Thursday, March 8, 2012
Fire at Silver and East Main
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Board of Education Votes to Buy Out Superintendent's Contract
We have regarded for months a new approach to school administration as one of the district's most pressing needs. We believe the mutual agreement reached by our Board of Education will be of benefit to our school system, City of Middletown, and Dr. Frechette.
Nik Owens ’12 interviews choreographer Garth Fagan about performance at DanceMasters Weekend (Mar. 10)
Vitolio Jeune of Garth Fagan Dance performing "Talking Drums" (an excerpt from the work "Senku", 2006). Photo by Brandan Bannon.On Saturday March 10, the 13th annual DanceMasters Weekend Showcase Performance will feature the work of Garth Fagan Dance. Nik Owens ’12 interviewed Garth Fagan about the upcoming performance in this entry from the Center for the Arts blog.
Nik Owens ‘12: How did you get started in the dance world?
Garth Fagan: Well, way back in high school in Jamaica, someone got injured for a Christmas show that was being put up, and my gymnastics coach suggested that I fill in. I did – and everyone said I was the best thing since ‘sliced bread’; I was just doing what my partner for the show was telling me to do. Afterwards, this same partner said I should take dancing lessons.Next thing I knew I was dancing with a company in Jamaica. They were able to travel to places that I couldn’t go and they had access to resources that I didn’t have at the time and, as a result, I moved to the States and attended college at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan. Pat Wellings, a professor at Wayne State at the time, helped me choreograph my first piece called Contemplation. This piece was done in silence, which in the '60s was quite daring and bold. The daring and boldness that I had was characteristic of many young people in the '60s. It was a great piece.
Later on, I joined Dance Theater of Detroit and was a principal soloist and choreographer with them. I had a junior high school boys’ dance company at the time as well. All of these things helped to establish the foundation for Garth Fagan Dance. Since then, I’ve choreographed for New York City Ballet, Limón Dance Company, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and other companies as well.
NO: Your website mentions that some of your greatest influences as an artist are Pearl Primus and Lavinia Williams. What about their work most influences you during your choreographic process?
GF: I danced with Lavinia Williams (who was Sara Yarborough’s [a highly esteemed dancer with Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater] mother). She gave me a truly strong sense of the movement of the back as well the use of polyrhythms. Pearl Primus taught me about learning things QUICKLY and at a very fast pace. She would have a rehearsal in the morning, run it again in the afternoon, and then have the performance at night. Both Lavinia Williams and Pearl Primus were Caribbean women, which helped to make my learning experience and my relations with them even stronger. Other teachers included Martha Graham, who taught me about discipline; José Limón, who taught me about the importance of looking at your roots and heritage; and Alvin Ailey, who was one of the most important people I’ve ever met. He helped me with my confidence as an artist as well as giving me money to get started in the world of dance in America.
NO: What aspects of the Caribbean tradition do you covet most in your works?
GF: Mostly the polyrhythms, polyrhythms with ease. In Jamaica it’s usually pretty hot (86 degrees underneath a tree) so we always do things with ease. You see polyrhythms oozing all over the place. But I’m really and truly a diehard modern choreographer. However, I do have a lot of ballet in my work, but even then I stretch from it.
NO: What made you decide to start you own dance school?
GF: I wanted to see certain things on stage that I wasn’t seeing anywhere else. I love the speed of ballet but wasn’t going to be in dances about swans and princesses. I love the polyrhythms from the Caribbean. I love the weight of modern dance. And I love the issues that postmodern dance deals with. I wanted to see all of that combined on stage.
NO: Which works will you be presenting during DanceMasters Weekend at Wesleyan University on Saturday, March 10, 2012?
GF: I will be featuring two works at Wesleyan: Talking Drums by Vitolio Jeune, and Thanks Forty, which celebrates Garth Fagan Dance’s 40th anniversary. This work features Steve Humphrey, Lindsay Renée, Shannon Castle, and Norwood Pennywell (who is the rehearsal director for Garth Fagan Dance as well a Bessie Award recipient).
13th annual DanceMasters Weekend Showcase Performance
Saturday, March 10, 2012 at 8pm
CFA Theater
$27 general public; $20 senior citizens, Wesleyan faculty/staff, non-Wesleyan students; $8 Wesleyan students
The DanceMasters Showcase will feature performances by Pilobolus, Camille A. Brown & Dancers, and Garth Fagan Dance. Natalie Rogers-Cropper of Garth Fagan Dance will be teaching a Master Class at 11am on Saturday in the CFA Dance Studio.
Looking Back: The Making of Syrup
Boiling syrup has been a north-east tradition, one started by the Indian tribes who lived here first. The method of making maple syrup has remained unchanged through the hundreds of years it has been around; the trees are still drilled, the sap is still collected, and the syrup is still boiled over open flame. But unfortunately, the time when early spring was a season where every farm across the state was busy hauling buckets of sap and anxiously stirring pots of syrup is long gone.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
School Board Reported To Be Discussing Superintendent Contract Buyout
The story is HERE.
