Hubbard Street, Bill T. Jones, Lil Buck and More Set for NY City Center's FALL FOR DANCE FESTIVAL at The Delacorte in September

Following the overwhelming success of New York City Center's sold out FALL FOR DANCE FESTIVAL last year in Central Park, New York City Center will once again present two free evenings of dance in association with The Public Theater at The Delacorte on Friday, September 12 and Saturday, September 13 at 8:00 p.m.

The two free evenings of dance will feature Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Lil Buck and one more company to be announced. Free tickets will be distributed, two per person, at The Public's Delacorte Theater in Central Park on the day of the show and through the Virtual Ticketing lottery. (The rain date is Sunday, September 14.) For more information, visit www.publictheater.org and www.NYCityCenter.org.

The Public Theater has a long history of hosting dance companies at the Delacorte Theater that began in the 1960s with the New York Dance Festival that served as an inspiration for New York City Center's Fall for Dance when it launched 11 years ago. Since then, the popular Fall for Dance Festival has received international acclaim for its quality, innovation and success in introducing new and younger audiences to the world of dance. Since the opening of the Delacorte in 1962, more than five million people have enjoyed more than 150 free productions at The Public's Central Park venue.

"We couldn't be more excited to welcome Fall for Dance back to the Delacorte again this year," said Public Theater Associate Artistic Director Mandy Hackett. "Partnering with Fall for Dance is a beautiful collaboration as our organizations share common goals and vision of making the arts and culture accessible to all New Yorkers. Experiencing such extraordinary work from the world of dance on the Delacorte stage is utterly thrilling."

"We are delighted that our Fall for Dance season will once again open with two free performances at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. Last year's performances at the Delacorte demonstrated how glorious dance looks at this special venue, and we are so pleased that The Public Theater is partnering with us again to provide great dance to all New Yorkers," said New York City Center President & CEO Arlene Shuler.

HUBBARD STREET DANCE CHICAGO - Gnawa (2005), choreographed by Nacho Duato for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, is a vibrant ensemble work that taps the Mediterranean spirit of North Africa and Duato's native Spain.

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago's core purpose is to bring artists, art and audiences together to enrich, engage, educate, transform and change lives through the experience of dance. Celebrating its 37th season in 2014-15, Hubbard Street continues to be an innovative force, supporting its creative talent while presenting repertory by the field's internationally recognized living artists. Founded and directed for its first 23 years by Lou Conte, Hubbard Street has grown through the establishment of multiple platforms: The Lou Conte Dance Studio provides a wide range of public classes and pre-professional training; extensive youth, education, community, adaptive dance and family programs keep the organization deeply connected to its hometown; the Choreographic Development Initiative is aimed at being a national model for artistic development while proactively diversifying contemporary concert dance; Hubbard Street 2 stewards early-career artists and the International Commissioning Project (formerly the National Choreographic Competition). The main company's 18 members comprise one of the only ensembles in the U.S. to perform all year long, domestically and around the world. www.hubbardstreetdance.com

BILL T. JONES/ARNIE ZANE DANCE COMPANY - D-Man in the Waters (Part I) (1989, revised 1998), choreographed by Bill T. Jones, is a joyful tour de force set to Mendelssohn's Octet in E-flat Major for Strings, Op. 20. The Bessie Award-winning classic is a celebration of life and the resiliency of the human spirit that embodies loss, hope and triumph.

Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company has shaped the evolution of contemporary dance through the creation and performance of over 140 works. Founded as a multicultural dance company in 1982, the company was born of an 11-year artistic collaboration between Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane. Today, the company is recognized as one of the most innovative and powerful forces in the modern dance world, and has performed its ever-enlarging repertoire worldwide in over 200 cities in 30 countries on every major continent. In 2011, the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company merged with Dance Theater Workshop to form New York Live Arts, of which Bill T. Jones is the Artistic Director. newyorklivearts.org

LIL BUCK (Live Music) - Bend in the Road, a scene from a new project conceived and directed by Damian Woetzel, is a world premiere starring Lil Buck, with dancer Ron Myles and musicians including Jon Batiste, Edmar Castaneda and Marcus Printup. Bend in the Road follows the Pied Piper of dance, Lil Buck, as he jooks across America discovering what brings our cities to life. First stop: New Orleans...

