Choreographer Alexandra Beller, whose milkdreams was seen as part of La MaMa Moves! in 2015, is choreographing Assembled Identity by Purva Bedi, Kristin Marting, and Mariana Newhard now playing at HERE through May 19, 2018. Assembled Identity is about twin sisters who discover they are actually clones. The piece uses original and found text, live cinematography, and contemporary music, and delves into racial ambiguity, the science of identity formation, and questions who has the authority to define it.
For tickets and info about Assembled Identity: CLICK HERE
The 53rd season has come to an end at La MaMa after another wonderful year featuring dozens of different artists performing in 80+ productions and working in our art spaces on the Lower East Side! There is no better time to reflect on our mission dedicated to the artists and all aspects of the theatre. Ever since Ellen Stewart founded La MaMa in 1961, our interest has been in the people who make art, and it is to them that we give our support with free theater and rehearsal space, lights, sound, props, platforms, and whatever else we have that they can use to create their work.
We want them to feel free to explore their ideas, and translate them into a theatrical language that can communicate to any person in any part of the world. Here are some thoughtful quotes from old friends and new artists who spent time at La MaMa this season about what brought them to La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club and why they keep coming back:
"La MaMa has always been an artistic home for me."
"La MaMa is home. I have been in two plays here, and I wrote and directed a circus at the Café years ago. It’s a place where my work is welcomed and supported, and where the community of fellow artists is rich and diverse."
"I have never experienced anything quite as magical as living and collaborating with Ellen. When she smiled, the whole world lit up. I can feel her smile in rehearsal."
"I can tell you exactly what the dressing room smells like in the Ellen Stewart Theater with the same detail that I can tell you what the kitchen in my childhood home smells like, if that’s any indicator as to how vivid and loved La Mama is in my memory."
"I feel lucky to have the opportunity to perform and develop in such a nurturing environment. I will keep coming back, sniffing out all your squirreled pianos, as long as y'all will have me."
"Ever since I was a drama student at NYU, La MaMa, and The Public Theater, have always, and continue to be, definitive hubs for cutting edge, innovative theatre, and we're proud to be a part of that tradition."
"For me, working at La MaMa means having a home to pursue my creative work to its fullest potential. It also means having an artistic family and being directly connected to an amazing culture and community."
"To have this work, which is so important to me, at la MaMa, which has been on an altar of creativity for such a long time, is empowering and inspiring. La MaMa, for me, represents exactly what this work is attempting: to build on history while constantly seeking a new way to communicate, to bridge relationships, to foster a future."
"Having known both Ellen Stewart and Mia Yoo, I can say that they both radiate this same quality, a sort of ethic of being welcoming and nurturing, of hearing you, and supporting you, not just materially but morally."
"What I love most about La MaMa is the lack of fear in the shows they choose to present, with a look towards risk and beauty and vital things that need to be said."
"Working at La MaMa means performing in a space I have been thinking about since I was a teenager in Virginia, imagining the magical world of experimental New York theater. And in a space where I have seen work that defined my idea of what performance could and should be. We are so honored to be here."
La MaMa Moves! 2015 may have ended, but the press keeps coming. Maura Donohue talked to Alexandra Beller about milkdreams which played The Ellen Stewart Theatre from June 11th through the 21st, 2015:
"I knew pretty early on that, done well, the work could offer a sense of transcending traditional time and space values. I always felt extremely blessed out, as if my nervous system had been reset, after watching a run. I was aware that I was asking people to view with fewer expectations, and to slow down some of their habitual ways of responding and defining what they see. Part of my goal was to create a environment in which people could really SEE the miracle of the body as it is, as we all are, rather than the pyrotechnics of what a few of us can do."
