Unforgettable
Lynn Peterson, Matthew Oberstein conducting
We had an absolutely unforgettable weekend..
We had a full house for every show, and just glowed in it!! We have worked very very hard as a company to bring this work to the stage, and we really felt so… proud.
And to share the work with such a big and excited crowd was truly a gift.
The orchestra (Artemis Chamber Ensemble) was truly more moving and inspiring to work with than I even thought could be possible. Matthew’s conducting was undeniably an anchor of the performance. He was vibrant, steady, and intuitive to a profound degree. Recently said about Matthew:
“It was obvious from the start that he is on the cusp of a major career”
-Brooklyn Eagle
The dancers of SYREN were exquisite: Aleyse Bradford, Heidi D’Alessandro, Quincy Junor, Chanelle Lagacé, Erin Ghislin Lane, Jeffery Lyon, Brigitte Mitchell, and Lynn Peterson.
Erin Ghislin Lane and Lynn Peterson
Jeff Lyon and Brigitte Mitchell
Heidi D'Alessandro and Jeff Lyon
Lynn Peterson
All photos: Christopher Duggan
We are now following up on every lead, every conversation, and knocking on every door that cracked open throughout the performance weekend/after parties, etc.
A great interview was published on flavorwire, check it out here!
flavorwire.com
Thanks so much for all the good wishes and for those that were able to make it to the show. We can’t wait to keep working and keep this work growing and growing.
All my best,
Kate
SYREN New York Season coming soon…
Things are moving at the speed of light. The press release is done and invites are out. The art design/poster for the show is complete (Eric March) and are at press as we speak! (Here is a sneak peek for wingers!)
Tickets are on sale and we have initial costume fittings this weekend.
Rehearsals have been great. They definitely have had a bit more..hmmm… intensity (not stress 
)to finish the piece(s).
Things feel a bit surreal. We met with Matthew Oberstein (conductor of Artemis Chamber Ensemble) to begin to talk about the the music and tempos. It is going to be AMAZING, and maybe a bit scary, to be on stage with all of the musicians.
We hope some wingers can join us in March for the shows! We have worked long and hard, and we are really, REALLY excited to share an evening of work we are proud to present.
Here is a still-rough-but -we-are-workin-on-it little rehearsal clip!
SYREN: “Abravanel” almost re-staged and “The Weight” at Ethel Walker
The company is in the middle of re-staging a bunch of repertory. At the top of the list are “Abravanel” and “Dig“. We are making great strides and are ALMOST there with “Abravanel”.
Seems like we have about nine million plates spinning at the moment. Getting Abravanel ready for November in CT, getting “Dig” ready for DanceNow at DTW in October (SYREN performs Wednesday, October 29th at 8pm), Also getting SYREN’s Annual Benefit off and running for November (at Chelsea Art Museum in Manhattan)… Tickets just went live on our site this week>
Benefit Party Tickets Click Here!
Lynn and I have also been lucky enough to be setting a piece of SYREN rep on students at the Ethel Walker School in Simsbury CT. We are setting “The Weight” on the 8 students chosen, and it is a very exciting challenge. They are great!
Now it is off to finish washing “Dig” costumes so they dry for fittings next week, and then start packing for the company residency in PA this weekend. We get to go on a three day residency to Silo, and live, eat and breathe dance! We are very excited. Surely more pictures to be posted after the weekend!
Oh, and I started getting work done on a root canal today.. ouch!
www.syrendance.org
SYREN Rehearsals moving along!
The company is well underway of restaging “Abravanel” and “Dig” . Our first show is just about a month away (the DanceNow Festival) and we will be ready one way or another!
The company looks great and I couldn’t be more excited. These are some shots from some recent rehearsals. The movement is beginning to look more and more natural and powerful on each of them. So amazing to watch!
Aleyse Bradford and Quincy Junor
Heidi D’Allesandro pulling the company in
Chanelle Legace and Quincy Junor sharing a laugh… probably about the nearly impossible “flip-flop” section
Heidi and Lynn working on their flip-flops..
Brigitte and Quincy demonstrate one of the reasons that the whole company needs knee-pads… Knee pad sponsor, anyone?
Lovely SYREN…
First Day with new company members!
Today was the first rehearsal with new company members: Aleyse Bradford, Heidi D’Alessandro, Chanelle Lagacé, Brigitte Mitchell, and Quincy Junor. It was so great to share the space, and begin the very special process of sharing our work with the individuals who will be responsible for sharing it with the world. Sounds a bit…hoaky, I know… but it really is something intense that anyone who has created work can surely relate to. The dancers are the more than the vessel, they are the living breathing translation of what the work is and will shape up to be. It’s funny seeing a piece I have seen many times with a new perspective. We began learning a bunch of core phrases from “Abravanel” today and they blew me away.
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I look forward so much to the coming months as we get to know each other in a variety of ways.
