Jacob's Pillow opens season with an American original

12:00AM / Friday, June 06, 2003Print Story | Email Story

Becket, MA - Jacob's Pillow opens its 2003 Season in the Ted Shawn Theatre with Twyla Tharp Dance; Tharp is called "America's greatest living choreographer" by the Boston Herald. After the success of Tharp's latest Broadway production, Movin' Out, she has assembled a new company of dancers to perform her repertory, a body of work that demands the strongest and most versatile dance technique. With her impressive career that spans over 35 years, Tharp has created more than 125 dances, ranging from her beginnings with the postmodern movement, to contemporary ballet for American Ballet Theatre, and her productions of Broadway musicals including Singin' in the Rain and Movin' Out. Performance and Ticket Information for the Ted Shawn Theatre: Evening performances are Wednesday, June 18 through Saturday, June 21 at 8pm, with matinÃ©e performances on Saturday and Sunday, June 21 and 22 at 2pm. Tickets are $55 for evening performances and $50 for matinÃ©es and can be purchased by calling the Box Office at (413) 243-0745, faxing orders to (413) 243-0749, or ordering online at www.jacobspillow.org. Jacob's Pillow is located on George Carter Road in Becket, MA; 10 minutes East on Route 20 from Mass Pike Exit 2. Tharp, known for hiring dancers with supreme physical dance technique and performance qualities, brings an entirely new cast to this engagement at the Pillow. Twyla Tharp Dance last appeared at Jacob's Pillow in 2001, and her dancers who performed then have become Broadway stars with the success of Movin' Out - which was just nominated for ten Tony Awards. Of the new ensemble, Deborah Jowitt of the Village Voice noted, "The dancers, as one might expect, are terrific." As before, Tharp has culled performers from well-known companies to assemble a virtuosic and versatile group of dancers. Her dancers include: Emily Coates from White Oak Dance Project, Dario Vaccaro from Ballet Argentino de Julio Bocca and alumnus of The School at Jacob's Pillow, Lynda Sing from Dance Theater of Harlem, Lara Tinari from River North Dance Company, Matthew Dibble from The Royal Ballet, and Charlie Hodges from Parsons Dance Company and Battleworks. At the Pillow, the company performs Tharp's recent classics Westerly Round and Surfer at the River Styx. In addition, the company presents The Fugue and Known by Heart Duet, marking the first performances of these two works by Tharp's new dancers. Surfer at the River Styx from 2000 is a loose exploration of the Bacchae by Euripedes, with the title character portrayed as a surfer. The piece is set to a percussive score by composer Donald Knaack, who is known as "The Junkman" for his use of found objects as musical instruments. Westerly Round from 2001 is a quartet set to a Mark O'Connor score that uses elements of American folk music, which are echoed in Tharp's incorporation of square and folk dance steps along with a classical ballet vocabulary. The Fugue is a dance that Tharp choreographed in 1970 as a dance exploration of the musical form, for three dancers on an amplified stage, and is inspired in part by J.S. Bach's A Musical Offering. Known By Heart Duet is an excerpt from a suite of dances orginally created for American Ballet Theatre in 1998, and set to Donald Knaack's Junk Music. Since graduating from Barnard College in 1963, Tharp has led a rich and diverse career in dance. She began dancing and choreographing during the height of the postmodernist movement, and created works for non-dancers as part of the Judson Dance Theater. In 1973, she made her breakthrough to a larger audience with Deuce Coupe, a contemporary ballet for the Joffrey Ballet with music by The Beach Boys. In the late 1970's and early 1980's, she choreographed many works for American Ballet Theatre, including Bach Partita and Push Comes to Shove, which was originally performed by Mikhail Baryshnikov. In 1988, she merged her company with American Ballet Theatre, where she held the newly created position of Associate Artistic Director for two years. In film, Tharp choreographed Hair and Amadeus for the Oscar-winning director Milos Forman. On Broadway, Tharp has created a diverse group of notable productions including Singin' in the Rain, The Catherine Wheel with David Byrne, and Movin' Out with Billy Joel. Her works have been performed by many major dance companies around the world, including the Paris Opera Ballet, The Royal Ballet, New York City Ballet, The Boston Ballet, and Hubbard Street Dance Chicago (who premiered Tharp's I Remember Clifford at the Pillow in 1995). Twyla Tharp first performed at Jacob's Pillow in 1973, and this is her company's fifth appearance here. In a related free event, the dance writer Marcia B. Siegel gives a PillowTalk, All About Twyla on Saturday, June 21 at 4pm. Siegel is currently at work on Howling Near Heaven - Twyla Tharp and the Re-invention of Modern Dance. Siegel shares insights about her subject, illustrating the conversation with video highlights. FESTIVAL FUNDING: As of May 2003, major support for the Festival 2003 Season, including presentations and educational programs, is provided by Doris Duke Charitable Foundation; William Randolph Hearst Foundation; The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; Wallace-Reader's Digest Funds; Surdna Foundation; The Prospect Hill Foundation; National Endowment for the Arts; Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency; The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation; Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation; Leir Charitable Trusts in Memory of Henry J. Leir; National Dance Project and Expeditions Program of the New England Foundation for the Arts; LEF New England; Goethe-Institut Boston; Berkshire Bank; Capezio Ballet Makers, Inc.; Evelyn Stefansson Nef Foundation; Banknorth Massachusetts; Onota Foundation; Berkshire Businesses, and our Members. This organization is funded by the Talented Students in the Arts Initiative, a collaboration between the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Surdna Foundation. ABOUT THE PILLOW: Located in the town of Becket, Massachusetts, internationally acclaimed Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival was originally a family farm in the 1700s and served as a station on the Underground Railroad in the 1800s. Legendary dancer, teacher, and choreographer Ted Shawn established the Festival in 1933 as a showcase for his company of Men Dancers. The Pillow encompasses 161 acres and 28 buildings, including three stages, four dance studios, a restaurant, a pub, artist housing, archives, and administrative offices. During the 10-week summer festival, the Pillow attracts thousands of visitors to see world-class dance on three stages and enjoy hundreds of free events, including performances, lectures, tours, film-showings, exhibits, and talks with the artists. The Festival is augmented by The School at Jacob's Pillow that draws a world-class international roster of students and faculty; the Archives, which are open to public access; commissions and world premieres; an Intern Program, which trains arts administrators for professional careers; support for artist development of new work with residencies; and year-round Community Programs throughout the Berkshires. Schedule, June 18-22: WEDNESDAY, JUNE 18 PillowTalk: The Great Danes Frank Andersen, Artistic Director of the Royal Danish Ballet, talks about the many connections between his company and the Pillow. Rare film and video clips will be shown from the U.S. debut of the Danes here in 1955 through their most recent appearance in the 1990s. 5pm, Sommerspace, Blake's Barn, FREE Inside/Out: Cherylyn Lavagnino New York City-based Lavagnino uses both modern dance and ballet to create emotional, instinctive works that have been likened to Rodin sculptures and "fine figurative painting" (Village Voice). 6:30pm, Inside/Out stage, FREE Pre-Show Talk: Twyla Tharp Dance 7:30pm, Sommerspace, FREE Twyla Tharp Dance 8pm, Ted Shawn Theatre, $55 THURSDAY, JUNE 19 Inside/Out: Urban Ballet Theater Classical ballet and contemporary dance with a New York inner-city spin. Led by Artistic Director Daniel Catanach. 6:30pm, Inside/Out stage, FREE Pre-Show Talk: Twyla Tharp Dance 7:30pm, Sommerspace, FREE Twyla Tharp Dance 8pm, Ted Shawn Theatre, $55 Post-Show Talk: Twlya Tharp Dance Ted Shawn Theatre, FREE FRIDAY, JUNE 20 Inside/Out: KEIGWIN + COMPANY Story, theatre and pop culture drive the satirical work of Lawrence Keigwin's New York contemporary company as it explores personal relationships and investigates personal identity. 6:30pm, Inside/Out stage, FREE Pre-Show Talk: Twyla Tharp Dance 7:30pm, Sommerspace, FREE Twyla Tharp Dance 8pm, Ted Shawn Theatre, $55 SATURDAY, JUNE 21 Pre-Show Talk: Twyla Tharp Dance 1:30, Sommerspace, FREE Twyla Tharp Dance 2pm, Ted Shawn Theatre, $50 PillowTalk: All About Twyla While Tharp herself wrote a provocative autobiography, a critical study of her career has yet to be published. Dance writer Marcia B. Siegel is currently at work on Howling Near Heaven-Twyla Tharp and the Re-invention of Modern Dance. Here Siegel shares insights about her subject, illustrating the conversation with video highlights. 4pm, Sommerspace, Blake's Barn, FREE Inside/Out: The School at Jacob's Pillow: Ballet Led by distinguished choreographer and teacher Anna-Marie Holmes and a team of international faculty, students of the Pillow's professional School perform excerpts from major ballet repertory as the finale to their two-week study at the Pillow. 6:30pm, Inside/Out stage, FREE Pre-Show Talk: Twyla Tharp Dance 7:30, Sommerspace, FREE Twyla Tharp Dance 8pm, Ted Shawn Theatre, $55 SUNDAY, JUNE 22 Pre-Show Talk: Twyla Tharp 1:30pm, Sommerspace, FREE Twyla Tharp Dance 2pm, Ted Shawn Theatre, $50