Alexandra Beller spoke with Erin Carlisle Norton, Artistic Director of the NYC-based contemporary dance company The Moving Architects for her "Movers and Shapers" semimonthly podcast. Beller talks about her childhood, career and the making of milkdreams! To download and listen: CLICK HERE
La MaMa presents milkdreams by Alexandra Beller/Dances part of La MaMa Moves! 2015 Dance Festival June 11 - 21, 2015 Thursday - Saturday at 8pm; Sunday at 4pm The Ellen Stewart Theatre 66 East 4th Street (between Bowery and Second Avenue) New York, NY 10003 Tickets: $25 adults; $20 students/seniors; ten tickets priced at $10 each are available for every performance - pre- sale only! 10@$10 Tickets are SOLD OUT for the run. Regular priced tickets still available. For Tickets & Info: CLICK HERE
La MaMa presents milkdreams by Alexandra Beller/Dances part of La MaMa Moves! 2015 Dance Festival June 11 - 21, 2015 Thursday - Saturday at 8pm; Sunday at 4pm The Ellen Stewart Theatre 66 East 4th Street (between Bowery and Second Avenue) New York, NY 10003 Tickets: $25 adults; $20 students/seniors; ten tickets priced at $10 each are available for every performance - pre- sale only! For Tickets & Info: CLICK HERE
Alexandra Beller is coming to LaMaMa next week for the world premiere of milkdreams as a part of La MaMa Moves! Dance Festival!
milkdreamsstrips the performers of their veneers of ego, agenda, and shame, laying bare their need, their contentment, and the authenticity of their present moment. Both the process of creating the work, and the work itself, attempt to sift from the body the habits, inhibitions, and presentations of the trained dancer, and to recover a physicality motivated entirely by sensation, desire, joy, curiosity, and, ultimately, love.
The performance was inspired by a rehearsal with Alexandra's 14 month old baby, Ivo, who turned out to be a great improviser! The video of the rehearsal went viral on social media with over 1 billion views. The buzz garnered international interviews for Alexandra, her dancers, and her baby and inspired two international documentary films.
Watch the video:
"I think many of us spend a good part of our lives searching for meaning. Some of us turn to religion, or science, some to parenthood, or yoga. I turned to Art. I searched for meaning in art for a long time, and I found it, but I also felt frustrated by the process of trying to connect to something larger than myself through something so self-involved. Then I had kids, and in watching them, I felt like I understood something about what exists beyond what we know, or think we know, something about what binds us, and something about desire. I started to learn the dances of my children, in the hope that it would bring me closer to what it feels like to be a human with no stories, no critiques, no formulas, no delusions, no denials, no successes or failures, no ego.
The result is a new evening-length work for four remarkable dancers called milkdreams."
- Alexandra Beller
The cast of milkdreams became nostalgic during the evolution of the performance and have offered up their own baby photos and childhood memories to share with audiences:
Alexandra Beller
"I was very fierce about my stuffed animals. They were absolutely REAL to me. I used to put their mouths to my ear and I really believed I knew what they were saying. As an only child, I had a good deal of time to myself, and I enjoyed long conversations with each of them. They had distinct personalities (based on appearance, I am sure), and I had specific relationships with them. One I would go to with problems. One I would go to when I wanted to sing a song. One was for gossip.
One day, a "friend" (pretty mean girl, though) came over and told me that my animals were saying bad things about me. I grabbed them and talked to them and explained to her that she'd misunderstood them. "No," she said, "I can hear them right now, yelling about how much they don't like you. I kicked her out of my house on the spot. That was the end of our friendship. Nobody tells me my imagination is hearing things wrong."
Simon Thomas - Train
"I grew up in the mountains. Rivers and streams everywhere. In the summer we used to play a game called "river walking" at some of our favorite swimming holes. To river walk one grabs hold of a large stone, almost too heavy to lift, and then walks from the shore into the river. The weight of the stone holds you to the bottom so you can walk along and not float up. Sometimes we made it a competition to see who could go farthest or hold their breath longest. But the best times were when I would go by myself and it wasn't a race and you could just be calm and still at the bottom of the river with your toes in the sand, looking up through the water at the world above, so easily turned on its head."
