero and Dibble

III. One For My Baby (And One More For the Road) VIII. That’s Life Hansohn and Chursin Kelley and Todorowski

IV. My Way IX. My Way Chan, Santia, Gilliland, Selya, Hansohn, and Chursin The Company

V. Somethin’ Stupid Mann and Tankersley Biographies TWYLA THARP, choreographer and director Twyla Tharp has choreographed more than 160 works, including 129 dances, 12 television specials, six Hollywood movies, four full-length , four Broadway shows, and two figure skating routines. She has received one Tony Award, two Emmy Awards, 19 honorary doctorates, the Vietnam Veterans of America President’s Award, the 2004 National Medal of the Arts, the 2008 Prize, and a 2008 Kennedy Center Honor. Her many grants include the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Fellowship. She is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Philosophical Society, and an Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. In 1992 Tharp published her autobiography, Push Comes to Shove. She went on to write The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It for Life followed by The Collaborative Habit: Life Lessons for Working Together. She is currently working on a fourth book. Today, Tharp continues to create.

THE COMPANY

JOHN SELYA John Selya trained at the School of American and joined (ABT), where he danced and choreographed. Following his departure from ABT, Selya joined Twyla Tharp’s company. He then appeared in the Broadway musical, Movin’ Out, for which he earned a Tony Award nomination. Selya has performed in other Broadway productions, including Guys and Dolls and Twyla Tharp’s The Times They Are A-Changin’ and . Selya can also be seen in movies, such as Woody Allen’s Everyone Says I Love You, Julie Taymore’s Across the Universe, and John Turturro’s Romance and Cigarettes. He directed and starred in the national tour of Come Fly Away, and in 2013 he staged the work for the Royal Danish Ballet.

MATTHEW DIBBLE Matthew Dibble was born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, England, and began his training at School. After five years with the Royal Ballet, having worked with Twyla Tharp in 1996, Dibble became a founding member of K Ballet in Japan, and in 2001 he joined Twyla Tharp Dance. He later danced a principal role (James) on the Movin’ Out tour and created the role of Chanos in Come Fly Away on Broadway, both choreographed and directed by Tharp. Dibble has also danced for Scottish Ballet, , Roland Petit, , Francis Patrelle, and Benjamin Millepied. Today he dances and sets works for Tharp all around the world.

RON TODOROWSKI Ron Todorowski is originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and has had a diverse career in concert, musical theatre, and commercial dance. He has been a member of Complexions , Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet, the Parsons Dance Company, and ’ RAW, and has guested for many others. He was most recently part of the original cast of Finding Neverland on Broadway. Other Broadway credits include Twyla Tharp’s Come Fly Away, The Times They Are A-Changin’, and Movin’ Out, along with Wicked, Guys and Dolls, and Footloose. He starred in London’s West End production and first national tour of Movin’ Out, for which he received a Helen Hayes Award for best actor in a musical. Off-Broadway and other theatre credits include Andrew Lippa’s The Wild Party, Chess for the Actor’s Fund with Josh Groban, Barry Manilow’s Copacabana, Spirit, and Cinderella. Some television and film credits includeSNL, The Today Show, Good Morning America, The View, the , the VMAs, and the feature film,Winter’s Tale. He has choreographed original work for Wayne State University and BC Beat in New York City, and he worked as assistant choreographer for Seven Brides for Seven Brothers at the Lyric Theater in Oklahoma City, as well as Celine Dion’s A New Day in Las Vegas. He recently shot a music video for Nate Ruess’s new single, A-Ha. Thanks to family, Ryan, and Twyla for this incredible opportunity. Biographies, continued RAMONA KELLEY Ramona Kelley is originally from California, where she began her training at Berkeley Ballet Theater under the direction of Sally Streets. She is a National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts (NFAA) scholarship award winner, and she holds a bachelor of fine arts in dance from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts. Kelley first worked with Twyla Tharp when she danced the principal role of Betsy in the North American/ Japanese tour of Tharp’s Come Fly Away. Her most recent work with Tharp includes the 50th Anniversary Tour. She has also worked with Cherylyn Lavagnino Dance, Oakland Ballet Company, and the Phantom of the 25th Anniversary Tour, among others.

