Photos/Video: Bill T. Jones AFTERWARDSNESS At The Armory

BroadwayWorld has a first look at Afterwardsness-a new commission by dancer, director, and choreographer Bill T. Jones-now on stage through May 26, 2021. Commissioned by the Armory as part of its Social Distance Hall season, the work was originally slated to premiere at the Armory on March 24 but was rescheduled when members of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company tested positive for COVID-19 during rigorous safety protocols that Park Avenue Armory requires for all performers, crew, and staff before they arrive on site.

"The culture-loving public is eager to return to arts productions, as long as they know the proper protocols are in place and it will be safe," said Rebecca Robertson, Founding President and Executive Producer of the Park Avenue Armory. "From a moving hypnotic masterwork by Bill T. Jones to a cathartic and participatory performance art piece conceived by Christine Jones, Steven Hoggett, and David Byrne, New York wants to feel that sense of awe again."

Created by Bill T. Jones and performed by the nine dancers of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company, Afterwardsness addresses isolation and trauma amid the twin pandemics of COVID-19 and ongoing violence against Black bodies. The work includes spoken word inspired by Company members' own writings; a new vocal composition by Holland Andrews; an original violin solo entitled Homage by Pauline Kim Harris, written in homage to George Floyd; as well as excerpts from Olivier Messiaen's wartime composition Quartet for the End of Time. The Armory and its consultant team have designed seating plans for Afterwardsness for audiences at 10% of the Drill Hall's normal capacity, in which audience members are placed 9 feet - 12 feet apart in every direction.

Afterwardsness is part of the Armory's Social Distance Hall commissioning initiative, which launches with SOCIAL! the social distance dance club (previews April 9-12; performances April 13-22) conceived by Steven Hoggett, Christine Jones, and David Byrne, and also includes Party in the Bardo by Laurie Anderson and Jason Moran (dates TBA). Social Distance Hall provides artists with the space and resources to create and present to in-person audiences new works devised for and reflective of a society grappling with COVID-19. The Armory, with its immense, 55,000-square-foot Wade Thompson Drill Hall and multiple airy rooms and entrances-featuring an air volume comparable to being outdoors-can provide an early pathway and model for the re-opening of the performing arts in New York and beyond.

Rigorous safety protocols for audiences that extend from arrival, entry, and seating to performance and departure have been developed, workshopped, and tested with invited audiences. Among these safety procedures are: masks worn properly at all times; a detailed and monitored system of audience flow to ensure artists, patrons, and staff are socially distanced at all times throughout their visit; contactless temperature-checks and ticket scanning outside at the door; no points of gathering in the building or on the sidewalk; no retail concessions, food and beverages, or ticket sales; restroom use limited to one person at a time, with cleaning between each use; and refreshing of the Drill Hall air three times pre-show and post show. Rapid Testing will be conducted on-site at the Armory.

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