KST’s photostream
Kelly Strayhorn Theater’s photostream on Flickr.
Lots of great photos of KST friends and the East Liberty community celebrating MLK Day!
KST Blog
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Staycee Pearl dance project is looking for dancers!
SPdp is looking for Dancers!
Audition
Sunday December 4
Registration: 3:00PM
Audition: 3:30 PM to 6:00 PM
Dance Alloy Theater
SPdp is looking for mature dancers who are trained in modern, ballet, and contemporary techniques. Dancers must be 18 or older.
Auditioning dancers bring resume and headshot.
Please be ready to dance. Studio will be open at 3:00PM for dancers to warm up.
Staycee Pearl dance project is looking for dancers to perform in upcoming works, as well as dancers to fill Apprenticeship positions. Apprenticeship responsibilities include 3 rehearsals a week, 2 classes a week, and participating in lecture demonstration during the Spring through Fall 2012. Also apprentices will be given a chance present original work at SPDP hosted showing. Part-time dancers will receive pay and apprentices will receive a stipend.
Staycee Pearls dance project formed in October of 2009,STAYCEE PEARL dance project (SPdp) exists to interpret and mirror culture and community, while experimenting with innovative conceptual possibilities. SPdp intends to participate in meaningful collaboration with artists, musicians, choreographers, educators and activist, and serve as the movement component to PearlArts: movement and sound, cofounded by Staycee Pearl and sound designer/engineer/DJ, Herman “Soy Sos” Pearl. Staycee and dancers have participated in several community events since inception, and the company’s first concert, PUPA, was presented as a part of the Kelly-Strayhorn’s Creative Community Artist Residency Program in July of 2010. SPdp is now honored to serve as the theater’s resident dance company. For more information about SPdp go to http://www.staycee.com.
Out of town dancers can send resume, a digital photograph of themselves, and a short video clip of themselves dancing to staycee@staycee.com
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Call for Vendors – KST Holiday Bazaar
CALL FOR VENDORS
To sell handmade wares during KST Holiday Bazaar with FashionAFRICANA presented by the Kelly Strayhorn Theater on Saturday, December 10th 2011.
Whether you are starting or finishing your holiday shopping, the KST Holiday Bazaar on December 10 from 11AM-5PM is the perfect opportunity to reward family, friends and co-workers who have been nice this year. Visitors are invited to shop handmade items by local artisans, satisfy their sweet tooth with baked goods and treats, and tap into their creative side with art for all tastes. The second annual Holiday Bazaar features independent artisans selling unique crafts and goods.
APPLICATION PROCESS and ENTRY FORM
• Submit the attached application form by Friday, November 18, 2011. If selected, you will be notified by Wednesday, November 23. A $25 vendor fee is due upon arrival.
• You are responsible for supplying goods.
• We supply tables, linens, and chairs. -
Behind the Scene with Kyle Abraham
KST spoke to Kyle Abraham of Abraham.In.Motion about his upcoming performance “Live! The Realest MC“, inspired by Pinocchio’s plight to be a “real boy,” Live follows one MC on his journey to be “real,” raising many questions along the way. With a backdrop of hip-hop celebrity, this darkly humorous and abstract narrative explores gender roles in the black community, societal perspectives on acceptance, and leads us to question the current state of our humanity – our very human “realness”.
KST: How long have you been working on Live! The Realest MC?
KA: I’ve been working on it for just about a year and a half.
KST: What is the length of the performance?
KA: The length right now is just under an hour, depending on the intermission
KST: Are you working with any other artists/collaborators?
KA: I’m working with Carrie Schneider. We met while working together at the Warhol Museum. Carrie is working on video aspects of the performance. And Dan Scully, who worked with me on The Radio Show, is working on lighting.
(Carrie is currently showing in the 2011 Pittsburgh Biennial at the Warhol Museum)
http://biennial.pittsburgharts.org/?p=116
KST: How does this piece vary from other works you’ve made?
KA: In my mind it’s more aggressive and coming from an angrier and darker place. This piece takes me back to High School and how my mannerisms changed depending on situations. There were times on the bus where I felt like I didn’t want to draw attention to myself; I would talk deeper, walk differently to fit in. This made me think about the Pinocchio Story and becoming a “real boy” and what that means.
