Freespace Dance Company to hold annual Montclair Season at new performance space at Yoga Montclair

Photo by Robert Cooper

Montclair, NJ September 30, 2014 — Freespace Dance Company will showcase three performances on Friday October 24 at 8:00PM, Saturday October 25 at 8:00PM, and Sunday October 26 at 4:00PM as part of its annual Montclair season entitle, “Stumbling Blocks, Stepping Stones.” This will be the first year the company utilizes a new performance space, “The Space,” located at the Yoga Montclair studios, 107 Forest St., Suite #3. Along with several older favorites, the company will debut two new works by artistic director, Donna Scro

In a new piece for four women, Ms. Scro has taken on the challenge of describing the essence of living at varying phases in a woman’s life, discovering the grace in aging through movement and structure. She has masterfully created a full work from a single solo performed consecutively by four dancers of increasing age. Each performs exactly the same movement, but with varying quality, timing, spacing, and nuance reflecting her time in life. The work captures freedom and grace, as well as the unique strength and power that make up a woman’s way of living in the world as she moves through her many stages—from the young, ambitious drive of a woman in her 20’s, to the settling and knowing of one in her 40’s.

The second new work is a fun, flirty, light-hearted piece about the sweetness of new conversation and relationship. “Honey” (a working title) is juxtaposed with the deeper and at times darker pieces that will be showcased this season.

The season will also feature original live music by singer Katherine Oakes and from compose/musician Daniel McBride.

Freespace Dance is a contemporary modern dance company renowned for creating emotionally driven work with a bold athletic signature style. Comprised of exceptionally strong performers, this vibrant company uses controlled abandonment in pushing the limits of inventive partnering. Artistic Director, Donna Scro, a former principal dancer with the Nikolais/Louis Dance Company and a founding member of Sean Curran Company, has been described by Robert Johnson of

the Star Ledger as “a dancemaker that seizes an audience’s attention and pulls viewers into her space” and noted that, “in all of Donna Scro’s pieces, a recognizable human element surface wordlessly and goes straight to the heart.”

Freespace Dance was formed in 1997 by a group of Montclair State University dance students, and acquired 501(c)3 nonprofit status in 2004. In 2007, Donna Scro took on the role of sole artistic director. The company holds annual New York seasons at Danspace/St. Marks Church, The Salvatore Capezio Theater at Peridance, Ailey Citigroup Theatre, and Dance Theatre Workshop, where each season brings the premiere of new works. Collaborating with other artists is central to the Freespace mission. Past collaborations include the use of live music and guest performers such as Brian Sanders of JUNK and Gaspard Louis of Pilobolus Dance Theatre.

Freespace has appeared at venues throughout the region including The Ailey Citigroup Theater, Dance Theater Workshop, Joyce SoHo, Salvatore Capezio Theater at Peridance, Rutgers University, and Raritan Valley Community College. The company has also enjoyed regular performances at festivals such as Dancenow Festival, Downtown Dance Festival, Dancers Responding to AIDS: The Remember Project, International Dance Festival, Dance NJ’s Show Up and Dance Festival, DNA’s Raw Material, DUMBO Dance Festival, Cool New York Festival, and the Jersey Moves Festival at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center. The company has also been presented at the Oskar Schindler Center for the Performing Arts for the past 5 years.!

In addition to these performance credits, the company is at the forefront of modern dance education in New Jersey, conducting lecture-demonstrations and residencies throughout NJ through its own efforts, and with Young Audiences New Jersey, Arts Council for the Morris Area, and The Montclair Arts Council. Freespace is regularly commissioned to create original works for high school and college-aged dance ensembles.

Tickets for the 2014 Freespace Dance Montclair season are $20 for general admission, $15 for students and seniors, and may be purchased via Brown Paper Tickets at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/868641