In Community
SanSan Kwan & Johnny Nguyen. Photo by Robbie Sweeny
This is an extraordinary time and no matter how challenging and daunting it may feel at times, this is an opportunity to find the deeper parts of ourselves; to allow our actions to be driven by love, courage, hope, truth, grace, honesty, and clarity; to take care of one another; and to re-evaluate what is truly important. Knowing in our hearts the importance of expressing love and solidarity to all who are suffering, we are committed to doing this work and hope that you as our beloved community can join us in this fight for justice.
James Newton and Jon Jang in South Africa
Tatsu Aoki and Fred Anderson
Jon Jang, Avotcja Jiltonilro, Francis Wong, Myron Cohen, Sascha Jacobsen, Sandy Poindexter. Photo by Bob Hsiang
Support Victims’ Families
Donate to Black-Led Organizations in Minneapolis
Bay Area Resources
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SoOakland – Rebuilding Oakland Black Businesses
Edward Wilkerson Jr., Francis Wong, William Roper, Tatsu Aoki, Mwata Bowden, Kioto Aoki, Melody Takata. Photo by Ken Carl
Words of Gratitude from our Artists. Dancing Remotely
Our early research and creative process, remote individual rehearsals
in our homes and nearby spaces during shelter in place, March 2020.
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update you on how LLD and our artists are being affected at this time,
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offer an opportunity for you to participate,
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share about what we’re creating
“I have lost 75% of my income because of this pandemic. My work as an artist is to make visible the invisible, to dance thoughts and images into fruition, to be a time machine, a medium, a mover of emotions, a gardener of energies, a storyteller and a light. I hope to continue to shine my light on important issues through dance. Now more than ever the world needs us.” 
“It’s been two weeks of sheltering in place, and all in-person rehearsals, teaching gigs, events, and shows have been cancelled. Though there is much to be concerned about and I miss seeing my friends and family and I am worried about their well being-from a personal perspective, I have much to be grateful for. And I am grateful for Lenora Lee Dance, who keeps all collaborators connected and continues to find creative work opportunities to support us financially, emotionally, and artistically.” 
“My whole sense of who I am as an artist, creator and collaborator has frozen mid-air. All of my artistic projects for 2020 have been postponed or cancelled-which has deeply challenged me to put my creativity towards imagining how I can still have an artistic practice in my home and in physical isolation. While most of my work as an administrator supporting other artists remains stable, I see my friends and peers completely at a loss – scrambling to adapt and learn how to make a living in this unprecedented time.”
“What COVID is teaching me is about the pivot as a choreography of resilience. I lost the majority of my income for the next four months, potentially further, a total of about $3000-4000 lost in a flash as if flood. This money directly would have covered rent, utilities, and food, simply put. However, my creative spirit has found some solace in dialogue, virtual collaboration and home videos. This is where the resilience lives, where seeds are planted again as spring returns.” 
CALL FOR BOSTON DANCERS – 2020 – 2021!
CALL FOR BOSTON DANCERS – 2020 – 2021!
Lenora Lee Dance (LLD), based in San Francisco, is seeking Boston based Asian/Asian American modern / contemporary dancers for “Convergent Waves” a series of 3 site-specific, immersive, multimedia performances in Boston at the Pao Arts Center, April 23 – 25, 2021.
LLD is looking for dancers with experience in choreography, improvisation, and collaboration. Rehearsals will begin in Boston April or May 2020, occurring one week per month almost every month, for approximately 20 hours each time. Below is a tentative draft of the schedule. All rehearsal and performance time is paid.
Those interested can email LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com your cell phone number, a resume, your website, and up to four video links of dance pieces you have choreographed or are featured dancing in by Sunday, 3/8/20. Call (415) 913-8725 for more information.
Potential Rehearsal & Performance Dates:
– 4/23 – 4/29/20 or 5/18 – 5/24/20
– 6/22 – 7/1/20 for a week
– 10/15 – 10/25 (with performance excerpts at Arts Emerson 10/24 or 10/25)
– 11/30 – 12/5/20 (with performances excerpts at Gardner Museum 12/3/20)
– one week per month January and February, dates TBD
– 3/26 – 4/2/21 (with performance excerpts at Gardner Museum 4/1/21)
– 4/16 – 4/25/21 (tech & 3 shows)
Background
“Convergent Waves” is a site-responsive, immersive, multimedia experience premiering at Pao Arts Center (Pao) in Boston April 23 – 25, 2021, with potential touring May 2021-November 2022. LLD will transform Pao into an immersive site where the audience follows performers on an interactive journey, that will feature 6 dancers, multimedia design, recorded original music, research, and voiceover interviews with activists and residents.
Audience are reoriented for a unique perspective that merges memory, contemporary reality, and social commentary. Walking through the building will be like walking through the interior of someone’s body with the idea of memory housed in the architectural blueprint of the building.
Pao sits on a historically significant piece of land, Parcel 24, where hundreds of residents were displaced in the 1960s in order to build a highway on-ramp. The reclamation of this land by Pao represents a powerful call for community oriented development in the face of rapid change. The work, which celebrates the contributions of activists and non-profit leaders, will make a collective statement for the preservation of community as neighborhoods across the country inhabited for generations face displacement through gentrification.
Supported in part by Pao Arts Center, Isabella Sewart Gardner Museum, National Endowment for the Arts, New England Foundation for the Arts Expeditions Tour Planning Grant, Arts Emerson, and Generous Individuals
About the Company
For the last 13 years Lenora Lee Dance (LLD) has been pushing the envelope of intimate and large-scale multimedia dance performance that connects various styles of movement/dance, film, text, research and music to culture, history, and human rights issues. LLD creates works that are both set in public and private spaces, inspired by individual stories as well as community strength. At times crafted for the proscenium, or underwater, or in the air, and at times the pieces are site-responsive immersive and interactive. Its work has grown to encompass the creation, presentation and screening of films, museum and gallery installations, civic engagement, and educational programming. LLD is directed by San Francisco native Lenora Lee, who has been a dancer, choreographer and artistic director for the past 22. She has been an Artist Fellow at the de Young Museum, a Djerassi Resident Artist, a Visiting Scholar at New York University, an Artist in Residence at Dance Mission, and a 2019 United States Artists Fellow.
