WELCOME TO RAVEN’S NIGHT THREE EVENTS IN ONE NIGHT

5:30pm - ALL HALLOWS EVE EXPOSITION PerformANCES BY: Tyler Fyer with: Madame Roxie, Phoenix & Inaya Renarde

6:30pm - Salon lunaire concert Live music by: MAHARAL with: Brett Zwerdling & Arroh Sit back, get your drinks and food orders in, and enjoy listening to these fine musicians play while you get settled in for the show.

7:30pm - CabAret Melancholia An Esoteric Tribal Fusion show Ghosts of La Belle Epoque HOSTED BY: BELLADONNA Performances BY: ANANDA Brenna Crowley Dalgali Irina Akulenko Jenna Shear The LunaChix Maia Alexandra Maria & Christine Hamer Rosa Noreen SuperKate & Teresa Tomb

ACT ONE ACT TWO L’amour Belladonna Below the Surface - Irena Akulenko Dès qu’on l’a vu, son absence est affreuse ; In a world that can suffocate with endless rules, rituals and expectations, Dès qu’il revient, on tremble nuit et jour ; Souvent enfin la mort est dans l’amour ; one can be free only in thought. Et cependant... oui, l’amour rend heureuse ! DANCERS - Irina Akulenko, Han Chen, Kittarina, & Juniper - Marceline Desbordes-Valmore (1786-1859)

TRANSLATION: - Rosa Noreen As soon as he is seen, his absence is frightful; calls a departed soul back to life to dance through the night, regaining movement As soon as he returns, he trembles night and day; and control of still-intact limbs to move with abandon--until Dawn arrives and the sun’s Often death is in love; rays remind her of her true state of being. And yet ... yes, love makes you happy! Featuring: Belladonna Mata Hari in Purgatory - Dalgali with Special Guests: Jesse McGhee, Kimala Nar and Ken Vegas The woman who was executed that day in 1917 was better known as Mata Hari, the name Zelle had chosen for herself when she became Europe’s queen of unbridled eroticism, The Muses of Mucha - Ananda an exotic dancer, courtesan, great lover, liar, deceiver and thief. Convicted of being a spy Mucha sits quietly watching as Isadora Duncan and Ruth St. Denis dance their ecstatic during WWI, she was shot to death by firing squad. dance in the moonlight. The dancers had no idea they had an admirer in the shadows. Mucha, quietly scratches on his drawing pad, the shapes and colors of the birth of Mata Hari awakens in the afterlife, in a strange dark place that seems inviting at first. Contemporary Dance. Little did any of them know the impression their art would have on Dancing with her demons she soon realizes that she is where she does not want to be. the world. Their only fuel was inspiration itself. In this moment, the muse steps fully into Her demons taunt her and remind her of a painful memory, how her true love had died embodiment to attain a glimpse of the mortal realm. during World War 1. Heart broken and humiliated Mata Hari pleads and begs for Dancers - Amanda Mahde and Jaia McClure forgiveness. Will she be rescued from her dark demise or will she be dragged into hell by her demons? Was she guilty of all she was accused of? You have to watch and see. DANCERS: Demon dancers: Virginia Clawson, Shaell Jones, Little Demon - Brenna Crowley Sally Cinch, Talon and Adriane Whalen A man is murdered in cold blood and his body is thrown in a trunk, left to rot for weeks. Mata Hari: Billie LeTourneau His killers are on the run, leaving behind puzzled investigators and delicious fodder for the Angel: Dale LeTourneau newspapers, all too happily consumed by the public. The other side of Belle Époque Paris - the infamous crime case, the Bloody Trunk Affair of 1890, captivated not just Paris La fee Verte - Maia Alexandra but the entire world with details of the grisly murder, sex and hypnosis, the latter being a raging obsession at the time. We have the rise of the “Little Demon” Gabrielle Bompard, “After the first glass of absinthe you see things as you wish they were. After the second a suspect who claimed to have no fault in the murder due to being hypnotized by her you see them as they are not. Finally you see things as they really are, and that is the accomplice. She becomes a criminal superstar who, thanks to media sensationalism, most horrible thing in the world” - Oscar Wilde was the talk of the town. Never before had a murder suspect been so beloved by the public and hated all at once. Les Revenants - Hamer Sisters (Christine Andrews & Maria Hamer) Tree of Life - SuperKate & Teresa Tomb The spirits of two Dancers from folies Bergere floating through space in search Spirals, heaven, earth, the underworld, sustenance, care, yearning, strength, of their lost lives & dances wisdom, beauty, Spirals connecting life. Amor Toxique - The Lunachix The Slivovica Sizzlers In the cabarets of Paris during La Belle Epoque, social barriers dissolved, and aristocrats rubbed shoulders with the riffraff. This night time “pleasure garden” presents a fantastical Are you ready to be entertained? Mesmerized? Ravished? Then get ready to hoot and backdrop for a love story, but even a frivolous romance can prove toxic... holler, because we’ve got three dancing beauties who might give you a glimpse of what’s up their skirts! Dancers: Jo Boring, Rose Carballeira, Sarah Cummings, Patsy Beebe, Dancers - Jenna Shear with Elena Faye and Annie Lum Jessica Morse, Sondra Pedersen Gielskie. Elizabeth Raphaelson and Ericka Condon Ericson. intermission 15 Minutes. Please visit the Raven’s Night Merch Store in the Lobby. MEET & GREEt with the cast of 2017’s Raven’s Night Please join us for drinks, last minute shopping and photos in the lobby.

