CITYCENTERSTUDIOPROGRAM2017draft

An Evening of Respighi at City Center
with Alison Cook Beatty Dance

Saturday, May 20th, 2017, 7:30 p.m.

Photo credit to Lucas Chilczuk

City Center Studios:
Studio 4

131 West 55th Street
New York, NY 10019

Please turn off all cellular phones, pagers and watch alarms.

Alison Cook Beatty Dance:

C​ AROLINA RIVERA ERIN ARBUCKLE

JOSHUA ELLIOTT IRVING AMIGON

LENA STALEY CHRISTOPHER BURSLEY

MORGAN ALYSSE RYDBERG

FIONA OBA DORRIE SILVER

Artistic Director & Executive Director

ALISON COOK-BEATTY

Managing Director
JONATHAN BOWMAN

Company Manager
TONY MUSCO

Costume Designer
CHRISTINE DARCH

Musical performance
Charlotte Benjamin, vocals and guitar

MURMURATION

Premiered at The Theatre of the 14th Street Y in 2015

Music: ​Gli uccelli (The Birds), O​ ttorino Respighi
Choreography: Alison Cook-Beatty
Costume Design: Christine Darch
Set Design: Daniel George Cook

Dancers: Joshua Elliott, Morgan Alysse Rydberg, Lena Staley, Dorrie Silver,
Erin Arbuckle, Carolina Rivera, and Christopher Bursley

Russell Haydn Photography

--- Intermission ---
Musical performance​, C​ harlotte Benjamin, vocals and guitar

HUMANITAS

World Premiere

Music: Ancient Airs and Dances, Ottorino Respighi

Choreographed by: Alison Cook-Beatty

Costume Design: Christine Darch

Venus.​ .................................................​Erin Arbuckle

Cupid ​..................................................Jo​ shua Elliott

Zephrus…………………………….…...Irving Amigon

Chloris………………………………….Carolina Rivera

Flora………………………………… Fiona Oba

Mercury.​ .......................................... C​ hristopher Bursley

The Three Graces ………………….Morgan Alysse Rydberg, Lena Staley, and Dorrie Silver

Inspired by Botticelli's paintings La Primavera and The Birth of Venus.

Brief Discussion with dancers and Artistic Director Alison Cook-Beatty

Alison Cook Beatty Dance (formally ACB Dance Company) w​ as founded in 2012. T​ he
company is a classically based modern dance company exploring the universal human condition
through expansive and emotionally driven movement grounded in American modern dance. The
healing and transformational power of the arts inspires the company to work with diverse groups
within the community, in addition to collaborative efforts with other artists. The company has
performed at New York Live Arts, San Jose State University, the Milford Fine Arts Center in CT,
the Putney School in VT, Ailey Citigroup Theater, Harvard Arts First Festival, SUNY Purchase,
Built On Stilts Dance Festival on Martha's Vineyard, Jazz at Lincoln Center, the Salvatore Capezio
Theater at Peridance, the 92nd Street Y, NYU Frederick Loewe Theater, the National Cherry
Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C., The Martha Graham Studio Theater, Battery Dance
Festival, and many more. Core to the mission of the company is community outreach, such as
performing or presenting lecture-demonstrations with live musicians at the Mary Manning Walsh
Home (ArchCare) and the Jewish Home of New York, and offering free dance classes to the
community for all levels and abilities. To learn more about Alison Cook Beatty Dance and
upcoming projects, please visit www.alisoncookbeattydance.org

Alison Cook-Beatty is from Milford, Connecticut.
She received her BFA from the Boston
Conservatory of Music and was awarded the
Ruth Sandholm Ambrose Scholarship Award. Ms.
Cook-Beatty is the artistic and executive director
of Alison Cook Beatty Dance, founded in 2012
and based in New York City. As the
choreographer and artistic director of Alison Cook
Beatty Dance, her work has been commissioned
by companies such as Columbia Ballet
Collaborative, Carolina Ballet Theater, the Joffrey
Ballet School NYC, Opera Dolce, New York
University, the Boston Conservatory, and Ballet Next. In 2012 Ballet Next commissioned her work
TINTINNABULI for its Joyce Theater season as well as performances at the 92nd Street Y and
Kaatsbaan. Ms. Cook-Beatty has been awarded the 2013 sjDANCEco Award for Artistic Merit &
Best Choreography, as well as grants from the Milford Fine Arts Council and New Haven Fine Arts
Council, CT, the Putney School, VT, the Caroline H. Newhouse Scholarship Award, and matching
fund grants from the US government and the organization Assets for Artists. As a dancer, she has
performed with the Paul Taylor Dance Company, Taylor 2, and many other prominent
choreographers and companies in NYC.