JoAnna Bourain ’12 interviews choreographer Camille A. Brown (Mar. 10)
On Saturday March 10, the 13th annual DanceMasters Weekend Showcase Performance will feature the work of Camille A. Brown & Dancers. Center for the Arts Intern JoAnna Bourain ’12 interviewed Camille A. Brown about her creative process and her upcoming performance for this entry from the CFA blog.
JoAnna Bourain ’12: How does your creative process work? Why are you drawn to certain subject matters? Do you derive your creativity from your own everyday experiences or is it more abstracted and observational?
Camille A. Brown: My process is different for every piece that I create. I believe that the space is a living organism, so it's important to have some sort of spontaneity when creating a new work. Sometimes I'm immediately drawn to music, a singer/composer/musician, or something that I've heard or was suggested that I research. From there, the music inspires the movement. Other times I have an idea in my head that I decide to explore in space. To be honest, the latter is harder because, now that I have the 'perfect' image in my head, the task is to marry the movement and concept with music. It must align perfectly! Since I love injecting aspects of theater in my work, I bring in an actor and dramaturge with whom I have close relationships to work with the company to fully portray characters with integrity. We have acting classes, group discussions; we allow these things to inform where the piece goes. It also challenges me to look at the work objectively. Having those extra sets of eyes from a different perspective is a jewel.
The dancers give the work breath. I am greatly influenced by their choices in space, their approach to the movement, how they grow within the work, making it their own. Their connection to space, the earth, their spirit. It all helps to show individuality within the ensemble works that I create.
As a choreographer, I am interested in that space between dance and theater where interdisciplinary work defies category and takes flight. Music is one of the main driving forces of my work. As an artist, it is imperative that I “drink” the music and move in a way that is the music. For me, there is no separation in my understanding of choreography; I move seamlessly between music, theater and dance. Informed by my music background as a clarinetist, I create choreography that utilizes musical composition as storytelling. I love investigating the silent space within the measure. Singers also influence me — how they each use their vocal tone and modulation informs me in how to use my body in creating multiple levels of expression.
I am interested in telling stories beyond just dance. I have always been fascinated with history — the past, the everyday lives of my ancestors. I love exploring an “understanding” of their lives, tying history to my personal experiences and bringing those things to life. I build dance vocabulary from a very personal place. Characters are facets of my life; my experience is a lens into the past and the present. The work of the company is strongly character based, expressing whatever the topic is by building from little moments, modeling a filmic sensibility.
The work comes from both personal experiences and observational ones. I am generally a private person, so most of the time you will not be able to pinpoint what is my true story versus the observational one. They're kind of one-in-the-same. I like moving through concepts — becoming a character, and allowing my personal experiences to give a unique, personalized breath to the voice. I inject the personal in the pockets of storytelling.
JB: I have been watching your work online over and over again trying to pin down what is communicated to me in your choreography and performance. Words that come to mind are: power, speed, dynamism, narrative, communication, theater, history. If you had to choose words or messages that you try to communicate in your work, what would they be?
CAB:
Conscious
Theatrical
Unrestricted storytelling
Narrative
Earthbound movement
Spatial exploration
Dynamics
Weight shift
Plié- oh how I love the plié!
Celebrating history with a direct connection to the present
Communication
Healing
Release
Satire/humor
Spunk
Sass
Attitude
Peace
JB: Why do you think people should come to the performance?
CAB: This is a hard question because the answer I give will obviously be from a subjective place. Dance is what I live and breathe every day. It's my movement through space and life as a whole. I would say people should come to the show to get an intimate view of who Camille is — who Camille A. Brown & Dancers are. Hopefully they will see our personal stories and that will provoke them to share their own. This is what sharing your work is about. I am looking forward to introducing my voice to Wesleyan.
13th annual DanceMasters Weekend Showcase Performance
Saturday, March 10, 2012 at 8pm
CFA Theater
$27 general public; $20 senior citizens, Wesleyan faculty/staff, non-Wesleyan students; $8 Wesleyan students
The DanceMasters Showcase will feature performances by Pilobolus, Camille A. Brown & Dancers, and Garth Fagan Dance. Ms. Brown is the 2012 winner of the Mariam McGlone Emerging Choreographer Award. Ms. Brown will be teaching a Master Class at 1pm on Saturday in the CFA Dance Studio.
Mercy Advances to State Semifinals With 46-32 Win Over East Catholic
To put it bluntly, the state playoffs are a crapshoot. With every team, many of whom haven’t seen one another during the season, gunning for one another, each game presents a new and unique challenge. The pressure to win well and with flair is on the top seeds, and many aren’t able to live up to it.
East Catholic had scored the biggest upset in the Class LL tournament to date when the Eagles, a No. 15 seed, had beaten second-seeded Lauralton Hall in the second round. Seemingly every tournament, a lower-seeded school goes on a great run, and East Catholic looked capable of being that team. To justify their No. 10 seed, Mercy needed to end the Eagles run and thus establish themselves as one of the top contenders for the Class LL championship. And they did. Last night, East Catholic ran into a Tigers team that is on a mission to win a state championship.