Photo: Lynn Huang by Robbie Sweeny
INAUGURAL CONCERT: Vijay Iyer with Hafez Modirzadeh – 1/23/20
Asian Improv aRts, Lenora Lee Dance, and API Cultural Center are pleased to present:
Vijay Iyer (piano) with Hafez Modirzadeh (saxophone)
Thursday, January 23, 2020
7:30 pm – 8:45 pm
At 945 ArtSpace
945 Clay St., San Francisco, CA 94108
Tickets: https://vijay-iyer-with-hafez-modirzadeh.eventbrite.com
$25 adv./ $35 at the door
Doors open at 7pm. VERY LIMITED SEATING
If driving, the Portsmouth Square Parking Garage is recommended, with entrance on Kearny at Clay http://www.sfpsg.com/index.html
Contact: Lenora@asianimprov.org
This is the INAUGURAL CONCERT for 945 ArtSpace, a project of Asian Improv aRts, Lenora Lee Dance, API Cultural Center, and the Chinatown Community Development Center. The purpose of 945 ArtSpace is to provide a dedicated venue for artists and cultural activists to work in the intimate setting of a community-based storefront.
Composer-pianist VIJAY IYER has carved out a unique path as an influential, prolific, shape-shifting presence in modern music. He was described by the New York Times as a “social conscience, multi-media collaborator, system builder, rhapsodist, historical thinking, and multicultural gateway.” A winner of multiple awards including a 2012 Doris Duke Performing Artist Award and a 2013 MacArthur Fellowship, he holds a lifetime appointment as the Franklin D. and Florence Rosenblatt Professor of the Arts at Harvard University. Visit: https://vijay-iyer.com/about/
Composer-saxophonist Hafez Modirzadeh is active in the realms of performing, teaching, recording, publishing, and presenting cross-cultural perspectives regarding musical culture, tradition, and innovation. He has been instrumental in the ImprovisAsians annual festival held at San Francisco State University for the past 15 years. He is a Professor of Music and advisor for Jazz and Creative/World Music Studies at San Francisco State University. visit: https://music.sfsu.edu/ethnomusicology
Both Vijay and Hafez are valued contributors to Asian Improv’s work and legacy over the decades. 945 ArtSpace is extremely proud to present these extraordinary artists and community members as part of our first season here at 945 ArtSpace.
Top photo: Vijay Iyer, by Monica Jane Frisell
Bottom photo: Hafez Modirzadeh
CALL FOR “Through Fire & Water” PARTICIPANTS
“Through Fire & Water” is a series of performance events featuring 24 artists and arts groups on 6/13 at Joe Goode Anex. This series of events is in dedication to Jory Horn (April 21, 1991 – November 19, 2019), a profound dance artist and choreographer. Jory combined Cambodian culture and dance with contemporary dance as a means of advocacy to address challenges and celebrations of the Cambodian-American community. His guidance and mentorship of the Cambodian art form is a true testament of the strength and resilience of his people and survived through living dance masters Chayra Burt, Chey Chankethya, and Prumsodun Ok.
*** update of event for safety and wellness ***
Hi everyone, wishing you all much love, health, safety, and clarity. As we remember our beloved Jory with his recent 4/21 birthday, we wanted to reach out to share our plans for this 6/13 event in dedication to him. We are planning to postpone the event until public gathering restrictions are lifted, it is safe for groups to rehearse/prepare their pieces, and precautions for artists and audience members can be established in accordance with health and safety standards. Unfortunately we are not able to determine a date at this time but will make an announcement when it becomes clearer. Thank you for your care and involvement.
Lenora Lee Dance (LLD) is seeking participants of all artistic disciplines to submit proposals for 5-8 minute performance works, writings, or visual / media art dedicated to Jory Horn. 24 artists and arts groups will be split up into 2 programs set to take place 6/13, at the Joe Goode Anex. There may be an artist fee / honorarium available for participation, however we cannot guarantee it at this time.
The following 20 artists and arts groups from the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento, and Stockton will support or perform dance, music, text and poetry, with four additional ones to join. Artists will be split into 2 programs, each with receptions to follow.
– 5pm – Opening Greeting
– 5:30pm – Program A + reception
– 7:30pm – Program B + reception
Lauren Bedal
Christine Cali / CALI & CO dance
Zackary Forcum
Miguel Forbes / Ogún Ayé Project
Rhummanee Hang
Meegan Hertensteiner
Hien Huynh
Lenora Lee / Lenora Lee Dance
Lynn Huang
Megan Lowe / Megan Lowe Dances
Alyssa Mitchel
Morodok Khmer Performing Arts
Johnny Nguyen
Alleluia Panis
Monica Sok
Riley Taylor
Janine Trinidad
Alyssandra Wu / Alyssandra Katherine Dance
Alan Yip
Jamie Nakama
Kristen Rulifson
Windy Kahana
Please email the following by Monday, 1/20/20 to LenoraLeeDance2@gmail.com and LenoraLeeDanceManager@gmail.com
- your name / group name
- your phone number
- city you / your group are based in
- name and description of the piece
- genre (dance, music, poetry, visual or media art, etc)
- length of piece (between 5-8 minutes)
- your availability for 6/13
- a short biography
- 2-3 performance photos, with photo credits (doesn’t have to be related to the proposed piece)
- sample videos of your artistic works, (proposed work preferred, but not required)
- your website
“Forgiveness stems from something greater and is related to a greater ancestral memory and feeling. Before we are ever born, it is in us. A destiny and a pattern, but there are lots of things that fall under our own immediate control, the fact that I have freedom and the choices to be able to just choose is a privilege.” – Jory Horn
There is a need for people to act in the face of loss, and celebrate the meaning of the work. For LLD, the loss of Jory brings more meaning to our work in general, with the bonds we share in solidarity and collective community, with heightened awareness we can hold to care for one another.