ARTIST S BIOGRAPHIES Dalgali formed in 2014 with the intent to form an eclectic troupe, combining styling, tech- ’ nique and character from each dancer’s unique background in dance. Belladonna - Washington, DC (Producer & HOst of raven’s Night) The Hamer Sisters - Pittsburgh, PA Belladonna, the Baroness of Blades, is a resident of The Hamer sisters, Christine Andrews, Jennifer Imashev DC where she proudly paves the way for sword & Maria Hamer, have been dancing together literally since dancing around the globe. Her tribal fusion style has been birth. Christine & Jennifer started middle eastern dance a spearhead and inspiration for modern belly dance with in 1988. Maria joined them in 1992 and in 1995, they it’s unique approach of blending traditional cultures with co-founded, along with some friends, Ghawazee Middle a modern edge. BELLAFUSE.COM Eastern Music & Dance Ensemble, one of the first tribal Bellydance troupes on the East Coast. Together they per- formed, sang, danced & played music with Ghawazee un- til 2000. Soon after Christine & Maria started Zafira Dance Ananda - Knoxville, TN Co with Olivia Kissel then added Tamara Juel & Jennifer Always evolving, Ananda Dance Company is an artistic Imashev. They had 11+ successful years touring the world with their unique style. Presently, partnership that has found its own timeless voice, unique the Hamer sisters enjoy covering folk classics & dancing with each other as sisters in blood in the world of bellydance fusion. Amanda has thirty & in dance. MARIAHAMER.COM years of experience in modern and , and maintains a solo career as principle dancer and choreographer Irina Akulenko - New York City, NY for Momentum Dance Lab and is a primary instructor in Irina Akulenko is a New York City-based artist, with a both classical ballet and contemporary dance at Artistic burning passion for arts of all genres. Since 2001, Irina Dance Unlimited. Jaia has over fifteen years of profound explored both Egyptian Cabaret and American Tribal Style and dedicated study in yoga, tribal dance forms including belly dance, Classical Indian (), contemporary, and bellydance and facilitates sacred movement workshops, women’s circles, rites of passage and now enjoys fusing these art forms. Today, ceremonies.Together, they bring right intention, raw emotion, precise technique, and a Irina performs on various New York stages and tours strong sense of underlying narrative to the new face of Tribal. ANANDADANCECOMPANY.COM nationally and internationally as a soloist fusion dancer; teacher and principal dancer with Bellyqueen Dance Theater; and choreographer and Assistant Director for Brenna Crowley - New York City, NY NASA-powered multimedia show Bella Gaia. Brenna Crowley is an eclectic belly dance artist, chore- DANCEIRINA.COM ographer and instructor in NYC, performing and teaching locally and across the country in many theatrical dance productions, belly dance festivals and other events for Jenna