Propelled by a strong third quarter, Mercy defeated East Catholic 46-32 at home last night. The Tigers featured very balanced scoring, as five players had five or more points.
Early in the first quarter it appeared like that dreaded upset could happen. East Catholic led 9-4 in the quarter as its aggressive defense gave Mercy fits. The Tigers closed the deficit to one at the end of the quarter, and after trailing by one midway through the second, scored the last five points of the quarter to take a 19-15 lead into halftime.
The third quarter was all Mercy. They found their shot and outscored East Catholic 13-4 in the quarter. A consistent theme on offense as the Tigers built up their lead was the squad’s ability to earn points in transition. By forcing the Eagles into quick and unsuccessful offensive possessions Mercy was able to answer with open layups and jump shots. With every made transition basket off of a missed shot or turnover, you could see East Catholic’s frustration and lack of confidence becoming palpable.
“We did a strong job of rebounding in their matchup zone in the second half,” said Mercy head coach Tim Kohs. “Off those rebounds we were able to get the ball to players who were offensive minded and they found some nice shots. Once we got the tempo going in our favor we were able to control the game.”
I was especially happy with the play of (junior forward) Liz Falcigno,” Kohs said. “She gave us a huge spark in the third quarter. She’s a strong shooter and when she hit a few shots at the beginning of the third, it helped to soften up the defense for everyone.”
After only leading by four at the half, Mercy took stretched their lead as big as 41-23 before East Catholic was able to pick up a couple harmless baskets near the end of the game.
The Tigers were strong on defense for the entire 32 minutes. Mercy never allowed East Catholic to look comfortable on offense and rarely allowed the Eagles to run offensive sets. Only one Eagle scored more than 6 points.
“I thought we played very good defense,” stated Kohs. “Landy (Sheena) and Fitzpatrick (Maura) did a great job of shutting down Nicole Ferguson, who’s her best player. They kept forcing her into tough shots.”
Mercy has now won each tournament game by at least 14 points.
The Tigers will face No. 6Manchester in the semifinals. The matchup will be at Sheehan High on Friday at 7:45.
Former MxCC Student and Accidental Art Detective Comes to MxCC to Discuss "New Secrets in Durer's Art"
Monday, March 5, 2012
Misty Eyed
Back in June 2008, Ed McKeon put out a call for volunteers to help create a hyperlocal news blog just about Middletown, written by volunteers. Seems like it's time to repeat that call. And if you'd like to help the Eye, but don't care for writing, we've got some non-writing tasks that need some love (like getting community notices up in a timely fashion.)
I remember reading this for the first time and thinking, "That Ed has no idea what he's getting himself into." Ha!
From the June 16, 2008 post:
Welcome to the Middletown Eye.
Increasingly local media is failing the municipalities and communities they cover. Corporate ownership has drained valuable dollars from the local papers, leaving them to scramble for coverage. It's not through any fault of reporters, it's through lack of reporters because the corporate parent believes more in advertising than editorial content. No single reporter can be at any one meeting.
Think of Middletown. Forty-two square miles. An active Police Department. Municipal meetings nearly every night. Cultural performances galore. Sports at many amateur levels. There's no way that even a handful of reporters can do the town justice.
But what if we become the reporters - those of us who go to the meetings, and concerts, ballgames and social events. With a digital camera, an audio recorder and a laptop, we might be able to do a far better job than the newspapers ever could.
So that's the idea. A blog devoted to our town, and written by its residents. Imagine what might happen if there were a set of Middletown eyes at every significant (and maybe insignificant) event.
Of course, we need volunteer correspondents. More on that in a later post. For now, think about what you would have liked the newspaper to report at the PTA meeting, and then consider how you could write it to get the most important points made.
Consider it your Eye, and your point of view.
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Laszlo Gardony Tonight at Buttonwood
Jazz Pianist/ Composer Laszlo Gardony & His Trio
Performing at The Buttonwood Tree 605 Main St Middletown, CT 06457
8pm $15
Trio: Gardony, John Lockwood, and Yoron Isarel
Gordony
"Gardony is a formidable soloist who lives in the moment."- Jazz Times
"No one has a better feeling for mixing strong grooves and melodic lyricism than pianist Laszlo Gardony."-Jon Garelick, Boston Phoenix
Yoron Israel
Yoron is one of the most talented musicians of his generation. His exciting drumming and compositional talent is spotlighted throughout his recordings.
Some of Yoron's fine works include: "Basic Traening" (Ronja Music Company), ""Chicago" (Double Time), "Live at the Blue Note" (Half Note), "A Gift For You" (Ronja Music Company).
Click here to listen to trio http://www.facebook.com/
For more info you can visit the following websites:
Purchase tickets at the door or make a reservation online at buttonwood.org. Come Early, Come All!