La Clausura Sconfinata creates a play between freedom and enclosure by gracing historic cloisters with an unexpected dance. Isadora Duncan, the iconoclastic creator of modern dance, wrote that "the dancer's body is but the luminous manifestation of the soul.” Thus the choreography will express the paradoxical richness of the passionate inner life within cloisters, providing audiences with a new perspective on both modern dance and enclosure.
The cloister, mandated by the Council of Trent in the 16th century, was designed as an architectural metaphor for the physical and spiritual boundaries of virginity. Paradoxically, given the intention of clausura (enclosure), the convents provided educational opportunities rarely available in the outer world, and were notorious breeding grounds for independent thought.
Isadora Duncan advocated freedom of the mind and body and denounced restrictions upon women’s sexuality. This was illustrated in her art, which broke the physical and musical rules of ballet, as well as her personal life. She defied conventions of high society with her out-of-wedlock children and work in Communist Russia. She imagined the moving body to be the sacred expression of freedom and spirituality.
Personnel
Lori Belilove and her New York based company, Isadora Duncan Dance Company, are recognized as the world's most inventive, exciting, and authentic inheritors of Duncan's direct lineage. In her own site-specific and original choreography, Belilove also balances the needs of historically accurate reconstruction with the forging of new artistic pathways--an endeavor a pioneer like Duncan would surely support. The Art Monastery Project is likewise animated by the play between tradition and innovation.
The music by La Monica, an innovative Early Baroque ensemble, likewise explores the historical performance practice, animating it with passion and expressiveness. Their "Aria della Monica" program is inspired by a lament of a nun cloistered against her will. This theme was so common that this little ditty became one of the most popular songs of the day.
Ironically, both Baroque music and Isadora Duncan drew their æsthetic inspiration from Ancient Greece. Much like the Renaissance humanists whose Neoclassical innovations led to the Baroque style, Duncan also saw the expressivity and beauty of Greek imagery as profound conveyors of emotions and ideals. She also lauded the Greeks as the last civilization in which dance was considered a form of high art.
Performances
The dance is designed to be performed in classic monastic cloisters. By placing the ecstatic and sometimes tragic choreography of Duncan and Baroque music in counterpoint with the restrictions inherent in convent architecture, La Clausura Sconfinata will highlight and explore the creative tensions between the two ideals.
Biographies
Lori Belilove Artistic Director, Isadora Duncan Dance Company
American living in New York City
Lori Belilove received a BFA in dance, religion, and classical studies from Mills College, Oakland, California. Her direct lineage and prestigious performing career have earned her an international reputation as the premier interpreter and ambassador of the dance of Isadora Duncan. Belilove has appeared as a soloist with the Oakland Ballet at Zellerbach Hall, UC Berkeley, the conference of the Society of Dance History Scholars at UC Irvine, and has toured her one-woman shows throughout the United States. As a master teacher, she has held residencies at such institutions as Harvard University, The Juilliard School, Northwestern University, Ohio State University, Mills College, and Smith College. Original works by Ms. Belilove have been performed around the globe.
Cherlyn Smith Associate Artistic Director, Isadora Duncan Dance Co.
American living in New York City
Cherlyn Smith received a BFA in dance from the University of Texas at Austin. She has been a vital part of the teaching faculty of the Duncan Foundation for many years, often teaching Company classes and setting repertory for performance. She has recently been traveling in advance of the Company to give master classes in the community and teach and set repertory for children guesting in the performances. She has been featured demonstrating Duncan movement and technique in a photo layout for Fitness Magazine.
Elizabeth Disharoon American dancer living in New York City
Elizabeth Disharoon holds a degree with Scholastic Distinction from The Juilliard School. She has performed with Andrew Jannetti & Dancers, Robin Becker Dance Collective, Pascal Rekoert’s MidGetDance, Sue Bernhard’s Danceworks, Saba Dance Theater, and J Mandle Performance. She has toured internationally with the Isadora Duncan Dance Company for five years, performing and teaching the work of Isadora Duncan. In addition, she has danced with Jennifer Muller’s The Works for the last four years, at New York’s Joyce Theater and in Bolivia and Thailand. Disharoon has also presented her own choreography at The Juilliard Theater, The Clark Studio Theater, Alice Tully Hall and in her own evening at the Storm Theater.
Julia Pond American dancer, choreographer, teacher living in Rome, Italy
Julia Pond danced with the Isadora Duncan Dance Company from 2001 to 2005, performing and touring internationally with the Duncan repertory, teaching and collaborating in Lori Belilove's choreographic process. She is currently an international affiliate of the company, and has taught Duncan and Contemporary Dance workshops throughout Italy, in addition to presenting her own work in Rome and Torino. She has also danced with numerous New York artists, including Sophie Maslow, Raphael Boumaila, Robin Becker, Andrew Jannetti, and Tina Croll. Pond holds a BFA in Dance from the Boston Conservatory, and an MA in International Relations from St. John's University.
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