Two performances in honor of Judson October 29, 2010

CELEBRATE AVANT GARDE DANCE PIONEERS ON FRI. + SAT., OCTOBER 29 & 30 in conjunction with the exhibition “A Sanctuary for the Arts: Judson Memorial Church and the Avant-Garde, 1954-1977.

Two Performances In Honor of Judson with work by choreographers, composers and performers Toby Armour, Arthur Aviles, Remy Charlip, Malcolm Goldstein, Aileen Passloff, Yvonne Rainer, Carolee Schneemann, EmmaGrace Skove-Epes, and Elaine Summers will take place Friday and Saturday, October 29 and 30, 2010 at 8:00 p.m. at Judson Memorial Church, 55 Washington Square South, in New York City. Tickets are $20 (students/seniors $10) and can be
purchased at www.judson.org or by calling 917-727-0431.

The Artistic Director of the performance is renowned choreographer Aileen Passloff, who was instrumental in the founding of Judson Dance Theater. Ms. Passloff is the L. May Hawver and Wallace Benjamin Flint Professor of Dance at Bard College. According to Passloff, “illustrious artists who had their beginning at Judson Church will be returning to perform or speak about their memories and about the meaning of these absolutely unique collaborations in Greenwich Village during a period of political and social ferment.” Two Performances In Honor of Judson is produced by Nicole and Michael Bloom.

These performances are held in conjunction with the exhibition “A Sanctuary for the Arts: Judson Memorial Church and the Avant-Garde, 1954-1977”, which opens at the Fales Library in the NYU Library on October 28. This groundbreaking exhibition, curated by Joanna Steinberg, will explore the synergies between the artists who performed at Judson Memorial Church in the 1960s and 70s and the church ministry and congregation. While the arts movements that took shape at Judson Church have enjoyed prominence, this exhibition re-examines the church’s involvement in the downtown arts
scene, giving the church a stronger presence in the narrative.

A Roundtable Discussion, moderated by famed Village Voice critic Deborah Jowitt, launches the exhibition, focusing on the reverberations of Judson’s history, both for the church and the arts. Participants will include Essie Borden (former member of the Judson Poet’s Theater and congregant), and renowned members of Judson Dance Theater Malcolm Goldstein, Carolee Schneemann, and Yvonne Rainer. The roundtable discussion will be at Judson Church at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 28th, and the exhibition opening and reception will follow directly at 7:45 p.m. at Fales Library on the 3rd Floor of the NYU’s Bobst Library (one block east of Judson).

Official Website: http://www.judson.org