(BECKET, Mass.) – Reggie Wilson/Fist & Heel Performance Group brings its program, Moses(es), to the Doris Duke Theatre at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival for six perfomrances from Wednesday, July 9, 2014, through Sunday, July 13, 2014. The choreography – fusion of modern and African dance – is married to a diverse score including music by Louis Armstrong, the Klezmatics, Amahlokohloko, Ngqoko Women’s Ensemble, MaZarher, Aly-Us, Tiger, Bi Kidude, Southern Sons, the Blind Boys of Alabama, and traditional African-American spirituals “Wade In the Water” and “Eli, Eli (Somebody Call Eli),” sung live by the artists of Fist & Heel Performance Group.

Grounded in Wilson’s re-reading of Zora Neale Hurston’s book Moses, Man of the Mountain  (the Moses story told as a Southern folk tale in African-American vernacular), and with his exploratory travels to Israel, Egypt, Turkey and Mali, Moses(es) examines the migration of peoples and culture from Africa out into the World, paying attention to the effects migration has on beliefs. Wilson’s research for this project has landed on the intersection of the origins of Monotheism and African cultures.

Wilson draws on dance traditions from capoeira to voguing to postmodern release technique in an inventive pastiche, articulately gathered and crafted into this evening-length work.

The nine performers of Moses(es) are diverse in age, training, and origin, hailing from Kingston, Jamaica; Trinidad and Tobago; the Bronx, New York; and elsewhere. Some have been with Wilson’s company for over two decades, others for shy of a year, making the tightly knit ensemble all the more remarkable. Moses(es) had its world premiere in September 2013. The company, founded in 1989, appeared at Jacob’s Pillow in 1996 and 1998 as part of the Inside/Out series and in the Doris Duke Theatre in 2007.

Ella Baff, executive and artistic director of Jacob’s Pillow, comments “At the intersection of dance, music, anthropology, history, and post-modernism, Reggie Wilson’s work deifies any category.  This newest work Moses(es) is exciting, full of surprises, richly layered, and beautifully performed by an international cast of extraordinary talent.”

Reggie Wilson was highlighted in the New York Times in 2013 as a “Mover and Shaper” of the dance industry; at the time, Gia Kourlas described him as “an artist compelled by the idea of looking back to move forward…as such, his sprawling movement pieces fold history into the present, or show how what seems new never truly is.” Wilson’s works have explored themes related to slavery, spirituality, and identity, combining an interest in African Diaspora movement forms and postmodern styles. As a performer, Wilson toured with and was influenced by Ohad Naharin, artistic director of the Batsheva Dance Company and creator of the gaga movement language.

Artistic personnel from Reggie Wilson/Fist & Heel Performance Group will lead a master class for intermediate/advanced dancers on Sunday, July 13 from 10am-11:30am. Pre-registration and $15 fee is required to participate; observation is free and on a walk-in basis.

 

Performance and ticket information

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, July 9 — Saturday, July 12, 8:15pm

Saturday, July 12 & Sunday, July 13, 2:15pm

Free Pre-Show Talks with Jacob’s Pillow Scholar-in-Residence Maura Keefe are offered on the porch of the Doris Duke Theatre 30 minutes before each performance

A Free Post-Show Talk with artists from Reggie Wilson/Fist & Heel Performance Group will take place onstage immediately following the performance on Thursday, July 10

Tickets $22-38. Now on sale online at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, via phone at 413.243.0745, or in person at the Jacob’s Pillow Box Office.

Box Office hours: Sun, Mon, Tues, 11am-5pm; Wednesday- Saturday, 11am-8pm