P R E S S
R E L E A S E S 2006
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September 6, 2006
MASS MoCA and Jacob's Pillow Present Ballet Hispanico
(North Adams, Mass.) As part of their ongoing partnership, MASS MoCA and Jacob's Pillow co-present Ballet Hispanico, October 6 and 7, in the Hunter Center at MASS MoCA. Ballet Hispanico's distinctive blend of ballet, modern, and Latin dance has dazzled over two million people worldwide since the company's founding in 1970. Celebrated for its innovative repertory and exhilarating artistry, Ballet Hispanico is recognized around the world as the foremost dance interpreter of Hispanic culture.
Performances by Ballet Hispanico are Friday and Saturday, October 6 and 7, at 8 pm. Tickets are $28 (orchestra) and $23 (mezzanine). Tickets are available through the MASS MoCA Box Office located off Marshall Street in North Adams from 11am-5pm (closed Tuesdays). Tickets can also be charged by phone by calling 413.662.2111 during Box Office hours, or purchased online at www.massmoca.org. MASS MoCA is located at 87 Marshall Street in North Adams, Massachusetts. Quote Ella Baff. "We look forward every year to our presentation with Jacob's Pillow, and this year is no exception," says Joseph Thompson, Director of MASS MoCA. "These co-presented events are always some of our most popular and memorable of the year, from last year's sold-out Pilobolus show to Bill T. Jones' incredibly moving performance in 2004. Ballet Hispanico creates beautiful - and sizzling - dance, and we're honored to bring them to the Berkshires in October in partnership with our friends at Jacob's Pillow." Ballet Hispanico's repertory includes 75 original works from distinguished choreographers such as Ann Reinking and Graciela Daniele as well as emerging Latino artists like Alexandre Magno and Pedro Ruiz. Each work is inspired by an aspect of Hispanic culture and is set in a lively and colorful atmosphere that celebrates Latino heritage - thus making Ballet Hispanico's repertory wholly unique. In April 2006, the company expanded its repertoire in a ground-breaking collaboration with Lincoln Center's Afro-Jazz Orchestra, creating an evening at the ultra-cool Palladium Nightclub where Latin jazz ruled the dance floor. A suite of dances from Palladium Nights will be among the pieces performed by Ballet Hispanico at MASS MoCA. Ballet Hispanico has drawn capacity houses at the John F. Kennedy Center, Joyce Theater, Schubert Theater, Mondavi Center, Broward Center, and Jacob's Pillow. The company's many international tours have included performances at the Zurich Summer Festival, Festival Cultural Paiz in Guatemala, Conde Duque Theater in Madrid, and the Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy. Ballet Hispanico was also invited by the U.S. State Department to perform at a special Independence Day Celebration during the '92 World Expo in Seville. In addition to its performance company, Ballet Hispanico trains 600 young dancers people in its school, emphasizing ballet and Spanish dance, as well as the discipline, self-esteem, and creative skills that will prepare its students for successful careers in the performing arts or other demanding professions. Ballet Hispanico's arts education division, Primeros Pasos, serves 18,000 students, teachers and audience members around the country each year with innovative programming that encourages their participation in the joy of dance in performance. ABOUT THE PILLOW: Located in the town of Becket, Massachusetts, internationally acclaimed Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival was originally a family farm in the 1700s and served as a station on the Underground Railroad in the 1800s. Legendary dancer, teacher, and choreographer Ted Shawn established the Festival in 1933 as a showcase for his company of Men Dancers. The Pillow encompasses 161 acres and 31 buildings, including three stages, four dance studios, a restaurant, a pub, housing, Archives, and administrative offices. During the 10-week summer Festival, the Pillow attracts thousands of visitors to see world-class dance on three stages and enjoy hundreds of free events, including performances, lectures, tours, film showings, exhibits, and talks with the artists. The Festival is augmented by The School at Jacob's Pillow, which draws a world-class international roster of students and faculty; the Archives, which are open to public access; an Intern Program, which trains arts administrators and theater technicians for professional careers; support for artist development of new work with Creative Development Residencies; commissions and world premieres; and year-round Community Programs throughout the Berkshires. Jacob's Pillow is a National Historic Landmark, designated by the federal government as an exceptional cultural venue that holds value for all Americans. ABOUT MASS MoCA: MASS MoCA, the largest center for contemporary visual and performing arts in the United States, is located off Marshall St. in North Adams on a 13-acre campus of renovated 19th-century factory buildings. MASS MoCA juxtaposes a beautifully restored icon of the American industrial past with some of the liveliest, most evocative-and provocative-art being made today. Emphasizing art that charts new territory, art that ignores traditional boundaries between the performing and visual arts, and installations that are truly vast in scale and environmental in feeling, MASS MoCA has also received some of the nation's most coveted architectural and historic preservation honors. From Robert Wilson and Robert Lepage to rollicking dance parties and its crowd-pleasing "silent film/live music" series, MASS MoCA's astonishingly varied performing arts program has reshaped the cultural landscape of New England. MASS MoCA is also home to an innovative community of companies. Employing hundreds of people, these tenant firms have helped position MASS MoCA as an important economic development catalyst for the entire region.
For Immediate Release
Contact: Katherine Myers
(413) 664-4481 x8113
katherine@massmoca.org