WHAT: IMPURE Conference - More Naughty Than Nice! Celebrate your imperfections, the trickster archetype and unleash your creativity through humor and play. Workshops, panel discussions, museum tour, theatrical dance show and video performance project.
SCHEDULE AT A GLANCE
FRIDAY MAY 3
10.00-11.30am Let Your Movement Speak w Yael Becker
11.30-1.00pm The Art of Conceal and Reveal w Myra Krien
1.00-1.30pm Lunch
1.30-2.00pm Lunchtime May 3 Dance Showcase
2.00-3.00pm Panel: Sensuality + Sexuality: Belly Dance + Burlesque w Willy Barrett, Jo Weldon, Antonina Canal + Myra Krien
3.00-4.30pm Owning the Forbidden Gaze w Willy Barrett (Joe Williams)
4.30-6.00pm Hairography w Jo Weldon
7.15-8.45pm Tour of the Met: Scandals, Scoundrels + Shady Characters w Nancy Eder
SATURDAY May 4
10.00-11.30am Dance Exploration-Archetypes in Tarot w Dalia Carella
11.30-1.00pm Unleash Your Creativity w Kaeshi Chai
1.00-1.30pm Lunch
1.30-2.00pm Lunchtime May 4 Dance Showcase
2.00-3.00pm Panel: Pushing Buttons vs Playing It Safe w Dalia Carella, Djahari Clark, Brad MacDonald + Myra Krien
3.00-4.30pm Embracing the Grotesque w Djahari Clark
4.30-6.00pm Physical Comedy w Hilary Chaplain
8.00-9.30pm IMPURE Show at Gibney Dance’s Black Box Theater
SUNDAY MAY 5
10.00-11.30am Some Like It Hot w Yael Becker
11.30-1.00pm Awakening Abundance w Antonina Canal
1.00-1.30pm Lunch
2.00-6.30pm Video Performance Project w Kaeshi Chai + Raya Brass Band
6.45-10pm Post-IMPURE Conference Celebration
COST:
Full Conference: $375
Single Day: $135
IMPURE Procession: $65, $75
I.5 hr Workshop: $45
Museum Tour: $45 (Entry into the Met Museum is extra)
Panel Discussion: $20
IMPURE Show: $25-$35 Suggested Donation
Lunchtime Dance Showcase: $5 Suggested Donation
Sign Up Now!
WHERE:
Gibney Dance, 280 Broadway (Enter at 53A Chambers St), New York, NY 10007
Friday + Saturday in Studio U, Sat 8pm Show in Studio Y, Sunday in Studio C
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DETAILED SCHEDULE
FRIDAY MAY 3
10.00-11.30am Let Your Movement Speak w Yael Becker
Liberate the actor in you. In this workshop we will explore speaking through our body and dance, using face expressions, gestures, character portraying and dramatic mood switches.
11.30-1.00pm The Art of Conceal and Reveal w Myra Krien
This workshop will explore "taking it off!", from removing a glove, to exposing a knee, to going "all the way". In bellydance we often use the veil to express the Western Orientalism fantasy, conceal and reveal. We will discuss and play with this idea as well as any other you wish to, feel free to bring any prop you like such as veils, hats, gloves, shoes, or any other piece of clothing. We will create a fun and safe atmosphere in which to play!
1.00-1.30pm Lunch
1.30-2.00pm Lunchtime May 3 Dance Showcase
Cheer on your fellow conference attendees as they share their love of dance for your viewing pleasure.
2.00-3.00pm Panel: Sensuality + Sexuality: Belly Dance + Burlesque w Willy Barrett, Jo Weldon, Antonina Canal + Myra Krien
For the mainstream, there is often confusion between these two styles. What do belly dance and burlesque have in common? What are their differences? How can we as artists talk about it?
3.00-4.30pm Owning the Forbidden Gaze w Willy Barrett (Joe Williams)
To be gazed upon intensely can be so threatening, and filled with elements of power, judgment, danger, covetousness, control, and so dehumanizing that we have unspoken rules limiting it. This etiquette of gaze goes both ways with the bad manners of looking, and the bad manners of daring to be seen. We will use Delsarte to help us have fun with these bad manners, and take control of the gaze for the stage and for life. By consciously directing the gaze we will explore how choosing to be seen can be more powerful than any dance technique, and more intensely sensual than any costume or daring exposure. It’s fun to claim the forbidden power of being seen.
