FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Edisa Weeks, 917 714-1293, edisaweeks@gmail.com
To Begin The World Over Again
Brooklyn, NY: To Begin The World Over Again explores the writings of Thomas Paine and his spirited advocacy for freedom and democracy. Fusing the visions of composer Joseph C. Phillips Jr. and choreographer Edisa Weeks and their respective companies the music ensemble Numinous and DELIRIOUS Dances, To Begin The World Over Again eloquently explores: How are freedom and democracy packaged and promoted in America? What does it mean to be free in American? As America becomes more consumer driven, polarized and disenchanted, is America living up to its promise?
Performed with the audience sitting in the round, To Begin The World Over Again is an evening length multi-disciplinary work that features six dancers and thirteen musicians and singers. The work unfolds through four sections inspired by Paine's words: Dreams Of Wonders Undreamt, These Are The Times That Try Men's Soul, Mischief Is Easier Begun Than Ended, and We Have It In Our Power.
These Are The Times That Try Men's Soul, explores the way we carry on in the face of opposition, for trying times do not disappear overnight, whether it is George Washington's soldiers becoming discouraged in the fight against the better equipped and trained British Army, or people in America today grappling with issues from unemployment, to the right to protest, healthcare and more. In this section, the dancers relentlessly repeat a task, inspired by Paine's exhortations to "summer soldiers" in The Crisis to remain steadfast because freedom requires sacrifice and dedication. The music is driving yet somber and builds to stark outbursts, like terse cries of anguish or piercing calls for action. The singers give voice to Paine's words, which are woven with recordings from news clips of current social and political issues in America. The music and dancing resolve into a lush lilting phrase, like rain on parched earth, or the promise of a new reality. In the last section, We Have It In Our Power, the dancing and music weave distinct themes, which initially clash and ultimately intertwine, reflecting how democracy, ideally, is the coming together of various voices.
Performances: Thursday through Saturday, September 27, 28, 29, and October 4, 5, 6, 2012 at 8pm.
Location: Irondale on 85 South Oxford St. Brooklyn, NY 11217.
Tickets: $20 General Admission, $15 Students & Senior Citizens.
To purchase tickets in advance Call: 1-866-811-4111 or go to: http://irondale.org/buy-tickets.html
For directions by car and public transportation, visit: www.irondale.org > irondale center > directions
Coinciding with the performances of To Begin The World Over Again, are a series of FREE community events from Thursday September 27 through Saturday October 6, 2012. The community events are coordinated by Purpose Lounge and include an art exhibition - The Promises and Realities of America; public discussions with scholars and activists; a poetry throw-down; and teach-ins. The community events are designed to give people an opportunity to actively engage with the ideals of liberty, democracy and equality that Thomas Paine believed was America's promise and gift to the world – ideals that greatly influenced American identity, history and mythology.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Choreographer Edisa Weeks formed DELIRIOUS Dances to empower people through the immediacy of dance. Weeks creates intimate environments that merge theater with dance, to deliriously explore our deepest desires, darkest fears and dearest dreams. Described by the New York Times as having, "a gift for simple but striking visual effects," her work has been performed in a variety of venues including swimming pools, storefront windows, senior centers, sidewalks and living rooms, as well as at chashama theater, The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, Emory University, Inside/Out at Jacob's Pillow, Works & Process at the Guggenheim Museum, Harlem Stage, The Kennedy Center, The Massachusetts International Festival of the Arts, The Mermaid Parade, The National Black Arts Festival, and Summerstages Dance Festival. Most recently DELIRIOUS performed in living rooms in Berlin, Germany, as part of Haus der Kulturen der Welts 50th anniversary celebration. Edisa Weeks and DELIRIOUS have received numerous awards including grants from Artists International, The Brooklyn Arts Council, Dixon Place, the Mertz Gilmore Foundation, New York Foundation for the Arts, The Puffin Foundation, as well as choreographic residencies at Djerassi, Joyce SoHo, the Tribeca Performing Arts Center, and The Yard. www.deliriousdances.com
Numinous is a flexible and unique ensemble of up to 25 musicians that was founded in 2000 by composer Joseph C. Phillips Jr. to perform his music. Part chamber orchestra, part big band, part contemporary alternative group, Numinous deftly and organically transmutes inspiration from contemporary classical, jazz, world, and popular music as well as cinema, literature, and science. Numinous and Phillips's music generate emotions in the listener that resonate with beauty, mystery, and wonder in order to challenge, enlighten, and refresh. Joseph C. Phillips Jr. has been awarded a Meet the Composers grant, an American Music Center CAP grant, two Live Music for Dance commission grants, and was finalist for the Sundance Film Composers Lab Fellowship and the Opera Company of Philadelphia Composer-in-Residence; in addition new works have been commissioned by the BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music) Next Wave Festival, the Ecstatic Music Festival, Simone Dinnerstein's Neighborhood Classics concert series, and a number of other musicians and ensembles. Phillips is also the founder and artistic director of Pulse, a New York City federation of five award-winning composers. www.numinousmusic.com
Darryl "Hell" Montgomery is a veteran experimental multimedia artist/performer, documentarian, community organizer, independent journalist/archivist. He has over 25 years of experience in event production, audio & video production, strategic planning, performance and event management. As Purpose Lounge concept developer, strategic coordinator and event producer, Mr. Montgomery creates a mixed-media community forum environment to provoke the discussion of life issues in order to reinforce personal growth. By encouraging participants to concern themselves with the issues of others, Purpose Lounge emphasizes the responsibility each person has to the betterment of themselves and society as a whole. www.s6k.com
SPONSORS
To Begin The World Over Again is co-produced by the Irondale Center and sponsored, in part, by the Greater New York Arts Development Fund of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, administered by Brooklyn Arts Council (BAC); New Music USA - Live Music for Dance program; The Puffin Foundation; choreographic residencies at the Tribeca Performing Arts Center and Brooklyn Friends School; The Field; and the generosity of individuals.
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