Nimbus Dance Works Presents DANCE SPEAKS OUT: LYNCHTOWN/THISTOWN, Beg. Today

The result of several years of planning, Dance Speaks Out: Lynchtown/Thistown is a multi-faceted project that brings Nimbus Dance Works into collaboration with The Charles Weidman Dance Foundation to present a rare staging of Weidman's classic work, Lynchtown (1936).

This seminal modern dance work, choreographed in response to Weidman's witnessing of a lynching as a boy in Nebraska, is recognized for the poignancy of its depiction of mob violence and hatred. In addition to presenting performances of Lynchtown throughout New Jersey and in New York City, the company will present We Acquiesce a new work created by artistic director Samuel Pott inspired by the socio- political activism of Lynchtown and set to commissioned music by composer Peter Saleh. The company will additionally work with students from five New Jersey high schools guiding these students to create dances that explore socio-political issues relevant to their own lives.

On June 9th in a gala statewide event, the five participating high schools will join Nimbus Dance Works at Rutgers University's Mastrobuono Theater to perform Lynchtown and the newly-created student dances. Finally, the company has enlisted the Professor Jeff Friedman of Rutgers University with support from the New Jersey Council on the Humanities to present a related multi-media lecture series in three New Jersey communities. The project embodies Nimbus Dance Works' broader mission to bring concert dance into direct and interactive relationships with audiences and communities.

Schools participating in the Dance Speaks Out project represent a diverse cross section of New Jersey communities and include: Henry Snyder High School (Jersey City), County Prep High School (Jersey City), Newark Arts High School (Newark), Hi Tech High School (North Bergen), and Ocean County Vocational Technical School (Lakehurst). While getting exposure to working with professional artists from Nimbus Dance Works, students also develop their ability to articulate themselves about social and political issues that impact them and their communities. Beginning with figures such as Charles Weidman, Martha Graham, and Doris Humphrey, modern dance has a long history of social and political activism which New Jersey dance students learn about and become part of.

Building additional perspective on the project and its subject matter, Rutgers professor Jeff Friedman will present three free lecture discussions on Lynchtown and the legacy of social activism in dance. Titled "Charles Weidman's Lynchtown: American Dialectics, Moral Questions and the Art of Persuasion", the lectures are supported by a grant from the New Jersey State Council on the Humanities and will take place at Centenary College, Hackettstown, today, April 26th, 7pm; Tachair Bookstore, Jersey City, May 7th, 7pm, Highland Park Public Library, Highland Park, May 23rd, 7pm. In addition to Dr. Friedman's insights and analysis, the lectures will include a live dance demonstration, and archival film and photos.

Says Samuel Pott, Artistic Director of Nimbus Dance Works: "After three years of work developing this project, it is extremely gratifying to see how this timeless dance work Lynchtown retains its power and ability to move audiences and stir a response. Mob mentality and its social implications are relevant to so many of the issues faced by our communities; and dance is a perfect medium to explore and reflect on this subject."

Dance Speaks Out: Lynchtown/Thistown

Project Performances and Events:

April 26th, 7pm:
Lecture Discussion by Dr. Jeff Friedman: "Charles Weidman's Lynchtown: American Dialectics, Moral Questions and the Art of Persuasion"
President's Circle Room, Lackland Performing Arts Center,
Centenary College, Hackettstown, NJ
FREE EVENT
(for tickets to Nimbus' 8pm performance please visit: www.centenarystageco.org
or call 908-979-0900)

May 7th, 7pm:
Lecture Discussion by Dr. Jeff Friedman: "Charles Weidman's Lynchtown: American Dialectics, Moral Questions and the Art of Persuasion"
Tachair Bookstore, 260 Newark Avenue, Jersey City, NJ 07302
FREE EVENT

May 23rd, 7pm:
Lecture Discussion by Dr. Jeff Friedman: "Charles Weidman's Lynchtown: American Dialectics, Moral Questions and the Art of Persuasion"
Highland Park Public Library, 31 North 5th Ave. Highland Park, NJ 08904
FREE EVENT

May 30th - June 1st, 8pm:
Nimbus Dance Works Jersey City Spring Season 2013 Barrow Mansion, 83 Wayne Street, Jersey City, NJ 07302 Tickets: $15-$20 available at www.nimbusdanceworks.org

June 8th, 8pm:
Dance Speaks Out: Nimbus Dance Works with Guest Stars of the Martha Graham Dance Company and Graham II
Victoria Mastrobuono Theater, Mason Gross School of the Arts
Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08901
Tickets: $10-$35 available at www.nimbusdanceworks.org

June 9th, 3pm:
Dance Speaks Out: Lynchtown/Thistown Nimbus Dance Works performs with 5 New Jersey High Schools; with live music by Peter James Saleh & Sam Kaestner Victoria Mastrobuono Theater, Mason Gross School of the Arts Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ 08901

Tickets: $5 available at www.nimbusdanceworks.org.

