Program includes complete Rhapsody by Richard Gibson
and the company premiere of Push pas de deux by Amy Seiwert

SAN FRANCISCO, May 16, 2004 - San Francisco-based youth company, Chamberdance, returns to the Cowell Theater this June to present its eighth annual performances with the Academy of Ballet. The highlight of the program will be Richard Gibson's acclaimed Brahms Rhapsody, performed in its entirety for the first time since 1990. The program will also feature the company premiere of a pas de deux from Push, by Smuin Ballet's Amy Seiwert.

Last season's world premiere of Seiwert's mesmerizing Tye contributed to one of the company's most successful programs ever. Of the June, 2003 performances, Critical Dance wrote, "a polished program full of tricky technical feats, well-rehearsed performances, and original choreography."

Richard Gibson's elegant Rhapsody -- set to six piano works by Johannes Brahms including the "Rhapsody in B Minor" -- will be the highlight of the program. Created in 1977 under the auspices of a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, Gibson's ballet evokes an air of elegant poetry and youthful romance through a series of interludes for five couples. At the company's debut in this signature work, the San Francisco Chronicle noted, "The bucolic Rhapsody [was] danced with an assured and ebullient spirit." Gibson, a former member of the Joffrey Ballet and the San Francisco Ballet, has created works for the Nederlands Dans Theatre, the San Francisco Ballet, and the North Carolina Dance Theater, among others.

Also featured on the program will be an excerpt from Amy's Seiwert's Push, which premiered at the ODC Theater in February, 2004 as part of the "Shifting Lands," program. Created originally for LINES Contemporary Ballet's Maurya Kerr and Brett Conway, the duet from Push explores the theme of falling, to music by the award-winning composer John Zeretzke, whose work was recently featured in the soundtrack of the Robert Altman film, "The Company."

Finally, the evening will also include a classical divertissement for two couples, set to music from Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky's The Sleeping Beauty.

For fifteen years, Chamberdance has offered young pre-professional and professional dancers the opportunity to perform a wide range of classical and contemporary works as part of a dynamic ensemble. The June, 2004 engagements mark Chamberdance's eighth year of presenting joint performances with the Academy of Ballet, both under the co-directorship of Gibson and Zory Karah. The Academy of Ballet offers training for both the student preparing for a professional career and those who are studying ballet for its many other benefits. All of the Chamberdance company members have studied at the Academy of Ballet during their training and former company members have gone on to perform with national and international dance companies such as Pacific Northwest Ballet, Houston Ballet, Ballet San Jose, Korea National Ballet, Eugene Ballet, Smuin Ballet, and Oakland Ballet.

TICKET INFORMATION

Tickets for the Academy of Ballet and Chamberdance performances on Saturday, June 19 at 8:00 p.m. and Sunday, June 20 at 3:00 pm at the Cowell Theater, Fort Mason Center are priced at $20 for General Admission; $16 for children 12 years old and younger. Tickets are available through the Fort Mason Box Office, (415) 345-7575, and at the door. For more information, call the Academy of Ballet at (415) 552-1166 or www.chamberdancesf.org.

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CALENDAR EDITORS, PLEASE LIST:

CHAMBERDANCE PRESENTS
THE ACADEMY OF BALLET'S SPRING PERFORMANCES
Cowell Theater, Fort Mason Center, San Francisco
Saturday, June 19 at 8:00 p.m.
and Sunday, June 20 at 3:00 p.m.

Dance

Academy of Ballet and Chamberdance
Richard Gibson and Zory Karah, Artistic Directors

Program will include:
Academy of Ballet Student Demonstration
Rhapsody (1991) choreography by Richard Gibson
Company Premiere of an excerpt of Push (2004) choreography by Amy Seiwert
Pas de Quatre from The Sleeping Beauty (2004) choreography by Richard Gibson

Tickets: $20, General Admission; $16, children 12 years old and younger, available through the Fort Mason Box Office, (415) 345-7575, and at the door. For more information, call the Academy of Ballet at (415) 552-1166 or www.chamberdancesf.org

IMAGES AVAILABLE

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