Please also consider donating towards a new scholarship in dedication of Jory Horn alumni that supports aspiring dancers at Sacramento State University.
https://fundly.com/scholarship-in-memory-of-jory-horn?fbclid=IwAR2zXeap-ex5RUaL9ZJzr0IXBSvD7WBiGmQ7WIEz5X1SB4U7Q9EQTMbQSl0
Photo Credits:
Photo 2 Jory Horn by Robbie Sweeny
Photo 3 Jory Horn by Tony Nguyen
JOB POSTING: LLD PROJECT CONSULTANT
***Thank you for your interest! Position has been filled. We are in gratitude. Please stay tuned for future inquiry and openings later this 2020!***
LENORA LEE DANCE
JOB: PROJECT CONSULTANT
Reports to: Artistic Director
Location: San Francisco/Bay Area
Position type: Independent Contractor
Compensation: $22-24/hr depending on experience
Start Date: Immediately
ABOUT LENORA LEE DANCE (LLD)
For the last 12 years Lenora Lee Dance has been pushing the envelope of intimate and large-scale multimedia dance performance that connects various styles of movement/dance, film, text, research and music to culture, history, and human rights issues. At times crafted for the proscenium, or underwater, or in the air, and at times the pieces are site-responsive immersive and interactive. Our work has grown to encompass the creation, presentation, and screening of films, museum and gallery installations, civic engagement and educational programming.
POSITION SUMMARY
Entering its 13th anniversary season, LLD, an award winning company, is looking for a part-time administrative staff person to join its team, as LLD is gaining regional and national attention for its cutting edge, socially conscious immersive performance making. Hours needed fluctuate depending on the production schedule. Flexibility and communication are key components to keeping all staff, collaborators, vendors, and performers on the same page and moving forward.
We are looking for support with:
– Project coordination of home season performances, presentations featuring local and guest artists, touring
– Coordinate weekly administrative meetings which includes producing an agenda, taking notes, and inviting the necessary participants
– Coordinate and organize cloud-based files and databases
– Maintain internal calendar by setting up reminders and invites to events including grant deadlines, production schedule, weekly meetings, and touring
– Communicate through email and phone with performers, technical crew, and the public
– Recruit, communicate, and coordinate volunteers for performances and events
– Assist with organizing and running fundraising and community events
– Coordinate and follow up with communication between the company and its vendors, presenters, and venues
– Assist in long term planning for future projects related to LLD and its community partners
– Be able to work remotely through video and telephone conferencing
The following skills are a plus but not required:
– Grant writing and fundraising experience
– Organizing documents, photos and videos for archival purposes
We typically work remotely with one weekly in-person work session in San Francisco.
Please email a resume and cover letter explaining your interest in the position and LLD, including names and contact information for two or more references (name, phone number, email, name of the organization) to LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com, subject line: Project Consultant.
For more info or questions, call (415) 570-8615.
Megan Lowe & Johnny Nguyen, photo by Robbie Sweeny
CALL FOR DANCERS for “And the Community Will Rise” 2020!
CALL FOR DANCERS!
Lenora Lee Dance (LLD) is seeking female and male dancers of African and of European ancestry for “And the Community Will Rise” a series of 12 site-specific, immersive, multimedia performances in San Francisco at the Ping Yuen Housing Complex, September 10 – 27, or September 18 – October 4, 2020. LLD is open to dancers of various movement backgrounds. Training in modern / contemporary dance, experience in choreography, improvisation, and collaboration are a plus. Rehearsals will be twice a week starting in March, with dress rehearsals in August. All rehearsals and performances are paid.
Those interested can email LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com to sign up for a January 12, 2020 audition rehearsal. Please also email a resume and video links of dance pieces you have choreographed or are featured dancing in. Call (415) 570-8615 for more information. Other appointments can be arranged. www.LenoraLeeDance.com
Background
“And the Community Will Rise” includes a series of 12 site-specific, multimedia, immersive performances, transforming selected common spaces, courtyards and apartments in Ping Yuen into performance sites with live contemporary dance, media design, recorded original music, and voiceover from interviews with former and current residents, advocates and historians.
In collaboration with the Chinatown Community Development Center (CCDC), this work would explore residents’ struggle for affordable housing and rights as tenants and recent immigrants, as well as the complexities of Ping Yuen tenants’ diverse cultural backgrounds including Chinese, Russians, and African Americans.
Timing is crucial as San Francisco is witnessing growing displacement of its low-income residents, and neighborhoods inhabited for decades by generations of communities of color are facing gentrification. Drawing from residents’ family history and lived experiences, the performances will explore the lasting impact of local Chinese Americans and their coalitions with other marginalized communities on both the community and the nation. These rituals of remembrance in historical spaces are critical to our communities in providing a sense of place in American society especially in the face of mass displacement.
Co-presented by CCDC, Asian Improv aRts, API Cultural Center
Supported in part by Creative Work Fund, California Arts Council, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, and Generous Individuals
Photos by Robbie Sweeny
CALL FOR “And the Community Will Rise” PARTICIPANTS 2020
Lenora Lee Dance (LLD) is seeking former and current residents of San Francisco’s Ping Yuen Housing Complex, to share stories and experiences of living in the Ping Yuen, reflecting on the shared resiliency and collective community advocacy and accomplishments of residents for over 67 years.