4.30-6.00pm Hairography w Jo Weldon
Jo's hairography workshop is full of flips, swings, and swirls. Open to all bodies and suitable for every length and texture of hair, including wig-wearers and those with no hair at all! (Note: Very styled hair is not recommended as your hairstyle can't hold through this class.) Students will warm up and then practice hairography within a burlesque style chair dance and may choose to practice standing hair moves. Jo will help each class member discover their own signature hairography. Students should wear shorts, leotards, or leggings and bring a bottle of water.
7.15-8.45pm Tour of the Met: Scandals, Scoundrels + Shady Characters w Nancy Eder
Who are the characters who grace the walls of the Metropolitan Museum of Art? How did all of that art get there? Plus, who are the people that those wings are named after? You will see a side of the Met that you have never seen before as we expose the truth about the scandals, the scoundrels, and the all-around shady dealings that make up this hallowed institution. Tour the world-famous Met Museum with the one and only Nancy Eder. Limited to 25 people. First come first served. Met Museum Entrance is separate from the tour fee.
MET MUSEUM ADMISSION
Suggested Admission: For New York State residents and New York, New Jersey and Connecticut students, the amount you pay is up to you. These tickets may be purchased at a Museum admissions desk with a valid ID. Suggested admission tickets include exhibitions as well as same-day entry to all three Met locations.
General admission is $25 for adults; $17 for seniors; $12 for students; and free for Members, Patrons, and children under 12. General admission tickets include exhibitions and are valid for three consecutive days at The Met Fifth Avenue, The Met Breuer, and The Met Cloisters.
SATURDAY May 4
10.00-11.30am Dance Exploration-Archetypes in Tarot w Dalia Carella
Take a journey into the world of Tarot through dance, humor and mysticism. There are 22 archetypes in the Major Arcana, which represent certain attributes that reside within us. Each archetype has an upright meaning and a reverse meaning. Dalia will draw on her decades of Tarot and dance expertise to introduce you to some of the most compelling and provocative archetypes when in “Reverse”, such as the Devil, the High Priestess, the Fool and the Magician! Get ready to surrender and fall down the rabbit hole with Dalia.
11.30-1.00pm Unleash Your Creativity w Kaeshi Chai
Learn new tools to brainstorm and innovate theatrical dances with a narrative arc. The process of editing music, video, choreographing and chunking down sections of songs for practice will also be demystified.
1.00-1.30pm Lunch
1.30-2.00pm Lunchtime May 4 Dance Showcase
Cheer on your fellow conference attendees as they share their love of dance for your viewing pleasure.
2.00-3.00pm Panel: Pushing Buttons vs Playing It Safe w Dalia Carella, Djahari Clark, Brad MacDonald + Myra Krien
What is the role of the artist? To challenge or maintain the status quo?
3.00-4.30pm Embracing the Grotesque w Djahari Clark
Embracing the Grotesque is an introduction to Djahari’s (Director of Desert Sin) fearless approach to dance theater. A meditative journey that safely guides you towards purging and healing as an art form. This is an interactive therapeutic exploration in which we manifest physical creations of our demons, and embrace their grotesqueness by giving them shape, sound, and movement. Explore emotions, and push past your comfort zones in a fun, safe environment. Come ready to be adventurous, and open-minded. Walk away with a stronger ability to create meaningful and captivating performance material in your own unique style! Open to all levels.
4.30-6.00pm Physical Comedy w Hilary Chaplain
Learn to play with physical comedy. This class takes a look at timing, rhythm, honestly being in the present and vulnerability in exploring these principles: what makes it funny, what makes it repeatable, how do we approach writing the funny. We’ll play with universal principals that can be applied to any type of performance.
8.00-9.30pm IMPURE Show at Gibney’s Black Box Theater
US premiere of Yael Becker's 'Dance Box' about a homeless woman who finds in the dumpster a box that once belonged to a belly dancer. This piece won first place in the 2018 Bat-Yam international Festival of Street Theater and Art. Other performers will include the IMPURE Conference instructors, Djahari's Desert Sin, Dalia Carella's performance group, the Poisoned Apples and more...
SUNDAY MAY 5
10.00-11.30am Some Like It Hot w Yael Becker
Imagine Marilyn Monroe or Liza Minnelli belly dancing, or Nagwa Fouad playing Velma Kelly in the Broadway show, "Chicago". Bridge east and west through this workshop and explore vintage belly dance jazzed up with theatricality, sensuality and sizzling hot style.
11.30-1.00pm Awakening Abundance w Antonina Canal
Heal your relationship with money and move from lack to abundance consciousness through the Prosperity Goddess. This workshop will engage your mind, body, spirit and heart.
