FJK Dance announces a lecture demonstration on September 22, 2021, 6PM-8PM, at Ripley Grier Studios, 520 8th Avenue. New York NY 10018. The evening will feature an open studio rehearsal, a presentation of art work and choreography from Forbidden, and a talk back discussing the creative process of this piece and its background. Tickets are $30 and are available at fjkdance.org/new-events/2021/9/22/lecture-demonstration.

 

The demonstration precedes FJK Dance's 2021 season RESET, including two world premieres and FJK Dance repertoire on Thursday, October 7; Friday, October 8; and Saturday, October 9, 2021 at 7:30pm at New York Live Arts, 219 West 19th Street, NYC. Tickets are $45 and can be purchased online at fjkdance.org/presale-2021-tickets/season2021.

 

Following seven years of extraordinary creative output, Fadi Khoury (New York-based founder, Artistic Director, and the visionary engine behind the FJK Dance Company) has come through the pandemic with all his energies dedicated to a full reset—hence the title of the company's newest production. Celebrating seven years of dance, RESET is a full evening program dedicated to all those lost during this pandemic. RESET will honor the memory of Genevieve Young (1930-2020), a beloved founding Board member and guiding light. Her legacy, her love of dance, and commitment to the mission of FJK Dance in creating positive change, continues to inspire FJK Dance's professional artistry and engagement with the world-at-large.

 

Reset will be performed by FJK Dance Company's ten dancers that represent eight different nationalities and FJK Dance's global vision. The program will include the following:

 

Mirage 

Human stories from the Middle East (World Premiere), Music: Schubert, piano trio in E-flat

 

Forbidden 

When love is locked, and the key is inside (World Premiere), Music: Abdel Wahab & Hossam Shaker

 

Bolero

Challenge of duality, Music: Maurice Ravel

 

FJK DANCE's Fusion of Culture and Dance performances are based on Fadi Khoury's lifelong immersion in dance and reflect both his multicultural background growing up in Iraq and Lebanon, and his ongoing efforts to elevate Middle Eastern culture. Original choreography and visual arts promote cross-cultural dialogue, understanding, and healing. FJK DANCE presents a distinctive mix of styles including Argentine tango, Middle Eastern movement, classical ballet, and ballroom dance. Previous FJK Dance performances include national venues like New York Live Arts, Jacob's Pillow, Battery Dance Festival and Dumbo (NY), as well as international theaters in China, Japan, Lebanon, and Turkey. These global opportunities give unique insight into how 'Middle East meets Western tradition' and helps lay foundations for understanding and appreciation between different cultures and people. FJK Dance offers workshops, performances, and lecture demonstrations at educational institutions and non-profit organizations. Fadi Khoury is currently an Artist-in-Residence at Kings County Hospital (Brooklyn, NY), supporting the hospital's efforts to create greater awareness and acceptance in our society for those with mental illness. Working with the Behavioral Health Services, Wellness and Recovery Division, FJK Dance offers pro bono programs for hospital staff through the "Helping Healers Heal" initiative in addition to "site-specific multi-media performance installations" in hospital public areas. Ongoing programs promote a positive relationship between the arts and mental health efforts at Kings County Hospital and encourage engagement from the surrounding community.

 

FJK Dance "strips away unnecessary glitter from these forms to emphasize the

beauty of movement itself." – The New York Times

 

FJK Dance is a contemporary dance company founded in 2014 by Fadi J. Khoury and Sevin Ceviker. Dedicated to presenting a unique fusion of dance genres, it fills a void in the current dance scene, fusing the vocabularies of various genres – modern, jazz, classical ballet and traditional folkloric – into a language that expresses our fundamental, shared capacity to create. Through its performances, FJK supports cross-cultural dialogue, infusing its works with positive images from many dance traditions. Watch a documentary on FJK Dance here: https://vimeo.com/181520702. For more information, visit fjkdance.org. According to Fadi Khoury, "what began as a blended choreographic form has become something larger – my role is not to just create fusion choreography, but to use dance as a message of peace for the world at large. At FJK Dance we are offering the freedom to understand our differences artistically."

 

NEW YORK LIVE ARTS

We acknowledge that New York Live Arts is located on the ancestral homeland of the Lenape people in New York City. We acknowledge and pay respect to the Lenape people and to all Indigenous people past, present and future, here and everywhere. New York Live Arts produces and presents dance, music and theater performances in its 20,000 square-foot home, including a 184-seat theater and two 1,200 square-foot studios. New York Live Arts offers an extensive range of participatory programs for adults and young people; it supports the continuing professional development of performing artists. New York Live Arts serves as home base for the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Company; it is the company's sole producer, providing support and the environment to originate innovative and challenging new work for the Company and New York's creative community.