KST: We’ve had a lot of questions about this performance being appropriate for children because of the Pinocchio Story. Is it based on the Pinocchio Story and is it appropriate for kids?
KA: The Pinocchio story is just a “jumping off point,” it was my inspiration. I was inspired by the movement in the film, specifically some of the robotic movements. Some of the material is not appropriate for young children but it should be okay for high school students.
Kyle Abraham performs “Live! The Realest MC” on November 18 &19 at 8pm.
TICKETS | $20 Advance | $25 Door | $15 Zip Code 15206 | $10 Artists & Students
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Things Get Disorderly with Baker & Tarpaga
KST spoke with Esther Baker Tarpaga of the Baker & Tarpaga Dance Project about their upcoming performance “Disorder Inside Order”, a striking and emotional performance based on the events that transpired after the 1998 assassination of Burkinabe journalist, Norbert Zongo.
KST: What inspired you to create this performance?
EBT: My husband, Olivier Tarpaga, is from Burkina Faso and he grew up knowing this story.
The journalist Norbert Zongo was murdered because he spoke out against the government. I’m an American woman but I’m still very interested in African music and giving voices to those who are oppressed throughout the world. That’s an impetus behind why we wanted to tell this story.
KST: How long have you been working on this piece?
EBT: We worked on it in LA for a year in 2009-2010, including research. We’re revisiting it now with a new cast—some new cast members, some old.
KST: Are you using any music, props, set pieces, or special lighting and if so how will it enhance this work?
EBT: We’re using the djembe (West African percussion), kora (string instrument), guitar, singing. The cast also sings. It’s actually more like chanting or “demonstration-based singing.” As far as visuals, we’ll use newspapers, which go with the context of being a journalist. There’s really not a set besides these newspapers and some abstract images of the people and the writing, kind of like the “writing on the wall.”
KST: What do you want or think the audience will gain from this performance?
ET: I think they’ll gain some understanding of a history, of a cultural context, of socially relevant choreography, and of artists who are working in a socially relevant context. It’s not just art for art’s sake, but rather the importance of music and dance in the African arts context and how they’re linked. It’s about communicating a message, not the color of your skin. Our cast is multi-racial. You can be from anywhere in the world and still learn other cultures’ dances.
KST: How does this piece vary from others you’ve worked on?
ET: In a lot of our work, there are themes of love, violence, and immigration. And other works might address more the immigrant’s life in coming or the journey and hardship, the suffering and the joy. Some of them are more abstract, like Glass Undone. We try to have live music for most of our works. I think that we make socially relevant choreography that addresses certain issues that we’re concerned about and that contemporary society is concerned about. For example, race, migration, love, violence and some darker themes, like themes of struggle and social justice.
KST: If you had unlimited time and resources what would you choose to create and perform, and why?
ET: I think we would work with a larger cast of performers and have people paid more! I’ve had experiences when groups of collaborators gather together and just feed off of each other ideas, which I liked. Additionally, I’d like to create other touring exchanges for emerging artists or small organizations.
Baker & Tarpaga performs “Disorder Inside Order” on July 15 at 1:30PM & 8PM.
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Maria Caruso Gets Sentimental
KST spoke with artist Maria Caruso about her upcoming work “Sectional Sentiments” an exploration of the everyday sentiments that are exchanged on a couch.
KST: What inspired you to create this performance?
MC: Alexa Raquel’s music. I talked with her about doing a full length work to her album. The work is very dance related and theatrical, it stay true to the essence of the album – its sequential work to Alexa’s work. The couch is one of the only pieces of furniture you see so many exchanges between bodies and the exchanges are happening at gathering or party. The physical dialogue is happening during periods of time during gathering. Essentially this performance is extracting reality and taking it to the stage.
KST: How long have you been working on this piece?
MC: Since November 2010 and then it was work shopped in June 2011. All work is done at Bodiography studio in Squirrel Hill.
KST: Are you using any music, props, set pieces, or special lighting and if so how will it enhance this work?
