Le Patin Libre to Present THRESHOLD AL FRESCO at Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park

Le Patin Libre will present Threshold al fresco, a contemporary dance revolution on ice, at Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park on February 15, 20, and 21 at 8:30pm. Audience members can watch Threshold al fresco for free if they arrive early and stand by the rink until the show starts.
 
Le Patin Libre pushes the boundaries of traditional figure skating and put their own “spin” on the sport. Their style evolved to become what many now call “contemporary dance on ice”. Le Patin Libre was founded in 2005, by Alexandre Hamel, then a competitive figure skater. The first performances were modestly offered on frozen ponds, during winter carnivals organized by most cities and villages in Québec. On some nights, Hamel and his companions rented hockey ice arenas and turned them into wild dancing parties. Le Patin Libre developed its unique style based on the choreographic possibilities of glide. Glide allows the human body to move through space while being liberated from walking, running, crawling and other natural gestures. 
 
“We take full advantage of what makes skating unique and beautiful as an artistic medium: the glide”, explained choreographer and performer Alexandre Hamel. “Our Glide technique is showcased by immobile bodies magically whizzing through space”.
 
Threshold is the second major work of the company. Threshold al fesco is a shortened version of Le Patin Libre’s full-length show. In 2014, new support from major contemporary dance producers allowed Le Patin Libre to propose Vertical Influences, their first full-evening work. It won the Total Theatre Award for Dance at the Edinburgh festivals in 2015. Vertical Influences was also nominated for the National Dance Award of the UK, in the category Best modern choreography. The show toured extensively in major dance and arts festivals.

The company of Le Patin Libre includes Alexandre Hamel, Pascale Jodoin, Samory Ba, Taylor Dilley, and Jasmin Boivin.
 
Threshold has music by Jasmin Boivin, lighting by Lucy Carter and Sean Gleason, and special choreographic collaboration by Anne Plamondon. Ruth Little is the dramaturg.
 
A limited number of VIP seated tickets, priced at $66.63 (including fees) are available HERE. There’s a post-show ice dancing party with the artists and choreographers, for VIP seats holders.
 
ARTIST BIOS
 

Alexandre Hamel

Founder / artistic director / choreographer / skating-artist

Alexandre Hamel was first trained as a traditional figure skater. He competed on the international circuit, was once on the Canadian championships podium, and cumulated a few provincial champion titles. He aslo skated professionally for Disney On Ice. He founded Le Patin Libre in 2005, desiring to use his passion for skating outside the constraints of competition and “On Ice” show-business. He still directs the company, while staying as involved as always with performance and creation.
 

Pascale Jodoin

Co-director / choreographer / skating-artist

Pascale Jodoin was also first trained as a traditional figure skater. She avoided a large part of the formatting imposed on young figure skating ladies because of her free-spirited attitude. She joined Le Patin Libre in 2009 after seeing a performance, auditioning, participating in workshops offered by the founding artists and dancing in underground ice parties organized by the collective. Above her implication as a creator and a performer, she manages a large part of the activities of the company. Before being completely mobilized by Le Patin Libre, she also ran a small jewelry business and performed as a circus artist in Montreal.
 

Jasmin Boivin

Composer / musical director / choreographer / skating-artist

Jasmin Boivin is the only skating-artist of the company who never did figure skating. He was first hired as a technician. Since he is a classical cellist and an electro-acoustic composer, he quickly started to compose the soundtracks of the group. In 2011, during a creation residency with the company, he started to develop his own ice-dancing style, combining his skills as an amateur hockey player and his interest for social and urban dances. He's now fully integrated to the performance and creation team while still composing our soundtracks and acting as a musical director and DJ for our parties.

Samory Ba

Choreographer / skating-artist / market development agent

Samory Ba is the only original member of our company who is not Canadian. He was born in France, near Paris, and trained there as a traditional figure skater. After performing for various ice shows, including Holiday On Ice, he quit this industry and a well-paid position to take a huge gamble: joining Le Patin Libre as the collective was still precarious. He is now an important influence on our creation and a performer on the team. He also organizes our tours in European ice rinks.
 

Taylor Dilley

Choreographer / skating-artist

Taylor Dilley was trained as an ice dancer and competed on the national scene in Canada. Then, he worked as a professional ice-dance partner, being paid to dance with amateur lady figure skaters. In his youth, he was also a junior Kung-Fu world champion. He joined Le Patin Libre in 2011. His passion for martial arts brings a special influence to his skating style and his choreographic collaboration to the creation of the shows.

A limited number of seated VIP tickets are available for purchase HERE.