Thanks for being my Partner!

Dear Friends and Supporters,

What better an opportunity than the 10th Anniversary celebration to reiterate my eternal thanks to the people that make my dream of having a dance company in New York possible?

Ten years mark an intense period of my life (from my 30s to my 40s). I moved to New York 11 years ago, became a mom, a professor in different universities and fulfilled my dream of creating a dance company in the United States (the first one was in Argentina: L’Atelier Ballet Contemporaneo (1994-2000) the second one in Italy from (2002-2005) and now Anabella Lenzu/DanceDrama, starting in 2006.

 How it all started: 

• When I moved back to NY in 2005, my base was Peridance Center, directed by Igal Perry (where I was student in 1999-2001) and The Field, an amazing organization that supports artists.
• Igal Perry opened doors for me and gave me the opportunity to start teaching dance in NY.
• The Field (through an internship) prepared me to create ALDD, giving my the foundation to understand how a private/non profit dance company functions in NY. In exchange of my intern work, I (and my husband Todd) took  ALL the workshops they offered in Grant Writing, Development, Marketing, Pitching, etc. Under the wing of Tanya Calamoneri, Pele Bauch and James Scruggs. I met Steve Gross, the founder of The Field, in 1999, when I did not even speak English and I participated in his Field Work session at least 10 times. I learned how to give honest and precise feedback to my peers (in English). Eternal thanks to Steve for creating The Field!
•  I also worked as a stage manager for The Jodi Kaplan Dance Agency during APAP in 2006.

In these 10 years, 40 dancers passed through AL/DD! Thanks for your inspiration, commitment, hard work, dedication, criticism and encouragement:  Mayu Inomata,  Leslie Berman, Emily Quant, Yukiko Sassa, Lauren Ohmer, Julia Lindpaintner, Katie Clancy, Kelley Natella, Debra Zalkind, Val Loukiano, Emily Vescht, Liz Gorgas, Dawn Quigley, Brianna Fails, Raleigh Veach, Cori Marquis, Oshi Wanigasekera, Trina Maninno, Ana Wu, Macy Sullivan, Or Reitman, Paulina Espinosa, Anthony Rosado, Carmen Caceres, Elizabeth Weinstein, Marielis Garcia, Alice Pucheu, Graham Cole, Sydney Ruf Wang, Emily Jeffries, Carolina Rivera Moreno, Mary-Elizabeth Fenn, Hope Parker, Dina Denis, Cesar Brodermann, Erik Zarcone, Justin Coates, Ritzuko Sato, Samuel Humphreys and Guest Dancer: Mariko Endo. Your presence allowed to materialize my dance, making my ideas become real. Thanks for allowing me to experiment and play in my craft of making dances.

I am humbled and honored to have collaborated with: 

• Todd Carroll who has been with me since the inception of AL/DD. As executive director, photographer, writer, sound designer, graphic designer, advisor an lover!  Your honest and sincere feedback is my daily bread. Your support is my foundation.
• Daniel Pettrow, our theater guru! I started collaborating with him in 2010, for the desire to train myself and my dance in theater and voice. He began by coaching us at first, and has even directed my last show In Pursuit of Happiness, in 2015. Your sensibility, humor and imagery nurtures my creative work.
• Geoff Gersh, for composing the music fro The Garden (2008), and Sangre y Arena (2012). Thanks for deepening our emotional environmental atmospheres.
• Jennifer Johanos, for creating costumes and masks for Pachamama: Mother  World (2013) and advising us always. Thanks for being in almost all our shows!!!! Thanks to DJ too (her husband).
• Lauren Ohmer: my choreographic assistant, my right hand, who has been dancing for DanceDrama for nine years. So many adventures, so many rehearsals, and shows and explorations. Many tears and a lot of laughter too. Complicated emotions and hard moments. Respect and friendship. Professionalism and nurturing love. Eternal thanks for believing in my vision and for making it real.  Thanks for your creativity and openness.