MC: Just a sectional couch.
KST: Where did the inspiration for the title come from and why is it significant?
MC: I grew up always having a sectional couch. A couch and love seat are coordinated so they connect at corner and there are so many sentiments that happen on a couch. It’s a celebration of human beings.
KST: How does this piece vary from others you’ve worked on?
MC: My choreography is extremely dense. I create a gestural component extenuated by dance vocabulary. Don’t envision a lot of dance vocabulary for this piece it’s really about how our natural movement can come together.
KST: What do you want or think the audience will gain from this performance?
MC: I think they’ll feel like they’ve been there before and they’ll leave feeling like someone understands them. It’s really about identifying with the human condition via the celebration of experience and gesture.
Maria Caruso performs “Sectional Sentiments” on August 19 at 8PM.
TICKETS | Pay What You Can!
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ELCO Remixes the Classical Genre
KST spoke Heidi Baldt Matthews of the musical group Eclectic Laboratory Chambers Orchestra (ELCO) about their upcoming performance “Remix” a fusion of classical training and modern- technology, Remix incorporates electronics and technology to the remove the barriers of genre and expand the repertoire of modern and classical music. KST: What inspired you to create this performance?
HBM: I came home from work some day and David [Matthews] had a 5 page proposal of a group he wanted to start. The proposal grew to become ELCO, a group which removes the idea of genre in music. We present good music as good music and enjoy the intrinsic artistic value of music.
KST: How long have you been ELCO?
HM: David came up with the proposal in the spring of 2008. We posted a call for musicians and had an overwhelming response. Now, we have a core group of 15 and continue to grow with inquiries from musicians who attend our performances. We performed our first concert in 2008.
KST: What do you want or think the audience will gain from this performance?
HM: Some programs are intentionally challenging like a program we presented with the music of John Cage. This concert will incorporate electronic technology and the work of a DJ. An audience member once told me, “I understand why it’s important and why you’re doing it but I don’t like it”. We try to take things that are new and unfamiliar or old and unfamiliar and present them to an audience so they can enjoy or appreciate.
KST: Are you using any music, props, set pieces, or special lighting and if so how will it enhance this work?
HM: We typically have not had enough space to have a set, but we’ve worked with art students in the past who made that possible. We’re excited to work in this space with a VJ or DJ.
KST: Where did the inspiration for the title come from and why is it significant?
HM: We are interested in incorporating the use of technology and electronics. With such a large group wandering from place to place we’re really interested in incorporating electronics. We present work in a new fashion like a remix on its own.
KST: How does this piece vary from others you’ve worked on?
HM: The key component is the technology. We’d also like to work with dancers which we’ve done in the past but not as extensively.
KST: Why is this particular performance relevant?
HM: We’re an orchestra that’s able to work with new technology, there are no barriers.
KST: What inspired you to pursue this genre of performing arts?
HM: We felt it wasn’t being done in the area. David wanted me to start a theater company but I felt there was something else to be done. We simply took pieces from what our community was already doing.
ELCO performs “Remix” on August 5 at 11AM & 8PM.
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Staycee Pearl Gets Down to the B Side
KST spoke with Staycee Pearl of Staycee Pearl dance project (SPdp), about the development of “interim one: b sides”, an evening length performance composed of several short works that re-imagine ideas and from previous SPdp projects and weave in new concepts.
KST: What inspired you to create this performance?SP: I have wanted to return to themes that we worked on in circlePOP and other ideas we haven’t been able to work on. It’s wonderful to delve into material we didn’t get to focus on in larger works. In addition, it’s practical to have shorter pieces. At festivals, we’ll be able to showcase something complete rather than work that has been edited down.
KST: Where did the inspiration for the title come from and why is it significant?
SP: The inspiration for the title “interim one: b sides” comes from our theme of re-working ideas from past performances. This piece is analogous to the b-sides of old records.
KST: How long have you been working on this piece?
SP: We have been working on circlePOP for about a year and Octavia since March. I’m going to start work on the new pieces the beginning of June.
KST: Are you using any music, props, set pieces, or special lighting and if so how will it enhance this work?