Irving Amigon r​ eceived his BA in Dance from the University of Minnesota. After graduating, he
was granted a full scholarship to attend the Ailey School. During his time at the Ailey School,
Mr. Amigon had the privilege to perform in Alvin Ailey’s Revelations Cast of 50 Dancers. He
was also part of the Nick Cave – Heard NY project for the 100-year anniversary celebration of
Grand Central Station. After the Ailey School, he received a scholarship to attend the Paul
Taylor Summer Intensive. In 2015 he was chosen to participate in the Merce Cunningham Trust
Workshop to perform one of Mr. Cunningham’s work titled “Split Sides.” Currently, he is
freelance dancer under the mentorship of Carolyn Adams.

Christopher Bursley received his dance training at Marymount Manhattan College, dancing in
faculty, professional, and student choreographies. Since graduating, Christopher has appeared
in the Brooklyn Dance Festival, the Martha Graham Dance Company’s 90th Anniversary
Season, as well as various other studio showings. He is very grateful for the opportunity to join
Alison Cook Beatty Dance and is excited to continue to explore and experiment with many styles
of movement within the company.

Joshua Elliott w​ as born in Los Angeles, California and started his dance training at age 17 at
the Orange County High School of the Arts. He then went on to work as a dancer with the
Disney Company both in Anaheim, California and Tokyo, Japan. He continued his training at the
Joffrey Ballet School in New York, later being invited to tour with the Joffrey Ballet Touring
company under the direction of Davis Robertson and Brian McSween. He has been lucky
enough to work with amazing choreographers such as Larry Keigwin, Karole Armitage and Dwight Rhoden,
performing their work both nationwide and internationally. He is currently working with KaDance Dance and
is excited to work with Alison Cook Beatty Dance.

Carolina Rivera was born in Santiago (Chile) where she began her training at the prestigious
school of ballet of Teatro Municipal de Santiago. Continuing her training, she majored in Dance
at the University of Chile with High Honors and the Excellence Award “Isidora Zegers
Montenegro”. In Chile, Carolina has performed as a Soloist and as a Ensemble in various
operas at the renowned Teatro Municipal de Santiago, with the musical theatre company's
Tea-M-Danz and Dance & Stage and in multiple venues. Her desire to pursue a career in
Dance brought her to New York where she was a scholarship recipient at the Martha Graham
School and joined Graham II. She has dance works by Jacqulyn Buglisi, Yung Yung Tsuai Lerner, Blakeley
White- McGuire, Lone Larsen, Martin Lofsnes, Edgar Cortes and Martha Graham. Currently she can be
seen performing with 360 Dance Company, Edgar Cortes Dance Theater, Gwen Rakotovao Company,
Anabella Lenzu Dance Drama and Alison Cook Beatty Dance. Besides the performance of her own work at
The Moving Beauty Series, The Growth Project at Ballet Arts, The Latin Choreographer Festival and
others, she is a visitor teacher at Escuela Moderna (Chile) and in different studios in NY throughout the
year. www.carolina-rivera.com

Dorrie Silver graduated from The Boston Conservatory at Berklee in 2015 with a BFA in
Contemporary Dance Performance, and had the honor of showcasing two of her pieces of
choreography on the main stage. Dorrie was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, where
she began her training at Brighton Ballet Theatre studying Russian Ballet. She studied ballet
at Manhattan Youth Ballet with a full scholarship, and attended LaGuardia High School for
the Performing Arts. There she was exposed to modern dance under the direction of Michelle Mathesius
and graduated on the Honor Roll. Dorrie has had the pleasure of working with and/or performing works by
Troy Powell, Zvi Gotheiner, Uri Sands, Robert Battle, Mark Morris and Andrea Miller. She has attended
summer intensives including Complexions Contemporary Ballet, Alonzo King LINES ballet and NYSSSA
modern and ballet program on full scholarship. Dorrie is honored to be performing with Alison Cook Beatty
Dance.

