Monica Bill Barnes & Co Coming to Jacob’s Pillow
BECKET, Mass. — Monica Bill Barnes brings her trademark blend of theatricality, intelligence, humor and physicality to Jacob’s Pillow Dance, from Wednesday, July 28 through Monday, Aug.1.Barnes and her dancers will perform excerpts from "Another Parade," set to a varied score including music by J.S. Bach, Burt Bacharach and James Brown. The program also features "mostly fanfare," a world premiere co-commissioned by Jacob’s Pillow, created in part during a Creative Development Residency at the Pillow, and "here we are," a 2009 solo choreographed and performed by Barnes herself.
“Monica Bill Barnes has the most delightful and intriguing ways of communicating with audiences. She invites us to a witty and unpredictable party. She can pull on our heart strings, make us laugh, think, and reflect. She’s original,” said Jacob's Pillow executive director Ella Baff.
"Mostly fanfare" is inspired by the music of Nina Simone and delves into the various ways in which who we are on the outside – what we wear and what we allow people to know – reflects who we actually are and what we feel inside both onstage and off. The score includes Simone’s “For All We Know,” “Samson & Delilah, and “Let It Be Me.” In a concept born during the company’s Creative Development Residency at the Pillow, Barnes and filmmaker/company member Celia Rowlson-Hall have collaborated to create eight short companion films for "mostly fanfare," designed for a limited-time Internet showing, and intended to serve as “windows into the choreographer's imagination." The films may be viewed at mostlyfanfarefilms.squarespace.com.
"Another Parade," a work for four dancers including Barnes, celebrates the experience of being onstage. Barnes’s signature movement style, full of large, sweeping phrases as well as intimate, theatrical gestures and expressions, is at the forefront of this work, Set to Bach’s “Cello Suite No. 4” in addition to popular music by artists such as James Brown and Burt Bacharach, this exploration of performers and performing utilizes humorous theatricality interwoven with Barnes’ innovative choreography.
"Here we are," a solo for Barnes set to Nina Simone’s “Wild is the Wind”, was described by Quinn Batson for OFFOFFOFF.com as “scintillating. It's as if she has a superfast processor in her head and the body to translate this speed to movement; the pace and amount of her scenarios and allusions in seven minutes is staggering.”
While at Jacob’s Pillow, Monica Bill Barnes will lead a Master Class on Sunday, July 31. Advance registration is required (call 413-243-9919, ext. 5). Master Classes are $15 per class or $8 for dance instructors with proper identification. Observation is free and open to the public.
On Thursday, July 29, Barnes will screen and comment on film clips of classic comic dancers such as Lotte Goslar, Iva Kitchell and Myra Kinch during a discussion on the use of humor in concert dance. The talk, part of Jacob’s Pillow’s free PillowTalks series, will take place at 5 p.m. in Blake’s Barn.
Monica Bill Barnes’s work has been presented in Italy, Russia, Germany, and across the United States, and she has received multiple grants and residencies from such organizations as the Greenwall Foundation, Dance New Amsterdam, and the Puffin Foundation. Barnes holds an MFA from NYU Tisch and a BA in philosophy and theater from the University of California at San Diego, and was invited to the Pillow in 2009 for a Creative Development Residency.
The Creative Development Residency Program is part of Jacob’s Pillow’s core mission to support artists and their development. The program serves as a signature of the Pillow’s artistic point of view and underscores its commitment to expand horizons, both of choreographers and audiences. During Creative Development Residencies, artists are invited to spend one to three weeks at the Pillow creating or rehearsing new work, with free housing for the company, unlimited use of studio space, and access to the Archives and other Pillow resources. In the quiet off-season atmosphere of Jacob’s Pillow, the residencies are rare opportunities for artists to focus on the creative process without distraction. Each Creative Development Residency concludes with an invitation-only work-in-progress showing during which artists receive valuable creative feedback from audience members.
