Sky Candy, Austin's premiere aerial and circus arts theatre company and studio, is proud to announce the world premiere of Swings Asunder, directed by world-travelled dancer Nathan Brumbaugh. This avant garde aerial dance exploration of gender identity and self-worth will run June 20th - July 3rd, 2015 at the Rollins Theater at the Long Center.
Swings Asunder, Sky Candy's seventh full-length production, will represent a return to the company's roots, as their first aerial dance production since 2011's sold-out runs of The Red Shoes. Swings Asunder will examine gender duality versus fluidity, and how we struggle to fit the molds of masculinity and femininity through life's rites of passage. A man cracks raw eggs and drinks them whole... Four women are contained by a metal cube, shifting within its bounds as it lifts into the air... Two men posture like peacocks as a herd of turtle-women drift nearby... Swings Asunder will draw from the lyricism of modern dance movement as well as the stylized, precise movements of gesture to create a world where gender roles shift fluidly within the same body and blow up to extreme proportions, identities develop, die, and are reborn anew, and perspectives shift through the courage of self exploration.
"Our goal is for audiences to join the ensemble of dancers and aerialists on a unique journey toward self-acceptance and ultimately, the power of breaking free to live our own unique truth, discovering our own vulnerability and courage along the way," said director Nathan Brumbaugh.
The cast of Swings Asunder includes Sky Candy performers Chelsea Laumen, Caroline Poe, Jamie Roberts, and Cory Allen, and guest artists Hailley Laurèn, Taryn Lavery, Amy Myers, and Leila Noone. The design team includes Composer Justin Sherburn, Set Designer Ia Ensterä, Lighting Designer Patrick Anthony, and Costume and Makeup Design by Wendy Sanders of Blood and Glitter Makeup.
Swings Asunder opens on Saturday June 20th, 2015 and will be held at The Rollins Theater at the Long Center, located at 701 West Riverside Drive in downtown Austin. General Admission tickets are $25, VIP tickets are $50, and student and senior tickets are $10 (student and senior tickets only available at the door). There will be a limited number of $15 early bird tickets available online for each show. There are also discounted group ticket rates available for groups of 10+. Tickets can be purchased at thelongcenter.org.
The show will run at the following dates and times:
Saturday, June 20, 8pm
Sunday, June 21, 2 & 8pm
Thursday, June 25, 8pm
Friday, June 26, 8pm
Saturday, June 27, 2 & 8pm
Sunday, June 28, 2pm
Monday, June 29, 8pm
Thursday, July 2, 8pm
Friday, July 3, 8pm
This production has been generously funded by The Creative Fund's Q Rental Subsidy Grant program. The Creative Fund is a funding mechanism that provides much needed support to local performing artists enabling them to further their creative endeavors.
This project is supported in part by the Cultural Arts Division of the City of Austin Economic Development Department.
About Sky Candy - Sky Candy is proud to be East Austin's own Aerial and Circus Arts Studio, and their mission is to share their love of aerial and circus arts with Austin, TX. Founded in 2010, the Sky Candy Studio offers classes in Silks, Lyra, Static Trapeze, Handstands, Partner Acrobatics, and more, as well as open studio, private instruction and workshops for Austinites of all ages and abilities. Since 2011, Sky Candy has delighted Austin audiences with their innovative circus theater productions including The Red Shoes, Land Without Evil, a collaboration with Agent Red which was featured on PBS Arts in Context, and the B. Iden Payne award-winning production COSMICOMICS, directed by Rudy Ramirez. For more information, visit www.skycandyaustin.com.
About Nathan Brumbaugh - Nathan Brumbaugh is a world-traveled virtuosic choreographer, teacher, and dancer. Trained in ballet, modern, buttoh, aerial, and circus, Nathan started developing his professional finesse at an early age in Iowa. Having had the opportunity to work with other performers and choreographers from around the world, Nathan feels compelled to create artwork inspired by psychology, biodiversity, cultural influences, and his perception of the way he sees and feels the world. Nathan landed in Austin in 2012, where he had the fortune to work with Sky Candy in their production of Land Without Evil. Nathan has taught movement workshops with Sky Candy, and is excited to work with Sky Candy producing his upcoming exploratory theatrical opus, "Swings Asunder."
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