Your participation will aid in the research for LLD’s newest project “And the Community Will Rise” a series of 12 site-specific, immersive, multimedia performances in the Ping Yuen Housing Complex, September 10 – 27, or September 18 – October 4, 2020, with an accompanying video installation on view March – May 2021.
Those interested can email LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com or call (415) 570-8615 for more information by January 30, 2020.
Background
Premiering in September 10 – 27, 2020, “And the Community Will Rise” includes a series of 12 site-specific, multimedia, immersive performances, transforming selected common spaces, courtyards and apartments in Ping Yuen into performance sites with live contemporary dance, media design, recorded original music, and voiceover from interviews with former and current residents, advocates and historians.
In collaboration with the Chinatown Community Development Center (CCDC), this work would explore residents’ struggle for affordable housing and rights as tenants and recent immigrants, as well as the complexities of Ping Yuen tenants’ diverse cultural backgrounds, including Chinese, Russians and African Americans.
Timing is crucial as San Francisco is witnessing growing displacement of its low-income residents, as neighborhoods inhabited for decades by generations of communities of color are facing gentrification. Drawn from residents’ family history and lived experiences, the performances will explore the lasting impact of local Chinese Americans and their coalitions with other marginalized communities on both the community and the nation. These rituals of remembrance in historical spaces are critical to our communities in providing a sense of place in American society especially in the face of mass displacement.
Co-presented by CCDC, Asian Improv aRts, API Cultural Center
Supported in part by Creative Work Fund, California Arts Council, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, and Generous Individuals
Johnny Nguyen, Megan Lowe, Lynn Huang, photo by Robbie Sweeny
Introducing the ‘Jeanette Acosta Invest in Women’s Health Act of 2019’
Jeanette Acosta Invest in Women’s Health Act
Jeanette dedicated her life to social justice issues. Let’s do a bit of our own activism on her behalf.
The Jeanette Acosta Invest In Women’s Health Act will:
Expand access to preventive and life-saving cancer screenings
Increase funding for healthcare clinics serving populations most at-risk
Improve training for treating low-income women and women of color
Tools & Resources
Join us in calling our U.S. House Reps to Co-Sponsor H.R. 3129
The Jeanette Acosta Invest in Women’s Health Act of 2019 (H.R. 3129) already has 42 co-sponsors, compared to 17 last year!
Let’s help Rep. Jimmy Gomez and his staff build momentum to make a request to increase co-sponsor support.
Use this social media kit to share messages on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Find out who your U.S. House Representative is here.
Call your Congressperson by dialing the Capitol switchboard
(202-224-3121).
Ask to be connected to your member of Congress.
Once connected, you can speak to the legislative assistant in charge of health issues.
Or you can speak to the person who answers the telephone.
Use the talking points below to urge them to co-sponsor.
I urge Representative [name] to cosponsor the Jeanette Acosta Invest in Women’s Health Act of 2019, H.R. 3129, introduced by Congressman Jimmy Gomez.
This important legislation would expand access to preventive, lifesaving women’s health screenings at safety net healthcare providers.
Specifically, the bill would create new grant and pilot programs to expand access to preventive services and better train health practitioners, especially in treating low-income women and women of color.
The bill is named for Jeanette Acosta, who dedicated her life to making the world a more just and inclusive place through public service, and who lost her battle with cervical cancer at the age of 32.
I hope Representative [name] will cosponsor the Jeanette Acosta Invest in Women’s Health Act of 2019, H.R. 3129, by contacting Congressman Jimmy Gomez’s office.
Encourage 3 friends to do the same!
Share, text, call, nudge this week.
Help grow the community.
Invite 3 friends to sign-up on this Remember Jeanette email list!
Click here to join
Volunteer Call for upcoming production ‘In the Skin of Her Hands’
Warm greetings community! Lenora Lee Dance is seeking volunteers for our upcoming production, “In the Skin of Her Hands”. The show will take place at Dance Mission Theater on November 1 and 2 at 8 pm and November 3rd at 5 pm. Lenora Lee Dance continues its immersive, multimedia audience engagement, and we are looking for volunteers to help the production run smoothly. Following are the details, volunteer roles, and how you can sign up. In addition, tickets are on sale NOW. Invite your community to see the next production of this award winning dance company.
Tickets: https://in-the-skin-of-her-hands.eventbrite.com
Izzie Awards: https://datebook.sfchronicle.com/dance/lineup-for-isadora-duncan-awards-testifies-to-bay-areas-dance-diversity
Details:
We need 4 volunteers each day of the shows. There are various roles you can play. We ask that you commit for one day, Friday (11/1) and Saturday (11/2) 5:30-10:30pm and Sunday 11/3 and 2:30-7:30pm. In gratitude for volunteering, you will receive 1 complimentary ticket for each show you volunteer.
