Celebrity Series to Present LE GRAND CONTINENTAL, 5/16-18

Following closely on the success of Street Pianos Boston, the Celebrity Series of Boston will celebrate the finale of its 75th anniversary season with the Boston premiere of Le Grand Continental. Created by Montreal-based choreographer Sylvain Émard, Le Grand Continental is a contemporary public dance event scheduled to take place in Copley Square Park May 16-18, 2014.

The Celebrity Series is looking for 150 people of all ages to be part of three special performances. No dance experience is needed, just a desire to take part in this unique public event. Prior to the performance, individuals will participate in more than 20 rehearsals leading up to the public performances in May. Recruitment and information sessions for Le Grand Continental will take place at The Boston Conservatory, 31 Hemenway Street in Boston on Sunday, February 2 from 12-6 pm, Monday, February 3 from 7-10 pm and Tuesday, February 4 from 7-10 pm.

More information, including the online registration form for recruitment sessions, is available at www.celebrityseries.org/lgc.

Le Grand Continental first premiered in 2009 with 60 dancers at Montreal's Festival TransAmériques. One year later, Le Très Grand Continental boasted 120 amateur dancers of all ages and backgrounds, guided by a handful of professional dancers. Once again, the show was an audience favorite. Since then, the dance has been staged in Mexico, New York City, Philadelphia and Portland, Oregon. In each location, the audience has been won over by the joyous celebration and wild passion of the dance.

Le Grand Continental was created by Montreal-based choreographer Sylvain Émard, who first distinguished himself as a dancer working with renowned choreographers such as Jean-Pierre Perreault, Jo Lechay and Louise Bédard before forming Sylvain Émard Danse in 1987. An artist who has won the admiration of audiences at home and abroad, his repertoire of more than 25 unique pieces has been praised for the diversity of his choreographic vocabulary. His work swings between extremes of fluidity and taut control, demanding the highest level of virtuosity from the dancers. He collaborated on Lorin Maazel's opera 1984, directed by Robert Lepage and presented at Covent Garden in London in 2005, at La Scala in Milan in 2008, and again at the Valencia Opera House in Spain in 2011. He is the winner of numerous prestigious awards, such as the Jean A. Chalmers Award for Great Choreographic Distinction (1996).

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