Hubbard Street Sets Spring Series & World Premiere at Harris Theater

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, under the artistic direction of Glenn Edgerton, announces today its third mainstage engagement of the 2015-16 dance season. March 17-20, 2016 at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, the Season 38 Spring Series features a world premiere by choreographer and Hubbard Street Rehearsal Director Lucas Crandall, creator of numerous acclaimed works including Atelier, Gimme, and The Set.

A large-scale piece for Hubbard Street's world-renowned ensemble, Crandall's new work is inspired in part by stampedes. "I'm curious about what triggers this behavior in nature," he explains, "and I'm especially interested in why - and how - stampedes end. Rather than looking at them from a dramatic perspective, I'm researching their mechanics. My creative process in the studio, in collaboration with the dancers, has been to construct complex, dynamic movement patterns with groups, then disrupt those patterns, or subject them to a variety of interventions."

Generating complex rhythms and live percussion, the dancers wear boots as part of original designs by Jeff Award-winner Branimira Ivanova, who also created costumes for the two returning works in Hubbard Street's Spring Series: The Impossible by Resident Choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo, and I am Mister B by Gustavo Ramírez Sansano. The Spring Series world premiere marks the fourth creative collaboration between Crandall and Ivanova, and is the 26th Hubbard Street world premiere for which Ivanova has designed costumes - among them, critical and audience favorites by artists such as Marguerite Donlon, Brian Enos, Jonathan Fredrickson, Cheryl Mann, Terence Marling, Andrea Miller, Penny Saunders, Toru Shimazaki, and Robyn Mineko Williams; nine original works by Hubbard Street Resident Choreographer Alejandro Cerrudo; and The Art of Falling, Hubbard Street's blockbuster collaboration with The Second City (returning to the Harris Theater beginning June 9). Lighting for the world premiere by Lucas Crandall is by Jason Brown, Director of Production at Hubbard Street, adjunct faculty member at the Theatre School at DePaul University, and lighting designer for works by choreographers Victor Alexander, Jennifer Archibald, Alexei Kremnev, Abdul Latif, and Stephanie Martinez.

For a 13th consecutive year, Hubbard Street holds its Bold Moves for Bold Women event before the opening-night performance on Thursday, March 17. This networking reception and fundraiser celebrates female leadership in business, the arts, and Chicago's cultural communities, at the offices of Baker & McKenzie with cocktails, delectable hors d'oeuvres, and dazzling views of the city skyline and lakefront. For 38 years, Hubbard Street has remained dedicated to ensuring that women and their unique perspectives are seen and heard, by identifying and supporting female leadership onstage, in area schools, and at the Lou Conte Dance Studio. Honorary event chairs Aurora Abella Austriaco, immediate past president of the Chicago Bar Association; Pamela Cullerton, wife of Illinois Senate President John J. Cullerton; and co-chairs and Hubbard Street board members Karen H. Lennon and Sarah J. Nolan are joined by a 19-member host committee (as of January 25, 2016). Lead Sponsors are Baker & McKenzie LLP, Deloitte, and Exelon; and Event Sponsors are Citizens for John Cullerton, Gallery19, PhRMA, and Elizabeth Yntema. Bold Moves for Bold Women begins at 5:30pm at Baker & McKenzie LLP, located at 300 East Randolph Street, Suite 5000, in Chicago. $200 tickets include premier seating for the March 17 performance at the Harris Theater; $150 tickets include main-floor seating; and party-only tickets are available for $100, by phone at 312-850-9744 ext. 130 or online at hubbardstreetdance.com/boldwomen. All proceeds from Bold Moves for Bold Women benefit Hubbard Street's artistic, education, and community-supportive programs.

Originally premiered in Chicago in June 2014 and since presented at the Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival as well as the Joyce Theater in New York City, The Impossible is "beautifully designed, choreographed and danced to create glimpses of worlds beyond," according to the Chicago Tribune. Its theatrical scenes and physical characterizations are "both a reminder of what has been lost over time," says The Huffington Post, "and a spark of joy for what is still left of love...at once ghostly, sweet and sorrowful." Performed by two lead couples, a male soloist, and a five-member ensemble, The Impossible combines music by international composers F. S. Blumm (Frank Schültge), George Crumb, Nils Frahm, Jonny Greenwood, Barry Guy, Nico Muhly, and Fernando Velázquez.

Choreographed by Gustavo Ramírez Sansano in homage to George Balanchine, with gossamer, deep blue set designs by Luis Crespo and lighting by Jared B. Moore, I am Mister B is "a celebration of dance in tribute to the prolific choreographer who transformed the American ballet," says German-American publication EXBERLINER; and "a knockout...bound to become one of Hubbard Street's signature pieces," according to the Chicago Sun-Times. I am Mister B is set to the final movement of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's third suite for orchestra in G major (op. 55, 1884), in reference to the score for Balanchine's 1947 masterwork, Theme and Variations. The company also performs I am Mister B as part of April 2016 domestic touring engagements.

As part of Hubbard Street's expanded programming for audience engagement, two special pre-performance events will be offered during the Season 38 Spring Series.

In the Harris Theater balcony on Friday, March 18 at 7pm, ticket-holders are welcome to attend "George Balanchine, The Man Behind the Curtain," a casual conversation with Hubbard Street Artistic Director Glenn Edgerton and Manager of Communication Zachary Whittenburg, on the legacy of George Balanchine, his lasting influence on ballet and contemporary dance, his unique personal style, and Gustavo Ramírez Sansano's I am Mister B. Admission is free and no advance reservations are required.

In the Harris Theater's Level 2 Donor Room on Sunday, March 20 at 2pm, ticket-holders are welcome to attend "The First Dance" with Glenn Edgerton and choreographer Lucas Crandall. Complimentary wine and refreshments are included with this reception and conversation about Crandall's new work, and longtime design partnership with Branimira Ivanova. Admission to "The First Dance" is $10 per person and space is limited; call 312-850-9744 for reservations.

Hubbard Street's Season 38 Spring Series is at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance in Millennium Park, located at 205 East Randolph Street in Chicago, and the complete performance schedule is as follows:

• Thursday, March 17, 2016 at 7:30pm
• Friday, March 18, 2016 at 8pm
• Saturday, March 19, 2016 at 8pm
• Sunday, March 20, 2016 at 3pm

Single tickets for the Season 38 Spring Series start at $30 and are available now, online at hubbardstreetdance.com/spring. Season 38 "two-pack" subscriptions for Hubbard Street's Season 38 Spring and Summer Series are also on sale, online at hubbardstreetdance.com/subscribe or by phone to the Hubbard Street Ticket Office at 312-850-9744. Discounted rates are available for groups of 10 or more patrons; visit hubbardstreetdance.com/groups or call 312-850-9744 ext. 164.

Lead Individual Sponsors of the Season 38 Spring Series are Marge and Lew Collens, J.B. and M.K. Pritzker Family Foundation, and John and Jeanne Rowe. Corporate Sponsors of the Spring Series are Diversity Partner Baker & McKenzie, and Exelon. Bill and Orli Staley are the Leading Supporters of New Choreography Development. Hubbard Street Dance Chicago also extends special thanks to its 2015-16 Season Sponsors: Athletico, Official Provider of Physical Therapy; and Chicago Athletic Clubs, Official Health Club.

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