Dance Mission is located 3316 24th St, San Francisco, CA 94110; across the street from the 24th St BART station. Street parking can be very challenging, so we highly suggest you take public transit. There is parking garage at Mission Bartlett Garage Google Maps. Follow link for rate information https://lots.impark.com
Volunteer Roles:
A. 4 volunteers to set up, clean up, pass out programs, and to direct audience from room to room, to their seats, and to maintain appropriate distance from the dancing area
RSVP via email to Shannon Preto, lenoraleedancemanager@gmail.com or call (415) 570-8615
Which date you would like to volunteer
Which date you or a friend would like to see the show
Your cell phone number so we can call, or text, as we get closer to the show
For more information:
Lenora Lee Dance: http://www.lenoraleedance.com
Tickets: https://in-the-skin-of-her-hands.eventbrite.com
Video trailer: https://vimeo.com/355460508
photos by Robbie Sweeny
1.) Johnny Nguyen, Jory Horn, Hien Huynh
2.) Lynn Huang
3.) Jacinta Wu
PRESS RELEASE: In the Skin of Her Hands
Lynn Huang photo by Robbie Sweeny
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Lenora Lee
Email: LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com
(415) 570-8615
www.LenoraLeeDance.com
Dance Mission Theater in association with Asian Improv aRts and API Cultural Center present
as part of Dance Mission’s WORD Series (Womxn Oracular Radical Dance)
the World Premiere of a new multimedia dance experience
In the Skin of Her Hands
by Lenora Lee Dance
At Dance Mission Theater
3316 24th Street San Francisco, CA 94110
Post-Performance Panelists
Friday, 11/1, 8pm show – Karina Lee Howe, Pamela Munster, Julie Wong
Saturday, 11/2, 8pm show – Raymond Fong, Valerie Soe, Marie Weber-Retherford
Sunday, 11/3, *5pm show – Karina Lee Howe, Cristina Prada, Akriti Sharma
*note daylight savings time
Performances will begin on time, please arrive early.
Post-performance discussions to follow each show
Theater is on second floor, there is no elevator access
Lenora Lee & Hien Huynh photo by Robbie Sweeny
ADMISSION:
General Admission – $35
Arts Patron – $60 (includes reserved seating & invitation to special rehearsals)
Student, Senior – $25
Tickets: https://in-the-skin-of-her-hands.eventbrite.com
For more info: www.LenoraLeeDance.com
For questions or high resolution images, email LenoraLeeDance2@gmail.com, (415) 570-8615.
Lenora Lee Dance (LLD) celebrates its 12th Anniversary Season with the World Premiere of our latest multimedia dance production, “In the Skin of Her Hands.” Inspired by the lives and experiences of those living with breast cancer, this piece is a journey through healing, compassion, and forgiveness in the face of the unknown. It will feature contemporary and aerial dance, multimedia film/video projection by Olivia Ting and Lenora Lee, original music by Francis Wong and Tatsu Aoki, as well as voiceover interviews from those with cancer, their loved ones, and experts in the field.
“In the Skin of Her Hands” will share stories and perspectives of those living with breast cancer, their families and communities, gained from a community engagement project involving interviews and workshops. So many women have been affected by breast cancer, including Lenora’s sister and mother, creating an extremely urgent need for greater awareness, information, and connection in the face of this health crisis. On average, every 2 minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer. Over 3.3 million breast cancer survivors are alive in the United States today.
LLD will premiere “In the Skin of Her Hands” 11/1 – 11/3/19 at Dance Mission Theater as part of the theater’s WORD Series (Womxn Oracular Radical Dance). We will include a panel of those living with cancer and experts in the field as part of the post-performance programming.
Through this process, we embrace moments of sharing and honoring women’s stories and experiences, in order to reflect collectively, inspire resiliency, and acknowledge the communal bravery, compassion, and endearing support of loved ones.
Johnny Nguyen & Megan Lowe photo by Robbie Sweeny
Jory Horn photo by Robbie Sweeny
“The words that are spoken are both incredibly specific and indelibly universal – the location comes alive and is given voice through Within These Walls.”
– Brian Resler, No Proscenium
Audience responses to LLD’s “Within These Walls”
“Deeply touched, deep sorrow. I was so moved. As beyond moved right now, still trying to metabolize the complexity” – Amber Cady
“It was a truly unique and powerful experience, and I feel fortunate to have witnessed it. It snuck into my dreams last night.”
“It was brilliant and emotionally powerful.”
Lynn Huang & Megan Lowe photo by Robbie Sweeny
PRESS
Lenora Lee on Asian Pacific America with Robert Handa, NBC Bay Area, July 29, 2019
Audience responses to LLD’s “Within These Walls”
“Deeply touched, deep sorrow. I was so moved. As beyond moved right now, still trying to metabolize the complexity” – Amber Cady
“It was a truly unique and powerful experience, and I feel fortunate to have witnessed it. It snuck into my dreams last night.”
“It was brilliant and emotionally powerful.”
Conceived, Produced & Directed by Lenora Lee
Choreography by Lenora Lee in collaboration with performers Jory Horn,
Lynn Huang, Hien Huynh, SanSan Kwan, Megan Lowe, Johnny Nguyen
Music Score directed by Tatsu Aoki and Francis Wong, with Kioto Aoki, Edward Wilkerson Jr.
Vocals by Edward Kaikea Goo, Megan Lowe, Jacinta Wu
Media Design & Editing by Olivia Ting & Lenora Lee
Videography by Edward Kaikea Goo, Hien Huynh, Lenora Lee, Joel Wanek
Calligraphy by Jacinta Wu
Voiceover by Raymond Fong, Erika Gee, Marina Goez, Karina Lee Howe, Winnie Lai, JoAnn Lee, Lenora Lee, Mixi Li, Nancy Lim-Yee, Megan Lowe, Ha Wa Lui, Javier Moreno, Sandra Moreno, Pamela Munster, Cristina Prada, Camilo Romero, Isabel Romero, Rose, Valerie Soe, Melody Takata, Olivia Ting, Marie Weber-Retherford, Julie Wong, Jacinta Wu
Please Note:
- Comfortable footwear is encouraged
- Guests may encounter situations in close proximity with performers
We encourage guests with special needs to contact us prior to arrival at: LenoraLeeDanceManager@gmail.com
or (415) 570-8615
Dance Mission is located 3316 24th St, San Francisco, CA 94110; across the street from the 24th St BART station. Street parking can be challenging, so we highly suggest you take public transit. There is a parking garage at Mission Bartlett Garage Google Maps. Follow link for rate information: lotsimpark
Volunteer Call
LLD is seeking volunteers for the weekend of shows. Join and work alongside the cast and crew to be apart of the production! For more information: click here or contact LenoraLeeDanceManager@gmail.com (415) 570-8615
Hien Huynh photo by Queenie Quan with Connection, 2019 bamboo installation by Tanabe Chikuunsai IV, taken at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
LENORA LEE DANCE
Lenora Lee Dance (LLD) integrates contemporary dance, film, music, and research and has gained increasing attention for its sustained pursuit of issues related to immigration, global conflict, and its impacts, particularly on women and families. The company is directed by San Francisco native Lenora Lee, who has been a dancer, choreographer and artistic director for the past 21 years in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York. She has been an Artist Fellow at the de Young Museum, a Djerassi Resident Artist, a Visiting Scholar at New York University 2012-2016, and an Artist in Residence at Dance Mission Theater. She is currently a 2019 United States Artists Fellow and has been recently awarded a Creative Work Fund and California Arts Council California Creative Communities grant with the Chinatown Community Development Center to collaborate on an immersive performance piece in 2020.