Fiona Oba began her training in Tokyo, Japan. A graduate of The Ailey School, she has
performed works by Alvin Ailey, Elizabeth Roxas, Paul Taylor, Darrell Grand Moultrie, Pedro
Ruiz, and Amy Hall Gardner among others. Fiona has danced for the Laurens Civic Ballet,
International Ballet Company, and NYC Dance Collaborative and is currently an apprentice
with Buglisi Dance Theatre. She holds a diploma in Dance Education from the Royal Academy
of Dance.

Erin Arbuckle received her training from The California Ballet School, School of American
Ballet, and Steps on Broadway. She has danced with California Ballet Company, Columbia
Collaborative, Terra Firma Dance Theatre, Ballet Next, Ballet Popular, and performed works by
Jeremy McQueen (Black Iris Project) at Jacob’s Pillow Inside/Out Dance Festival and Emery
LeCrone at MoMA Ps1. In addition to her dancing career, she runs marathons and holds a BA
from Columbia University in Sociocultural Anthropology.

Morgan Alysse Rydberg (a​ pprentice​) hails from Concord, New Hampshire. Morgan is a
recent graduate of Adelphi University, where she earned her BFA in Dance while studying
physical therapy. At Adelphi she performed works by faculty and guest choreographers
Takehiro Ueyama, Martha Graham, and Lar Lubovitch. Morgan also took part in the Broadway
Dance Center Summer Professional Semester, giving her an opportunity to work with a variety
of the industry’s leaders. She looks forward to working as an apprentice this year with Alison
Cook Beatty Dance!

Lena Staley is originally from Port Washington, New York. Lena graduated in May 2015 from
the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, with a BFA in Contemporary Dance Performance and an
emphasis in Modern. While at the Conservatory, Lena performed in works by Lorraine
Chapman, Colleen Thomas, Doug Elkins, Adam Barruch, Omar Carrum & Claudia Lavista.
Lena’s summer studies include the Joffrey Ballet dance intensive and a Paul Taylor dance
intensive. Before attending the Conservatory, Lena trained at the Long Island High School for
the Arts. Ms. Staley is currently a Zumba fitness instructor and has a love of animals. Lena is
excited to be working with Alison Cook Beatty Dance and celebrating her passion for dance.

Charlotte Benjamin, a​ ​Massachusetts native and now Brooklyn local, released her EP Lion's
Head in the fall of last year. With jazz influenced vocals and thoughtful lyrics she has been
compared to Catpower and Norah Jones.

Christine Darch ​designs for choreographers Julia Adam, Marc Brew, Val Caniparoli, Robert Dekkers,
Jodie Gates, Edwaard Liang, Jae Man Joo, James Kudelka, Matthew Neenan, David Palmer, Gina
Patterson, Brian Reeder, Dwight Rhoden, Amy Seiwert, and Merian Soto. She has been commissioned by
Ballet Arizona, Ballet Memphis, Atlanta Ballet, Axis, Cincinnati Ballet, Colorado Ballet, Complexions, Diablo
Ballet, Kansas City Ballet, Houston Ballet, Imagery, Israel Ballet, Madco, NCDT, Oregon Ballet Theater,
Pennsylvania Ballet, Pittsburgh Ballet Theater, Post:ballet, San Francisco Ballet, Smuin Ballet, and the
Washington Ballet. New projects include a world premiere for Dwight Rhoden for Ballet Nice Méditerranée,
a world premiere for Matthew Neenan with Ballet X, Imagery’s Sketch four series, and the debut of Julia
Adam’s new company with The Boathouse Project in Inverness, CA. This is her third collaboration with
Alison Cook Beatty Dance.

Alison Cook Beatty Dance Executive Board
President: Gerald Appelstein

Vice President: Dr. Ellen Beatty
Treasurer and Secretary: Jonathan Bowman

Advisory Committee
Kaity Chang, Silvia Nevjinsky, Dolores Hannon, Tony Musco,
Matthew Namie, Dr. Nick Beatty, Peter Muldavin and Helene Krumholz

Alison Cook Beatty Dance Interns
Irninta Dwitika, Kaitlyn Schultz, and Grace Hoffman

SPECIAL THANKS…(*add in Community Center and Battery
Dance)

AN EVENING OF RESPIGHI AT CITY CENTER WITH ALISON COOK BEATTY DANCE would not be possible without
the efforts, support, and generosity of the following individuals and organizations. Alison Cook-Beatty would like to thank
personally:

For your generosity and recent contributions which helped make this performance at City Center Studio possible we thank
Joan Bowman, Kaity Chang, Luis Lopez and Walter Martinez, Dr. Marc Safran and Mary Jumbelic, Gerald Appelstein,
Peter Muldavin and Helene Krumholz, Russ and Joan Davis, Michael Normandy, Jonathan Bowman, Marcia Pally, Mark
Daniel Chmiel, Dr. Nick Beatty and Alison Cook-Beatty.

