The Daily Southerner, Tarboro, NC

Homepage

Related Photos

  • The New York Theatre Ballet's performance in Edgecombe County on Oct. 18 will combine elements of modern and contemporary dance styles. Admission to the performance is free to the public. (CourtesyPhoto) BELOW: Dancers in the New York Theatre Ballet perform the contemporary score "A Rugged Flourish," choreographed by Richard Alston. The ballet will perform at Edgecombe Community College's Keihin Auditorium the evening of Oct. 18.

    New York Theatre Ballet3.jpg
October 1, 2012

NY group to perform at ECC

Staff Writer MIRANDA BAINES

TARBORO — Edgecombe County residents will have a rare opportunity to see the New York Theatre Ballet perform without having to travel to a major city when the ballet comes to Edgecombe Community College’s (ECC) Keihin Auditorium for a special performance Thursday,  Oct. 18.

Admission to the ballet is free of charge, thanks to funding from the Furman-Mathewson Trust.

“It’s going to be something different,” said James Marrow, chairman of the trust’s advisory board. “We really want to fund things that are special for our community.”

“I think every community should be able to see the arts entertainment,” said Diana Byer, artistic director for the ballet. “I think the arts touch a person’s soul and that’s an important part of living.”

Byer said the audience at the ballet would get a “real taste of different styles.” Jose Limon’s “The Moor’s Pavane,” a famous telling of Shakespeare’s “Othello,” showcases a modern style of dance. “A Rugged Flourish,” the 2011 abstract telling of a “young man showing his courage and determination,” is a contemporary dance score, said Byer. “Soiree Musical” (1938) is an upbeat showcase of 19th-century dance styles.

The ballet will also give the audience a taste of Broadway musical-style dance with Agnes de Mille’s 1942 Broadway musical “Oklahoma.”

“There will be something in it for everyone,” said Anderson Ferrell, member of the De Mille working group and former dancer for the Ballet Company at New York City Opera. “It will give everybody a little example of the various kinds of serious dancing there is.”

While the audience will see plenty of pointe shoes and tutus on stage, cowboy and Indian costumes will appear in De Mille’s “Oklahoma,” said Ferrell. He said De Mille changed musical theatre with “Oklahoma” by making the dancers an essential part of the plot and making the plot “driven by character.” Born in New York City, De Mille had family in Washington, N.C., and was instrumental in founding the North Carolina School of the Arts.

As in all Broadway musicals, the dancers in the ballet will tell the audience a story through their fluidity of movement and the live music that accompanies that movement.

“The company is designed to be an intimate experience. You become very involved with the story that the dancers are telling,” said Byer.

Dancing is “the most direct and effective form of communication,” said Ferrell. “It’s all about movement and gesture.”

Second and third-grade schoolchildren will also have a chance to experience the ballet as well. The ballet will do a special performance of “Goose,” an original dance score incorporating various nursery rhymes, on Oct. 19 at 10 a.m.

Byer said she thinks the children will learn a lot from watching the choreographically sophisticated portrayals of nursery rhymes such as “Little Miss Muffet,” “Jack and Jill,” and Three Blind Mice.”  She stressed the importance of children getting involved in the arts at a young age.

“It opens up your mind. It makes you inquisitive,” she said.

The ballet will have question and answer sessions at the end of each performance to give the community a chance to get to know them.  She said she feels that the ballet will have a chance to become a part of the Tarboro community during their short visit.

“We’re really excited about how generous everyone in the community is being to us,” said Byer. “This is the first time in 30 years the community is hosting us. We’re staying in different people’s homes.”

Members of the trust are among those hosting members of the ballet. Since its creation in 1990, the trust has funded primarily “performance and literary-oriented events” of such high-caliber that they would normally only come to major cities such as Charlotte and Raleigh, said Marrow. Other cultural events the trust has funded over the years are a performance by B.B. King, appearances by poet Maya Angelou and writer Nicholas Sparks, and a concert featuring the East Carolina Symphony Orchestra. The Trust will have the orchestra back at ECC in the spring of 2013.

The trust works closely with the production staff at ECC to bring the special cultural events to Tarboro. Like all the events the trust underwrites, the upcoming ballet performance will be “top quality,” said Marrow.

“We’re very grateful to the Trust for underwriting this,” said Ferrell. “I think this is something that will be very interesting and entertaining for the people of Tarboro.”

