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Before the May 14th performance at The Construction Company’s Sunday Series at University Settlement (clockwise from top left): Maisah Hargett, Ingrid Kullberg-Bendz, yours truly and Kaoru Ikeda. Audience comments after the performance included: “beautiful, bizarre, impressive—and funny.”
The Lemonade Variations transforms again, reflecting and responding to the many rapid changes in our current zeitgeist. You can see the latest iteration on the Construction Company’s Sunday Series on May 14th at 3 pm.
Ingrid Kullberg–Bendz and I will be joined by two new powerful performers, Maisah Hargett and Kaoru Ikeda.
University Settlement, 184 Eldridge Street (at Rivington)
Admission is $10. Seating is limited. Reservations at 212-924-7882.
St. Mark’s Church-in-the-Bowery is a truly magical as well as historical space, and it was a pleasure to perform The Lemonade Variations at DraftWork at Danspace Project last Saturday, February 25th.
Choreographer Sally Bowden, who had seen the trio excerpt at Judson in November 2016, e-mailed me: “I thought your piece went very well and looked very good. I was surprised to find four dancers in it, but it seemed to work well that way. I thought the four of you were clearly individuals and, at the same time, cohesive.”
Other feedback included my Japanese-American niece seeing Kabuki gestures; a friend enjoying the humor; and a chi kung student writing that she appreciated “the opportunity to experience a compelling piece of work. The unity of space, music, and sculptured movement was fascinating.”
Video captures, top L to R: Laura Shapiro, Ingrid Kullberg-Bendz, Mari Sakahara; middle L to R: Celeste Hastings, Laura Shapiro; bottom L to R Mari Sakahara, Ingrid Kullberg-Bendz, Laura Shapiro. For more images, click here.
Mari Sakahara has recently joined Ingrid Kullberg–Bendz and yours truly to complete the cast of The Lemonade Variations for its upcoming performance at DraftWork at Danspace Project on Saturday, February 25th at 3 pm. The piece has not only grown in length but is also infused with different ideas than the version performed in November. DraftWork is free and open to the public, so you are welcome to join us if your schedule permits. Please note that there is no late seating and my piece may be performed first.
I have returned to the studio with performers Ingrid Kullberg–Bendz and Irene Siegel to prepare for our upcoming performance of The Lemonade Variations. I am choreographing an additional five minutes at the beginning and—as our zeitgeist has changed so dramatically since November—I also am rethinking the section before the ending and considering how these new developments will impact the rest of the piece.
I am grateful for the opportunity to perform and discuss this work at DraftWork at Danspace Project in the beautiful, historical sanctuary of St. Mark’s Church on Saturday, February 25th, at 3 pm. Please note that the performance and discussion are free and open to the public. You are most welcome to attend the performance and, if your schedule and inclination permit, to stay for and participate in the post–performance discussion.
After learning that I have been accepted to show work on Movement Research’s Monday Night Series at Judson Church in the fall (date TBA), I began to visualize more performers onstage for The Lemonade Variations. I invited Ingrid Kullberg-Benz, who has worked with me on previous projects, and Irene Siegel, who has not, to join me in the studio. They are both such accomplished pros that after just two two-hour rehearsals they have pretty much nailed the four-and-a-half minute theme containing many idiosyncratic shapes, gestures, rhythms and dynamics on which the other variations build.
Photo (L to R): Irene Siegel, Ingrid Kullberg-Bendz, and Laura Shapiro
The Lemonade Variations is the title of a new work that I began creating this past summer. I continue to experiment with several movement variations of a basic phrase and am currently searching for music that works well with the movement and will allow for further variation in performance.
Other considerations not yet decided are whether to expand the piece with sections of spoken text, whether to include other performers and, if so, whether they will be performing live or on video.
In the meantime, yellow is a wonderful color to contemplate in the winter.
laura shapiro / quicksilverdance 