In 2007, I started an internship program for AL/DD to assist with administrative work, development and promotion. Since then, we trained and guided more than 30 interns: Sarah Isaacman,  Patrick Heffernan, Julia Lindpaintner, Brittany Taylor, Brittany Wilson, Melissa Moore, Shreenath Muthyala, Roberto Ventura, Misaki Kawachi, Courtney Kenyon, Sarah Rose, Caitlin Thurgood, Angela Schopke, Lisa Colpa, Jo Leung, Donna Wilson Marizcal, Yoo Yey, Stephanie Frasca, Grace Rezendes, Emily Hedvall, Daniella Garofalo, Olga Dobrowolska, Sandy Shelton, Dawn Paap, Andrea Šamonilova, Veronica Hackethal, Emily Thornton and Tina Wang.  I’m happy and proud to have become the adoptive mother, sister, auntie, friend to all these young and talented artists and administrators. My home/office was their home, we shared many meals, coffees and yummy sweets, between office work. They saw me in my duties as a mom in between writing a grant proposal, cooking, changing diapers and doing home work with my kids. Without inhibitions, I exposed myself as a working mom/artist. Many of these interns have their own companies now, or work as an artist or administrator for major companies. Many discovered that dance was not for them, many learn to love dance, many are still coming to my kids’ birthday parties! All of them have my love and sincere thanks for helping me to make the company move!

 

To my Guardian Angels:

• Michelangelo Alasa, who, since 2012, opened his doors to us repeatedly for creative and magical Artist in Residencies, Works in Progress and performances in DMAC (Duo Multicultural Art Center). And of course for co-producing Sangre y Arena.
• To Gisela for your wise eye and kind words! For believing in me and my work since the very beginning with David.
• To the number 1 fan in our Fan Club:  Ben Lee, friend and tanguero (my first Tango student in NYC). Always there to help on set and off. And thanks for driving us to Ikea all these years!
• To Christina Graybard for your friendship and for editing of my book Unveiling Motion and Emotion. Your generosity astonishes me!
• To Julia Lindpaintner, dancer, intern, office administrator, website designer, graphic designer and translator of my book Unveiling Motion and Emotion. Your love, creativity, imagination, dedication and friendship are true treasures!
• To my Friends in our past and present ALDD Advisory Board: Svetlana Mikhalevskaya, Patricia Young, Amy Larimer, Liz Espert, Marji Liebman, Calogero Salvo, Charlotte Patton, Melissa Bernstein, Jennifer Johanos,  Muriel Karlin, Tina Graybard and Nichole Spates.
• To my local business supporters who have donated food to cultivate our community and feed the starving artists who come to our Fundraisers and Premieres: Sette Panni Bakery, Sal’s Pizzeria, Fortunato Bakery, Cheers Restaurant, C-Town, Dunkin Donuts, To the World Farm and Edible Arrangements.
• To my artist friends and supporters who have donated for our fundraiser over all these years: HERE Arts Center, Surramics, Alegrias Flamenco Tablao, Annie Rachele Lanzillotto and  KIT Italian Theater.
• To Stephen Petrilli, who illuminated and designed the lights for our shows!
• To Kathleen Hines, Kate Ladenheim, Julia Lindpaintner, Misaki Kawachi, Leslie Berman, Katie Clancy, Sarah Rose and Caitlin Thurgood for making the administrative work a pleasure. Thanks for your hard work and for sharing life experiences!

To all the supporters, family and friends for supporting us economically and emotionally. You make this company possible. Thanks for trusting and for being my partner.

To all the people and institutions that believed in us and invited us to be Artist in Residency, where ideas and emotions were challenged, explored and crafted:  DMAC (Duo Multicultural Art Center), Dance New Amsterdam, New Dance Group, Envoy Enterprises, Silo (through The Field/Artward Bound program), Envoy Enterprises, The Cave/ Leimay and Chashama.