AMY RUGGIERO Amy Ruggiero trained at the Seiskaya Ballet Academy on Long Island and received a bachelor’s degree in dance with biological sciences from Goucher College. Ruggiero danced as an apprentice with Ballet Austin and later with American Repertory Ballet before moving to New York City to perform as an ensemble dancer with the Radio City Christmas Spectacular. She began working with Twyla Tharp as the swing and later dance captain for the first national and Japan tours ofCome Fly Away. She then performed on Tharp’s 50th Anniversary Tour. Other notable credits include Little Dancer at the Kennedy Center, American Dance Machine for the 21st Century, and Manon at the Metropolitan Opera. Film and television credits include Under Armour’s “Army of One” commercial, Flesh and Bone, and the opening video for Beyonce’s The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour. She is grateful for this opportunity to perform more of Tharp’s work alongside such talented artists.

KAITLYN GILLILAND Kaitlyn Gilliland began her dance training at the Minnesota Dance Theatre and continued her studies at the School of American Ballet. From 2006-2011 Gilliland danced with the , receiving the company’s 2009-2010 Janice Levin Dancer Award. She has since appeared with BalletNext, Ballet Collective, Ballet Tech, Emery LeCrone Dance, Intermezzo Dance Company, JV Squad and Designated Movement, New Chamber Ballet, Pontus Lidberg Dance, and Trainor Dance. She joined Twyla Tharp in 2014 for her 50th Anniversary Tour. In May of 2015 she graduated summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, from Columbia University with a degree in psychology.

REED TANKERSLEY Reed Tankersley is a native of the San Francisco Bay Area where he began his dance training at the age of five. After graduating from the Juilliard School (2014) in New York, he began working with Twyla Tharp on her 50th Anniversary Tour. Tankersley is one of Dance Magazine’s 25 to watch for 2017.

KARA CHAN Kara Chan, a native of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, is a bachelor of fine arts graduate from the Juilliard School. She began dancing at the age of five and received her formal training at Pro Arte Center under the direction of Astrid Sherman. Well versed in classical and modern styles, Chan performed masterpiece repertory works by José Limon, Murray Louis, , and Jerome Robbins while at Juilliard. In her senior year, Chan made her debut at the Joyce Theatre performing as a guest artist with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company. She most recently performed in Mark Morris’ The Hard Nut at Brooklyn Academy of Music and as a freelance artist has done projects with the Merge Cunningham Trust, Keigwin + Co, Kathryn Posin Dance Company, Gleich Dances, and MorDance. She has graced the stages at notable venues, including Lincoln Center, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Park Avenue Armory, and Guggenheim Museum, among others. She is an alumna of Springboard Danse Montreal, Jacob’s Pillow Contemporary Program, and Youth America Grand Prix. Known for her unique musicality, Chan’s performance highlights include being singled out by as the “spark plug” in Murray Louis’ Four Brubeck Pieces and the “diminutive” dancer who “consistently caught the eye with her exuberance, reach, and abandon” in Lar Lubovitch’s Concerto 622. Chan is thrilled to be joining Twyla Tharp Dance for their winter tour. Biographies, continued MARY BETH HANSOHN Mary Beth Hansohn received her professional training at the Arlington Center for Dance in Arlington, Virginia, and with Peter Stark at the Maryland Youth Ballet. She also studied ballet in the highest level at the American Ballet Theater summer intensive in New York City, where she performed Theme and Variations by . She joined the Ohio Ballet as a full member at the age of 18 and went on to dance in works by Heinz Poll, Donald Byrd, Laura Dean, Ann Marie DeAngelo, Alonzo King, Lynne Taylor-Corbett, Stephen Mills, and Septime Webre. Hansohn has performed with the Dayton Ballet, Cincinnati Ballet, the Cleveland Opera, Neglia Ballet, the Metropolitan Opera-Live in HD, Dances Patrelle, the National Tap Ensemble, Adam Miller Dance Project, and Terra Firma Dance Theatre. She performed in the 2011 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show in New York City, which was televised on CBS. She has also worked with Edouard Lock at La La La Human Steps in Montreal and with Karole Armitage at Armitage Gone! Dance in New York City. Some of her favorite roles include the title role in Giselle, Mina Harker in Dracula, Russian Girl in George Balanchine’s Serenade, and Myrtha in Giselle.