LLD’s recent work Within These Walls (WTW) received a Special Achievement Award for Outstanding Production by the Isadora Duncan Dance Awards Committee. Hien Huynh, a main character in the piece, won the nomination for Outstanding Achievement in Performance by an Individual for his incredibly moving performance in the piece.
LLD creates works that are both set in public and private spaces, intimate and large-scale, inspired by individual stories as well as community strength. For the last 12 years, the company has been pushing the envelope of large-scale multimedia, and immersive dance performance that connects various styles of movement and music to culture, history and human rights issues. Its work has grown to encompass the creation, presentation and screening of films, museum and gallery installations, civic engagement, and educational programming. www.LenoraLeeDance.com
Francis Wong (music direction, composition) was dubbed one of “the great saxophonists of his generation” by the late jazz critic Phil Elwood. Few musicians are as accomplished as Wong: for over two decades he has performed his innovative brand of jazz and creative music for audiences in North America, Asia, and Europe. A prolific recording artist, Wong is featured on more than forty titles. www.franciswong.net
Olivia Ting (media & graphic design) is interested in the role of digital technology in the fabric of contemporary lives and how our perception of recorded media (film, photography, audio) as “reality” has shifted as technology becomes more sophisticated. Olivia has done design work for Oakland Museum of California, San Francisco Arts Commission, San Jose Children’s Museum, and collaborated with various dance companies in the Bay Area. Her work shifts between video projection and altered 360 VR film experiences. She holds an MFA in Art Practice from U.C. Berkeley. www.olivetinge.com
Tatsu Aoki (music) is a prolific composer, musician, filmmaker, and educator. Based in Chicago, Aoki works in a wide range of musical genres, ranging from traditional Japanese music, jazz, experimental and creative music. Aoki is currently an adjunct Full Professor at the Film, Video and New Media Department within the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, teaching film production and history courses. To this date, Aoki has produced and appears in more than 90 recording projects and over 30 experimental films. www.tatsuaoki.com
Jory Horn (dance) combines Cambodian culture and dance, as a means of advocacy to address challenges and celebrations of the Cambodian-American community. His guidance and mentorship of the Cambodian art form is a true testament of the strength and resilience of his people and survived through living dance masters Chayra Burt, Chey Chankethya, and Prumsodun Ok. Jory holds a BA in Dance and minor in Recreation Administration from CSU Sacramento.
Lynn Huang (dance) trained in modern dance, ballet, and Chinese dance. She has performed with Lenora Lee, Cynthia Ling Lee, HT Dance Company, and Ella Ben-Aharon/Sahar Javedani, among others. She studied ethnic minority dance at Minzu University in Beijing, China on a Fulbright fellowship and graduated magna cum laude from Barnard College of Columbia University with a BA in English.
Hien Huynh (dance) was born in Da Nang, Vietnam. Through embodied practice, Hien aspires to seek understanding, and honor the recognition of the vibrations of life, deepen awarenesses, and open heart for human compassion. He is honored to have performed in the works of Lenora Lee Dance, Kim Epifano, Robert Moses’ Kin, Kinetech Arts, PUSH, Deborah Slater Dance Theater, Christy Funsch & Nol Simonse, and punkkiCo. www.hien-huynh.com
SanSan Kwan (dance) teaches dance and dance studies at UC Berkeley. She has performed, in New York with Jonathon Appels, HT Chen, Maura Nguyen Donohue, and Joanna Mendl Shaw, among others. In San Francisco, she has worked with Lenora, as well as composer Scott Rubin. This is her eighth year with Lenora Lee Dance.
Megan Lowe (dance) is a dancer/choreographer/singer who creates her own works, and has performed with Flyaway Productions, Scott Wells & Dancers, Lizz Roman & Dancers, Epiphany Productions, Dance Brigade, and more. Megan teaches for Flyaway, Joe Goode Performance Group, Bandaloop, for contact improvisation gatherings, and for Theater, Dance, & Performance Studies at UC Berkeley, where she currently works as the Office Manager. mlowedances.wixsite.com/meganlowe
Johnny Huy Nguyen (dance) is a second generation Vietnamese American multidisciplinary, performing artist navigating the intersections between the personal and political. His practice is informed by fluency in street and contemporary dance forms to activate dialogue, healing, and actiont. In addition to Lenora Lee Dance Company, Johnny has also worked with Embodiment Project, Kularts, and James Graham Dance Theatre.