We are blessed to have received the support of the following Foundations: MATERIALS FOR THE ARTS, NYC Department of Cultural Affairs/NYC Department of Sanitation/NYC Department of Education, Brooklyn Arts Council, Independent Community Foundation, Edward Foundation Art Fund, Puffin Foundation and Rockefeller Brothers Fund.

Places where we often rehearsed or held our DanceDrama Labs: DMAC, CPR, SounDance, Gibney Dance, Culture Hub and The Cave/Leimay. Thanks for making us feel at home, storing our props, letting us play freely. Thanks for providing a roof over our ideas!

Presenters and festivals that hosted us in NY:  Baryshnikov Arts Center, Dance New Amsterdam, New Dance Group, Sangeeta, IDACO, Sheen Theater, Young Soom Kim, Dixon Place, Figment Festival, The Bernie Wohl Center, Gibney Dance Center, Movement Research at Eden’s Expressway, MacGuinness Senior Center (part of SPARK program), Alchemical Theater Lab, DMAC- Duo Multicultural Arts Center, Arts In Odd Places/AIOP, Peridance Capezio Center, Casita Maria, Nuyorican Poet Café, City Reliquary Museum, Bronx Museum, Dance Parade, The Cave, Center for Performance Research, Brooklyn, Argentinean Consulate in New York,  Movement Research at Judson Church, In Scena Italian Theater Festival, Bluestockings Bookstore, Lehman College, Wagner College, Staten Island, Instituto Cervantes, Hatch Series/The Works Studio, NYC Dance Week, APAP, Alvin Ailey Studios, Roulette, Williamsburg Dance Festival – WAH, Wave Rising Series, Greenwood Cemetery, Little Italy Festival, University Settlement, Green Space, City Center, 100^th Anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire, DUMBO Festival, 60X60 Dance, Merce Cunningham Studio, 92nd Street Y, Performance Lab/Steps in Broadway, The Rover,  Ciao Italy Performing Arts Festival, Collaborations in Dance Festival, The Tank, Gershwin Hotel, Episcopal Actors Guild, Brecht Forum, Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance, Artist for Peace Festival, Crystal Theater ( CT),  JCC, Triskelion Arts, SounDance, the cell Theatre, NYU Casa Zerilli Marimo, 3LD Center for Art & Technology, Kumble Theater/Long Island University, FAR Space, WAXworks, North Hills Country Club, Felician College ( NJ), Williamsburg Performance Alliance, Oasis Festival,  Abrons Arts Center, Joyce Soho, Studio 111 , Cool NY Dance Festival, Galapagos, Taiwan Center, The Bridge for Dance, La Mama, HERE Art Center and Fordham University.

Festivals and Universities that hosted us in USA: Randolph College (VA), Charlotte Dance Festival (NC), Latino Arts Festival (Atlanta), Reinhardt College (Waleska, GA) and Randolph-Macon Woman’s College  (VA).

Venues that hosted us in Argentina: Centro Cultural Borges, Teatro Municipal (B.BCA), Teatro Colon (Punta Alta), Cafe Museo Historico B. Bca, Museo Ing.White, Teatro El Tablao , Museo de Arte Contemporaneo, Centro Cultural e Historico Universidad Nacional del Sur and L’Atelier Centro Creativo de Danza.

***Note: Sorry if I forgot someone – Know that you are deeply appreciated!

10 years exploring how memory and spirituality shape identity.  My dance-theater works provoke historical and social consciousness by breaking down the wall between artist and audience.

Thanks again for being my Partner! Anabella

SAVE THE DATE: 10th  ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION of ALDD       
Thursday October 20th at 6 PM
at Argentinean Consulate in NYC, 12 West 56th Street
Performance is free to the public, but space is limited and reservations are necessary
To reserve, please contact info@anabellalenzu.com

Choreography by Anabella Lenzu
Direction: Daniel Pettrow
Dancers: Lauren Ohmer, Dina Denis, Sydney Ruff-Wong, Graham Cole & Anabella Lenzu

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