Nimbus Dance Works, Jersey City's premier dance company, focuses its work on the intersection between high-level dance and innovative ways of involving communities and audiences. Nimbus presents dance performances and programs to diverse audiences locally and on tour: serving present dance audiences and building future ones. Performers with Nimbus Dance Works are top-tier dance artists drawn from widely recognized companies including American Repertory Ballet, New Jersey Ballet, and the Martha Graham Dance Company. In addition to presenting work by Nimbus Artistic Director Samuel Pott, the company commission dances by leading dancemakers with a special focus on international choreographers including Pedro Ruiz (Cuba/USA), Huang Yi (Taiwan), korhan ba?aran (Turkey), Xiao-Xiong Zhang (Australia/Taiwan), Randy James (USA). Through critically acclaimed performances throughout New Jersey and the Northeast, programs for Jersey City youth and seniors, partnerships with institutions such as the Jersey City Board of Education, Rutgers University, and the Newark Museum, and collaborations with notable composers and visual artists, Nimbus weaves together artistic excellence and community impact.

Now in its ninth season, Nimbus Dance Works programs impact more than 6,000 people each year. The company's JC Grooves dance program serves over 2,000 youth each year in the Jersey City public schools. A 501c3 not-for-profit, the company receives funding from multiple foundations including The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation and the Provident Bank Foundation, as well as from The City of Jersey City, Hudson County and the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, and has been honored by an official proclamation of support by the Mayor and the City Council of Jersey City. Nimbus Dance Works presents biannual home seasons in Jersey City and recently opened the School of Nimbus Dance Works offering dance classes to diverse youth and adults from Jersey City and the surrounding region. Featured projects for Nimbus Dance Works' 2012-13 season include a staging of Charles Weidman's 1936 modern dance classic Lynchtown along with the creation of a new partner work by Artistic Director Samuel Pott, Noose with new music by composer Peter James Saleh; and a collaboration with Taiwanese choreographer Huang Yi to be performed by an international cast of American and Taiwanese dancers and sponsored by the Taipei Cultural Center (TPECC). These new works will be performed on tour throughout New Jersey, Vermont, New York City and during the company's Jersey City Spring Season, May 30-June 1, 2013.

Samuel Pott, Artistic Director, Nimbus Dance Works: Samuel Pott founded Nimbus Dance Works in 2005 drawing on a deeply held personal belief in the value that the arts can play in bringing people and communities together. Under his direction the company has grown each year adding performances, new repertory, and new community initiatives and projects. Known for creating structured and musical dances that evoke deep-rooted emotional connection, Mr. Pott's choreography has been shown in New York City and throughout New Jersey, New England and California at venues including The Joyce Theater, NJPAC and Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival. He has choreographed dance to chamber music, choral music, jazz, new music, folk and mainstream vocal ballads; collaborations have included productions with theater groups, visual and video artists, composers and music improvisers. Collaborations have included work with many esteemed contemporary artists including composers Daniel Bernard Roumain, Samson Young, Judd Greenstein, Aaron Parks and visual artists Nicola Lopez and TRudy Miller.

A member of the New Jersey State Arts Council's Arts in Education roster of artists, he has taught dance at the elementary, high school, college and professional levels and has served on the faculty of Rutgers University's Mason Gross School of the Arts. In 2008 Mr. Pott founded JC Grooves, a program that brings dance to over 2000 Jersey City middle school youth each year through unique and participatory methods. He is a certified practitioner of the Feldenkrais Method. Mr. Pott received a Choreography Fellowship from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts in 2008 and was named a Distinguished Teaching Artist by the council in 2012. He serves on the board of directors of Dance New Jersey and on the Arts Advisory Council for the for the Jersey City Board of Education.

Mr. Pott began his dance training at the University of California, Berkeley, and completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1999. As a soloist with the Martha Graham Dance Company, his repertoire included such iconic roles as the Husbandman in Appalachian Spring, Agamemnon in Clyemnestra, and Adam in Embattled Garden. In addition to work with the Martha Graham Dance Company, Mr. Pott has performed as a lead dancer with many ballet and contemporary companies including New Jersey's American Repertory Ballet and the Oakland Ballet. Featured roles are from a wide range dance styles and choreographers including works by Marius Petipa, Martha Graham, Jose Limon, Isadora Duncan, Twyla Tharp, Lar Lubovitch, and directors Robert Wilson and Ann Bogart among many others.