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The New Victory Theater Presents VELOCITY

Award-winning Irish Steppers Bring Contemporary Celtic Dance Moves to

New Dance Show by ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ Alum and Guinness World Record Holder Hits ​ ​ the New Victory Stage for the Holidays

U.S. Premiere November 16 - 25, 2018

New York, NY (October 25, 2018) -- VELOCITY is a high-octane celebration of Irish dance ​ ​ ​ co-created by the Guinness World Record-holding "Fastest Feet in the World," James Devine and five-time World Irish Dance Champion David Geaney. Award-winning Irish dancers David Geaney, AnneMarie Keaney and Gabriella Wood tackle impossible scuffles, shuffles and every time step in between. Backed by a rocking Celtic band and DJ, this intimate, no-nonsense jam session takes tap into the 21st century. Don’t miss this thrilling show as it takes center stage at The New Victory Theater from November 16 - 25, 2018.

VELOCITY’S origin revolves around speed and direction. When David Geaney missed his ride ​ home after filming a documentary, his fellow co-creator and "The Fastest Feet in the World," James Devine, happened to be driving in his direction. One car ride later and the rest is history. The pair's first collaboration, a video celebrating Ireland's 100-year history, proved so successful that the artists fleshed the idea out into a full production. After receiving rave reviews in 2017 at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, VELOCITY is making its U.S. debut at The New Victory! ​ ​ ​

From a young age, James Devine (Tapeire, New Victory 2007) starred in popular Irish dance ​ ​ shows Lord of the Dance and GaelForce. He has guest performed with the bands Cherish The ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Ladies and The Chieftains on their world tours, and has appeared on major television shows ​ ​ ​ worldwide, including LIVE with Regis and Kelly (), the Royal Variety Show (London) ​ ​ ​ ​ and MTV Italia (Milan). Devine has also performed live at the 69th Annual Academy Awards in ​ ​ Los Angeles, is a three-time World Champion Dancer and is officially certified by Guinness World Records as “The Fastest Dancer in the World” with 38 taps per second.

Dingle, Ireland native David Geaney was a semifinalist on Britain’s Got Talent. At age 16, he became the lead male dancer in several Irish dance shows and in 2014 he received the “Man of the Year” distinction by the Irish Dancing Magazine. After winning every major title in Irish dancing, including five World Championships, David has been dubbed "the present day Fred Astaire," having performed for the president of Ireland and members of the British Monarchy.

Gabriella Wood began Irish dancing at the age of seven in her hometown of Northport, New York with the Petri School, now known as Doherty Petri. Gabriella holds numerous national and international titles, including 11 consecutive Mid-Atlantic Regionals and two World Championships. When Gabriella first won the World Championships in 2005, she was the second youngest female and only the seventh female ever to bring the title home for North America. In addition to these achievements, she is also one of the few dancers to win all three age brackets of the North American Feis Commission Championships.

Galway, Ireland native AnneMarie Keaney started dancing at the age of four at the Hession School of Irish Dance. AnneMarie has achieved top rankings in all the major international competitions; placing 2nd in the British Nationals, 2nd in the Irish Nationals, 3rd in the European Championships and 5th in the North American Nationals. She has also won numerous All Ireland and World medals. AnneMarie now spends her time teaching with the Hession School of Dancing and travelling around the world. She performed with Velocity at the sold out run of the ​ ​ Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2017.

The co-creators and producers of VELOCITY are James Devine and David Geaney. The ​ ​ ​ performers of VELOCITY are David Geaney, AnneMarie Keaney and Gabriella Wood. The ​ ​ ​ production team features Moises Mas Garcia (Percussion), Ross Couper (Violin), Alec Brown (Cello), Sean Leahy (Guitar), Jack McMahon (DJ), Thomas Casetta (VJ, Sound Design) and Ron Nilson (Lighting Design).

Learn more about Velocity at NewVictory.org. ​ ​ ​

Public Performance Schedule: Friday, November 16 at 7pm* Saturday, November 17 at 2pm / 7pm Sunday, November 18 at 12pm / 4pm Friday, November 23 at 2pm / 7pm Saturday, November 24 at 2pm / 7pm Sunday, November 25 at 12pm / 4pm

*sign-interpreted performance

Velocity has a running time of 75 minutes with no intermission, and is recommended for ages 8 ​ ​ and up.

Ticket Information Full-price tickets for Velocity start at $17. Tickets are available online ​ ​ (http://www.newvictory.org/boxoffice) and by phone (646.223.3010). ​ ​

To purchase tickets in person, the New Victory box office is located at 209 West (between 7th / 8th Avenues). Box office hours are Sunday & Monday from 11am-5pm and Tuesday through Saturday from 12pm-7pm.

About The New Victory Theater The New Victory Theater brings kids to the arts and the arts to kids. Created in 1995 on iconic 42nd Street, this nonprofit theater has become a standard-bearer of quality performing arts for young audiences in the United States. Reflecting and serving the multicultural city it calls home, The New Victory is committed to arts access for all students, teachers, kids, families and ​ communities of New York to experience and engage with the exemplary international ​ programming of theater, dance, circus, music, puppetry and opera on its stages. A leader in arts ​ education, youth employment and audience engagement, The New Victory Theater has been ​ honored by the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities with the National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award, by Americans for the Arts with a national Arts Education Award, and by the Drama Desk for "providing enchanting, sophisticated children's theater that appeals to the child in all of us, and for nurturing a love of theater in young people."

About The Founded in 1990, The New 42nd Street is an independent nonprofit organization charged with nd th th the continuous cultural revival of 42 Street between 7 and 8 A​ venues, building on the ​ ​ ​ foundation of seven historic theaters to make extraordinary performing arts and cultural engagement part of everyone’s life. The New 42nd Street fulfills this purpose by ensuring the ongoing vibrancy of 42nd Street’s historic theaters; supporting performing artists in the creation ​ of their work at the New 42nd Street Studios and The Duke on 42nd Street; creating arts access and education at The New Victory Theater, New York’s premier theater for kids and families; and through the New 42nd Street Youth Corps, its model youth development initiative, which pairs life skills workshops and mentorship with paid employment in the arts for NYC youth. Inspired by the city it serves, The New 42nd Street is committed to the transformational power of the arts.