Thank you Russell Haydn for your outstanding and creative photography.

Huge thanks to YOU- OUR INCREDIBLE AUDIENCE!​ And to the remarkable dancers, ushers, and volunteers!

BENEFACTOR Lisa Normandy- Davis Lisa Favorini
Courtney Dickenson Diane Foster
$10,000 or more David & Eileen Doyle Jason Franks
James Hessel
Gerald Appelstein Kevin Duffy Lisa Mammano
Ryan Dufty Jim McElroy
DIRECTOR Barbara English Brian Moore
Marti and Bob Etter Jennifer Murphy
$5,000 or more Robert La France Diane Shannon
Silvia Goncalves Katherine Sharp
Dr. Nick Beatty & Alison Cook Beatty Thomas Hoitsma
Joan Bowman Stephanie Jacobs Lara Tant
Amanda Kilpatrick
Jonathan Bowman Jane Lea FRIEND
Lois Lopez and Walter Martinez
LEADER Christina Markham Allison Barnes
Rob Sedwick & Annmaria Mazzini Faye G. Barnes
$1000 or more *Elizabeth McDonald Richard Barnes
*James McDonald Sr. Nicolle Bennett
Charles and Deborah Adelman Patricia & Robert McDonald
Ian Archer-Watters & Shiloh Campos Therese & Jim McDonald Steve Booth
Marcia Pally Jennifer Burke
Dr. Ellen Beatty & Ed Beatty **William Papallo Katheryn Caramanica
Dr. Daniel and Christine Cook Laura Pawel Maria & David Cherniske
Julie E. Petruskak Richard Clark
Kaity Chang Michael Romanszewicz Ron Vron Claws
Dolores and Jay Hannon Kim Roots John Dimatos
Peter Muldavin and Helene Krumholz Dennis Sanabia Katherine T. Emmet
Tim Saternow Allyson Cook Gall
Michael Normandy Dr. Howard Schranz
Dr. Marc Safran and Mary Jumbelic Alice Mussen-Staley Luc Hale
Carolyn Scott Elizabeth Hallock
Andy Wilcox Phillip Tobin
Lawson Ward Johnson Hor
SUSTAINER Peter Wilderotter Beatrice Javian
Erc Victory Johnson
$500 or more SUPPORTER Brooke Jones
Gunnar Kaufmann
Erin Barnes $50 or more
Russ and Joan Davis Eunbi Kim
Irving Amigon Emilie McDonald
Diana DiMenna Dr. Jo Bellomo
Hilda Kraker Carrie Bradey Chen Pan
Emmett Carey Jonathan Ruiz
Christophe Restif Roberta Cohen Kimberly Sanabi
William Roberti Andrew Costello Jason Siderman
Martin Cribbs Laura Solomon
PATRON (Saint of Dance) Diana Debicella James Swenson
Joshua Elliott Cherri Thompson
$100 or more Justin Wingenroth
Caron Eule
Erin Arbuckle
Roberta Bell
Randall Brater
Robert Castagnoli
*George Cook Jr.
Kevin & Darcy Cook
*Stasia Rynasky Cook
Divine Rhythms Dance

Our sincere apologies if we have mistaken any person in their given level. Please contact us if you feel that you should be in a different level.
Thank you for your contributions and understanding.
* A donation has been made in memory of.
** Deceased.

Alison Cook Beatty Dance is fiscally sponsored by Fractured Atlas, a registered
501(c)(3). Contributions for the purposes of Alison Cook Beatty Dance are
tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law.

Online donations can be made by visiting: h​ ttp://www.alisoncookbeattydance.org/support/
Alison Cook Beatty Dance

www.alisoncookbeattydance.org
[email protected]​ | 917-409-7773