MICHAELA RAE MANN Michaela Rae Mann is originally from Lakewood, New Jersey, where she began her dance training. Mann continued her studies for several years at the School of American Ballet (SAB) in their advanced divisions. Within those years she spent summers training at School, Chautauqua Ballet, and Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, among others along the east coast. Following graduation from SAB, she trained at School, where she toured with Miami City Ballet performing Balanchine works. Since then she has found joy performing and teaching pre-professional ballet classes. These passions led her to continue her studies through completion of a bachelor’s degree in dance at Georgian Court University in New Jersey and a master of fine arts in dance at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, where she was selected to receive the Shubert Scholarship (from the Shubert Foundation).

PETER CHURSIN Peter Chursin is originally from San Francisco, California, and was most recently seen on Broadway in the revival of On the Town. He was a recurring company dancer in the STARZ miniseries, Flesh & Bone, appearing in all eight episodes. His theatre credits include The Music Man as Tommy Djilas (TUTS), West Side Story (Broadway, original cast), Nikolai and the Others (Lincoln Center), and Wicked as Chistery (first national tour and Los Angeles Company). He has worked on the workshop creations of An American in Paris with Christopher Wheeldon and Hello, Dolly! and Something to Dance About with . He performed with Complexions Contemporary Ballet and Barak Ballet and has had the opportunity to work as a freelance dancer internationally. He has appeared in numerous television shows and films, includingAmerica’s Got Talent, State of the Union with Tracey Ullman, Joan of Arcadia, and Winter’s Tale starring Collin Farrell. He is grateful to Twyla for this opportunity and thanks his wife, Brooke, and his family for their unending love and support.

DOMINIC SANTIA Originally from Michigan, Dominic Santia received a bachelor of fine arts from the Julliard School in 2006. After his studies he joined La La La Human Steps (2006-2009) under the direction of Edouard Lock for the production of Amjad. He then spent some time as a guest with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montreal before joining (NDT) in December of 2009. At NDT he had the opportunity to work with , Johan Inger, Jiri Kylian, Sol Leon, and Paul Lightfoot, as well as several other choreographers. Following his time at NDT, he joined Sharon Eyal and Gai Behar and toured internationally as a member of their company, L-E-V. He is now working as a freelance artist. Biographies, continued ARTISTIC COLLABORATORS

OSCAR DE LA RENTA, original costume design, Nine Sinatra Songs

SANTO LOQUASTO, costume design, Preludes and Fugues; original scenic design, Nine Sinatra Songs Santo Loquasto is a designer for theatre, film, dance, and opera. He has received three Tony Awards and has been nominated 18 times. Loquasto has collaborated with Twyla Tharp since 1974 on numerous occasions, including iconic works, such as Push Comes to Shove and Movin’ Out. He has collaborated with Woody Allen on 28 films, including costume design forZelig and production design for Radio Days and Bullets Over Broadway, for which he received Academy Award nominations. Recent designs on Broadway include A Delicate Balance, Bullets Over Broadway, Fences, Wit, and The Assembled Parties. He received the Merritt Award for Excellence in Design and Collaboration in 2002, was inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame in 2004, and received the Pennsylvania Governor’s Award for the Arts in 2006, the Robert L.B. Tobin Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2007, and the Gaudium Award in 2013.

JENNIFER TIPTON, lighting design, Nine Sinatra Songs Jennifer Tipton is well known for her work in theatre, dance, and opera. Her recent work in opera includes Humperdinck’s Hansel and Gretel at the Metropolitan Opera, directed by Richard Jones, and La Traviata, directed by David McVicar at the Scottish National Opera. Her recent work in dance includes Balanchine’s Jewels for the Royal Ballet, London; ’s O Composite for the ; and Paul Taylor’s Beloved Renegade at City Center in New York. In theatre her recent work includes Beckett Shorts, directed by JoAnne Akalaitis at the New York Theater Workshop, and Conversations in Tusculum, written and directed by Richard Nelson at the Public Theater. Tipton teaches lighting at the Yale School of Drama. She received the Dorothy and Lillian Gish Prize in 2001, the Jerome Robbins Prize in 2003, and in April 2004 the Mayor’s Award for Arts and Culture in New York City. In 2008 she became a MacArthur Fellow and the USArtist Gracie Fellow.