SIMON began dancing at Middlebury College, transitioning from an extensive background in competitive cross country skiing to graduate with a BA in Dance and Architectural Studies in 2009. Since then he has had the pleasure of working with Tiffany Rhynard/Big Action Performance Ensemble, Satya Roosens, Attack Theatre, Alexandra Beller/Dances, Megan Bascom and Dancers, Tiffany Mills and Company, Rosie Herrera Dance Theater, Red Dirt Dance, band|Portier, David Dorfman Dance, Pavel Zustiak|palissimo and most recently with the 2013 Bessie-winning "Then She Fell" by Third Rail Projects. He is the co-founder of The Space We Make.
Lea Fulton
"I picked up the Korean national anthem and could sing it pretty well while I was there. Seoul locals thought it was pretty funny to see a blond kiddo in traditional Korean dress."
LEA is a performance artist from San Diego, CA, now based in Brooklyn. She is a collaborator in The Space We Make, a performance collective of musicians and dancers who perform immersive work in non-traditional spaces. She is also a member of MotleyDance. She has worked with Faye Driscoll, Christine Suarez, Deborah Karp, and Laura Peterson. She creates her own work under the name The Motor Room and can be found studying Body-Mind Centering and Movement Therapy with an emphasis in Trauma Studies with Martha Eddy of the Center for Kinesthetic Education. She is excited to be working on her third experiment with Alexandra Beller/Dances.
Edward Rice
"One of my earliest memories is from when I was 4 years old. My family and I were on a vacation in Hawaii. We have many amazing pictures from that trip, but the only memory I have is of taking the flower leis we got as we left the plane into the the refrigerator at our hotel room. I just think it is hilarious that four year old me was so struck by that moment."
EDWARD, originally from Chicago holds a B.S. and an M.F.A in Dance Performance from Illinois State University and the University of Iowa, respectively. In 2012 he started working with Third Rail Projects on the critically acclaimed and 2013 Bessie Award winning Then She Fell. He has performed with Jennifer Kayle + Company, The Brian Brooks Moving Company, Stone Depot Dance Lab, Jody Oberfelder Dance Projects, Amber Sloan, Elizabeth Dishman, Laura Peterson Choreography, Benn Rasmussen's Ardent August, Christopher Williams (Wolf-in-Skins), Heidi Henderson's Elephant Jane, Alexandra Beller/Dances, and Punchdrunk's Sleep No More, NYC. Currently he is a Producer of ROVE and is the Business Manager for Third Rail Projects.
Carly Berrett Plagianakos
"My mother shared her love of dance, nature, and magic with me from a very early age. One night when I was very young, I had been outside and was enchanted by a full moon. I ran into my house to find my mother. I said, "Mom come outside. Come watch me dance to the light of the moon!" My mother patiently obeyed my request and watched my little body try to capture the magic of the moon!"
CARLYis a performer, writer, and multi media dance-maker. She hails from Salt Lake City, Utah and holds an MFA from the University of Utah and a BA from Brigham Young University. The insatiable urge to perform carried Carly to New York City, where she has experienced magic, heartache, and transformation through the art forms of dance and theater. Carly currently performs two leading roles in the Bessie Award-Winning interactive dance theater work “Then She Fell,” by Third Rail Projects. She also performs as a company member in Alexandra Beller/Dances. Carly has created dance film works independently and for various New York City Dance and Theater Companies. She has had the pleasure of working with Gesel Mason, Doug Varone, Ching-I Chang, Alex|Xan: The Median Movement, Nico-Li, Stephen Koester, Paul Matteson, Jen Nugent, and Bill Evans. Carly has been a master teaching artist at Dance New Amsterdam, Gibney Dance 280, 92Y, University of Albany, University of Colorado, University of Maryland, and St. Olaf College. She was an assistant professor at the University of Utah Department of Modern Dance from 2007-2009. Carly also freelances as a grant writer for various art, education and dance non-profits in New York City and Brooklyn.
La MaMa Presents
milkdreams
Alexandra Beller/Dances
A World Premiere/Part of La MaMa Moves! Dance Festival
June 11 - June 21, 2015
Thursday-Saturday at 8pm, Sunday at 4pm
Ellen Stewart Theatre
66 East 4th Street
New York, NY 10003
Tickets: $25 Adults; $20 Students/Seniors; ten tickets prices at $10 each available for every performance, pre-sale only - first come first served.
