DANCE

On April 7, 8, 9, 2011, Hope Stone Dance will partner with Houston Ballet II to present a combined evening entitled An Evening of Bread and Circus. Also joining this "three-ring circus of dance" is guest artist David Neumann, who will re-create with Jane Weiner, Artistic Director of Hope Stone Dance, their duet, a day of it. In addition, Hope Stone Dance Company will perform the re-staging of change is inevitable.

In direct line with the definition of Bread and Circus, it will be an evening of events, dance and performance that will indeed "keep people happy and divert attention from their problems," said Weiner, and culminate with a cookies and milk reception.

Each evening will open with the premiere piece choreographed by Weiner especially for the Houston Ballet II dancers, bloom where you are planted. Set to the music of Yann Tiersen and Jacques Brel, the four men and four women weave a dance amongst each other in an attempt to root themselves to the earth, find themselves and evolve from that place. With cinder blocks, flowerpots and bouquets as part of the performance platform, the dancers express the sense of finding ground and each other.

A 2004 DiverseWorks commissioned collaboration between artistic director Jane Weiner and Bessie Award-winning performer David Neumann will fill the second part of the evening. a day of it deals with partner communication, its presence and non-presence, how we talk, why we talk, when we talk and when our bodies speak for us. Subtle gesture, minimal yet powerful expression and the mundane are explored throughout this duet set to the music of J.S Bach's Morimur. Coming from a sense of two who know each other in a deep internal way, yet who are unable to communicate with words, the duet becomes two solos enmeshed and entwined to each other.

The final piece will be a re-staging of change is inevitable, which premiered in 2005. The piece was originally staged on Stockton College, then Houston Ballet II, and in 2006 ultimately made its way to the Hope Stone Dancers as part of their repertory. With yodel music and Phillip Glass' famous solo piece Mad Rush; the piece utilizes the almost obsolete penny to depict the Ebenezer of change in our lives.

Guests will enjoy sweet treats each evening from the delicious Angela's Oven bakery, in keeping with the "bread" portion of the evening.

Hope Stone Dance's An Evening of Bread and Circus creates a Big Top of Dance.

Under the direction of Artistic Director Jane Weiner, the remainder of Hope Stone Dance Company's first-ever full season includes the annual Kid's Play premiere performance "ONE," scheduled for May 7 at 2pm and 7pm at Barnevelder Movement Arts Complex.

ABOUT HOPE STONE, INC.
Hope Stone, Inc. is a non-profit arts organization consisting of (1) the choreographic endeavors of Artistic Director Jane Weiner; (2) Hope Stone Dance Company, a professional dance and theater ensemble; (3) Kid's Play, an artistic outreach venue for children and youth at risk located in Houston and Katy, TX and New Orleans; and (4) Hope Center, accommodating adult and children's movement classes designed to sharpen the mind, body and soul. Founded in 1997, Hope Stone strives to make art a stronger part of our lives and is dedicated to presenting authentic dance, music and theater performances and nurturing the creative and expressive side of children and adults.

Hope Stone Inc. is grateful to the following sponsors and foundations: The Fant Foundation, Houston Endowment Inc., The John M. O'Quinn Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Meet the Composer, Baxter Trust, Gainer, Donnelly & Desroches, LLP, Texas Women for the Arts, The Brown Foundation, Kevin & Lesley Lilly Foundation, The Kaplan Family Foundation, Cullen Trust for the Performing Arts, Jewish Foundation of Greater Houston, Valero, Texas Commission on the Arts, Sequoia Foundation, Vale-Asche Foundation, Favrot Fund, The Kinder-Morgan Foundation, The Margaret and James A. Elkins, Jr. Foundation, Houston Arts Alliance, Wells Fargo, Houston Downtown Alliance, Hewlett Packard, The Elk Foundation, The Twilight and Marc Freedman Foundation, The Greensheet.

Hope Stone is located at 1210 W. Clay #26, Houston, TX, 77019. For more information about all Hope Stone events, performances and studio classes, visit www.hopestoneinc.org or call 713-526-1907.

photography by Simon Gentry.