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McCann Recognizes Superintendent Award Recipient

By Tammy DanielsiBerkshires Staff
05:32PM / Tuesday, December 23, 2025

Landon LeClair and Superintendent James Brosnan with Landon's parents Eric and Susan LeClair, who is a teacher at McCann.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Superintendent's Award has been presented to Landon LeClair, a senior in McCann Technical School's advanced manufacturing course.

The presentation was made last Thursday by Superintendent Jame Brosnan after Principal Justin Kratz read from teachers' letters extolling LeClair's school work, leadership and dedication.

"He's become somewhat legendary at the Fall State Leadership Conference for trying to be a leader at his dinner table, getting an entire plate of cookies for him and all his friends," read Kratz to chuckles from the School Committee. "Landon was always a dedicated student and a quiet leader who cared about mastering the content."

LeClair was also recognized for his participation on the school's golf team and for mentoring younger teammates.

"Landon jumped in tutoring the student so thoroughly that the freshman was able to demonstrate proficiency on an assessment despite the missed class time for golf matches," read Kratz.

The principal noted that the school also received feedback from LeClair's co-op employer, who rated him with all fours.

"This week, we sent Landon to our other machine shop to help load and run parts in the CNC mill," his employer wrote to the school. LeClair was so competent the supervisor advised the central shop might not get him back.

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