Press Release
After a successful season opener at the Firefly Distillery in September, Annex Dance Company continues Season 15 with Getting There at the Pearlstine Theatre at Charleston Stage's West Ashley Theatre Center on Friday, December 3rd, 2021 at 7:30 pm. Tickets are priced at $20 for adults and $15 for students and can be purchased online at http://tickets.
In honor of a milestone year, Annex Dance Company has titled this concert of new and existing repertory Getting There, the same title of the company's inaugural concert 15 years ago in Bethlehem, PA. Included in the concert is Quicksand, the first piece artistic director Kristin Alexander created for the company in 2007. Alexander shares “…revisiting this piece gives some insight into who I was 15 years ago as a choreographer, and even though I have continued to evolve, the piece feels relevant and very much ‘Annex'.” Associate artistic director Julie Clark, who has performed this duet throughout the past 10 years, shares “Quicksand tells the story of two women struggling to support each other as their own lives spiral around them. The duet has undergone a transformation each time it has been performed and reset for different generations of company members. Teaching this duet to two new dancers feels like I'm sharing a tradition or a piece of my own history.”
The company will also debut a new piece titled Right Here. Right Now. Alexander created this piece during the company's summer residency at Camp Ballibay (PA) with original composition by John Jannone, her co-director at Camp Ballibay. Originally set on a group of campers and performed with Alexander and company apprentice, Taylor Bennett, the piece reflects the impact residencies have on both young dancers and the company. “There is something very special about returning from the summer residency and taking the choreography originally created for the campers into the studio with the company,” Alexander says. “The connection to our time with them influences all the choices that are made as we continue to workshop the piece. They have made a permanent impact on the company's repertory.”
Lastly, the company will present Take The A Train, which premiered during the Piccolo Spoleto Festival and online in June 2021. Sparked by a response to a painting entitled ‘A Train' by Mary Walker, the choreography investigates the lyrics, rhythms, and dance of the Jazz Age through modern dance movement vocabulary. Take The A Train is performed in front of a backdrop of original artwork by Mary Walker, who regularly attended and sketched the company during the creative process. Alexander collaborated with both Walker and Michael Wall, composer, to choose five jazz music standards to complete the Jazz-era-inspired work: Lush Life, Round Midnight, Blue and Green, Peace Piece and, of course, Take the “A” Train. Wall arranged and recorded the music into a score for a work that honors the past, celebrates the present, and inspires the future for the company as collaborative dance artists.
Annex Dance Company will present Getting There at the Pearlstine Theatre at Charleston Stage's West Ashley Theatre Center located at 1401 Sam Rittenberg Blvd #11, Charleston, SC 29407. Conveniently located only 14 minutes from Downtown, 10 minutes from Park Circle, and 15 minutes from Mount Pleasant, there is plenty of free parking and great restaurants nearby.
To find more information about the performance and to explore the behind-the-scenes of the creative process, please visit the Annex Dance Company website, Facebook page, or follow the company on Instagram @annexdancecompany.