After rehearsal Lynn and I had a meeting at Chelsea Art Museum where we think we may have our Benefit in November (fingers crossed!!!). Then we headed to a meeting with one of our Board members to discuss that in a bit more detail. She works for a hedge fund in Midtown, so we love getting free waters and juices!!!
What a day of running around!
A couple times today I just stopped to think that, WOW, I was fishing with my fiance this weekend in the middle of nowhere in Northern Vermont, and this evening I was at a Hedgefund office on 5th Ave in NYC. Crazy where life takes you…
Jamming with Jeff today!
Today we had the pleasure of welcoming Jeff back into the studio (at least for the moment!) He is in between projects with Noemie LaFrance, and we take him any time we can get him!
At the end of rehearsal we watched the footage from the “Pelleas et Melisande” premiere and it made me so inspired to get back to work on the re-staging of it. It’s good to feel that… A positive push to make the better parts better and to change the parts that didnt work so well. I know the feeling when I see something of mine and I just feel like “that’s just not good Kate, let that one go”. But there is something strangely fascinating to me about Pelleas. I just can’t wait to dig back in.
Still searching for the score for what will be the other new piece of the season. Just have not found it yet. But it will surely come.
Anyway, today really was great. It occurred to me that Jeff, Lynn and I have now danced with each other for a decade. We met freshman year at Purchase in 1998. Definitely a special thing to have moved with someone over time.
Great rehearsal…
Fall For Dance at City Center
This is one of the posters starting appear around the city (this one at 5th Ave N/R/W train stop). This is a great event at City Center (all tickets $10!!!) The shows are in Sept. Everything from Shen Wei, ABT, Cunningham, to Oregon Ballet Theater and much much more. A great mix, the right price, and a SUPERB venue. One of these days, we hope SYREN will get on the bill! In the meantime, we are enthusiastic supporters.
Check it out!
http://www.citycenter.org/tickets/productionNew.aspx?performanceNumber=3775
www.syrendance.org
In the studio and Jamming…
Lynn and I have been back in the studio… Just “jamming” right now. Doing a bit of barre together, then she teaches me some new class excercises and combinations she has been creating…which feels great to be told what to do a bit! This week we did a pretty long imrov together to some Brahams mostly (Sonatos for Cello and piano Opp. 38, 99 and 108… and some work by James Newton Howard). Felt AWESOME to just move that BIG and free! Can’t believe we will be in studio with new company members in a few weeks re-staging “Pelleas” and getting “Abravanel” back up and running (we just booked a gig at Ethel Walker School in CT for November) and “Dig” excerpts ready for DanceNow Festival at DTW. Oh and somewhere in that I am starting a new piece for the company that we are trying to have the Artemis Chamber Ensemble play live for!!! So so excited.
And, I have yet to see a copy, but I hear there is a little mention of us in Dance Spirit Magazine for September. Page 150 to be exact!
Lots of really great stuff… But for the 3 hours in the studio, it sure did feel good to forget about running a company and remember where this whole thing started… Just dancing in a studio with Lynn…
Just doesn’t get much better than that.
www.syrendance.org
Rehearsal for Pelleas!
Well, the company is hard at work creating a new piece that is set to the “Pelleas et Melisande” suite by Sebelius. We have just two weeks before it premieres! It will be the first time SYREN has worked with live musicians, so we are thrilled and a bit nervous at the same time.
The company has never worked so fast, with only four weeks to get the piece done. Our heads are spinning in 12’s and 3’s, but we are really getting somewhere, and I think that after Thursday’s rehearsal we will have a solid dent in the beast!
Check out what Lynn and Lindsay were rockin with today…
Now back to work!
Kate
Some of my travels
Two and a half weeks ago I was on the Greek island of Rhodes, soaking up some rays. This weekend, I was in the West Highlands of Scotland - getting soaked.
Rhodes and Scotland are at opposite ends of Europe,and there are some interesting comparisons to be made.
The beautiful views from my hotel rooms, for example:
Guess which one is in Scotland…
Up in the north of Scotland, the clouds were so low (or we were so high up) that it looked like smoke or steam was coming out of the ground. It seemed to be so perpetually damp I could not imagine that there could ever be a problem with forest fires (which there are in Greece, which is really hot and dry), but apparently there is:
Another interesting comparison is the animals one comes across in the course of the day. In Rhodes there were cats everywhere. They were really cute and I ended up taking more pictures of them than anything else. If this makes me a philistine then I am sorry!
The Greek donkeys were rather nice too:
In Scotland there are cows and sheep and some birds of prey, and rather a lot of frogs.
We walked about 20 miles yesterday. I like walking for similar reasons as I like dancing. I kind of retreat into my own head and either I don’t think about anything other than what I am doing or I feel like I can sort things out with a clarity it’s hard to find in my everyday life. Now we’re in Glasgow all that beauty is less than two hours away by train. You walk straight off the train into the most wonderful countryside, where the air smells really clean, a bit like cinnamon chewing gum. I feel so lucky to be here.
On the other hand, I do need a bit of sunshine… I wish I could be close to both places!
