The Visegrad Countries – the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia – represent a cultural and political alliance of four Central European countries formed in 1993 to foster their integration into the European Union.
This festival, curated by Laurie Uprichard in association with the Polish Cultural Institute New York and the Skirball Center for the Performing Arts at NYU, includes one choreographer/company from each of the countries.
The selected artists/companies and their works are:
Wednesday, April 25 at 7pm
Věra Ondrašíková (Czech Republic)
Guide is a hypnotic audiovisual experience in which past and present become one. The two performers, in individual solos, sculpt the stage space with lasers to magical effect.
PANEL DISCUSSION
Following the 7:00pm performance of Guide
(and wrapping up prior to the 8:30pm presentation of Your Mother at My Door)
Location: CAC Cafe
CREATING WORK IN THE FACE OF POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC STRICTURES
Moderator: Laurie Uprichard, Senior Curator of Performing Arts, CAC
Panel: Stephanie McKee (Choreographer/Director, U.S.)
Jaro Ondrus (Dancer, Czech Republic)
Anikó Rácz (Producer, Hungary)
Pawel Sakowicz (Choreographer, Poland)
Shannon Stewart (Choreographer, U.S.)
Stanislava Vlčeková, (Choreographer, Slovakia)
Jozef Vlk (Director, Slovakia)
Please join us for a panel discussion between the two performances on Wednesday to discuss
how choreographic artists are dealing with creating work in the face of political and economic
constraints. The situations in the four Visegrad countries are not all the same and they are also
different from the situation in the United States, yet there are some commonalities. The artists
will share with you (and with each other) their processes and strategies for finding the
resources to make work and the inspiration and energy to push forward under difficult
circumstances.
8:30pm
Timothy and the Things (Hungary); László Fülõp and Emese Cuhorka Choreographers
Your Mother at My Door is a duet that plays with the idea of boredom and elapsed time spent on odd and humdrum activities. The two extraordinary performers interact with and confront each other in scenes that conjure up childhood foolishness enacted with adult emotions.
Thursday, April 26 at 7pm
Debris Company (Slovakia); Stanislava Vlčeková, Choreographer
Wow! is a fantastical duet exploring the history of humankind and its impact on the environment.
8:30pm
Paweł Sakowicz (Poland)
TOTAL is a solo created and performed by Sakowicz that speculates on dance virtuosity with a tongue in cheek approach. Sakowicz trained at London Contemporary Dance School and knows his subject matter all too well.
Support is provided by the Visegrad Fund, the Trust for Mutual Understanding, Fond na podporu umenia (Fund for the Arts), Central European Institute | Quinnipiac University, Starseed Foundation, Balassi Institute Hungarian Cultural Center New York, Czech Center New York, Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic, and Aerowaves. V4 is co-presented by the Polish Cultural Institute New York.