"Choreographer Catherine Galasso uses Cesar Pelli's staircase as a singular stage."

Gia Kourlas, The New York Times

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With Of Granite and Glass (Palm Springz) we transformed Cesar Pelli's grand marble staircase into a dramatic backdrop for a performance evoking failed spring breaks, ecstatic dance rituals, and sacred StairMaster routines. 

This work was created on site, in collaboration with performers Doug LeCours, Jordan D. Lloyd, Ambika Raina and Mei Yamanaka, with music by Dave Cerf, lights by Robert Henderson, and costumes by Karen Boyer.

Our stellar team also included Tara Sheena as Creative Producer, Kirsten Schnittker as Stage Manager, Kate Athol as rehearsal assistant, and Sam Crawford as sound supervisor. 

The piece included a supporting cast of Kate Athol, Abram Blau, John Gutierrez, Ryan Hudzik, Kayla Juntilla, Beckett Melville, Tyaela Nieves, Oliver Prose, Emery Schaffer, Keith McDermott and Atlas Green.

Of Granite and Glass (Palm Springz) opened the 2018 River To River Festival, and was co-commissioned by Arts Brookfield and Lower Manhattan Cultural Council.

Featured in The New York Times #speakingindance video series (see below).

#SpeakingInDance | “I feel regal,” said the dancer Jordan D. Lloyd, of performing on the marble staircase at the Winter Garden with @meiyamanaka, @ambika.raina and Doug LeCours (@trashimagery). “There’s a power in occupying this closed-off space and knowing that it’s so large and expensive and shiny and bright.” In “Of Granite and Glass,” performed June 15-17 at the @lmcc_nyc River to River Festival 2018, the choreographer @catherinegalasso uses Cesar Pelli's staircase as a singular stage. “I would never do a show in a mall,” Catherine said. “But I had my heart set on playing with depth.” And it works: The setting of @brookfieldplny, with its shops and tourists, has expanded her imagination: “How do we play with these quieter, more intimate moments” when the viewer is “at a distance?” she asked. “And then find movement that can speak to the architecture?” One way is to soften and fold the body into the surface. The work is loosely inspired by Boccaccio’s 14th-century “The Decameron,” in which 10 people retreat to a villa to escape the plague. “How do we deal with the trauma in the world right now?” Catherine said to the @nytimes writer @giadk. “This is our way of commenting on it without commenting on it directly.” @emonhassan made this video for #SpeakingInDance, our weekly series exploring the world of #dance. #R2R18

A post shared by The New York Times (@nytimes) on Jun 13, 2018 at 5:44am PDT

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