PULL/DRIFT
PULL/DRIFT
2013 | 16mm | BW, color | sound | 10m
Ritual takes form amid a late summer landscape.
This film documents a unique choreographed performance that took place one late summer afternoon in Patapsco State Park in Baltimore, Maryland. Choreographed by Clarissa Stowell Gregory and performed by The Effervescent Collective. Soundtrack composed by Josh Millrod.
2013 | 16mm | BW, color | sound | 10m
Ritual takes form amid a late summer landscape.
This film documents a unique choreographed performance that took place one late summer afternoon in Patapsco State Park in Baltimore, Maryland. Choreographed by Clarissa Stowell Gregory and performed by The Effervescent Collective. Soundtrack composed by Josh Millrod.
Medium: 16mm
Year: 2013
Originally from Chester, Pennsylvania, Monique Newton Walker has traveled the world as a performer, educator, and choreographer, and living in Maryland since 2003. She specializes in neo-traditional and contemporary African dance and has studied from many dance masters and institutions including Chuck Davis, Walter Nicks, Philadanco!, The School at Jacob’s Pillow, and Dr. Kariamu Welsh.
The Dancing Princesses Presented by Ballet Theatre of Maryland
Excalibur The Sword and The Stone presented by Ballet Theatre of Maryland
Selections from, ‘Excalibur: The Sword and The Stone’
This ballet was choreographed by Dianna Cuatto and is set to original, award- winning music by Maggie Sansone which is played live by her and her musicians.
A powerful retelling of The Legend of King Arthur: ‘Excalibur The Sword and The Stone’
The Lady of the Lake, Viviannne is the High Priestess of Avalon and the keeper of Excalibur, the mighty sword of truth and light. Excalibur is destined to be wielded only by the one true king of the land in Britain- a warrior king who can unite the British peoples to defeat King Lot of Orkney and the invading Saxons. As the Lady of the Lake had long foreseen, the awaited king, Arthur is born. The Lady fo the Lake’s father, Merlin takes baby Arthur into his safekeeping and gives the Lady of the Lake Arthur’s half sister Morgan Le Fay to train her to become a priestess where she eventually is appointed as The Lady of the Lake’s successor. Morgan meets Lancelot, is assigned to be his guide and falls in love with him, but she is sworn to celibacy as a priestess in Avalon. Together, they look into the Lady of the Lake’s scrying bowl to see what the future holds for them. They see the young warrior princess, Guinevere and a vision of the grown woman and queen she is destined to become. Lancelot is drawn to the image of Guinevere, and the disappointed Morgan feels powerless.
Several years pass and knights are and kings are given the opportunity to try and move the sword, Excalibur from its stone. At the tournament, the powerful and ambitious King Lot of Orkney is favored to be the man most likely to pull the sword from the stone, making him the High King. Quickly, Merlin appears with a mysterious young man, Arthur, who easily removes the sword and is appointed by the Lady of the Lake as the High King. Out of jealousy, Morgan teams up with King Lot and orders him to a battle against the warrior Princess Guinevere. Merlin sends Arthur to join the fight where he kills Lot and rescues Guinevere. The fall in love and agree to marry, making Guinevere Arthur’s Queen.
This ballet was choreographed by Dianna Cuatto and is set to original, award- winning music by Maggie Sansone which is played live by her and her musicians.
A powerful retelling of The Legend of King Arthur: ‘Excalibur The Sword and The Stone’
The Lady of the Lake, Viviannne is the High Priestess of Avalon and the keeper of Excalibur, the mighty sword of truth and light. Excalibur is destined to be wielded only by the one true king of the land in Britain- a warrior king who can unite the British peoples to defeat King Lot of Orkney and the invading Saxons. As the Lady of the Lake had long foreseen, the awaited king, Arthur is born. The Lady fo the Lake’s father, Merlin takes baby Arthur into his safekeeping and gives the Lady of the Lake Arthur’s half sister Morgan Le Fay to train her to become a priestess where she eventually is appointed as The Lady of the Lake’s successor. Morgan meets Lancelot, is assigned to be his guide and falls in love with him, but she is sworn to celibacy as a priestess in Avalon. Together, they look into the Lady of the Lake’s scrying bowl to see what the future holds for them. They see the young warrior princess, Guinevere and a vision of the grown woman and queen she is destined to become. Lancelot is drawn to the image of Guinevere, and the disappointed Morgan feels powerless.
