October 25-November 18: NYBDC in Residence at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York

Performances and Outreach
 

I.  Introduction to 18th Century Dance

Community School of Music and Art on 330 East State Street in downtown Ithaca.  Free and open to the public.

Caroline Copeland and Sarah Edgar of The New York Baroque Dance Company will be teaching a survey class on Baroque dance forms as seen in the dance suites of Bach and Handel.  Students will learn steps and dance phrases to a minuet, bouree and sarabande.  No previous dance experience is necessary, just a willingness to learn! (Please wear exercise clothes and flexible shoes.) 

These dances were published in a notation system developed by the dancing masters of King Louis XIV of France. At this time, the same dance steps were used in the ballroom and on the stage which is why it is possible to teach an introductory class to dancers and non-dancers alike. Members of the New York Baroque Dance Company, internationally recognized for its lively reconstructions and creations of theatrical ballets, will guide the students through the basic steps. 

II.  International Country Dances of the 18th Century at Robert Purcell Room, North Campus taught by Sarah Edgar.  Free and open to the public.

Dances:

         England: The Female Saylor
         Germany: La Palatine Contredanse
         America: The Lads of Dunce

Sarah Edgar, soloist with The New York Baroque Dance Company, will begin the class with teaching  country dance steps of the period and honors used in Europe and in the colonies. She will also give a brief introduction to reading the shorthand notation system used for country dancing at that time.

This evening promises to be unique with dances from period sources such as Captain George Bush's Notebook (recently published by Hendrickson and Keller), For the Further Improvement of Dancing published in London, 1710 and an unpublished notation from Germany acquired through friends.

No prior experience with historical dance is necessary.  Looking forward to seeing you there!

Catherine Turocy and members of The New York Baroque Dance Company will give a rare backstage look into recreating comic dances of the 18^th century.

IV.  Harlequin’s Capers:  Performance at Bailey Hall

Harlequin’s Capers brings the dancing commedia dell are to life and features the NYBDC’s  premiere of Pygmalion, a comic ballet with music  composed by Jean Joseph Mouret, first produced in Paris in 1734.

Presented by The New York Baroque Dance Company, Catherine Turocy director, with NYS Baroque, Heather Miller Lardin, director. 

Opera/ballet with Ryan Brown and Opera Lafayette Orchestra and Chorus: Zelindor, Roi des Sylphes, premiered at Versailles in 1745. Composed by Francois Rebel and Francois Francoeur, this beautiful opera-ballet casts an enchanting spell. The action revolves around Zelindor  who employs all his powers and that of his magical adviser, Zulim, to convince the mortal, Zirphe of his undying love. Supported by dancing sylphs, gnomes and salamanders weaving a mystical enchantment, the courtship ascends to another level in the midst of beautiful sung airs, choruses and dance music.  This semi-staged concert is the modern premiere of this work. There is only one performance in Strathmore and one in NYC, so please buy your tickets well in advance.    This is also the NYC debut performance for the period instrument orchestra, Opera Lafayette, Ryan Brown, Conductor and Artistic Director.

This performance of The New York Baroque Dance Company is supported by USArtists International, a program of The National Endowment for the Arts and managed by Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation.  (www.midatlanticarts.org) Additional funding is provided by The Andrew Mellon Foundation and the Rockefeller Brothers Fund.

Want to just get started (or ease back into) Historical Dance? 

Would you like to explore the dances of William Shakespeare and Jane Austen? Dance teachers to semi-professional actors, instrumentalists, singers and dancers; students and Living History buffs, join us for our Weekend Intensive, July 21-22.

Or...are you looking for a more in-depth understanding of the material?  Join us for our 5 day Professional Studies Workshop, July 23-27.  Specifically for dance professionals, grad and undergrad university students, actors, singers, and directors.  Contacts resulting in future collaborations could be established--enriching everyone's experience!  Discover 16th-18th century European Court and Grotesque dance.

Or...do both the Weekend Intensive and the Professional Studies Workshop for an immersion into the treasures of the past.  The two-level option (beginning/intermediate or advanced class levels) provides for flexibility and makes it easier for everyone to get maximum benefit.  In sessions designated for both groups there will be "tutors" assigned to work with people who are less experienced.

For more information visit our Classes page.

Opera Lafayette Armide by Jean Baptiste Lully at the University of Maryland at College Park
www.operalafayette.org