Pentacle


R E P E R T O R Y

		The Radio Show Kyle Abraham delves into identity and personal history in The Radio Show. Creating an abstract narrative around the loss of communication, he investigates the effects of the abrupt discontinuation of a radio station on a community and the lingering effects of Alzheimer’s and aphasia on a family. Abraham mixes a score with recordings of classic soul and hip-hop with contemporary classical compositions by Ryoji Ikeda and Alva Noto.

		A Ramp to Paradise Choreographed by Kyle Abraham/Abraham.In.Motion and commissioned by Thelma Hill Performing Arts Center. This piece is inspired by a short story by its Executive Chairman, Alex Smith. It chronicles the life and times of the predominantly black gay underground club, Paradise Garage, which was the mecca of the famed New York City 70s and 80s dance scene. This cast also includes special guest artist, Wendell Cooper.

		OP.1 Inspired by the work of photographer, Eadweard Muybridge, Op.1 is a short ensemble work created with visual artist, Carrie Schneider and lighting designer, Dan Scully that reinterprets Muybrudge’s motion studies within a stripped physical exploration.

I N D E V E L O P M E N T

		LIVE! The Realest MC Live! The Realest MC, is a new ensemble dance work inspired by the duality of Pinocchio’s plight to be a “real boy,” the piece investigates gender roles in the black community and societal perspectives on the quest for acceptance in the world of hip hop celebrity.Simultaneously, Abraham reflects on our current “emoticon culture.” How do we capture moments in our lives? Where have feelings gone? Are we becoming machines? Why is it that in our moments of deepest despair, we update our Facebook status? (Let me “tag” you and get back to you on that.) Live!references the fading of our own humanity through an abstracted and humorously dark narrative that sets the characters of Pinocchio in an industrial dystopia.The piece will premiere at The Kitchen in NYC December 7-10, 2011.This project is supported by The MAP Fund, which is generously supported by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

		Boyz n the Hood (working title) NDP touring support available for 12/13 “Men call the shadow prejudice, and learnedly explain it as a natural defense of culture against barbarism, learning against ignorance, purity against crime, the ‘higher’ against the ‘lower’ races.” – W.E.B Du BoisIn 1991, Kyle was fourteen and entering the ninth grade at Schenley High School in the historic Hill District of Pittsburgh. Enrolled in this new school, he was reminded once again that, albeit black and from the same neighborhood as a lot of his classmates, he was different…called a host of names and epithets that picked apart everything from the tone of his voice to the lack of swagger in his walk.That same year, John Singleton’s film, Boyz N The Hood was released.Boyz N The Hood, now housed in the National Film Registry, depicted an idealized “gangsta Boheme” laying aim to the state of the Black American male at the end of the 20th century.Twenty years later and more than ten years into the 21st century, Kyle is focused on investigating the state of Black America and a history therein.Boyz N The Hood, reimagined as a dance work and now set in Pittsburgh’s historically black neighborhoods, Homewood and the Hill District, pays comedic homage to the bold Kris Kross/backward jean and high top fade era in Hip-Hop, while creating a strong emotional chronology of a culture conflicted with a history plagued by discrimination, genocide, and a constant quest for a lottery ticket weighted in freedom. These neighborhoods hold so much historical relevance in the context of a sociopolitical climate. As two rivaling neighborhoods, their histories run parallel. Both experienced a cultural shift in the 1950’s when jazz legends like Ella Fitzgerald and Duke Ellington performed at local theaters and Billy Strayhorn spent most of his teenage years. Over a century later, those same theaters are now dilapidated. And the streets that once strived on family run businesses and a thriving jazz scene now show the sad effects of gang violence and crack cocaine.This history serves as a major sense of fuel to inspire all collaborators on this project ranging from facilitator and visual artist, Maritza Mosquera, director and dramaturge, Charlotte Brathwaite, Carrie Schneider (visual artist), Herman “soy sos” Pearl (Sound designer and Composer), Kristi Wood (Costume Design), Dan Scully (Lighting and Video Design) and a cast of dance artists that includes Rena Butler, Elyse Morris, Chalvar Monteiro, Jeremy Nedd, Christopher Nolen, Amber Lee Parker, Rachelle Rafailedes and Hsiao-Jou Tang on a year long explorative creative process. Boyz n the Hood has received a National Dance Project Production grant. The piece will tour in the 12/13 season.

W O R K S H O P S

		Technique Classes Classes taught by A.I.M emphasize four specific core values: exploration, musicality, abandonment, and intuition. The opening warm-up sequence focuses on the fluidity of the spine, articulation, and core body strengthening and then builds up to challenging, creative and invigorating phrase work. Students experience a personalized post-modern movement vocabulary full of intricate gestures and fearless floor work. Lecture Demonstration A.I.M’s Lecture Demonstrations are hands on, active, informative and most of all fun. Company members demonstrate the explorative creative process of our current repertory by sharing intricacies and foundations of our movement vocabulary and it’s end result. Creative Dance Creation Workshop A.I.M Creative Dance Creation Workshop is a guided process that allows students to create work within an encouraging, secure, and motivational environment. In the workshop participants will develop material in class, and will receive feedback from the Company.

		Dance as Identity Ownership Dance as Identity is a new initiative from A.I.M and an important work. The focus of this workshop is to present students/dancers with an opportunity to use dance as a platform for generating and exploring dialogue and movement dialogue about gender and sexuality. Conversations sway between the social and political, stereotypical and biased, and that which is private and present. Humanities, literature, media, film and history, cultural theory, visual art and philosophy all play a role in our discourse and the most compelling project is considering these culturally identifying relationships with movement. This workshop is first and foremost safe and educational. It goes without saying that a vow of confidentiality must be understood and taken seriously.

PHOTOS:Steven Schreiber