Ballets with a Twist Community Engagement

BALLETS WITH A TWIST

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COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

Ballets with a Twist is a project of The Loris Bend Foundation, a 501(c)3 organization.

ELCOM Photography by Nico Malvaldi and Darial Sneed

Welcome!

With its dynamic model for meaningful and expansive outreach, Ballets with a Twist aims to establish common ground between dancers and a broad audience, energizing and enlightening long-time fans and first-time viewers alike. Please enjoy this pictorial summary of the company’s efforts to engage entire communities in the performing arts.

For more information, or to request a hardcopy of this booklet, please send an email to management@balletswithatwist.com or call 212-732-1813.

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ahwa

ahwa

Rahway New Jersey

FALL 2012

•To kick off the inaugural season at Hamilton Stage, Ballets with a Twist welcomed young local dancers to audition for roles in Cocktail Hour. Eight of these children joined the company for a sneak peek of the family-friendly show at Rahway’s Train Station Plaza before taking the stage with the professionals at Hamilton.

•The company performed at the Union County Performing Arts Center during Rahway’s first annual Culture Crawl, an evening of interactive entertainment produced by Rahway Arts District in support of the city’s cultural renaissance.

•As an artistic affiliate of Hamilton Stage, the company was invited to dance before the New Jersey State Council on the Arts in celebration of the federal Our Town grant awarded to Rahway by the National Endowment for the Arts. NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman and New Jersey Lieutenant Governor Kim Guadagno were in attendance at the event.

•Members of the Rahway Senior Citizens’ Center delighted in a preview showing of Cocktail Hour and a special discounted ticket rate for all of the company’s Hamilton performances.

•On Ballets with a Twist’s opening night at Hamilton, fully-costumed dancers rode through the city in a locally-owned vintage Cadillac — a relic of Rahway’s cherished classic car culture — further rallying the community around the company and the new theater.

•Post-show events included Shirley Temple’s Spooky Soiree (complete with a children’s Halloween costume contest) and dancer meet-and-greets.

•Throughout its stay in Rahway, the company connected with local businesses for performance sponsorship. The Hotel Indigo, Aria Bistro and Bar, Luciano’s Ristorante, Patria Restaurant and Mixology Lounge, the Waiting Room, and Cubanu Restaurant and Lounge pitched in with accommodations, meals, drinks, and discounts for the company and patrons.

ahwa

ahwa

Rahway New Jersey

SPRING/FALL 2013

•For its second and third seasons at Hamilton Stage, Ballets with a Twist again invited young local dancers and area businesses be a part of the experience. Repeat patron events included Shirley Temple’s Spooky Soiree, post-show meet-and-greets, and previews at the Senior Citizens’ Center.

•The award-winning Rahway High School Marching Band and some of New York City’s finest musicians added another exciting element to the production providing a live soundtrack for much of the show.

•Ballets with a Twist offered a special performance of selections from Cocktail Hour during Rahway’s Hot Rods and Harleys, an annual festival entertaining over 15,000 attendees.

•RSI Bank, under the direction of president Russell Taylor, graciously funded the high-quality lighting design and rental package necessary to bring Cocktail Hour to life at Hamilton Stage.

Twist soloists pay a visit to local legend Liberty Harley-Davidson, host of Rahway’s 11th Annual Hot Rods and Harleys.

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RALLYING THE COMMUNITY AROUND HAMILTON STAGE THE OLD-FASHIONED WAY—WITH A CLASSIC CAR, CLASSY DRESSES, AND A MEGAPHONE

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YOUNG RAHWAY DANCERS LEARN TO PRANCE LIKE PROFESSIONALS IN "MINT JULEP."

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The company strikes a pose with Mayor Samson Steinman at the Union County Performing Arts Center (left) and delivers a sneak peak of Cocktail Hour at the Rahway Senior Citizens’ Center.

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Critically-acclaimed composers Stephen Gaboury and Mark Suozzo lend their expert ears as the Rahway High School Marching Band prepares to perform with the company at Hamilton Stage.

CLEVELAN

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CLEVELAND Ohio

SPRING 2013 •In association with non-profit presenting organization Ballet in Cleveland, Ballets with a Twist invited young Cleveland dancers to participate in a workshop audition. Fifteen of these children would join the professionals on stage at PlayhouseSquare’s Ohio Theatre in September 2013.