Several years pass and knights are and kings are given the opportunity to try and move the sword, Excalibur from its stone. At the tournament, the powerful and ambitious King Lot of Orkney is favored to be the man most likely to pull the sword from the stone, making him the High King. Quickly, Merlin appears with a mysterious young man, Arthur, who easily removes the sword and is appointed by the Lady of the Lake as the High King. Out of jealousy, Morgan teams up with King Lot and orders him to a battle against the warrior Princess Guinevere. Merlin sends Arthur to join the fight where he kills Lot and rescues Guinevere. The fall in love and agree to marry, making Guinevere Arthur’s Queen.
Interlude
Choreographed and performed in 2013, 'Interlude' is a contemporary ballet choreographed on the dancers of The Ballet Theatre of Maryland by Dianna Cuatto and is set to music by Meg Ryan which was played live on stage by Julie Frazier.
Convergance
Convergence is a contemporary ballet set to music by Ryan Lucas with choreography by Dianna Cuatto. Originally choreographed in 2018, this piece was inspired by how our paths often converge briefly with those of another, sometimes resulting in moments of intimacy and communion.
The Sleeping Beauty- The Prologue, presented by the Ballet Theatre of Maryland
“The Sleeping Beauty” is set to music by Peter IIyich Tchaikovsky and was choreographed and restaged by Dianna Cuatto after Marius Petipa. The Ballet Theatre of Maryland premiered this ballet in February 2016 at both Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts and The Modell Lyric Opera House, which you will see in this recording.
The Prologue- The Christening of Princess Aurora:
In celebration of Princess Aurora’s christening, the King and Queen invite the five good fairies to bestow gifts upon Aurora and to act as her Fairy Godmothers. The Amethyst Fairy, the most powerful fairy of them all, begins to grant aurora her gift of wisdom and abundance when she is interrupted by lightening and thunder. The evil fairy, Caraboose arrives and is angry to have not been invited to the celebration. Carabosse has a gift for the princess too. On her 16th birthday, Aurora will prick her finger on a spindle and DIE! The Amethyst Fairy intervenes, and while she is unable to reverse Carabosse’s spell, she can mitigate it. She promises the King and Queen that the princess will indeed prick her finger on a spindle, but she will not die. Instead, she will fall into a deep sleep for 100 years, to which she will be awaken from by true love’s kiss. This promise breaks Carabosse’s spell and the power of the Amethyst Fairy dismisses the evil fairy. As she leaves, Carabosse promises that she will get her revenge and the princess will die. The Fairies reassure peace and hope to the King and Queen, but out of extra precaution, King Henry bands and vows to burn every spindle in the kingdom.
The Prologue- The Christening of Princess Aurora:
In celebration of Princess Aurora’s christening, the King and Queen invite the five good fairies to bestow gifts upon Aurora and to act as her Fairy Godmothers. The Amethyst Fairy, the most powerful fairy of them all, begins to grant aurora her gift of wisdom and abundance when she is interrupted by lightening and thunder. The evil fairy, Caraboose arrives and is angry to have not been invited to the celebration. Carabosse has a gift for the princess too. On her 16th birthday, Aurora will prick her finger on a spindle and DIE! The Amethyst Fairy intervenes, and while she is unable to reverse Carabosse’s spell, she can mitigate it. She promises the King and Queen that the princess will indeed prick her finger on a spindle, but she will not die. Instead, she will fall into a deep sleep for 100 years, to which she will be awaken from by true love’s kiss. This promise breaks Carabosse’s spell and the power of the Amethyst Fairy dismisses the evil fairy. As she leaves, Carabosse promises that she will get her revenge and the princess will die. The Fairies reassure peace and hope to the King and Queen, but out of extra precaution, King Henry bands and vows to burn every spindle in the kingdom.
Selections from A Midsummer Night's Dream
Selections from the comedic classic, A Midsummer Night's Dream.
Carla Perlo, Founding Director Emerita of Dance Place served as the driving force of the organization from September 1, 1980 to August 31, 2017. She has had an active career choreographing, teaching and performing across the US, London, Paris, Italy, Austria, Israel, Mexico and Brazil. Carla was named Washingtonian of the Year by Washingtonian Magazine in 1997 and received the Pola Nirenska Life Time Achievement award in 2017. Many students credit her for their strong foundation and have gone on to lead very successful careers dancing with companies such as Kansas City Ballet, Martha Graham,