dancers
"Prelude" stage is set

Bernadette's pet project

Party at the Pillow in July!

Inside Open Doors
"Prelude" stage is set
Julie Kent and Marcelo Gomes perform Meadow.  Photo:Joe McNally, courtesy American Ballet Theatre.

Julie Kent and Marcelo Gomes perform Meadow.  Photo:Joe McNally, courtesy American Ballet Theatre.

As Wednesday evening's Prelude to a Dance approaches, the company is wrapping up its rehearsals for this special concert-style kick-off to our 40th anniversary celebration.  The gala program boasts special appearances by two-time Tony Award-winner Bernadette Peters and principal dancers Julie Kent and Marcelo Gomes of American Ballet Theatre -- as well as the first of many New York stage appearances by the company this year.

Prelude guests will get an intimate view of three Lubovitch dances: the central duet from Meadow, performed by guest artists Kent and Gomes; Little Rhapsodies, last year's popular and highly acclaimed premiere for three men set to a series of Schumann piano etudes; and the first staged preview of a new Lubovitch work in progress.

Prelude to a Dance takes place on Wednesday evening, April 23, at the historic Hudson Theatre, 145 West 44th Street, in the Broadway Millennium Hotel New York.  A limited number of gala tickets are still available.  For more information, call 212.221.7909, or click here to purchase tickets on-line

Bernadette's pet project

Bernadette Peters. Photo: Timothy White.

 Bernadette Peters. Photo: Timothy White.

It has been a busy spring for Bernadette Peters.  Aside from gracing our stage at Prelude to a Dance, she has been wowing audiences in concerts around the country ("Eat your heart out, Peggy Lee," wrote one recent reviewer of Ms. Peter's "sizzling" "110-degree" rendition of Fever).  She popped-up on-screen to play guest co-host on Live with Regis & Kelly.  And perhaps closest to her heart, she has been promoting her first children's book, "Broadway Barks," which hits book stores next week.

"Broadway Barks" is truly a labor of love, named after the animal adoption charity Peters co-founded with Mary Tyler Moore, with proceeds from the book ear-marked to support the group's work.  You can find "Broadway Barks" at amazon.com and other book sellers, and learn more by visiting the Broadway Barks website.

Party at the Pillow in July!

Ted Shawn Theatre at Jacob's Pillow. Photo: Jessica Wickham.

Ted Shawn Theatre at Jacob's Pillow. Photo: Jessica Wickham.

Looking for a festive way to spend the Fourth of July?  Join the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company for a holiday weekend at Jacob's Pillow, the first stop on our 40th anniversary tour.  Lar and our dancers are honored to open our tour at the Pillow -- the home of America's longest-running dance festival, as well as a National Historic Landmark -- and we would love to share our residency with you.

On Saturday, July 5, we will host a theatre party for company supporters, including a private tour of the Pillow, dinner and our evening performance in the Ted Shawn Theatre.  For friends who want to make a full weekend trip, the company will also arrange optional visits to other cultural attractions in the Berkshires, and offer assistance with travel planning.

For more information about our Pillow party, e-mail Dan Feinstein or call 212.221.7909.

Inside Open Doors
'Open Doors' students from Truman H.S. -- on Broadway.
"Open Doors" students from Truman H.S. -- on Broadway.
While all of the guests at Prelude to a Dance are VIPs in our book, one group merits special mention:  among our attendees will be 28 students participating in "Open Doors," an arts education program run by the Theatre Development Fund (TDF).  "Open Doors" introduces NYC public high school students to theatre by giving them the opportunity to attend performances with theatre professionals.

"Open Doors" was launched by the late playwright Wendy Wasserstein in 1998.  A couple of years later, Lar Lubovitch suggested adding some dance-focused groups.  For the past six years, he has personally served as one of the program's mentors, joining students for a series of six dance events over the course of each school year, then meeting with them for post-performance pizza-and-discussion sessions where they talk about what they have seen.

Among the other "Open Doors" mentors this year are actress Kathleen Chalfant, director/choreographer Kathleen Marshall, composer/lyricist William Finn, writer/director James Lapine, playwright David Henry Hwang, media commentator Mo Rocca and choreographers Miguel Gutierrez and Tere O'Connor.  For Prelude, groups of students will be attending from three high schools: Lafayette in Brooklyn, Townsend Harris in Queens and Lar's theatre companions from Truman High in the Bronx. 

"Open Doors" starts with the premise that theatre-going is the birthright of every New Yorker.  The Lar Lubovitch Dance Company is proud of our educational work and happy that "Open Doors" will be part of our theatre party at the Hudson.


Lar Lubovitch Dance Company

Mission:  The Lubovitch company was created to realize the artistic vision of Lar Lubovitch, one of the foremost contemporary choreographers in the United States.  The company exists: (1) to create new work; (2) to perform those works (and facilitate the performance of those works by others) both in our home base of New York City and around the world; and (3) to teach people of all ages, ethnicities and socio-economic backgrounds, in order to increase awareness and appreciation of dance.

History:  Over the past 40 years, the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company has gained a reputation as one of the world's leading modern dance companies and has performed in virtually every state of the US and in more than 30 foreign countries.  Lar Lubovitch has been cited by The New York Times as "one of the ten best choreographers in the world," and the company has been called a "national treasure" by Variety.  The company is primarily focused on the creation of new dances, sometimes in collaboration with other top companies.

Contact:  The Lubovitch company is located at 229 West 42nd Street, New York NY 10036.  You can reach us at (212) 221-7909 or Lubovitch@aol.com.  Or visit our website at www.lubovitch.org.

Support:  Programs of the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company are funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, as well as by Altria, American Mastepieces: Dance, Irene Diamond Fund, Brooke Garber & Daniel Neidich Fund, Harkness Foundation for Dance, Joyce Theater Foundation, McMullan Family Foundation, National Dance Project, Rudolf Nureyev Dance Foundation, A. Woodner Fund and numerous additional generous individuals, corporations and foundations.

Memberships:  The Lubovitch company is a member of Dance/USA, Dance/NYC, ART/NY, Americans for the Arts and the Arts & Business Council of New York.