1.00-2.00pm Lunch
2.00-6.30pm UNIFY Video Performance Project w Kaeshi Chai + Raya Brass Band
Be part of a video performance project at the World Trade Center 2 site shot by award-winning director David Chai to the electrifying song “Unify” by Raya Brass Band.
6.45-10pm Post-IMPURE Conference Celebration
Enjoy food and drinks at Brookfield Place overlooking the sunset.
WHO: (ALPHABETICAL)
ANTONINA CANAL
Based in Bogota, Antonina is the director of Prem Shakti School of Oriental dance in Colombia and pioneer of healing through dance. She created the Prem Shakti System: the art of healing and celebrating feminine energy throughout the world through Oriental, Indian, Egyptian and Gypsy dances. She has produced 15 International Festivals, 400 shows in top theaters of Latin America, has more than 5000 students, 6 dvds, teaches in Cairo, Egypt at the Ahlan Wa Sahlan Festival since 2008, won 1st place choreography at Ahlan Wa Sahlan 2012, was awarded BIT WOMAN ( intelligence, courage and hard work) awarded by the Colombian news paper El Tiempo. http://premshakti.net
DJAHARI CLARK
Djahari Clark loves the transformative art of storytelling through movement. With a strong background in theater arts, Persian Ballet, and Middle Eastern Dance she weaves the aesthetics of the beautiful and grotesque to create sensational theater, while continually challenging our pre-conceived notions of "Other". The founder of Desert Sin, she has traveled the world as a teacher, director, and performer. Djahari has also worked with Ya!Helewa Dance Company, Hidden Room Theatre (Austin Chronicle’s Top Ten Theatrical Wonders), and was a principle dancer for 10 years in Abdollah Nazemi’s Pars National Ballet Company. Her original productions have run at such venues as Hollywood's Ivar Theater, Galapagos Art Space, Bushwick Starr, House of Yes, Dixon Place, and The Zipper Factory.
HARRY EINHORN
Harry Einhorn is a multidisciplinary composer, director, performer, vocalist, and producer based out of New York City. His work explores the meeting of contemplative, esoteric traditions with contemporary arts and culture, and includes choral and chamber music, site-specific theater, dance, musicals, and experimental performance. He is a student of Indian classical vocal music under Pt. Sanjoy Banerjee and Tibetan sacred music and dance. He has performed in venues such as the Rubin Museum of Art, the Open Center, the Wild Project, Sky Gallery, St. Lukes in the Fields, and festivals in Bodhgaya, India, where he studied Tibetan language and Buddhism. He is the co-founder of Samadhi Arts (www.samadhiarts.org), an organization dedicated to joining traditional wisdom culture with visionary contemporary art.
HILARY CHAPLAIN
Since 2005, Hilary Chaplain has been touring internationally with her award winning solo show A LIFE IN HER DAY, directed by Avner Eisenberg, and in variety shows worldwide with her short comic numbers. In 2018 she created a show in collaboration with other artists called THE LAST RAT OF THERESIENSTADT which won the top four awards when it premiered at the Lalka Tez Cztowiek Puppet Festival in Warsaw, Poland. Drawing inspiration from clown theatre, movement, objects and puppetry, Hilary has been creating solo and ensemble work for the past 40 years. She was an original cast member in Bill Irwin’s LARGELY/NEW YORK and appeared on Broadway in the Public Theatre production of THE TEMPEST directed by George C. Wolfe. She played a featured role in Forrest Gump, and a lawyer on LAW AND ORDER CRIMINAL INTENT. Hilary entertained children in NYC hospitals as “Nurse Nice” of the renowned Big Apple Circus Hospital Clown Program® (since 1987) and is a founding member of the New York Goofs, a clown ensemble created in 1996. She has performed and taught worldwide in over 20 countries and 5 continents. She is currently in development with a new show called BITE ME! with CB Goodman and Aitor Basauri.
JO WELDON
Jo Weldon is the Headmistress of the New York School of Burlesque as well as the Author of The Burlesque Handbook and Fierce: The History of Leopard Print. As a burlesque performer, she's rounded her heels on stages from Sydney Harbour to Coney Island, and taught striptease to thousands of people around the world. She's appeared on 21st Century Burlesque's international poll of top 50 burlesque figures every year for ten years, and has received recognition from The Burlesque Hall of Fame. Known for her vivid style and tantalizing moves, she's proud to have been performing for over 30 years and still going strong.
