Schimmel Center at Pace University Presents Battery Dance, World Premiere of The Red Line

Schimmel Center at Pace University continues its 2018-19 Dance Series with the return of Battery Dance on Thursday, February 28, 2019 at 7:30pm. The evening's repertoire is characterized by choreography and music inspired by worldwide sources, reflecting American society and its multiplicity of cultures, with contributing artists including Silk Road Ensemble member Kevork Mourad, Grammy Award winner Kinan Azmeh, and Battery Dance Founder and Artistic Director Jonathan Hollander. In addition, choreographer Tadej Brdnik will present the world premiere of his new work,

The evening's repertoire is characterized by choreography and music inspired by worldwide sources, reflecting American society and its multiplicity of cultures, with contributing artists including Silk Road Ensemble member Kevork Mourad, Grammy Award winner Kinan Azmeh, Romanian and Iraqi dancers Razvan Stoian and Hussein Smko.

Battery Dance dancers will open the program with the world premiere of The Red Line, created by former Martha Graham Principal Dancer Tadej Brdnik and set to music by Syrian composer and clarinetist Kinan Azmeh, who received a 2017 Grammy Award as a member of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble.

The company presents the 15th anniversary performance of Secrets of the Paving Stones, commissioned by the European Conference on Tolerance with support from the U.S. Embassy-Warsaw. Inspired by the historical events and architecture of the city of Krakow, Poland, this piece has become a classic in the company's repertoire.

The evening concludes with the critically acclaimed On Foot that was collaboratively choreographed in 2017 by the dancers working under the direction of Jonathan Hollander. This multimedia piece explores the arduous journey of refugees emigrating out of Syria and other countries in conflict and features live multimedia artwork by artist Kevork Mourad, whose works have been seen at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Nara Museum in Japan. The Company derived inspiration for this work through its work in Germany with refugee youth, some of whom were unaccompanied minors, and taking to heart their stories and the incredible risks they took to find safety.

The Red Line (World Premiere)

Choreography: Tadej Brdnik

Composer: Kinan Azmeh

Lighting: Calvin Anderson

Costumes: Tyler Holland

Dancers: Robin Cantrell, Tracy Dunbar, Sarah Housepian, Bethany Mitchell, Sean Scantlebury, and Razvan Stoian

On Foot (2017)

Artistic Direction: Jonathan Hollander, Kevork Mourad, Barry Steele

Music: Kinan Azmeh, Anouar Brahem

Lighting: Barry Steele

Costumes: Tyler Holland

Dancers: Robin Cantrell, Tracy Dunbar, Sarah Housepian, Bethany Mitchell, Sean Scantlebury, and Razvan Stoian

Secrets of the Paving Stones (2003)

Choreography: Jonathan Hollander

Original music: Jarek Bester

Lighting: Barry Steele

Costumes: Aaron Mastin

Dancers: Robin Cantrell, Bethany Mitchell, Sean Scantlebury, and Razvan Stoian

ABOUT BATTERY DANCE

Battery Dance created its outdoor festival in 1982 as part of its engagement with its home community of lower Manhattan where it has been based since its founding in 1976. As one of America's leading cultural ambassadors, Battery Dance connects the world through dance. The Company pursues artistic excellence and social relevance by creating vibrant new works, performing on the world's stages, presenting dance in public spaces, serving the field of dance and teaching people of all ages with special attention to the disadvantaged and areas of conflict. Battery Dance is committed to enhancing the cultural vibrancy of its home community in New York City, extending programming throughout the U.S., and building bridges worldwide through international cultural exchange with programs in 70 countries to date.

Jonathan Hollander (President and Artistic Director) founded Battery Dance in New York in 1976 and has choreographed more than 75 works that have been presented in major theaters and festivals internationally. Hollander's awards include the Order of Merit from the Federal Republic of Germany, Silver Mask of the Silesian Dance Theatre (Poland), USable Award from the Körber Foundation (Germany) and Arts & Business Council's Encore Award (U.S.).

Kinan Azmeh (Composer) was composer-in-residence with Classical Movements for the 2017-18 season. Notable appearances include: Opera Bastille, Tchaikovsky Grand Hall, Carnegie Hall, the Royal Albert Hall, The Library of Congress, and The Kennedy Center. He serves as artistic director of the Damascus Festival Chamber Players. Kinan is member of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble with whom he was awarded a Grammy in 2017.

Tadej Brdnik (Choreography) has worked with Battery Dance since 1998. He is a former principal dancer with the Martha Graham Dance Company. He served as Program Director for Accelerate and Extension Programs at the Martha Graham Dance Company and is currently the Director of Teens@Graham. Tadej is a recipient of the 1993 Benetton Dance Award and the 2003 Eugene Loring Award and was a 2015-16 BAM/DeVos Institute Performer in Transition Arts Management Fellow.

