Thu May 22 - Sat Jun 7 San Francisco International Arts Festival presents Jewels in the Square Website

Description AscenDance Project will present Levitate, a site specific installation/dance performance that will be performed free to the public at Union Square in May 2008. AscenDance Project is a new company founded in January of 2006 by German born performance artist and mountaineer, Isabel von Rittberg to create work that explores the aesthetics of climbing. A vertical stage, without the use of ropes, has a beauty and grace enhanced by the effects of gravity on the dancer and his/her ability to overcome. Isabel's aspiration is to bring a sense of detachment and lightness to the streets, to offer the public a different perspective and to appeal to the collective joy of rhythm and movement. Surrounded by tremendously high towers made of steel and concrete, the ensemble of performance artists will present aesthetic ways of moving through three dimensions, using time and space as inconsistent and unpredictable variables. Making dance more accessible by bringing performance art into the streets allows citizens of completely different background and age to share an exceptional experience on a common ground. Collaborators include Marcus von Rittberg, Ryan Gaunt, Laurence Plouvier, Damian Cooksey, Yona Segal, Jen Colasuonno, Benjamin Turner. Presented by AscenDance Project, MJM Management and SFIAF. Mission Statement All human beings can relate to music, basic rhythms and movements. Life is based on rhythms. We are surrounded by the earth's cycles; we are guided by the rhythm of our heart beat. Whether we are walking, running, talking, dancing, sleeping, or simply breathing, we follow patterns. Dance is about what unites us, not about what separates us. By isolating and simply understanding the movements of climbing, AscenDance Project creates choreographed/synchronized climbing-- a dance on the wall to the rhythm of music. A climber's body moves through several different positions when traveling across the wall. Technical movements in the climbing world referred to as "drop-knees, heel-hooks, toe-hooks, dynos, lock-offs, straight-arm hangs, high-steps etc." help the dancers move with ease and grace. Using their strength most efficiently they seem to be smooth and rapid without effort. For the performers, a climbing wall offers more terrain to explore. For the audience it presents an interesting perspective. With the production of a dance-climb show, AscenDance Project hopes to bring together climbers, dancers, artists, musicians, and an audience that can appreciate a fusion of these elements, whether at a climbing competition or a theatrical setting.

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