For Immediate Release
Media contacts:
Jane Turnis
(719) 389-6138
JTurnis@ColoradoCollege.edu
Leslie Weddell
(719) 389-6038
Leslie.Weddell@ColoradoCollege.edu
Jessica Hunter Larsen
(719) 227-8263
Jessica.Larsen@ColoradoCollege.edu
NOTE TO EDITORS: High-resolution photographs of Project Bandaloop are available for download at www.ColoradoCollege.edu/News_Events/Photos. Please add proper photo credits when used.
Colorado Springs, Colo – Sept. 10, 2008 – The sharp vertical walls of the new Edith Kinney Gaylord Cornerstone Arts Center will redefine the words “dance floor” as dancers from the aerial Project Bandaloop strap on their harnesses and create a unique blend of dance, sport, ritual and environmental awareness.
The world-renowned aerial dance company will present three site-specific performances Oct. 10-12, as they perform in, on and around the Edith Kinney Gaylord Cornerstone Arts Center’s soaring spaces and walls. The performances are part of Colorado College’s dedication of its new $33.4 million, 72,400-square-foot interdisciplinary arts building, located at 825 N. Cascade Ave. The building was designed by renowned architect Antoine Predock.
All performances are free and open to the public. The first performance, to be held at 7 p.m. Friday, Oct. 10, will take place on the front exterior of the building, which faces Cascade Avenue; the second performance, at 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 11, will be held in the building’s spacious interior, and the final performance, at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 12, will again be on the building’s exterior. Capacity for each performance, especially the Saturday evening performance, is limited.
To set the stage for the performances, Amelia Rudolph, Project Bandaloop’s artistic director, will give a free public lecture and slide show at 5:30 p.m., Monday, Oct. 6 in the Edith Kinney Gaylord Cornerstone Arts Center Film Screening Room. In a lecture that will appeal to dancers, climbers and outdoor enthusiasts, Rudolph will trace Project Bandaloop’s philosophy and origins and show film clips from past performances.
Project Bandaloop also will conduct two master classes in conjunction with the CC dance department. One class will address contemporary release technique and will be taught on the ground. The second class will address aerial dance and will be taught using rigging from the earlier performances.
The company, under the artistic direction of Rudolph, honors nature, community and the human spirit through dance. Inspired by the possibilities of climbing and rappelling, the choreography draws on aerial, vertical and horizontal movement to craft dances, many of which are site-specific. The work explores the relationship between movement and gravity and stimulates viewers' awareness of their natural and built environments.
Project Bandaloop has performed at sites as diverse as a 180-foot billboard in New York’s Times Square; St. Georgio Castle in Mantova, Italy; and Yosemite Park’s Leaning Tower. Since 1991, Project Bandaloop has performed for nearly half a million people worldwide.
The Project Bandaloop performances tie in with an architecture exhibit that will be on display in the I.D.E.A. (Inter-Disciplinary Experimental Arts) Space in the Edith Kinney Gaylord Cornerstone Arts Center at the same time.
The Architecture of Desire Part 1 exhibition, which runs Sept. 5 though Oct. 22, takes the new building and its site as inspiration. Using the Cornerstone Arts Center’s unique architecture as a springboard, The Architecture of Desire explores the idea that every building has a philosophy, a set of guiding principles that define its purpose and therefore its structure. By allowing or prohibiting certain movements or actions, a building’s structure in turn influences our beliefs and behaviors.
Featuring site-specific installations by internationally renowned contemporary artists Cristina Iglesias, Runa Islam and Lida Abdul, this two-part exhibition uncovers the ways in which architecture reflects our worldviews, shapes our actions, and constructs our desires. The Architecture of Desire Part II: Lida Abdul will open in The I.D.E.A. Space on November 3.
The dedication of the Edith Kinney Gaylord Cornerstone Arts Center is being held in conjunction with the 2008 Homecoming and Parent’s Weekend, which runs Oct. 10-12.
For more information about the InterDisciplinary Experimental Arts program at Colorado College, visit www.theIDEAspace.com. For directions or disability accommodation at the events, members of the public may call (719) 389-6607. For more information on Project Bandaloop, visit www.projectbandaloop.org.
Project Bandaloop’s performances are made possible through the generous support of the Colorado College Cultural Attractions Fund, Robert & Ruby Priddy Charitable Trust, Colorado College drama/dance department, Bee Vradenburg Foundation and Colorado Springs Dance Theater.
About Colorado College
Colorado College is a nationally prominent, four-year liberal arts college that was founded in Colorado Springs in 1874. The college operates on the innovative Block Plan, in which its 1,985 undergraduate students study one course at a time in intensive 3½-week blocks. The college also offers a master of arts in teaching degree. For more information, visit www.ColoradoCollege.edu