Cool Off With STEPS And Friends At NYLA This Weekend

The Steps Beyond Foundation, Steps on Broadway's non-profit arm which connects artists and community through dialogue, performance, and artistic collaboration, will present two dynamic evenings of dance, June 1-2, at New York Live Arts. Moving Pieces, a benefit performance, will raise funds for their Performance Lab Series and Artists Talks, dance scholarships and community programs at the Hudson Guild and Henry Street Settlement.

With a reception to follow, Moving Pieces, June 1, exemplifies the New York dance community, bringing together a program of diverse choreographic voices. Highlights include a sneak peak of Joshua Beamish/THEMOVECOMPANY'sThe Masque of the Red Death, making its official premiere at The Joyce Theater later next month. Inspired by the Edgar Allen Poe short story, the work explores the different color palettes, moods, and social context presented in Poe's gothic tale. The evening will also mark the debut of the Dorrance Dance's Second Company, with "Boards and Chains", an excerpt from Double Down, showcasing the next generation of world-class tap dancers. Complexions Contemporary Ballet will present Dwight Rhoden's duet So Not A...,danced byNatiya Kezevadze and Tercell Waters, while Lloyd Culbreath will stage Bob Fosse's "Dancin' Man", in association with the Verdon Fosse Legacy Foundation. Buglisi Dance Theatre will present Jacqulyn Buglisi's Requiem, affected by the events of 9/11, and Heidi Latskywill perform Solo One, a circular and repetitive solo with a steady increase in ferocity and speed.

The following evening, June 2, Steps Beyond Foundation presents: Steps Conservatory Showcase highlighting the work of the 2-year multidisciplinary program of intensive training with world-renowned faculty and guest artists. Al Blackstone's new trio, This Way, created for the graduating students portrays the dancers' journey of coming to New York and the creation of new relationships. Fredrick Earl Mosley's, I See You, restaged for 24 dancers, captures the feeling of ending a long work week and being "off the clock." Gabrielle Lamb will premiere Noctilucent, a new work developed on nine dancers who contributed material based on experimental concepts explored during the creative process. American Dance Machine 21 will bring a theatrical flair to the program with a restaging of West Side Story's "America", and Will Rogers Follies'"Our Favorite Son/Willamania". With a program focused on versatility and career preparation, the evening will also present vocal presentations of an eclectic songbook ranging from Broadway to film, Willie Nelson to Fiona Apple and the Beatles. Additionally, the program features original works by Conservatory graduating students Virginia Ercolani, Astreé Périchon, and Serena Wolman.

PERFORMANCE DETAILS

Moving Pieces, a gala performance to benefit the Steps Beyond Foundation will take place Friday, June 1 at 7:30 p.m.Benefit tickets are $150, with a reception to follow at Elmo's, located at 156 7thAvenue. Performance-only tickets are $30 and $20 for students and seniors.

Steps Beyond Foundation Presents: Steps Conservatory Showcase will take place Saturday, June 2 at 7:30 p.m.Tickets are $30 and $20 for students and seniors.

All tickets may be purchased online at newyorklivearts.org/calendar or by calling the box office at 212-691-6599 x5.

VENUE INFORMATION

New York Live Arts is located at 219 W19th Street in the Chelsea district of Manhattan and accessible by the 1 train to 18thStreet, or the 2/3, F, M and A/C/E to 14thStreet.