On February 17 at 7:00 pm MSK we invite you to the virtual meeting with Monica Bills Barnes & Company, a contemporary American dance company that brings dance where it doesn’t belong. They create and produce each work entirely from its own rulebook — dancing to radio interviews on the biggest stages in the world, hosting a weekly show in a crowded office party, or leading a choreographed exercise routine in an art museum. The company consists of a team of collaborators who together create the most unlikely experiences for every kind of audience.
Oure guest speakers tonight are:
Monica Bill Barnes, a dancer and choreographer. Barnes founded Monica Bill Barnes & Company in 1997 with a collection of solos that could be performed anywhere. In 2013, MBB&CO gave itself the challenge to “bring dance where it doesn’t belong” and has been striving to follow this self-imposed motto ever since. The company has performed in venues ranging from Upright Citizen’s Brigade to The Sydney Opera House and has been presented in more than 100 cities throughout the US and internationally. Barnes has choreographed in theater, created new works for colleges and companies including Parsons Dance and was the choreographer for Greta Gerwig’s movie, Little Women. She has been awarded the Chita Rivera Award for Performance and in 2018, the company won the Lily Award. Barnes and co-director, Robbie Saenz de Viteri started collaborating in 2013, some of their past projects include The Museum Workout, a guided tour of The Metropolitan Museum of Art made in collaboration with the artist Maira Kalman, Happy Hour, an immersive office party dance show, Three Acts, Two Dancers, One Radio Host, created in collaboration with Ira Glass. Current collaborations include The Running Show, Days Go By, Keep Moving, It’s 3:07 Again and Many Happy Returns.
Robert Saenz de Viteri began working in theater as an audio script assistant to Anna Deveare Smith. He has created performances and toured productions throughout the world with the Obie Award winning Nature Theater of Oklahoma. He has created, produced, and performed in Happy Hour, The Museum Workout, One Night Only (Lilly Award), Days Go By (Bessie Honoree), The Running Show, Keep Moving and It’s 3:07 Again with Monica Bill Barnes & Company. Some of his other favorite projects include producing This American Life Episode 528 “The Radio Drama Episode” live on stage at BAM, directing Rachel Bonds’s Michael & Edie, and creating and performing The Spiritual Life of Modern America, a collaboration in Norway based on the experiences of foreigners traveling in America Today.
Moderated by Jane Cox, a lighting designer working in theater, opera, dance and music and the Director of the program in theater and a Professor of the Practice at Princeton University. She has been a member of the Monica Bill Barnes dance company for more than twenty years. A few highlights of her professional design career include The Color Purple on Broadway; Hamlet in London; Lucia di Lammermoor at Sydney Opera House, and a theatrical adaptation of Ta-Nehisi Coates book Between The World and Me at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. Upcoming design projects include Broadway productions of Macbeth starring Daniel Craig and Ruth Negga and Three Sisters starring Greta Gerwig, as well as Mozart’s Don Giovanni at San Francisco Opera. Jane has been nominated for two Tony awards for August Wilson’s Jitney and for Machinal. In her role at Princeton, Jane has focused on more inclusive theatrical story-telling for all students, with a specific focus on making the work of Black artists more visible; on deepening the relationship between the university and contemporary American writing and composition for the theater; and on building stronger relationships with local artistic and educational communities.
To join the livestream on February 17 at 7:00pm Moscow time please follow the link to the AMC Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/acmoscow/ You can register below and leave your valid email address to receive a reminder 30 minutes before the online event starts. To join other AMC Online programs, please check the American Center’s website and TimePad calendars.
ALL AMERICAN CENTER IN MOSCOW EVENTS ARE FREE OF CHARGE / ВСЕ МЕРОПРИЯТИЯ АМЕРИКАНСКОГО ЦЕНТРА В МОСКВЕ БЕСПЛАТНЫ
