Flying into Dance Place Friday, May 10 and Saturday, May 11 at 8pm, two companies on the forefront of aerial performance – Washington’s Arachne Aerial Arts (Andrea Burkholder and Sharon Witting) and Baltimore’s In-Flight Theater (Mara Neimanis)– join forces to present For That Which Returns, an innovative aerial theater performance set atop a 18-foot kinetic steel sculpture of a weather vane.
An ideal Mother’s Day weekend event as three women blend their personal stories with the myth of Demeter and Persephone to reveal the seasons of connection between mothers and daughters while spinning atop a suspended six-foot arrow and swinging on the intricate arms of the standing sculpture below. The show was created by Burkholder, Neimanis and Witting over two years of intense collaboration and features an original script by Neimanis, dramaturgy and direction by Bryce Butler, music by Helen Chadwick, costumes by Chris Dalen, lighting design by Daniel Burkholder, and sculpture by Tim Scofield.
"You will find this show to be dynamic, thought-provoking, and full of heart." – David London, What Weekly
"If you are interested in a truly beautiful production or are an enthusiast of modern dance (with a twist), you will undoubtedly enjoy this performance." – Giordana Segneri, Broadwayworld.com
"A moving production … fluid & graceful … spend an hour with this poignant, elegant work." – J. Wynn Rousuck, WYPR
About Arachne Aerial Arts
Founded in 2003 by Andrea Burkholder and Sharon Witting, the Washington D.C.-based company performs from rafters throughout the region, including The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Dance Place, Woolly Mammoth Theater, Reston CenterStage, National Building Museum and the Corcoran Gallery of Art, among others. The company has received praise from critics, clients and audiences alike, including awards from Metro DC Dance and the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities. Co-directors Burkholder and Witting began flying together in 2000 as founding members of Air Dance Bernasconi and have continued their artistic development with Elsie Smith and Serenity Smith Forchion, former members of Cirque du Soleil. In 2011, the company founded Elevate Studios in Mount Rainier, MD, offering professional performances, special workshops with guest artists and ongoing aerial instruction for students of all abilities.
About In-Flight Theater
Founded and directed by principal performer Mara Neimanis, In-Flight Theater creates theater using trapeze and invented aerial apparatus that include floating and suspended steel sculptures. Drawing on traditions of mask performance, clown and Commedia dell’Arte, her work integrates circus arts with physical acting to create stories, text and characters that explore the rich interplay of imagination between air and ground. The company has created a host of projects with a wide array of collaborators including college theater and sociology departments, mixed hearing and deaf ensembles, and Costa Rican Teatro Abya Yala. Neimanis is the creator and producer of The Baltimore Alley Aerial Festival. She is the recipient of The 2011 B Grant Award from The Baker Artist Foundation and teaches aerial theater with invented objects internationally and at her studio in Baltimore, MD. She is a guild certified Feldenkrais practitioner and teaches Awareness Through Movement® as a part of aerial studies.
WHAT: Arachne Aerial Arts and In-Flight Theater present For That Which Returns
WHEN: Friday, May 10 at 8pm and Saturday, May 11 at 8pm
WHERE: Dance Place, 3225 8th Street NE, Washington, DC 20017; two blocks from Redline Brookland/CUA Metro station; free and convenient parking
TICKETS: $22 General Admission; $17 Dance Place Members, Seniors (55+), Teachers (pre K-12), Artists; $10 College Students; $8 for Children (ages 2-17)
To purchase tickets visit www.danceplace.org or call (202) 269-1600
About Dance Place:
Founded in 1980, Dance Place builds a community of dance artists, audiences, and students through high quality performances, commissions, training and educational program. We are committed to enriching the field of dance locally, nationally and internationally. Our thriving arts campus serves as an anchor in the development of our Brookland neighborhood in Washington, DC.