TICKETS ARE NOW AVAILABLE AT: http://goo.gl/TJm4YO
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Following the success of "The Wilder Papers", Emily Terndrup and Derrick Belcham are seeking funding for their new production, "Debut".
"Debut" is a new evening-length production set in the sprawling 60, 000 sq. ft of the Knockdown Center in Masbeth, Queens which premieres on October 7-9, 2014. Merging independent music, contemporary dance theater and large-scale art installation, the creators embark upon their most ambitious project to date.
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The directors' latest work brings together the talents of a collective of artists to tell the story of a group of teenagers who break into an abandoned building on the evening of their senior prom.
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"Debut" features music written and performed live by
Julianna Barwick,
Mauro Remiddi (Porcelain Raft),
Ruby Kato Attwood and John Ancheta (Yamantaka // Sonic Titan), David Moore (Bing & Ruth), Jessie Stein (The Luyas), Hannah Epperson and Reed Smidebush (Muuny).![]()
Employing a shifting proscenium, Terndrup and Belcham have designed an evening of divergent paths through an experiential narrative performed live by emerging artists in contemporary dance, independent music, large-scale installation and film.
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Ruby Kato Attwood and John Ancheta, in addition to their musical work, will be heading up a massive installation process in the voluminous interior of the center, taking place over a two-week residency leading up to the show dates.
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Throughout the evening, the lighting, costume and set design will actively evolve to reflect the shifting perspectives of the characters and audience.
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Choreographed by Emily Terndrup (Sleep No More, Gallim Dance, Shannon Gillen + Guests), in collaboration with the dancers and assistant choreographer Mallory Lynn (LoudHoundMovement), the performance features dancers
Rebecca Margolick (Sidra Bell), TJ Spaur (Kate Weare), Emma Judkins (Amber Sloan), Brendan Duggan (LoudHoundMovement), Matthew Ortner (The People Movers), Ross Katen (Jose Limón Dance Company) and Emily Terndrup.![]()
A targeted marketing campaign of videos will precede the event, and a thorough documentation process will yield unique dance films and sound recordings for each of the compositions which will be premiered throughout the months following the performance.
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In June of 2014, Terndrup and Belcham presented "The Wilder Papers", an experiential narrative surrounding the lives of the composer Julian Wilder and the choreographer, Dorienne Lee.
The event was attended by invitation only, marketed by word of mouth and presented free of charge by way of a generous commission from the Knockdown Center. Ten dancers and five musicians performed pieces which led an audience to every remote corner of the Knockdown Center's voluminous space, period-dressed to match the early 1950s.
Selected praise for "The Wilder Papers":
Joe Ahearn (Curator, Clocktower Gallery): "...the greatest usage of the space at the Knockdown Center I have ever seen."
Julianna Barwick (Musician): “This was one of the best things I have ever been a part of.”
Allison Robinson (Audience): “Every moment of the performance was breathtaking, captivating, and so far beyond ordinary.”
Emma Judkins (Dancer): “I have received such an incredible response to the work from friends who came that evening, and the resounding response is "You have to do that again."
EXCERPTS FROM "THE WILDER PAPERS"
Julianna Barwick & Hannah Epperson: https://vimeo.com/104810478
Skyler Skjelset & Mariel Lugosch-Ecker: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4O4kx7bK9w
Hannah Epperson & Emily Terndrup: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJ6sGdgJHxA
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PROCESS
Immediately after The Wilder Papers finished loading out, the directors, along with Helen Terndrup, began writing "Debut". As they developed the characters and their trajectories became clear, Emily cast eight dancers to begin the choreographic process. For the last two months, she has been working with her assistant choreographer, Mallory Lynn (LoudHoundMovement), and the dancers to create the new evening-length piece.
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The piece presents unique challenges to the choreographic, directorial, musical and set design process because of its shifting proscenium and the inherent demands of a space as vast as the Knockdown Center. The considerations of multiple sight lines, live performance to original scores (in their own timeline of development), and the amount of interplay surrounding the narrative guidelines provide consistent and demanding challenges to face at every step of the process.
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Your generous donation allows the choreographer and dancers time to develop and refine these sections into the fully-formed and finely-tuned piece you will see on October 7-9.
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RISKS AND CHALLENGES:
Following months of writing, rehearsal, strategy and drafting, our team will take over the majority of the Knockdown Center for a residency that will lead to the performances. Our plan is ambitious, but our artists are determined and devoted. We need support to allow the entire creative team to commit themselves deeply to the work. Our commission allows us to find our way through the first stages, but we need your support to make this show a reality.
THE DIRECTORS:
Derrick Belcham is a Canadian filmmaker based out of Brooklyn, NY whose internationally-recognized work in vérité music documentary has lead him to work with such artists as Philip Glass, Steve Reich, Thurston Moore, Wilco and hundreds of others in music, dance, theater and architecture. He has created works in concert with such reputable institutions as MoMA PS1, MoCA, The Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, The Whitney Museum Of American Art, Musee D'Art Contemporain, The Philip Johnson Glass House, Brooklyn Academy of Music and The Contemporary Arts Center of Cincinnati. His work has appeared in publications such as The New York Times, Vogue, Pitchfork, MTV, NPR and Rolling Stone as well as being screened at festival and retrospective in NYC, Toronto, Paris, Tokyo and beyond.
Emily Terndrup is a native of West Des Moines, Iowa, and graduated with a B.F.A. in Modern Dance from the University of Utah. As a performer and choreographer, her work has been presented at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, as well as venues throughout Utah, Iowa, and Colorado. She was the recipient of Dance Teacher Magazine’s 2010 Outstanding Student Performer Award, and has had the pleasure of working with artists such as Gregory Dolbashian, Edgar Zendejas, Susan McLain, David Dorfman, Gallim Dance and Shannon Gillen. Emily is currently performing in Punchdrunk’s Sleep No More.