Kevork Mourad (Visual artist, On Foot) is a visual artist member of Yo-Yo Ma's Silk Road Ensemble. He has performed at the Metropolitan, Brooklyn and Bronx Museums of Art, Rhode Island School of Design, Harvard University, The Art Institute of Chicago, The American Museum of Natural History, Central Park's Summerstage, the Agha Khan Museum, and Carnegie Hall. The 2016 recipient of the Robert Bosch Stiftung Prize, Mourad is currently at work on an animated short film about Syria.

Robin Cantrell (Dancer) has been a member of Battery Dance since 2008. Robin has worked with City Ballet of San Diego, Rioult, Collective Body Dance Lab, Rebecca Kelly Ballet, John Passafiume Dancers and Pigeonwing Dance. Robin is also the Artistic Director of her own company: Indelible Dance, now in its 10th year.

Tracy Dunbar (Dancer) makes his debut with Battery Dance this season. He has performed with The Von Howard Project, Bare Dance Company, Project 44 Dance, Now Dance Project and Elisa Monte Dance Company. Tracy has also had the opportunity to teach dance through the Tri-State area and overseas.

Sarah Housepian (Dancer) joined Battery Dance in 2018. She has worked with Fuse Modern Dance, Vision's Dance Theater BARE Dance Company (CA & NYC), Yin Yue Dance Company, Erica Essner Performance Co-Op, Indelible Dance, 10 Hairy Legs Projects, NOW Dance Project, Robert Mark Dance, Shawn Bible Dance Co, Meagan Woods, and Julia Ehrstrand. She is currently the rehearsal director of BARE Dance Company.

Bethany Mitchell (Dancer) joined Battery Dance in 2014. She has worked with Ballet Pacifica, State Street Ballet, City Ballet of San Diego, and Liss Fain Dance. New York credits include Royal Caribbean Productions, The Onomatopoeia Theatre Company, Indelible Dance, and General Mischief Dance Theatre.

Sean Scantlebury (Dancer) joined Battery Dance in 2003. His choreography has been featured in numerous Battery Dance seasons and festivals as well as on stages around the world. He was a member of Ballet Tech and Joyce Theater for 10 years. He was heralded by dance.com as one of the most influential black dancers in the U.S.

Hussein Smko (Dancer) is a self-trained dancer/choreographer whose talent was spotted by Battery Dance over social media in the summer of 2014. He began his residency with Battery Dance as the first recipient of the Adel Euro Campaign for Dancers Seeking Refuge in 2017.

Razvan Stoian (Dancer) has performed internationally with Tangaj Dance Company in Romania and at the Battery Dance Festival in New York in 2014. He presented his own choreography at the 2016 Battery Dance Festival and afterwards joined the Company. He has also performed with Gigi Caciuleanu Romania Dance Company at Sadler's Wells Theatre in London; and is a champion ballroom dancer, winning competitions in Austria, Bulgaria, Italy, Romania, Turkey and elsewhere.

About the House Left Bar at Schimmel Center

We are excited to announce two major changes to the House Left Bar at Schimmel Center. Beginning this season, beer, soda and wine purchased from the House Left Bar will be served in a Schimmel Center Souvenir Cup, allowing guests to enjoy beverages throughout the entire performance. Credit card transactions will now be accepted, making purchases from the House Left Bar more convenient and accessible. The House Left Bar serves wine, beer, soda, and snacks and is open one hour prior to curtain and during intermission.

Please note, no outside food or beverage is allowed in the Schimmel Center theater.

About Schimmel Center at Pace University
Schimmel Center is a hidden gem, a performing arts center for everyone. We push boundaries and bring together generations through a diverse lineup of world-class artists who seek to educate, inspire, provoke, and entertain.

This season, we are excited to offer an array of world premieres and inaugural events, from the first annual Crossing Bridges Music Fest, that celebrates traditional and modern Americana with contemporary singer-songwriters and legacy artists, to a modern premiere dance piece calling glenn by Ate9 with music composition and percussion by Wilco's Glenn Kotche, to the premiere of Fearless: B-Sides with Hamilton's Mandy Gonzalez.

We are building on the success of our comedy series by adding more artists to the lineup, including veteran comedians Caroline Rhea and Louie Anderson and rising star Hari Kondabolu. You won't want to miss Comedy Central's The Daily Show's Ronny Chieng and Dulcé Sloan.

We have added documentaries to our season this year with the critically acclaimed Sacred and Abacus: Small Enough to Jail. We will enhance this experience by presenting a Q & A after Sacred with Executive Producer William F. Baker and after Abacus with members of the film's Sung family.