SP: We’re going to have live editing and live sound music, but no instruments. I’m still working through the details. My plan is for it to sound really funky!
The set will be very simple, with no props, simple lighting, and no video. We’re going for “Staycee Pearl dance project Unplugged.”
KST: What do you want the audience to gain this performance?
SP: I would really like the audience to understand our artistic process. They’re going to see the outtakes and the previews of our work, in addition to concepts that we’ve never explored before.
KST: Are you working with any other artists/collaborators and if so what is their role in this work?
SP: Nothing has been confirmed, but I hope to collaborate Vanessa German, Gwen Ritchie, and Ayanah Moor.
KST: If you had unlimited time and resources what would you choose to create and perform, and why?
SP: I go into every project with a vision that eventually requires me to make compromises because of financial limitations. So there’s nothing in particular, but our projects would definitely be different.
KST: What inspires you?
SP: My students and broad concepts.
Staycee Pearl dance project performs “interim one: b sides” August 12 at 11AM & 7PM.
TICKETS | $15 General | $10 Artists, Students, & Zip Code 15206
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Zany Umbrella Circus brings Paris to Pittsburgh this July
Even though the inspiration was a book, it’s not text-based at all. We’re using the structure of the Mirette story, but not the words. –Ben Sota
KST spoke with Ben Sota, the founder of Zany Umbrella Circus, about the development of “Mirette’s Circus,” their latest performance piece that shares the story of a young girl in Paris who finds the courage to perform as a tightrope walker.
KST: What inspired you to create this performance?
BS: I had been living in Italy for 2 years, when I was encouraged to create a new work by Summer Stage in New York City. I decided to begin a collaboration between European and American artists. Because of my connections with different performance groups here and abroad, I was kind of a good bridge to make it happen. I began by considering the questions, “What are the performing arts in Europe? What are the performing arts in the US?” It’s really a great challenge to see if artwork inspired by Italy and Berlin can reach Pittsburgh.
KST: How long have you been working on this piece?
BS: We’ve been working on it for about one year. I was performing in Umbria and discovered the book, “Mirette on the High Wire.” A teacher I knew showed it to me because it reminded her of my performances. Then I went to a garage sale in Amman, Jordan and stumbled upon the same book. So then I decided to write to the author, and I became friends with her. She really encouraged me to use her book to create a theater piece, a circus piece, inspired by the book. The author is from Massachusetts and in her seventies. We’re scheduled to perform at MassMOCA in August and she’ll see “Mirette’s Circus” then.
KST: Are you using any music, props, set pieces, or special lighting and if so, how will it enhance this work?
BS: We have two highly-trained circus performers, Erin Carey (Bristol, England) and Rachel Schiffer (Vermont, US). I trained in California for circus, physical theater, and acting. Franz Mestre, from Germany, is our musician. Claudia Schnürer is living in Italy right now, and I developed the partnership with Oko Sokolo through her.
All of our sound will be live, unless we decide to play some of it on a Victrola. We’ll be using the soundscapes of air moving in and out of an accordion, our instruments, our voices, and our breath. Our costumes will hang on clotheslines on the side of stage, and we’re drawing inspiration from La Commedia Dell’Arte and other mask work from Italy.
KST: Are you working with any other artists/collaborators, and if so, what is their role in this work?
BS: Oko Sokolo, a two-member group from Europe, is our main collaborator, and Franz’s group is called Pivot Theater. When the idea came for Zany Umbrella Circus to collaborate with a European country, I decided to work with Oko Sokolo. We met while I was performing; Claudia was a teacher at my school, and I’ve known all of them for two years.
KST: How does this piece vary from others you’ve worked on?
BS: Well, it’s not a play, but it’s also not a circus. It’s going to be an ensemble piece; five people will appear on stage and won’t leave for an hour, which is not normal for a circus. Even though the inspiration was a book, it’s not text-based at all. We’re using the structure of the Mirette story, but not the words. We explore what the descriptions of characters will look like on stage—what does “hyper” look like?
KST: What are the top artists in your playlist?
