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Eugene lang college the new school for liberal arts
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Anna Sokolow |
New York, October 2, 2009—Eugene Lang College The New School for Liberal Arts has announced that Jim May, renowned dancer and artistic director of the Sokolow Theater Dance Ensemble will be Lang’s Artist in Residency for the 2009-2010 academic year. The residency will commemorate the centennial of the birth of Anna Sokolow, the renowned American choreographer who is credited with inventing Modern Theater dance, a new art form sprung out of the turmoil of the 20th century. The residency will culminate this spring with a reconstruction of Sokolow’s groundbreaking work, Lyric Suite, which has not been touched in twenty-five years.
In the fall, May will lecture about the life and career of Sokolow through the use of rare film footage, photographs, videos, and archival materials along with personal stories. "It is very appropriate to be celebrating Anna Sokolow's 100th Birthday at The New School," said Jim May. "It is a great opportunity to honor two icons of Greenwich Village that over the course of the past century have gained international respect and recognition. This should be a truly 'meant to be' collaboration."
Premiering in 1953 at the 92nd Street Y, Lyric Suite’s choreography and music are designed in suite form. Sokolow draw from her years as a soloist, using each section to examine a broad range of human emotions without a narrative through the use of walks, lunges, runs, and falls. The piece will be performed as part of the Lang Spring Dance Concert, taking place on April 30 and May 1 at the Alvin Ailey Citigroup Theatre. The reconstruction of “Lyric Suite” was made possible by American Masterpieces: Dance, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts, which is administered by the New England Foundation for the Arts with Dance/USA.
Each year, the dance program of Eugene Lang College The New School for Liberal Arts invites a distinguished professional artist to work with students for an intensive residency. Historical works give students a direct link to modern dance luminaries through the lineage of their dance disciplines. Guest artists teach students the technique, history of the artist and their work a well as the historical, social, political, and/or cultural context of the piece. In addition to research, writing and critical thinking, guest artist work with students in intensive rehearsals to restage a classic work. Reconstructions created in semester or yearlong residencies are performed in the school’s spring dance performance. Previous residencies include Martha Graham, Jose Limon, Jill Johnson and Mario Zambrano.
ABOUT EUGENE LANG COLLEGE THE NEW SCHOOL FOR LIBERAL ARTS
With a diversity of students, faculty, and academics, Eugene Lang College The New School for Liberal Arts is a seminar-style liberal arts college located in New York City that was established in 1985. Remaining consistent to its founding philosophy, Eugene Lang College grew out of a highly progressive freshman-year program developed at The New School in 1973. Lang offers intensive liberal arts study as well as a faculty committed to teaching undergraduates in an interdisciplinary context. Paths of study include: cultural studies and media; the arts; literature; writing; philosophy; religious studies; science; technology and society; social and historical inquiry; and urban studies. For more information, visit www.lang.newschool.edu.
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