ABOUT THE PANELISTS
Dr. Raymond Fong worked as a counselor with City College of San Francisco’s (CCSF) Extended Opportunity Programs and Services (EOPS) from 1990 to 2018, and as coordinator of the EOPS’ Second Chance program, a comprehensive academic support service program that was geared towards the needs of formerly incarcerated CCSF students. Ray holds a doctorate degree in International and Multicultural Education, a baccalaureate degree in Psychology, as well as masters degrees in MFT Counseling, and in Ethnic Studies. An accomplished bodybuilder, he is also a longtime martial artist who teaches karate at his San Mateo dojo. Ray’s mother battled with both breast cancer and Alzheimer’s disease prior to her passing earlier this year. He and his family were confronted with many challenges in caring for their mother, and struggled in finding ways to create and maintain meaningful connections with her.
Karina Lee Howe earned a BA in Pre-Physical Therapy and a Minor in Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University. She received a Master’s of Science in Physical Therapy from Columbia University. It was in college that Karina met Perry and their lifelong collaboration began. The twenties were the milestones of marriage and career. The thirties were establishing the family unit, and having four children. The forties were about nurturing the family (developing the football players, artists, lacrosse players and tennis players) and growing the therapy practice. With the introduction of Metastatic Breast Cancer, the fifties have become the period of change. The refocusing of life back on oneself. Relinquishing control to the medical professionals. The acquisition of knowledge, everything about her type of breast cancer and how to survive it. And new goals: to be the best patient there is, to cherish every day, and to impart life lessons to her family as often as she can.
Pamela Munster, MD is a professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, where at the Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center, she is leader of the Experimental Therapeutics Program, Director of Early Phase Clinical Trials Unit, and Co-Director of the UCSF Center for BRCA Research. In Dr. Munster’s lab, UCSF scientists are exploring new ways to detect, surveil, intercept, and cure BRCA-related cancers. In addition to her laboratory research, she develops novel strategies to treat patients with incurable cancers as an oncologist. Dr. Munster serves on multiple local, national and international committees focused on developing new treatments for cancer, has published over two hundred articles, authored textbooks and is a frequent lecturer. A native of Switzerland, she leads breast cancer awareness campaigns in the United States, United Arab Emirates, and India.
Dr. Munster was diagnosed with a BRCA2 mutation in 2012. There was not an easy place to coordinate her care, and so she set out to create the UCSF Center for BRCA Research in partnership with Alan Ashworth, PhD, FRS. By transcending the doctor-patient perspective, Dr. Munster gives a framework for successful treatment – epitomizing the personal, patient centered care that is a hallmark of the UCSF medical center. Dr. Munster recently authored Twisting Fate, about her experience as an oncologist and a cancer patient.
Cristina Prada was born in Colombia in 1931. She grew up around a farm in La Calera, a small town outside of the capital, Bogotá. Her mother, Cristina, died while giving birth to a younger sibling. Her father, Lorenzo, raised her and her four siblings. Cristina worked several jobs from a young age, eventually becoming the manager of a pharmaceutical laboratory and giving birth to her daughter, Isabel Cristina. In 1973, she immigrated to the United States and settled in southern California. For over 20 years, Cristina worked two full-time jobs, at Hoag Hospital in Newport Beach and at various hotels around Disneyland. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2014, which went away with treatment, but then metastasized and was diagnosed again in 2018. Cristina attributes the cancer to the chemicals used during her years of employment in the U.S. She is heartened in her struggle by her three great granddaughters, Emma, Penelope, and Olivia Cristina.
Since 1986 Valerie Soe has produced nearly two dozen short films and documentaries which have exhibited worldwide. Her essays and articles have been published in numerous books and journals and she is the author of the blogbeyondasiaphilia.com. She is Professor of Asian American Studies at San Francisco State University. Her latest film, Love Boat: Taiwan, premiered in 2019. She discovered her cancer through a routine mammogram and subsequently had chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation therapy.
Marie Weber-Retherford is a wife and mother of three children, who are all in their 20’s now. She has been a registered Nurse for 40 years, currently still working full time in pediatric Emergency Department. Marie is a 12-year survivor of both DCIS (ductal) and invasive breast cancer, which was discovered by her own manual exam.
Julie Wong is a physical therapist and a certified lymphedema therapist at Proactive Physical Therapy. As a breast cancer survivor, she discovered a vacuum of care and information for other patients. Her background as an orthopedic specialist combined with her osteopathic and lymphedema studies and applications allowed her to develop protocols never conceived or tried. In 2013 Julie was honored with the Komen San Francisco “Make a Difference Award” for helping patients regain function, comfort, and understanding.
Dr. Akriti Sharma, DPT is a Doctorate in Physical Therapy, Board Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist and is Owner of Proactive Physical Therapy where the focus is on treating breast cancer patients. She utilizes a unique physical therapy protocol that addresses total body systems to help patients before, during, and after breast cancer treatment: including radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and various breast cancer related surgeries. Akriti & her team at Proactive Physical Therapy are also involved in and support various breast cancer organizations throughout San Francisco.