- The Books
- Balkan Beat Box
- Yann Tiersen
- Teddy Afro, an Ethiopian artist. I fell in love with his music when I was living there.
- Devilish Merry, my mother’s band in Pittsburgh.
- Nausika, musicians and friends from Italy.
Zany Umbrella Circus will perform “Mirette’s Circus” July 7 & 8 at 11AM & 7PM and July 9 at 10:30AM.
TICKETS | $15 Adults | $10 Children
Check out excerpts from “Mirette’s Circus” on June 24th during WYEP’s Summer Bash.
“Mirette’s Circus” is commissioned by SummerStage Kids (NYC) with generous residency support from the Kelly Strayhorn Theater.
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Philly Based Choreographer Keila Cordova Looks Forward to Connecting with Pittsburgh Community
It’s a busy week here at KST, and we’re getting geared up for four days of innovative dance performances. All this week we will be posting interviews and features from behind the scenes at the 2011 newMoves Contemporary Dance Festival.
Emerging Choreographer Keila Cordova spoke briefly with KST about her experience as a dance-maker and about what’s driving her piece, “We Want Something for Everyone.”
Keila Cordova
KST: You’re a choreographer, but you also received your MFA in Creative Writing. Can you talk a little bit about being both a writer and choreographer, and how your work in one affects your work in the other?
KC: I’ve always danced and I’ve always written, so there’s always been this consistent weaving back and forth between the two. One thing that interests me is telling stories, and how that can happen in movement as well as in the written word. If a piece is written, it’s between the reader and the writer, but if it’s a performance, it’s between the viewer and performer. So much of a work is what the audience brings to it, and how they connect to the story and what they see.
The human connection to music was a really big break for dance. For example, if you have a favorite song and you see someone create a performance to it, maybe that’s the song that was playing while you met your husband… that memory affects what you see.
KST: For your piece, “We Want Something From Everyone,” you looked for Pittsburgh community members to join your ensemble. What led you to such a community-based approach?
KC: When you travel around as a performer that focuses mostly on dance-making, often in a more traditional dance context, maybe you do a master class and get to meet a couple local students and that’s it. There’s sometimes not a direct exchange between you and the people you’re performing for.
But dance has a history of being based in an active community. If you look at the formation of dancers in folk cultures, it’s often in the context of people getting together to celebrate a harvest or a birth. It’s about people getting together in movement, you know, in celebrating.
I’m interested in this question of performer and community, and opportunities for people to connect to works in a much more intimate way. There are a lot of layers to the question I’m trying to explore. Even just looking at the role of the performing arts in America right now, I would say that many people feel disconnected from it. Their local baseball team may have as little direct relevance in their day to day life as a performing arts company, but somehow they feel more socially connected to the players on that team. If they’re walking down the street wearing a jersey with the name of someone who makes a million dollars on it, they don’t get a cut from wearing that jersey, but for some reason they still feel a personal connection to that player and that team.
How can performing arts and the performers have a conversation with the communities? I want performers and viewers to have a greater conversation about what performing is, and what better way to do that than to bring them into the mix itself?
KST: Can you talk a little bit about the experience of being a part of a dance festival, about performing with so many different choreographers and dancers?
KC: First of all, I would say that it’s extremely stimulating and extremely exciting to have the luxury, the privilege, to be with artists you respect, whether or not you know their work. And to be able to see their latest ideas and latest explorations. Whether talking about a group of scientists or any sort of group that works as a collective, to share work in a sense creates more ideas, more conversations; I think it moves the whole field forward. That’s one of the most exciting parts of getting to work and create in a festival setting.
KST: Who’s piece are you most looking forward to seeing in the festival?
KC: That’s a tough one because I’m a performance junkie. Honestly, if I could, I would see everything. I get something out of everything I see. I love the performing arts and seeing what other people are doing; it gets my mind going.
KST: In three words, what’s inspiring you right now?
KC: People, bodies, and stories.
Look for Keila’s work on Friday May 13 at 7PM during newMoves Contemporary Dance Festival at the Kelly Strayhorn Theater. To purchase tickets, visit our website or call 800.838.3006!
