PLIGHT digital program

for the safety of the dancers and the comfort for the audience, please dim the brightness on your phone for the duration of the performance. Avoid using cellphones or personal devices during blackouts and transitions. Please turn off the flash on your camera and set your ringtone to silent

PROGRAM
runtime 95 minutes with a 15 minute intermission

I.
Digital - Wanita - excerpt (2019)
music - Eddie Hendricks

ONWARD - excerpt (2021)
music - Zap Mama

FOR LEGACY
music - Salif Keita & Bobby McFerrin, Aja Monet

VOISINS
music - Sons of Kemet, Herbie Hancock, Hot 8 Brass Band

INTERMISSION
15 minutes

II.
Digital - 5-6-7-8 (2022)
music by JAB

PLEASE (2015)
music - Vitamin String Quartet, The Smiths

STAY DRY (2017)
music - Hypnotic Brass Band, Herbie Hancock

III.
Digital - From Thy Bounty (2020)
music by Williams Fairey Brass Band

NOBODY'S FAULT (2014)
music - Nina Simone, Meshell Ndegeocello

A CEREMONY OUR OWN
music - Cochemea, Little Simz, Christian Scott Atunde Adjuah

Digital - A MOMENT FOR SOLACE (2021)
music by The yeah, yeah, Yeahs; James Blake

ANCESTORS
music - Luna Del Flor, Leo Alarcon

This project is funded, in part, through a Seed Fund for Dance grant from the Upper
Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation,
thanks to the support of the Mertz Gilmore Foundation. the show was also made possible through the
west village rehearsal co-op program through a partnership with IndieSpace.

DIRECTOR'S NOTE

We've made it 10 years. wow. Just thanks to everyone. We bring in our season 10 with a renewed, revitalized winter production of Dances With Ancestors. I've spent so much of my time at choreoJoey creating site specific works and I'd never considered spanning any show through repertoire across the years, let alone over the 10 years of crafting a narrative voice. Nevertheless, having this season with this production has allowed us to celebrate our experiences, our lineages, and our past, blending 3 narratives into one evening. With these narratives, we also delve into the concept of our stories and experience being tales lived not only through us but of generations past as well. History surely does repeat itself through cultural customs and ceremonies, but what of when our stories now match stories of our elders? of our communities?

a common misnomer is that our ancestors are referred to in the spiritual world. That they have transitioned over, and left us to proceed along. When I say "dances with ancestors" I refer not to the dead, but to the history we embrace. we repeat. we acknowledge and love. Dances with ancestors is an embracement here and now. Let's celebrate it.

- Stephen Hill, founding artistic director

CAST

Alaynia Fox is a NYC native, passionate storyteller and multidisciplinary performing artist. She furthered her skillset in dance,writing, theater and film at Lehman College, and the Russell acting studio of NY. Recent credits: ADG festival at Alvin Ailey center, River to River Soil to soil (Stelidance), One Night Stand Off. This is her seventh season with The ChoreoJoey project.

Alazia Peters is from Brooklyn, New York. She earned a B.S in Physical Activity and Dance with a minor in Exercise Science from SUNY Cortland. She is currently completing a master’s degree in athletic training at Montclair State University and plans to combine her love for science and the arts to treat performing artists. This is her first season with the Choreojoey project.

Sara Alessia Giannini is from Bari, Italy. She is a graduate of The Ailey School Certificate Program, class of 2023. She is a freelance dancer. Sara is a member of iKada Dance Company. This is her first season with ChoreoJoey Project.

Litsie Monier Originally from France, Litsie studied Dance at Rouen conservatory before completing the Peridance Center Certificate Program in New York City. She is currently part of dancers unlimited company, and is also co-captain of the group Caporales San Simon Sucre filial New York. This is her first season with the Choreojoey project

B'ili Scott is from Staten Island, New York. She has trained at 92st Y as a Recanti-Kaplan Scholar in Dance, Century Dance Complex, Alvin Ailey, and Wadleigh Secondary School for the Performing and Visual Arts. She’s worked with Young Dancemakers Company & Kaleidoscope of Kultures Dance Theater. This is her first season with the Choreojoey project.

Judea Lowe is from Cleveland, Ohio. She studied dance and music theater at Arizona State University. She is currently with Brooklyn Ballet and is a guest artist as a Principal for the Chocolate Ballerina Company in their debut of Swan Lake. This is her first season with the ChoreoJoey project.

Maria Carmen Falivene is from Salerno, Italy. She is a graduate of The Ailey School Certificate Program, class of 2023. She is a project-based, freelance dancer for companies such as Hanna Q. Dance Company, APDANCE and other choreographers. This is her first season with the Choreojoey project.

Mason Neally is from Ithaca, New York. He recently graduated from the American Musical and Dramatic Academy as a Dance Theatre major. He has previously danced with the Ithaca Ballet Company and the Chevalier Ballet Company. This is his first season with the Choreojoey Project.

Jasmine Presti is from Long Island, New York. She’s earned her BFA in Dance at Adelphi University in 2022. She has performed works from many acclaimed choreographers like José Limón, Martha Graham, Mark Morris, and more. She is currently a company member of Limón 2. This is her first season with the Choreojoey project.

Trevor Ricardo Spencer Jr. resides in Rosedale, New York. They’ve earned their B.A. in Dance from Hunter College and have performed with The Fredidance Project, Aeturnus Dance Collective, The Rogue Dancers, as well as for choreographers Sara “Primary” Liek, Bobby Morgan, Ethan “Simba” Graham. Trevor is currently a member of KR3Ts and is excited for their 4th season with The Choreojoey Project.

more about all the artists can be found here

DIGITAL CAST

Colette Ambo
Dani Criss
Brittany Lane
Corri Miller
Sheryl Miller
Quiana Prince
Jenae Selden
Shakeena Randolph
Lyndsey Sanchez
Alexis White

DIGITAL CREDIT

My People, Hold On
an excerpt from the ballet WANITA
this work originally presented December 2016

live performance for FAST FORWARD
recorded at Dixon Place, NYC March 2019
video credit Sangeeta Yesley, Creative Performances

5-6-7-8
an excerpt from the ballet PLIGHT
this work originally premiered in June 2022
at Culture Lab LIC as a part of the emerging artist residency.

live performance for Dance BLOC NYC
recorded at Dixon Place, NYC November 2022
video credit Sangeeta Yesley, Creative Performances

FROM THY BOUNTY
live performance for National Choreographers Month (NACHMO)
at the The Mark O'Donnell Theater Brooklyn, NY February 2020
video credit Jamie Watkins

A Moment for Solace
filmed for Dance Quarantine Series, program VI
Dixon Place Digital, DPTV NYC June 2021
video credit The ChoreoJoey Project

Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater Crew

Mike Lesser
David Kaplin
Juan Boria
Emily Poole
Matthew
Orlando

Special Thanks to our
season 9 & 10 Contributors

Kimberly Balogun
Lauren Costantino
Jessica Doughty
Shirley Hill
Vicki Hill
Tess Howsam
Marcia Kupferberg
Lian Kizner
Denise Morales
Dakota Price
Desiree Raymond
Mary Sofianos
Madelyn Sher
"Your Favorite Person"

Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation
Mertz Gilmore Foundation
MSG Entertainment Group, LLC
IndieSpace

and Thanks to our supporters

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