Shear - Arlington, VA over a decade. She has performed as a featured soloist Jenna Shear began her bellydance journey in 2009 with as well as a member of Sera Solstice’s Solstice Ensemble, the Columbia University Bellydance Troupe. Since earning Solstice Project, and Solar Tribe, Altagracia’s Caribbean her B.A. in Dance and Asian & Middle Cultures, Jenna Rose Dance Company, Ayshe’s Cult of Isis Ensemble and has worked with prestigious groups, such as Bellydance many others. She is the director of her troupe Zilla Dance Evolution, Wild Saffron, BellyTrance, and the Nomad Ensemble, which was formed in 2009. Since its inception, they have performed in numer- Dancers. She has also taught and performed at numerous ous theatrical shows, belly dance festivals and other dance events each year. The dancers national events including 3rd Coast Tribal Festival, Jewels that make up this ensemble come from all walks of life and various belly dance disciplines; of the Orient, Waking Persephone, and Art of the Belly. together they celebrate the exuberance of movement and music. BRENNADANCE.COM In 2014, Jenna founded her fusion troupe, Jenna Shear & the Slivovica Sizzlers. Together they produce choreo- Dalgali - Washington, DC Area graphic suites that entertain and educate by physicalizing the spectrum from pure folk Dalgali is a professional troupe in the DC area with a dance to pure bellydance while highlighting the commonalities between them as the most diverse background. Their experience and inspiration for fruitful grounds for thoughtful fusion. Jenna Shear is currently on faculty at Saffron Dance in choreography, artistic vision and in performing, has come Arlington, VA. The evening’s Sizzlers will include Elena Faye and Annie Lum. JENNASHEAR.WEEBLY.COM from Cabaret, Tribal, Fusion and . Dalgali, which is a Turkish word that means curvy, bending, wiggly or squiggly was decided, by the Dalgali dancers, that it was a perfect name for the new troupe. The Lunachix - New York, NY Superkate - lexington, KY The Lunachix have been crafting their unconventional SuperKate is a passionate and talented performer, brand of modern fusion dance since 2013. Winner of the instructor, and choreographer based in Lexington, KY. The 2017 East Coast Classic troupe competition, the Lunachix love of theatre, dance, and music pushes her to higher count Jill Parker and Amy Sigil among their biggest inspi- levels of creativity. rations. Directed by Jo Boring, the Lunachix perform both original choreographies as well as Hot Pot/ Unmata style You can find her performing solo around the nation and ITS. The Lunas reside all over central New York, and are internationally, in the duo Skella (with Belladonna), with bonded by dance, friendship, and the light of the moon. Rakadu Dance (Lexington, KY), and Subee Djinn (Los THELUNACHIX.COM Angeles, CA). She hopes others will be inspired by her passion and find their own voice and energy to give back to the world.

