Brooklyn Center For The Performing Arts Announces 2009-10 World Stages Dance Series

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College announces its 2009-2010 World Stages: Dance series. Since the inception of a dance series in 1966, over 40 dance companies have made their New York City debuts at Brooklyn Center and more than 170 regional, national and international companies have premiered new works. This season showcases four international dance companies that reflect the artistic excellence and cultural diversity to which Brooklyn Center is dedicated.

"Like all Brooklyn Center seasons, 2009-2010 offers something for everyone," says Brooklyn Center Managing Director Frank Sonntag. "There are fantastic jazz artists on the season, and plenty for Brooklyn's Jewish, Ukrainian, Caribbean, and African-American communities. We are bringing back a major international orchestra for the first time in many years, and our family programs are always popular. We strive to bring an astounding variety of stellar artists that reflect the tremendous diversity of our Borough at prices that are within reach for most families. This year, in particular, I believe we have succeeded spectacularly."

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts' 2009-2010 season includes dance performances by:
* Luna Negra Dance Theater with the Turtle Island Quartet and Paquito D'Rivera
* Virsky Ukrainian National Dance Company
* The Israel Ballet - Don Quixote
* National Dance Theater Company of Jamaica
* Tap Kids

Luna Negra Dance Theater with the Turtle Island Quartet and Paquito D'Rivera - October 25, 2009 at 2pm
Devoted to the creation and presentation of contemporary dance by Latino choreographers, Chicago's Luna Negra Dance Theater blends ballet and modern dance techniques, strongly flavored by Latino and Afro-Caribbean dance forms. For The company's 10th anniversary, artistic director Eduardo Vilaro returns to his own roots with the creation of a new work entitled Danzón, inspired by the official dance of Cuba. For this new work, Luna Negra collaborates with the bold Turtle Island Quartet and legendary composer and performer Paquito D'Rivera. In partnering with these two Grammy Award-winning artists, Vilaro takes this quintessentially Cuban dance form and reinvents it into a modern work of art, introducing mainstream American audiences to a thriving Latino tradition and creating a milestone moment in the continuity of Latino artistic expression.
Tickets $30

Virsky Ukrainian National Dance Company - November 8, 2009 at 2pm
The renowned folk dance ensemble is famous for its bright colors, the unity of content and form and the vivid embodiment of its stage concept. The history of the ensemble goes back to 1937 when Pavlo Virsky and Mykola Bolotov, well-known Ukrainian ballet-masters, brought together a group of folk dancers. Since then, this magnificent company of 65 dancers and musicians has combined brilliant ballet techniques with traditional folk dance in a tribute to the culture, beauty and spirit of the Ukraine.
Tickets $35, $25

The Israel Ballet - Don Quixote - February 21, 2010 at 2pm
2009-2010 marks the fourth U.S. tour for The Israel Ballet, and the first in 25 years. Since its establishment in 1967, The company has performed internationally under the direction of founding artistic director Berta Yampolsky, earning recognition and bringing honor to the State of Israel. For their Brooklyn Center appearance, they perform one of the most beloved full-length ballets in the classical repertoire, Don Quixote, featuring choreography by the legendary Russian Imperial Ballet Master Marius Petipa.
Tickets $30, $20

National Dance Theatre Company of Jamaica - March 6, 2010 at 8pm and March 7, 2010 at 2pm
Founded in 1962 after Jamaica's liberation from Great Britain, the National Dance Theatre Company of Jamaica (NDTC) is known for an energy and creativity characteristic of the Caribbean. Led by founding member and artistic director Rex Nettleford, NDTC has demonstrated its versatility in storytelling, pantomimic play, and fusion of elements of Caribbean dance with classical ballet to the Brooklyn community in biennial performances since the 1970s. The company has received high acclaim in tours to all corners of the world, including Australia, the former Soviet Union, Finland, Germany, Latin America, and North America.
Tickets $40, $30

Tap Kids - April 25, 2010 at 2pm
Eight of the nation's most talented young tap dancers take to the stage in this rousing, joyous celebration of American youth culture. Hip, contemporary and uplifting, this electrifying performance takes tap to dizzying new heights of passion and precision.
A Target FamilyFun Series event.
Tickets $6

With the exception of Tap Kids, all of Brooklyn Center's 2009-2010 dance performances are available as part of the WorldPack, a ticket package consisting of a minimum of three performances from Brooklyn Center's World Stages series, priced $73-$165 depending on performances selected. Discounts are available for seniors, students, Brooklyn College faculty/staff/ alumni, and groups of 15 or more.

About Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts
Founded in 1954, the mission of Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts is to present outstanding performing arts and arts education programs, reflective of Brooklyn's diverse communities, at affordable prices. Brooklyn Center's presentations explore both the classical traditions and the boldest contemporary performances, embracing the world culture that defines Brooklyn. Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts welcomes over 70,000 people to the 2,400 seat Walt Whitman Theatre each season, and boasts one of the largest arts education programs in the borough, serving schoolchildren from over 225 schools annually with its SchoolTime series.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts
Walt Whitman Theatre at Brooklyn College
2900 Campus Road, Brooklyn

Online orders: BrooklynCenterOnline.org
Box Office: (718) 951-4500, Tuesday - Saturday, 1PM - 6PM
Subscription Orders/Season Brochure Requests: (718) 951-4600, ext. 25
Groups of 15 or more: (718) 951-4600, ext. 22

Major support for Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts' World Stages: Dance series is provided by Macy's and by The Harkness Foundation for Dance. Additional support for the National Dance Theatre Company of Jamaica is provided by Air Jamaica.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts' programs are made possible in part with public funding from the City of New York Department of Cultural Affairs and the National Endowment for the Arts. Funding for Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts' 2009-2010 season is provided by: Target; JP Morgan Chase; Independence Community Foundation; Con Edison; National Grid; TD Bank; the Carnegie Corporation of New York; and the Lila Acheson Wallace Theater Fund, established in the New York Community Trust by founders of The Reader's Digest Association. Additional support provided by Courier-Life Publications, The Brooklyn Eagle, The Brooklyn Paper, and WBGO. Marriott New York LaGuardia Airport is the official hotel of Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts 2009-2010 season. Backstage catering graciously provided by Bettina Harris of The Corn Bread Diner and by Applebee's.

Brooklyn Center gratefully acknowledges generous support from the Members of the Brooklyn Delegation to the New York State Assembly and Speaker Sheldon Silver; Members of the Brooklyn Delegation to the New York State Senate and Majority Leader Malcolm Smith; Members of the Brooklyn Delegation to the New York City Council and Speaker Christine C. Quinn; Cultural Affairs Committee Chairman Domenic M. Recchia, Jr. and Commissioner of Cultural Affairs Kate Levin.

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