Double Bill Weekend

Travesty Dance Group & Antaeus Dance       

Taking the Fall

Two companies join forces to present an evening of engaging and evocative dance, theatre, film and music. Choreographers Kimberly Karpanty and Joan Meggitt explore resilience, sacrifice and acceptance with a collection of original work. Taking the Fall pays homage to those who keep us safe, demand our honesty and serve as models for integrity and right action.

Directed & Choreographed by Kimberly Karpanty (Travesty Dance Group) and Joan Meggitt (Antaeus Dance)

Performed by Melissa Knestaut Ajayi, Greg D’Alessio, Michelle Brown, Desmond L. Davis, Marissa Glorioso, Stephanie Harris, Kimberly Karpanty, Ashley Lain, Joan Meggitt, Tanya Mucci, Chuck Richie, Shannon Sefcik and Heather Young

Travesty Dance Group (TDG) celebrates its 20^th Anniversary Season with Taking the Fall. TDG was conceived to support and produce the creative projects of its founding members, Kimberly Karpanty (CLEVELAND), Rebecca Malcolm-Naib (PHILADELPHIA) and Karen Stokes (HOUSTON); the company debuted at Case Western Reserve University’s Mather Dance Center with “Gravity Floats” in May 1997. Since its inception, Travesty Dance Group has presented both evening-length and repertory work in Akron, Cleveland and Tiffin Ohio, Houston, Lexington, New York City, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Seattle and abroad in Canada and Sweden. Enriched by collaborative process, Travesty Dance Group seeks to bring diverse, original and accessible dance, theatre and film to a variety of communities. The founders believe in dance as a basic human art, embracing both the complexities of contemporary society and the life affirming essence of movement. The fundamental hope of Travesty Dance Group is to create dance that rises above travesty to inspire and enlighten. travestydancegroupcleveland.com

Antaeus Dance (AD) is a professional modern dance company based in Cleveland, OH. Founding Director Joan Meggitt launched the company in 2001 with an ambitious tour of Estonia, where the company gave public performances across the country and held master residencies at several universities, including at the country’s oldest theatre, Laboratory Theatre in Tartu. The tour was immediately followed by a world-premiere evening-length performance in Cleveland. The evening-length format has become a signature of Antaeus Dance, which has premiered five such DanceWorks – each one with an original score commissioned from award-winning local composers, compelling set designs custom built by well-known regional artists and, most recently, evocative films by Cleveland filmmakers. In addition, Antaeus Dance creates evenings of dance organized around a theme or artist; for example AudioKinetic (2013) was an evening of music and dance performed live by Akros Percussion Collective and Antaeus Dance. For The World Above Us (2013) by Greg D’Alessio, Antaeus Dance was commissioned to create a series of dances as part of an evening of live music, dance, theatre and film. The Company has brought the work of more than 60 choreographers, dance artists, composers, musicians, visual artists and filmmakers to stages in Cleveland and beyond. Antaeus Dance’s work is transformative, reaching beyond the traditional repertory concert to fulfill a larger vision, exploring the intersection of individual experience and collective expression. The choreography combines athleticism with calm suspension, and highlights the interplay between strength and vulnerability. Antaeus Dance teaches and rehearses in Cleveland’s historic Tremont neighborhood in Pilgrim Congregational Church. Antaeus Dance is also in residence at Allegheny College, where the company holds the annual Allegheny Summer Dance Intensive as well as an annual fall residency. The Company is comprised of professional dance artists Desmond L. Davis, Marissa Glorioso, Shannon Sefcik, Rhian Virostko and Heather Koniz Young. antaeusdance.com