JAMES F. INGALLS, lighting design, Preludes and Fugues James F. Ingalls was the stage manger and lighting supervisor for the Twyla Tharp Dance Foundation from 1978-1980. Since becoming a lighting designer in 1980, his work has included designs for dance, ballet, opera, theatre, and symphony concerts. He has designed Twyla Tharp’s Waiting at the Station for in . Recent design for ballet and dance includes The Sleeping Beauty, choreographed by Alexi Ratmansky (American Ballet Theatre at Segerstrom Center in Costa Mesa, California, and Metropolitan Opera House in New York City); Celts, choreographed by Lila York (); Sea Lark and Death and the Maiden (Paul Taylor Dance Company); and the 25th anniversary production of L’Allegro, il penseroso ed il moderato (Mark Morris Dance Group at the Teatro Real in Madrid and the New York State Theatre). Recent opera credits includes Henry Purcell’s The Indian Queen (English National Opera in London, Teatro Real in Madrid, and Opera Perm in Russia) and John Adams’ The Gospel According to the Other Mary (English National Opera in London), both directed by Peter Sellars. His recent work in theatre includes The Druid Shakespeare, directed by Garry Hynes (Druid Theatre Company in Galway and Lincoln Center Festival in New York City); The Second Girl (Huntington Theatre Company in Boston); Long Day’s Journey Into Night (Oregon Shakespeare Festival); The Price (Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles); and Carmen De Lavallade’s As I Remember It (Jacob’s Pillow in Massachusetts and U.S. tour). He often collaborates with Melanie Rios Glaser and the Wooden Floor dancers in Santa Ana, California.

STEPHEN TERRY, lighting design, Preludes and Fugues

SYDNEY DE BRIEL, lighting design Credits ADMINISTRATIVE STAFF

Jesse Huot, executive director Alexander Brady, company manager Rika Okamoto, archivist

Special thanks to Shelley Washington, Sean Kelleher, Amy Lehman, Joe Mizrahi, Twanette Tharp, and Norma Stevens

Nine Sinatra Songs costumes courtesty of

TOUR MANAGEMENT

Opus 3 Artists, LLC David V. Foster, president 470 Park Avenue South, 9th Floor North New York, NY 10016 Engagement Events

Thursday, March 2, 2017 MASTER CLASS

During their visit, members of Twyla Tharp led a master class for intermediate and advanced student dancers in the Department of Dance at Radford University.

Special thanks to danah bella In the Galleries

Artist Spotlight: Amy Casey (b. 1976, Pennsylvania) Amy Casey’s meticulously detailed acrylic paintings on paper or panel also “reconstruct” the built environment into wild representations of reality. Her fascination with cities and “urbanscapes” is conveyed in these works by surreal clusters of houses whirling in space, precariously suspended at the brink of impending disaster. Casey’s depictions of a teetering, chaotic world elicit a very real socio-economic commentary on the uncertain state of affairs in 2009 during the midst of a recession and housing bust. In Hold On, a painting from 2016, elements are more firmly interconnected and bound together, conveying struggle but also resilience and endurance in the face of continuing and pervasive uncertainty. Casey lives and works in Cleveland, Ohio. Learn more at amycaseypainting.com.

View Casey’s captivating paintings Hold On (2016), Expansion (2009), and Keeping It Together (2009) in the Miles C. Horton Jr. Gallery through April 1, 2017.

ARTISTS AND ARCHITECTURE: PROJECTION/CONVERGENCE/INTERSECTION James Casebere, Amy Casey, Dionisio González, Candida Höfer, Matthew Kolodziej, Jean-François Rauzier, and Jennifer Williams January 19-April 1, 2017 All galleries

GALLERY HOURS Tuesday-Friday, 10 AM-5:30 PM Saturday, 10 AM-4 PM Always free To arrange a group tour or class visit, please contact Meggin Hicklin, exhibitions program manager, at megh79@ vt.edu.