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Labayen Dance/SF in WORLD PREMIERES

Dance Mission Theatre
San Francisco, CA

LABAYEN DANCE/SF: RE-LOADED

Isadora Duncan Awardee for Outstanding Achievement in Choreography, Enrico Labayen presents an EVENING OF WORLD PREMIERES featuring the choreography of Enrico Labayen. The exciting evening features the premiere of "Esquisses" music by Charles V. Alkan, "Quirk" performed to Sirakiz"s exciting violin concerto in three movements, "Soothing the Enemy", "Raga Suite" & "Two Chairs, a Man and the Plague" danced to the music of Thomas Williams, Rahman Asadollahi and Ram Narayan on January 22. 23, 24, 2010 at Dance Mission Theatre in San Francisco.

San Francisco, December 22, 2009- Enrico Labayen, considered one of America's top Asian-American choreographers and Isadora Duncan Awardee for Outstanding Achievement in Choreography in an Evening of World Premieres and the re-launching of Labayen Dance/SF, a contemporary ballet company which has been on hiatus since 2005 and now re-loaded with a renewed vision, vitality and aesthetics. The concert also features guest artists Haley Henderson of formerly of American Ballet Theatre and Royal Danish Ballet; Easton Smith ex- Smuin Ballet & Ballet San Jose; Laura Bernasconi of Bern Ballet, Switzerland and Mainz Statsoper in Germany, Carlos Venturo of SF Opera Ballet and Dance Through Time and Joseph Copley of Margaret Jenkins Dance Company plus new company dancers Daiane Lopes, Leda Pennel, Morgan Eichwald, Karen Meyers, Diana Tkachenko and founding members Michelle Lohmar & Diane Mateo.

The exciting evening opens with "Quirk", a contemporary ballet that celebrates the Companys new found physical vitality and technical virtuosity. The heart of the work is a pas de deux specifically created for guest artists Haley Anderson & William Easton Smith whose artistry matches the virtuosic quality of Sirakiz's Concerto for Violin and Orchestra.

The mesmerizing "Raga Suite" is a series of duets that incorporates the principles of martial arts, acro-yoga, contemporary dance, capoera with classical ballet. The work explores, examines and deals with the subject of personal struggle and healing. Performed by guest artist Laura Bernasconi, Carlos Venturo, Joseph Copley and Labayen Diana Tkachenko. The music of Rahman Asadollahi serves as the emotional carpet for the work.

The thought provoking "Two Chairs, A Man & The Plague", a multi-media solo performed by Enrico Labayen; the work comments and informs on how society, politics and cultures deals with the plague from the black death in the dark ages up to the plague that haunts us at present such as HIV/AIDS, SARS and the H1N1 virus.

And lastly, the soothing, romantic and slightly schizoid "Esquisses" performed to composer Charles Valentin Alkans Esquisses (lit. sketches); loosely based on the composers musical life, Alkan can be described as "an intelligent, lively, humorous and warm person whose only crime seems to have been having a vivid imagination, and whose occasional eccentricities stemmed mainly from his hypersensitive nature." However, following a particularly painful rejection in the musical field, Alkan began to withdraw from the social scene, spending the last 25 years of his life in isolation. Feelings of depression and hopelessness enveloped him; he wrote in a letter to friend, "I am becoming daily more and more misanthropic and misogynous, nothing worthwhile, good or useful to do, no one to devote myself to. My situation makes me horridly sad and wretched." Esquisses are the musical manifestation of Alkan's ostracism.

Labayen Dance/SF is a celebrated contemporary ballet company that has been guided for 16 years by its uniquely global artistic vision. It has been described by Dance Magazine as "Labayen Dance/SF and choreographer Enrico Labayen succeeded in combining gracefully the technical precision and elegance of classical ballet with the innovation of modern art, hypnotic and mesmerizing, a refreshing vision of contemporary dance." And Arab Daily in Jordan described the work as "Labayen creates indelible images in dance that one cannot easily forget... sheer genius" and Hans Otto Theatre in Potsdam, Germany hailed the company as "Labayen and his dance company has to be seen in the major stages of the world... novel constellation."

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Minimum Age: 0

Kid Friendly: No

Dog Friendly: No

Non-Smoking: No

Wheelchair Accessible: No

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