KAESHI CHAI
Kaeshi Chai is a world-fusion dancer and teacher trainer who co-founded the professional dance company and school, Bellyqueen. She also co-founded PURE (Public Urban Ritual Experiment), an international community of artists dedicated to healing and social change through dance and music. Kaeshi has performed and taught internationally, and is an alumni member of the Bellydance Superstars, and Jillina's Bellydance Evolution. She curated the weekly Djam NYC event showcasing dancers and musicians from 2007-2017, and teaches at the Bellyqueen School of Dance and Steps on Broadway. Her mission is to develop dance as a stage art and explore it's powerful, healing properties. www.kaeshi.com, www.bellyqueen.com
MYRA KRIEN
Myra Krien is a renowned Middle Eastern dance artist, an international performer, choreographer and teacher of belly dance. Myra has performed on some of Americas most prestigious stages, toured internationally, performed for PBS and Japanese television and been reviewed by national publications such as Dance Magazine, Bliss and the Santa Fean. After returning to her home in Santa Fe, New Mexico she opened her school of dance, Pomegranate Studios, founded Pomegranate SEEDs (Self-esteem, Empowerment and Education through Dance) a non-profit youth mentorship program and her state-of-the-art fitness program Funk-Ex. http://pomegranatestudio.org
The mission of SEEDs is to mentor young women in order to create healthy and strong individuals who are socially and fiscallly responsible to them-selves and their community. This is accomplished trhough the vehicle of dance, specifacally American Tribal Style dance, talking circles, journal writing and presentations.
They are taught the elements of American Tribal Style dance, a rich diverse artistic, cultural dance form that spans the regions of India, the Middle East, North Africa and Spain, and its expression through the varied and complex music of these same cultures. The girls participate in talking circles and journal writing during which they discuss issues affecting them. Each girl indentifies a personal goal that she would like to achieve during the course of the program. Guest speakers cover a wide range of topics from nutrition and body awareness to financial education. Many successful women of various fields that are of particular interest to the girls address the girls each week. There are four Student Salons (student performances) each session. Entrance into the program does not depend on demonstrated talen, standard beauty, or ability to pay the fees the program would require.
NANCY EDER
Nancy Eder holds a B.A. from New York University, where she majored in the History of Fine Arts and minored in East Asian Studies. Her M.A. is from the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, where she concentrated in Chinese Art History. She completed the course work for her Ph.D. at the Ohio State University, where she majored in South Asian Art History and minored in Buddhist Art and Contemporary Art/Theory and Criticism. Starting in August 2006, Ms. Eder is an Adjunct Instructor in the History of Art Department at the Fashion Institute of Technology, where she teaches East Asian Art and Civilization as well as the Art and Civilization of India. She also was an Adjunct Instructor at the City College of New York from August 1999 through December 2009, teaching Western Art History surveys, Indian and Southeast Asia art history as well as the Art of China and Japan. Starting in March 2000, Ms. Eder is a Contractual Lecturer in the Education Department of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where she gives tours for Adult Groups, presents Gallery Talks and also teaches for Family Programs.
WILLY BARRETT (aka JOE WILLIAMS)
Willy Barrett (aka Joe Williams), is the world’s leading teacher of the Delsarte system of Expression, and has been leading workshops since 1998. He has presented Delsarte to communities as diverse as Morocco and the Casbah Dance, The Dalcroze Program at Juilliard, The National Center of Dance in Paris, The Acting and Music programs at the Cincinnati Conservatory, Cincinnati Yoga School Teacher Training, both in Ohio and India, The National Art History Institute of Paris, The Great Burlesque Expo in Boston, and Burlicon in Seattle, and many, many other locations. He demonstrates that the principles of Delsarte are valid and useful across a wide range of artistic performance work, and his students, who range from the Paul Taylor Dance Company, Vienna Festival Ballet, and countless ethnic dancers, burlesque and performance artists, and actors would all agree. His goal is to restore this lost knowledge to the world of the arts, and empower as many artists as possible, to bring their best vision to reality.
YAEL BECKER
Yael Becker is a dancer, choreographer, actor and belly dance teacher with a BA from the Tel-Aviv University in Psychology and Multi-Disciplinary Art. She studied performance and visual arts all her life and have been immersed in belly dance over the past 20 years. Yael has participated, produced and created dozens of shows on prestigious stages and teaches and performs locally and internationally.
Yael is an innovative choreographer and performer and is committed to creating fresh, original pieces that take traditonal belly dance out of the box to reinvent it's framework fusing in techniques from dance and theater.
Yael is a part of the stand up comedy dance group “Push Up” that performs regularly around Israel. She also founded “Salon Habibti" in 2012, a project that allows artistic belly dance projects to have a stage.