EVERY LITTLE STEP... the Rhythm of Hope
Dance Theatre of Ireland (IRL) & Soul Steps (USA)
Every Little Step... slide show
Every Little Step... Third Steps, rehearsals excerpts 3
premiered 17th - 20th November, 2011
Joyce SoHo, NYC
NATIONAL TOUR Ireland 2012
Ch: Robert Connor & Loretta Yurick and Maxine Lyle
Dancers: Angela L. Brackett, Robert Connor, Heather DeLeon, Adrienne Heaslip, Maxine Lyle, Marc Stevenson, Andrew Vickers
"seamless in its fusion... a fantastic show... inspiring" - NYC Dance Blog
"It shines in floor-skimming speed… percussive embroidery... the aural image of unity is persuasive and rousing" - New York Times
"ebullient performances and choreography" - Dance NYC
The very least you can do in your life is to figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope. Not admire it from a distance but live right in it, under its roof Barbara Kingsolver
Dance Theatre of Ireland (DTI) are pleased to premiere Every Little Step… the Rhythm of Hope, a collaboration with Soul Steps Company (NYC) combining African-American Stepping, Irish and urban rhythms, modern dance and storytelling. With dancers from both companies, it draws on exhilarating body percussion, sheer human energy and touches on the ways people sustain in good times and bad.
An evolutionary and experimental meeting, the first of its kind, through rhythm, the spoken word, poetry and call and response, there is a physical musicality that drives the performance. Clever, joyous, personal and highly energised.
With choreography by DTI Artistic Directors Robert Connor & Loretta Yurick and Maxine Lyle (Artistic Director Soul Steps) the two companies join forces working in residencies in the USA and in Ireland. The premiere of Every Little Step in November in New York was supported by Culture Ireland's Imagine Ireland, a year-long season of Irish arts in America Imagine Ireland is an initiative of Culture Ireland with funding from the Dept of Tourism, Culture and Sport. The production was also made possible through the support of the Dun Laoghaire Rathdown Arts and the Arts Council.
Outreach and audience engagement are uniquely part of the work of both Companies and the art form of Stepping. Performances and workshops in unique settings will accompany Every Little Step along the way.
Every Little Step... Second Steps, rehearsals excerpts 2
Every Little Step... First Steps, rehearsals excerpts
Every Little Step... Informal showing September 28th - slide show
Every Little Step... Info & Biographies
Imagine Ireland Homepage
Imagine Ireland | Summer/Autumn Programme 2011 in the USA
Liam Neeson, Gabriel Byrne & others invite you to Imagine Ireland
Colin Farrell invites you to Imagine!
About Soul Steps
Soul Steps was founded in 2005 by step artist Maxine Lyle. Their mission is to expand the presence of stepping in the arts while creating avenues for cultural exchange and awareness among diverse communities. They specialize in the live performance, artistic instruction, and educational outreach of African-based step dance. Soul Steps reaches far beyond conventional boundaries and concentrates on the body as a percussive, story-telling instrument. www.soulsteps.com
About African American Stepping “Stepping is tap dance without tap shoes, James Brown without the music of the JBs, Cab Calloway sans piano, a marching band without John Philip Sousa. It is jazz, funk, rhythm and blues, and rap without instruments. Stepping is lean and mean. The
music comes from the synchronised interplay of hands and feet, from chants and
hollers. It is a way to make music using the body as instrument." (Washington Post)
Stepping is a unique dance tradition created by African American college students. In
stepping, the body is used as an instrument to create intricate poly- rhythms and sounds through a combination of footsteps, claps and spoken word. Stepping comes from a long and rich tradition in African-based communities that use movement, words and sounds to communicate.
Maxine, Director of Soul Steps
Soul Steps in rehearsal Stepping
Dance Theatre of Ireland
Dynamic and multi-faceted Dance Theatre of Ireland create a diverse range of work for Theatre, Festivals and the outdoors emanating from a world where the senses, the intellect and the heart co-exist and where life experiences and the imagination are equal parts. It is one of Ireland’s premiere companies, touring internationally to France, Netherlands, Italy, England, Germany, the USA, Sweden, South Korea and Spain. Directed by Robert Connor and Loretta Yurick, “Their work is a constant reflection on our human states of frailty and strength” (Sunday Times, London) Through their extensive performance, education and outreach projects, and teaching activities (based in the Centre for Dance in Dun Laoghaire) they aim to share dance with as many people as possible. www.dancetheatreireland.com
Culture is the strongest ambassador of the human condition we exchange around the world
Kevin Spacey, Actor
Accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.
Everything that is done in the world is done by hope.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Without hope life is meaning less and less.
Author Unknown
Hope is like a road in the country; there was never a road, but when many people walk on it, the road comes into existence.
Lin Yutang
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