IMC's 25th season continues with “Newport Stories”

Island Moving Co. continues the celebration of its 25th Anniversary Season as Newport’s resident dance company with a work in progress showing of Newport Stories, a new interdisciplinary collaboration with composer Christopher Eastburn, writer John Pantalone and the Boston area Family Folk Chorale. The excerpt will be performed on a program including works from the IMC repertoire at the Great Friends Meeting House in Newport, September 22 at 4 and 7:30pm and Sunday, September 23 at 2 and 5:30pm. Tickets are $23, which includes a $3 restoration surcharge for the maintenance and renovation of the Meeting House by the Newport Historical Society.

Newport Stories is a mosaic of history, character studies and poetry from the stories of Newporters, historical and contemporary. Choreographed by IMC Artistic Director Miki Ohlsen and Company member Michael Bolger, the piece will incorporate movement, music and text to weave the story of the dance company’s 25 years with Newport’s much longer story. The presentation begins with a Prelude of site specific dances in the heart of Newport’s downtown, which audience members may experience free before each performance. For the work in progress showing in September, the Prelude will occur at one site, the steps of Newport’s Colony House in Washington Square, one half hour before each stated curtain time. Newport Stories will premiere at the Company’s spring performances at the Meeting House in May, 2008.

Also on the program for the September performances will be Island Moving Co. works, including Michael Bolger’s innovative Suite Silver, which premiered at Flight of Steps this summer, along with dances by Miki Ohlsen and guest choreographers.

Newport Stories is being developed with a grant from the Argosy Foundation Contemporary Music Fund and was commissioned by Nicole Halbreiner. Composer Christopher Eastburn last worked with the Company on Consent to Gravity, a multi-disciplinary piece based on the works of photographer Frederick Sommer which the Company toured to the Getty Museum, Boston and Providence in 2005. He also participated in Open for Dancing 2002, creating the vocal music for Daniel McCusker’s field work in Ballard Park. He directs the Family Folk Chorale, which is a multi-age chorus performing sold out shows at various Boston venues. His most recent commission was a work celebrating Brookline’s 300th Anniversary and he has composed work for theatre as well as choral and instrumental music.

John Pantalone is researching and creating the text for Newport Stories. He is a Lecturer in Journalism at the University of Rhode Island and edits the Traveler newspaper. He was formerly the editor of Newport’s alternative weekly, Newport This Week, former regional editor of Art New England and writes “The Last Word” for Newport Life Magazine.

Tickets for Newport Stories are available through the Island Moving Co. at 401.847.4470, through www.arttixri.com and at the door. The Great Friends Meeting House is located at the corner of Marlborough and Farewell Streets in Newport. Media sponsors for Newport Stories include NBC10 and Newport Life Magazine.