'Luceafarul: The Legend of the Evening Star'
The Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater at West Side YMCA to Host 'Luceafarul: The Legend of the Evening Star'
Theater Group: "Singing Harp" to Perform with Companion Piece "The Three Treasures"
NEW YORK, NY, – The Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater at the West Side YMCA will host a theatrical dance performance of Luceafarul: The Legend of the Evening Star, based on the poem Luceafarul, by Romanian National Poet Mihai Eminescu with translation by Adrian George Sahlean on Friday, June 13th and Saturday, June 14th at 8:00PM. Directed by Terrence Montgomery and featuring original music by Ion Ionescu, Luceafarul: The Legend of the Evening Star is a story about the ill-fated love between the Evening Star and a beautiful young princess. Willing to give up his immortality for the young girl, the Evening Star is forced to accept that his pure love cannot be sustained in the mortal world. The performance will open with a companion piece by Singing Harp, The Three Treasures, also directed by Terrence Montgomery, about a Princess and her search for three treasures that alter the fate of the entire Kingdom. The performance of Luceafarul: The Legend of the Evening Star is produced by the West Side YMCA and a grant from "Romanian Satellite".
Tickets are $15 for adults and children and can be purchased at the West Side YMCA web site, www.ymcanyc.org/westside, by clicking on Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater, or by calling 212-352-3101 or 866-811-4111. Tickets may also be purchased at the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater box office at performance time for $20. Proceeds from the June 14th performance will benefit the West Side YMCA Strong Kids Campaign. Tickets can be purchased The Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater is located at 5 West 63rd Street (between Broadway and Central Park West). Theatergoers should use the 64th Street entrance. Accessible Trains: A, C, B, D, 1 to Columbus Circle.
Director, Terrence Montgomery, discovered his calling as director, actor and designer at the age of 17 in Wichita, Kansas, when he became the producer/director of his own workshop theatre. Montgomery went on to serve as electrician at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago and stage manager and lighting designer for a tour of A Chekov Concert, which included the first performance of Chekov in English at the Moscow Art Theatre, and was subsequently invited to play in The Zoo Story in the first annual Gift Theatre Festival in Tbilisi, Georgia. Montgomery has served as Arts Chairman and Director of the Theatre at The Dwight School in Manhattan for the past seven years. In this capacity, he directs two main stage productions each year at venues around Manhattan including: The Producers Club, Theatre Row, The Lambs Theatre, St Luke's Theatre, DiCapo Opera Theatre and Carnegie Hall. Currently, Montgomery also directs a children's theatre company, The Singing Harp, and is working on a new Eminescu project. Additionally, he offers private coaching for actors and teaches group acting and improv classes around the East coast.
Composer, Ion Ionescu, started his musical voyage when he left his native Romania and came to the United States at age fifteen. Ionescu, who studied at the Manhattan School of Music and the Mannes College of Music, is a veteran of more than 100 concerts/competitions in the U.S. and Europe, including the Romanian National Classical Competition and the Bertelsmann's World of Expression Scholarship Program, sponsored by the German music distributor Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG), for new and emerging composers throughout the world. Ionescu has performed original works at Steinway Hall, CAMI Hall, Carnegie Hall, DiCapo Opera Theatre, St. Malachi's Church, Tribeca Performing Arts Center and The Venetian in Las Vegas, among others. Originally scheduled for a Command Performance before the President of Romania, Ion Iliescu and George Pataki in 2001, the concert was cancelled because of the September 11th tragedy. However, Ionescu's volunteer work at Ground Zero inspired his original composition, Why, which appears on his sophomore album, October Requiem, released in 2004 at Carnegie Hall. His debut album, Atmosphere, was launched in 2000 at a performance before the Consul General of Romania at The Romanian Consulate General in New York. Ionescu also composed the score for the new musical Being Born and its latest incarnation, Time Being. For more information, visit www.ionionescu.com.
Choreographer, Raluca Georgiana, has served as a professional dancer, choreographer and actress for the past seven years. She received her BA from the University of Pennsylvania and her MFA from Columbia University; and has had extensive training in Ballet, Jazz, Modern, Ballroom, Hip-Hop and Adagio. Since relocating to New York in 1998, Raluca has focused on Hustle and Theatre Arts and choreography. In 2001 and 2002 she was named World Hustle Champion. Georgiana has performed at LaMaMa Etc, Theatre Row, with the first rendition of Luceafarul: The Legend of the Evening Star, Carnegie Hall, Merkin Hall, and other Off-Broadway venues. Choreography credits include: The Three Penny Opera, Jacques Brel, The Boyfriend, The Fantasticks, and Leader of the Pack, among others, for the Dwight School and Ragamuffins and Interaction for the Fildwith Ensemble Theater.
Singing Harp is a storytelling theater company dedicated to presenting classic stories in dramatic and musical forms, illuminating the many layers of meaning while inspiring audiences to appreciate this tremendous material. Celebrating its 10th anniversary, Singing Harp was founded by harpist-composer Alyssa Reit to recreate great literature such as the fairy tales from the Brothers Grimm, ancient Irish sagas, Greek myths, and stories from the Arabian Nights. Singing Harp has performed in Edinburgh and in the NY Tri-state area at the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts, and recently received a grant from the Westchester Arts Council and NYSCA to host their own storytelling series.
About the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater
The Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater at the West Side YMCA, a non-profit, independent, Off-Broadway Theater, hosts affordable performances for all age groups, with an emphasis on inspiring youth and families to learn about and appreciate the theatrical arts. The mission of the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater is to:
• Encourage the creative spirit in young people.
• Empower, educate, and maximize the potential of emerging artists and
young people.
• Serve our community and underserved audiences by presenting affordable
and high quality professional arts performances, programming, training,
and education.
• Introduce the public to new and innovative works of art that inspire,
entertain, and reflect our diverse community.
Having recently undergone $2-million in renovations, the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater boasts new raked seating with handicap accessibility; professional grade flooring and rigging; state-of-the-art lighting, audio-visual equipment (including movie screen) and acoustics, a centrally located sound-proof control booth and more. The theater's Artistic and Managing Director is Kimberly Loren Mulvaney.
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Monica Corleanca 6/7/2008 |
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