•Artistic Director Marilyn Klaus and dancers attended Ballet in Cleveland’s mint julep-themed fundraiser, introducing patrons to the company’s signature interactive style.

FALL 2013 •Soloist Dorothea Garland led public master classes at PlayhouseSquare’s Gund Dance Studio for a total of 115 young dancers, each of whom received a commemorative postcard autographed by Garland.

•East Cleveland’s renowned Mighty Shaw High School Marching Cardinal Band and professional local musicians donated their time and talents to the company’s Ohio Theatre appearance.

•Ballets with a Twist dancers were featured on Cleveland television shows The List and Live on Lakeside in the days leading up to the show. Regional publication The Akron Beacon Journal interviewed Klaus and company soloist Aengus Ortiz on the company’s collaboration with Ballet in Cleveland and the Ohio debut of Cocktail Hour.

•VIP ticket-holders enjoyed a celebratory champagne toast with Ballets with a Twist and Ballet in Cleveland in the lobby of the Ohio Theatre after the performance.

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Images by Vicki Lantz Photography

Artistic Director Marilyn Klaus tweaks technique (left) during public master classes led by company soloist Dorothea Garland at PlayhouseSquare’s Gund Dance Studio.

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Accompanied by some of Cleveland’s finest musicians, the city’s brightest young stars redefine style and grace at PlayhouseSquare’s Ohio Theatre.

The award-winning Mighty Shaw High School Marching Cardinal Band blows the audience away at PlayhouseSquare, proving that Cleveland

d truly does rock!

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EW YOR

EW YOR

NEW YORK New York

FALL 2012

•Cultural icon Cyndi Lauper joined Ballets with a Twist at Manhattan’s XL Nightclub and Cabaret for a performance to support her charitable foundation, the True Colors Fund.

Lauper delivered a memorable rendition of her hit song “True Colors” as the company’s youngest members performed a dance created especially for the occasion.

•Ballets with a Twist and the B-Twist live band rocked the house with Lauper and friends at the historic Beacon Theatre during Home for the Holidays, an annual True Colors Fund benefit concert.

SPRING/SUMMER 2013

•Lincoln Center and the Queens Public Library selected Ballets with a Twist to appear on a public ballot for free summer and fall performances in New York City as part of the second annual Lincoln Center Local arts series.

•Out of over 30 entries, library patrons chose Cocktail Hour as the performing arts experience they would most like to see broadcast live from the Lincoln Center campus.

•Artistic Director Klaus led a seminar for Lincoln Center teaching artists, providing them with details on the choreographic process behind Cocktail Hour and the origins of each dance in preparation for pre-show discussions to be held at select library branches prior to the live-broadcast performance in September.

FALL 2013

•The Lincoln Center Local presented Ballets with a Twist at the Flushing branch of the Queens Public Library, where Klaus led a Q & A session following the free public performance.

•The company returned to Lincoln Center for the first time since 2011 with an encore performance of Cocktail Hour at the David Rubenstein Atrium. The presentation, which featured young guest dancers from Connecticut and another Q & A session, was broadcast live to library branches throughout Brooklyn and Queens.

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The company teams up with Cyndi Lauper for a True Colors Fund benefit production of Cocktail Hour, featuring a special performance by fund founder Lauper herself, and again at the cultural icon’s annual Home for the Holidays benefit concert at the historic Beacon Theatre (ABOVE).

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Based on popular public vote, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts sponsors a free, live-broadcast presentation of Cocktail Hour at the David Rubenstein Atrium.

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Lincoln Center and the Queens Public Library offer a free taste of the company’s signature show — complete with Q&A session moderated by Artistic Director Marilyn Klaus — at the library’s Flushing branch.

BALLETS WITH路 A路 T W I S T

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For more information, or to request a hardcopy of this booklet, please send an email to management@balletswithatwist.com or call 212-732-1813.

WWW.BALLETSWITHATWIST.COM

WWW.BALLETSWITHATWIST.COM

Ballets with a Twist is a project of The Loris Bend Foundation, a 501(c)3 organization.