Jack Ferver Returns to New York Live Arts

Jack Ferver's critically acclaimed Everything Is Imaginable returns to New York Live Arts' mainstage as the finale to the 2019 Live Arteryplatform during the annual Association of Performing Arts Professionals conference, January 7, 2019 at 10pm and January 8-12 at 8pm. Presented in collaboration withAmerican Realness, Ferver's radiant and evocative dance-theater piece juxtaposes the lives, virtuosity, and fantasies of its five queer performers.

Ferver is joined by the original cast featuring American Ballet Theater principal dancerJames Whiteside, Martha Graham Dance Company principal dancer Lloyd Knight, dancer and costume designer Reid Bartelme, and Broadway actor Garen Scribner. The decorative set was designed by Jeremy Jacob and the highly stylized costumes by Reid and Harriet Design. Everything is Imaginable will be presented at Live Arts, January 7, 2019 at 10pm and January 8-12, 8pm. Tickets for the performance start at $25 and may be purchased at 212 924 0077 or online at newyorklivearts.

Ferver "reaches a more vulnerable state, throwing into relief the human need for friends and heroes, real and imagined" says The New York Times. With a void of queer content and a longing for role models in his childhood, Ferver frequently followed women fighting against their systemic oppression to negotiate his own personal crises. Asking his performers about their childhood role models, Ferver created and choreographed unique solos for each dancer in Everything Is Imaginable addressing ideas of genre, sexuality, success, friendship, and loss. His visionary direction blurs boundaries between fantastic theatrics and stark naturalism, character and self, humor and horror.

American Realness returns to New York celebrating its 10 year anniversary January 4-13, 2019. Realized in collaboration with institutions throughout Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, the 2019 festival will present World, U.S. and New York Premieres as well as encore engagements of celebrated works.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Jack Ferver is a New York based writer, choreographer, and director. His works have been presented in New York City at the New Museum; The Kitchen; The French Institute Alliance Française, as part of Crossing the Line; Abrons Arts Center; Gibney Dance; Performance Space 122; the Museum of Arts and Design, as part of Performa 11; Danspace Project; and Dixon Place. Domestically and internationally, Ferver has been presented by the Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College (NY); American Dance Institute (MD); Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (IL); Portland Institute of Contemporary Art (OR); the Institute of Contemporary Art at MECA (ME); the Institute of Contemporary Art (MA); Diverse Works in collaboration with the Contemporary Arts Museum of Houston (TX); and Théâtre de Vanves (France).

Ferver has received residencies and fellowships from the Maggie Allesee National Center of Choreography at Florida State (2012); Baryshnikov Arts Center (2013); the Watermill Center (2014); the Institute of Contemporary Art at Maine College of Art (2014); Live Arts Bard, the commissioning and residency program of The Richard B. Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Bard College (2014); and Abrons Art Center (2014-2015). He is a 2016 recipient of the Foundation for Contemporary Arts Grant. Ferver teaches at Bard College and is guest faculty at NYU. He has also taught at SUNY Purchase and has set choreography at The Juilliard School. As an actor he has appeared in numerous films and television series.

REID BARTELME began his professional life as a dancer. He worked for ballet companies throughout North America and Canada and later in his career for modern dance companies in New York including Shen Wei Dance Arts and the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company. He frequently works with Jack Ferver and has also danced for Liz Santoro, Burr Johnson, Douglas Dunn, Christopher Williams, Ryan McNamara, and Kyle Abraham. He graduated from the fashion design program at the Fashion Institute of Technology and works as a freelance costume designer. Bartelme has designed costumes most notably for Christopher Wheeldon, Lar Lubovitch, Pam Tanowitz, Trey McIntyre, Jack Ferver, and Liz Santoro.

Lloyd Knight was born in England and reared in Miami. Knight joined the Martha Graham Company in 2005, was promoted to soloist in 2009, and became a principal dancer in 2014. He has performed works choreographed by Nacho Duato, Andonis Foniadakis, Larry Keigwin, Doug Varone, Lar Lubovitch, Kyle Abraham, Liz Gerring, Michelle Dorrance, Anne Bogart, Pontus Linberg, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, and Mats Ek. He partnered the Graham duets "Moon Duet" and "Letter to the World" with New York City Ballet Principal Wendy Whelan and American Ballet Theatre Principal Misty Copeland, respectively. Knight holds a BFA from the New World School of the Arts. As a recipient of scholarships, he continued his training at the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance, Dance Theatre of Harlem School, and The Ailey School. Dance Magazine named Mr. Knight as one of the "Top 25 Dancers to Watch" in 2010 and named him Best Performer of 2015.

Garen Scribner is an independent performing artist based in New York City. He starred as Jerry Mulligan in the Broadway and National Tour productions of An American in Paris. As a soloist with San Francisco Ballet and later with Nederlands Dans Theater I, he created and performed leading roles in works by Jiri Kylian, Lightfoot/Leon, Alexander Ekman, Marco Goecke, Christopher Wheeldon, William Forsythe, Wayne McGregor, Jorma Elo, Mark Morris, John Neumeier, Hans van Manen, and George Balanchine. He has toured extensively and performed and taught at engagements throughout the U.S., Europe, Asia, and Africa. Commercially, he has appeared with Deborah Cox, Les Twins, Santana, Michelle Branch, and Jennifer Lopez. Scribner has received awards from the NFAA and the Isadora Duncan Dance Awards. He is a co-founder of Dance For a Reason (danceFAR.org), which has produced its five annual benefit performances in San Francisco for the Cancer Prevention Institute of CA, raising over $500,000 for the organization since 2012.

James Whiteside was born in Fairfield, Connecticut. Whiteside is a principal dancer with American Ballet Theatre. He joined ABT in 2012 as a soloist and was promoted to a principal one season later. Prior to ABT, he danced with Boston Ballet from 2002 - 2009, moving from apprentice to principal over the 10 year tenure. Throughout his professional career, he has performed the works of Balanchine, Cranko, Kylian, Macmillan, Ratmansky, Tudor, and Tharp, originating roles in Ratmansky's latest ballet, "Serenade After Plato's Symposium," and "Chamber Symphony" for American Ballet Theatre. Whiteside's dance training began at age nine studying jazz at the D'Valda & Sirico Dance Centre and, later, ballet training at the Virginia School of the Arts. James Whiteside is also known for his theatrical personas JbDubs, pop-dance artist, and Ühu Betch, part of the hilarious drag posse The Dairy Queens.

Jeremy Jacob is an American artist known for his work exploring the nature of desire and its political effects. He currently lives and works in New York City as a production designer, art director, prop stylist, scenic and sound designer, and studio artist.

REID & HARRIET DESIGN was founded in the Fall of 2011. Bartelme and Harriet Jung were classmates in the fashion design program at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Collaboratively, they have designed costumes for Jack Ferver, Justin Peck, Pontus Lidberg, Marcelo Gomes, Pam Tanowitz, Emery Lecrone, Kyle Abraham, Mauro Bigonzetti, and Doug Varone. They have costumed productions at American Ballet Theater, New York City Ballet, Miami City Ballet, and Pacific Northwest Ballet. Along with Justin Peck, they are featured in the documentary Ballet 422 which premiered at the 2014 TriBeCa Film Festival.

Photo by M. Sharkey