Lil Buck is known for his Memphis jookin', a street dance that originated in Memphis, and he is the founder of his own dance group, New Styles Krew. At age 16, he began ballet training at the New Ballet Ensemble, where he performed and choreographed until moving to Los Angeles in 2009. Lil Buck co-choreographed and starred in the video for recording artist Janelle Monae's Grammy-nominated hit song "Tightrope" and danced with Madonna on tour and during the 2012 Super Bowl XCLVI halftime show. He has performed on numerous television shows, including an appearance as a performer and guest judge on "Dancing with the Stars," "The Colbert Report," "Tavis Smiley," and "The Ellen DeGeneres Show." Recently, he appeared with New York City Ballet as a star soloist in the debut of a ballet by the French artist JR. In 2011, Lil Buck collaborated with cellist Yo-Yo Ma in performances of The Swan, directed by Damian Woetzel as part of Ma and Woetzel's Arts Strike initiative. This collaboration was captured by director Spike Jonze in a video that went viral on YouTube, garnering more than 2.5 million views. Also directed by Woetzel, Lil Buck has appeared with Ma and the Silk Road Ensemble at SummerStage in Central Park, at the 2011 U.S.-China Forum in Beijing, and as the star of Lil Buck @ Le Poisson Rouge in 2013, for which he won a Bessie Award for outstanding performance. Lil Buck was the 2011 Artist-in-Residence of the Vail International Dance Festival and is currently an Artist-in-Residence at the Aspen Institute.

Free tickets to FALL FOR DANCE on September 12 and 13 will be distributed, two per person (age 5+), at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, beginning at 12:00 p.m. on the day of each performance. There will also be a separate line for accessible tickets for senior citizens (65+) and patrons with disabilities. (The rain date is Sunday, September 14.) The Virtual Ticketing Lottery for free tickets will be available at www.publictheater.org on the day of the show. The Delacorte Theater is accessible by entering at 81st Street and Central Park West, or 79th Street and Fifth Avenue. Beginning August 5, you may also make a $75 tax-deductible donation and receive a reserved seat to the event. For information, call 212-967-7555 or visit www.publictheater.org.

NEW YORK CITY CENTER - New York City Center (Arlene Shuler, President & CEO), now in its 70th year, has played a defining role in the cultural life of the city since 1943. It was Manhattan's first performing arts center, dedicated by Mayor Fiorello La Guardia with a mission to make the best in music, theater and dance accessible to all audiences. Today, City Center is home to many distinguished companies, including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, City Center's Principal Dance Company, as well as Manhattan Theatre Club; a roster of renowned national and international visiting artists; and its own critically acclaimed and popular programs. The Tony-honored Encores! musical theater series has been hailed as "one of the very best reasons to be alive in New York." In summer 2013, City Center launched Encores! Off-Center, a new series featuring landmark musicals filtered through the lens of today's most innovative artists. Dance has been integral to the theater's mission from the start, and dance programs, including the annual Fall for Dance Festival, remain central to City Center's identity. Vital partnerships with arts organizations including Jazz at Lincoln Center and London's Sadler's Wells Theatre enhance City Center's programmatic offerings. City Center is dedicated to providing educational opportunities to New York City students and teachers with programs such as Encores! In Schools and the Young People's Dance Series. Special workshops cater to families, seniors and other groups, while events such as the Fall for Dance DanceTalk series offer learning opportunities to the general public. In October 2011, City Center completed an extensive renovation project to revitalize and modernize its historic theater. www.NYCityCenter.org.

ABOUT THE PUBLIC THEATER - Under the leadership of Artistic Director Oskar Eustis and Executive Director Patrick Willingham, The Public Theater is the only theater in New York that produces Shakespeare, the classics, musicals, contemporary and experimental pieces in equal measure. The Public continues the work of its visionary founder, Joe Papp, by acting as an advocate for the theater as an essential cultural force, and leading and framing dialogue on some of the most important issues of our day. Creating theater for one of the largest and most diverse audience bases in New York City for nearly 60 years, today the Company engages audiences in a variety of venues-including its landmark downtown home at Astor Place, which houses five theaters and Joe's Pub; the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, home to its beloved, free Shakespeare in the Park; and the Mobile Unit, which tours Shakespearean productions for underserved audiences throughout New York City's five boroughs. The Public's wide range of programming includes free Shakespeare in the Park, the bedrock of the Company's dedication to making theater accessible to all; Public Works, a new initiative that is designed to cultivate new connections and new models of engagement with artists, audiences and the community each; new and experimental stagings at The Public at Astor Place, including Public Lab and Public Studio; and a range of artist and audience development initiatives including its Public Forum series, which brings together theater artists and professionals from a variety of disciplines for discussions that shed light on social issues of the day. The Public also serves as a home for other New York City cultural programs that include The Shakespeare Society, The PEN World Voice Festival and City Center's Fall For Dance. The Public Theater is located on property owned by the City of New York and receives annual support from the New York City Department of Cultural Affair. In October 2012 the landmark building at Astor Place was revitalized to physically manifest the Company's core mission of sparking new dialogues and increasing accessibility for artists and audiences, by dramatically opening up the building to the street and community, and transforming the lobby into a public piazza for artists, students, and audiences. Key elements of the revitalization included an expanded and refurbished lobby and the addition of a mezzanine level with a new restaurant lounge, The Library, designed by the Rockwell Group. The LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust provides leadership support for The Public Theater's year-round activities. www.publictheater.org

Photo courtesy Hubbard Street Dance Chicago.