To reserve tickets to the New York Theatre Ballet performance, call the box office at 823-5166, ext. 187. The Oct. 18 show starts at 7 p.m.



 

Text Only
Homepage
AIB-1.jpg

AIB co-chair Buddy Hooks, left, discusses courthouse square with AIB judge James Abraham, center, and chair of the courthouse square project Martie Thompson. James “Jim” Abraham, of Savannah, Ga., and Ed Hooker, of Fort Riley, Kansas, were in Tarboro Monday and Tuesday to judge the community’s entry in the America in Bloom competition

Local News
  • Nash Health Care seeking expanded affiliates

    ROCKY MOUNT — The Board of Commissioners of Nash Health Care has voted to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) to five, pre-selected regional tertiary hospital systems for evaluation of an expanded affiliation relationship.
    Nash Health Care operates a number of facilities, including five hospitals totaling 403 beds — Nash General Hospital, Nash Day Hospital, the Bryant T. Aldridge Rehabilitation Center, Community Hospital and Coastal Plain Hospital.

    June 19, 2013

  • AIB judging under way
Sports
Ryan-Chatt.jpg

Ryan Chatt

Opinion
  • You, too, can be a slacker spy

    Think you're a loser just because you dropped out of high school and never finished the military training you began?
    Think you're a dud just because you work as a security guard even though you dreamed of becoming a global savior?
    Well, don't beat yourself up. You, too, can become an international superspy like Edward Snowden.

    June 17, 2013

Lifestyles
  • 5501-WED-Whitley-Webb.jpg Whitley/Webb

    Pinetops-Caitlin Layne Whitley and John Robert Webb were married on June 8, 2013 at half past three in the afternoon at Pinetops Baptist Church.
    The Reverend John Melancon performed the ceremony. The bride is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William Michael Whitley. Grandparents of the bride are the late Mr. and Mrs. James Carlton Jernigan and the late Mr. and Mrs. Clifton Lane Whitley.

    June 17, 2013 1 Photo

Obituaries Archives
Food
  • Steak.jpg Elegant Entertaining With Bold Flavors

    Summer entertaining is easy with simple, crowd-pleasing recipes from light bites to sweet delights that require almost no time in the kitchen.
    Invite over a few of your closest friends, heat up the grill and set out your favorite wines for a truly memorable outdoor dinner party. Select simple recipes that can be prepared ahead of time and quickly seared on the grill once your guests have arrived. Everyone will enjoy the food and you'll love that you're not trapped in the kitchen. Prep, chop and marinate everything then store it all in containers.
    Continue the trend of simplicity by serving food-friendly wines, such as those from Las Rocas. Las Rocas, which literally means "the rocks" because of the rocky soil where the grapes are grown, produces an incredibly vibrant Garnacha and refreshing RosÈ that pair wonderfully with these dishes.

    June 19, 2013 2 Photos

  • Zesty Mexican Meals Made Fast
  • It's grillin' time!
  • Great fondue
Events
  • Edgecombe Events June 19

    Edgecombe Events should be submitted by noon the day before publication. Items eligible include notices of local meetings and activities of non-profit organizations, clubs, schools and civic groups in the community. Information should be brief and typewritten, neatly printed or via e-mail. Questions? 823-3106 or e-mail: events@dailysoutherner.com. Leave  a daytime contact phone number.

    June 19, 2013

Our Community
Tarboro's 2012 Christmas Parade


Poll

Do you have any plans for the July 4th holiday?

Yes
No
Undecided
     View Results
CNHI Network News
AP Video
Obama Renews Call for Nuclear Reductions Raw: Car Jumps Curb in NYC, Injures 8 Obama: 'Lives Have Been Saved' by NSA Programs Obama: Friction in Afghan Talks No Surprise Unusual Heat Wave Bakes Alaska Raw: Massive Protests Fill Brazilian Streets Raw: German President Welcomes President Obama Fans Cheer Dramatic Heat Comeback Raw: Arizona Wildfire Scorches 8 Square Miles Hoffa Mystery Still Fascinates After 4 Decades Raw: 1 Dead in Shooting at Mo. Apartment Complex Raw: Huge Fire Near Yosemite National Park 3 Charged in Ohio With Enslaving Mom, Daughter Kid Couture: Spending Big Bucks on Babies
Community Calendar
Loading…
Events by eviesays.com
Facebook
Peter Temple Tribute
Photo of the Day