Maharal - Richmond, VA Theresa Tomb - lexington, KY “MAHARAL is a sound-chameleon band who’s steep is a Teresa Tomb is the artistic director for Rakadu and owner delicious ancient future blend. Their soul moving sound whips through traditional Turkish folk music, tribal fusion of Mecca Live Studio & Gallery in Lexington, KY. With funk, and original scores that touch the heart and soul. over 20 years of dance under her hip belt, Teresa began The band is a duet of Brett featured on the world’s only her belly dance career studying cabaret and folkloric flat double-neck Turkish lute and Arroh who holds the styles and then concentrated her study in tribal style belly bassy backbeat of the band with her Turkish bass drum. dance, founding Rakadu along with fellow dance mates: Arroh often treats audiences with tribal fusion belly dance Melissa Smyth and Lisa Duggins.Rakadu is best known and daring fire dance.” for their rich musical diversity, highly explorative utilization of theater, and seamless improvisation. Maia Alexandra - Buffalo, NY Rakadu improvisation is the real-time metamorphoses of substance, technique and Maia Alexandra is a professional Bellydancer and Fire relationship. Through Teresa’s processes, trust, release, acceptance, and gratitude open Entertainer based in Buffalo, New York. With highlights the performer’s mind to possibility. The result is nothing less than obvious and intentional including teaching for Rakkasah Spring Caravan, the experience—which has created some amazing, timeless art. Las Vegas Belly Dance Intensive, Art of the Belly Festi- val, Waking Persephone, being a featured performer for Unmata’s Blood Moon Regale, and holding the 2010 “Ms Tyler Fyer - Harpers Ferry, WV International Ambassador of Bellydance”, her enchanting Tyler Fyre has performed over 25,000 live stage shows. and unusual style is beloved by audiences everywhere Starting as the “Step Right Up!” talker at the Coney Island she entertains. Circus Sideshow and later as the MC, fire eater, and sword swallower. During the off-season, he worked with the Bindlestiff Family Cirkus at the Palace of Variety in Rosa Noreen - Portland, ME Times Square. Tyler began to MC and produce burlesque Rosa Noreen founded the Grace Academy to help shows in the 90’s. To help revitalize lower Manhattan after dancers add depth and dimension so they grow in the 9/11 attacks, he started a new performance space by confidence to take their places on stage and in the Ground Zero. world. Rosa’s instructional DVDs, multimedia coaching programs, and unique workshops have enabled dancers On Valentine’s Day 2006, Tyler played the Birchmere with the Pontani Sisters and met a girl around the world to slow down and revel in the moment. in the lobby after the show. Jill was talent scouting for a new venue she designed, In addition to being an in-demand workshop instructor na- The Palace of Wonders, which would open as DC’s first Variety Arts theater. tionwide, Rosa teaches weekly classes in adult ballet and belly dance at her studio in Portland, Maine, welcoming A year later on Valentine’s Day, they got married in Vegas by Elvis and put a new show on total beginners and helping advanced students to grow. the road, The Lucky Daredevil Thrillshow. Now, with their 3 boys, Hank Lightning, Duke Dynamite, and Nash Chopper Fleet, the couple continues to perform as the Fleet Family A leader in her community, Rosa co-founded Bright Star World Dance in 2010 to provide a Five - All Thanks to The Birchmere! LUCKYDAREDEVIL.COM friendly and professionally-run studio space for movement artists across genres. A dedicat- ed teacher and an elegant performer, Rosa’s singular style of belly dance is influenced by her ballet background and years of study of Egyptian dance. Known for her classical lines and friendly approach, Rosa delights students and audiences alike. ROSANOREEN.COM Thank You Thank YOU the audience and patrons of this fine evening. Without all of you, none of this would be possible. Raven’s Night is our dream show. It is our opportunity to share the talent we see around the world with our friends and community in our hometown. It is a chance for all of us, performers and attendees alike, to step out of the mundane, celebrate our individuality and explore facets of ourselves to get to know them better. You will never know our depth of gratitude to you for helping make that possible.

Thank you to our amazing performers! This show is one of a kind in that applications are open to all and it is curated based on a set of criteria. We are trilled by the number of applicants each year! A huge thanks to each dancer who took the time to submit an application, to all of the performers who presented their passion tonight and to all of the teachers and students who will join us for the workshops tomorrow! MANY THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING: EXPO PERFORMERS & GAME HOSTESSES: Tyler Fyre - Lucky Daredevil Thrillshow, Madame Roxie & Phoenix – Fortune Telling, Inaya Renarde – Hoop Performer, Rowanne, Sarah & Layla - Bohemian Belly Dance, Vicki, Griz, Jennine & Griz - Game Hostesses SALON LUNIARE LIVE MUSIC: Maharal PRODUCTION TEAM: SuperKate, Sandy, Ken, the Birchmere Staff, Ted, Kim, Red Rob, Lorelei and all of our amazing volunteers! PHOTOGRAPHERS: Stereovision Photography & Cielo Productions VENUES: The Birchmere & The Kimpton Lorien Hotel & Spa Hope to see you all again next year! Much love and many wishes for a blessed holiday season ~ Belladonna and Ken