West End Theater Presents the Soaking WET Series

The Soaking WET series, curated by David Parker and Jeff Kazin, with associate producer Dylan Baker, presents two different programs of all premieres by five choreographers, Angharad Davies, Aviva Geismar, Victor Lozano, Jody Sperling, and Katy Orthwein - each with a distinctive dance voice and style, February 1-3 at West End Theater, 263 West 86th Street, corner of West End Avenue.

Program A will be performed three evenings, February 1, 2 & 3 at 7 PM:

AVIVA GEISMAR's ensemble Drastic Action will perform two new Geismar dances: "Urge," which investigates our desire to control ourselves, others and the world around us; and "The Bind," which portrays a couple struggling to find an authentic connection. Company dancers are Hyunjin Kim, Mengying Lin, J'Nae Simmons, Ilana Cohen, Eunseo Park, Jake Szcypek and Darla Stanley.

AVIVA GEISMAR has been making dances since 1989 and is an Assistant Professor in the Dance Program at Queensborough Community College, CUNY. Her company, Drastic Action, is dedicated to making thought-provoking dance that explores the nuances and paradoxes of everyday behavior. www.drasticaction.org

KATY ORTHWEIN will present her Dance Projects in a new work on the program - the premiere of "Labyrinth," a trio featuring and inspired by dancers Minna Liimatainen, Sharon Milanese and Nick Sciscione, artists who bring maturity, technical skill, and nuance to the work. The dance has an original score composed and performed live by pianist Allen Fogelsanger.

KATY ORTHWEIN's Dance Projects continues its commitment to artistic collaboration with dancers, composers, and musicians. Her work has been praised for "...depth and beauty that resonate" (offoffoff.com). The new "Labyrinth" represents personal journeys of folding inward, then re-emerging with new perspectives. www.katyorthweindanceprojects.com

Program B will be performed February 1, 2 & 3 at 8:30 PM and Sunday February 4 at 2 PM:

ANGHARAD DAVIES will perform her new solo "Gone and Gone and Gone," inspired by her grandfather's immigration from Syria to the United States, set to a music collage that includes Verdi and Syrian musical artist Omar Souleyman.

ANGHARAD DAVIES is known for choreographing for concert dance as well as opera and theater productions, including Benjamin Britten's "A Midsummer Night's Dream," Henry Pucell's "Dido and Aeneas," and Brecht/Weill's "The Three-Penny Opera." As a performer she has appeared with companies in NYC, Berlin, Buenos Aires, and Austria, and she has taught at Yale, Princeton, and organizations abroad. www.angharaddavies.net ;

VICTOR LOZANO will premiere a duet for dancers Zoe McNeil and Spencer Weidie, set to a music collage of unalike scores that highlight the moods of the changing dance scenes.

A recent graduate of Juilliard, the Texas native has appeared in works by Limon, Tharp, Cunningham, Naharin, Lubovitch, as well as new creations by Camille A. Brown, Kate Weare, and others. As a choreographer, Victor Lozano presented works at Juilliard's Choreographic Honors Showcases in 2014 and 2015.

JODY SPERLING will premiere "Sound Study," a collaboration with cellist/architect Scott Johnson and algorithm/projection designer Sergey Pigach. The trio investigates the atmospheric vibrations of the performance space.

Considered the preeminent Loie Fuller stylist, Jody Sperling's varied background includes participating in a polar science mission to the Arctic where she made the short dance film "Ice Floe," winner of a Creative Climate Award. She was nominated last year for her work on the French film "The Dancer," premiered at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival. For her own Time Lapse Dance, Sperling has created 40+ works. www.timelapsedance.com

West End Theater, 263 West 86th Street (2nd floor of the Church) Tickets: $20

Reservations: www.brownpapertickets.com ; or www.thebanggroup.com/wet.php