ABOUT THE PRESENTERS
Dance Mission Theater’s WOMXN SPEAK: WORD series
Womxn’s Oracular Radical Dance. Dance Mission is proud to announce its presenting and program for 2018-2019, WORD, during which we are working closely with four groups of womxn identified artists. Don’t miss these exciting performances, conversations, and on-going investigations that dive into some of today’s most pressing topics. https://dancemissiontheater.org/womxn-speak/
Asian Improv aRts
As a non-profit multidisciplinary arts presenter it has produced high quality arts and cultural events for 24 years in the San Francisco Bay Area in community based and major venues such as Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (with Dohee Lee’s FLUX), Great American Music Hall (with SFJazz), and Zellerbach Playhouse (Cal Performances) as well as various venues outside the Bay Area including the Museum of Contemporary Arts (Chicago), Flynn Center (Vermont), Library of Congress (Washington DC) and Banlieues Bleus Festival (Paris, France). AIR pursues a strategy of collaboration between artists, community resources and mainstream institutions to create cultural and educational programming that brings together diverse sectors across generational, cultural and social experiences. http://www.asianimprov.org
APICC
The Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center’s (APICC) mission is to support and produce multidisciplinary art reflective of the unique experiences of Asian Pacific Islanders living in the United States. APICC was founded in 1996 by representatives of five nonprofit arts groups: Asian American Dance Performances, First Voice, Asian Improv aRts, the Asian American Theater Company, and Kearny Street Workshop. Since 1998, the center has promoted the artistic and organizational growth of San Francisco’s API arts community by organizing and presenting the annual United States of Asian America Festival as well as commissioning contemporary art for and by the Asian American and Pacific Islander community. https://www.apiculturalcenter.org
“In the Skin of Her Hands” is supported in part by Dance Mission Theater, United States Artists, CA$H a grants program of Dancers’ Group, San Francisco Grants for the Arts, and Generous Individuals.
To contribute in the support of Karina, visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/karinas-fight-for-life
Lenora Lee, Hien Huynh, Megan Lowe, Jory Horn, Lynn Huang, Johnny Nguyen photo by Robbie Sweeny
Lenora Lee Dance, Call for Participants!
Lenora Lee Dance (LLD) is seeking participation for our new multimedia dance, “In the Skin of Her Hands,” a work dedicated to breast cancer survivors via a journey of healing, compassion, forgiveness and the unknown. LLD is looking for survivors and/or their loved ones who are open to sharing about experiences dealing with the disease, providing inspiration for the creation of the piece.
“In the Skin of Her Hands” will examine the effects of cancer on survivors, family, and community. So many women have been affected by breast cancer, including Lenora’s sister and mother. On average, every 2 minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer. Over 3.3 million breast cancer survivors are alive in the United States today.
LLD will premiere “In the Skin of Her Hands” 11/1 – 11/3/19 at Dance Mission Theater as part of the theater’s WORD Series (Womxn Oracular Radical Dance). We hope to include a panel of experts in the field as part of the post-performance programming, and will look into ways to encourage early cancer screenings.
We invite your participation for a moment of sharing, honoring your stories and experiences, and reflecting collectively to inspire resiliency and acknowledge the gathered bravery, compassion, and endearing support of loved ones. Those interested please email Lenora at LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com or call 415-913-8725 by Sunday, 7/28/19.
With much appreciation,
Lenora and Company
Photo Credit: Robbie Sweeny
Dancers: Johnny Nguyen, Lynn Huang, Wei-Shan Lai
UPNEXT! ‘In the Skin of Her Hands’ excerpts by Lenora Lee Dance
sections of an upcoming new dance work inspired by the lives and experiences of cancer survivors, a meditation on healing, compassion, forgiveness and the unknown.
“We feel the rivers flowing through the depths of her veins, through the question of tomorrow, through the broken visions of the future to the pale softness of her skin, holding the storm inside.” – Lenora Lee
– Saturday, 6/8/19, 1pm at the Chinese Historical Society, CHSA
featuring dancers: Hien Huynh & Lenora Lee
voiceover: Karina Lee Howe
music directed by Tatsu Aoki
– Sunday, 7/14/19, 1pm as part of Yerba Buena Gardens ChoreoFest, SF,
YBGF CHOREFEST 2019
featuring dancers: Hien Huynh, Lynn Huang, Wei-Shan Lai, Johnny Nguyen
-8/2 – 8/4/19 as part of the Asia Pacific Dance Festival, Honolulu Hawaii-Asia Pacific Dance
featuring dancers: Hien Huynh & Lenora Lee
dancers: Lenora Lee & Hien Huynh
photo by: Robbie Sweeny
Lenora Lee Dance’s Volunteer Call for May 2019 award winning performance
Lenora Lee Dance seeks volunteers for our next production, “Within These Walls / Dreams of Flight”. The show takes place at the US Immigration Station, Angel Island State Park, San Francisco Bay. We are looking for volunteers to help the production run smoothly. Following are the details, volunteer roles, and how you can sign up. In addition, tickets are on sale NOW. Invite your community to see this fantastic, award winning show.
“Within These Walls” and “Dreams of Flight” trailer
Tickets: eventbrite WTWDOF
Izzie Awards: SF Chronicle Izzies
Details:
We need 6 volunteers each day of the shows. There are various roles you can play. We ask that you commit for one day, Sat. (5/4, 5/11, 5/18) or Sun. (5/5, 5/12, 5/19). If you are available to help for more than one day, that would be very much appreciated! In gratitude for volunteering, you will receive 1 complimentary ticket for each show you volunteer. You will still need to purchase your own round trip ferry tickets to the island and shuttle tickets to the Station. You have the option to walk to and from the Station to the ferry dock.
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Volunteer Roles:
a. 2 Pier 41 ferry dock ushers: For the volunteers that work the Pier 41 ferry docks, you need to be there from 8:30 am to 12:00 pm. Duties include handing out pre-purchased tickets, guiding ticket holders to the ferry ramp, informing them of what to expect, and advertise the show to the public.
b. 2 Angel Island Dock ushers *: You will need to be there from 8:30am to 1:00pm. Duties include guiding ticket holders to the shuttle or to the hiking trail, answer questions, advertise the show.
c. 2 Angel Island Immigration station ushers *: You will need to be there from 8:30am to 3:00pm. Duties include processing performance admission tickets, handing out identifying badges for ticket holders and programs, guiding individuals to the restrooms, and managing the crowds as they walk around the station.
* These Angel Island Dock & Immigration Station ushers will need to ride the 8:30am staff boat from the Tiburon dock – 21 Main Street, Tiburon, and do not need to pay for the staff boat ride to Angel Island. $5 all day parking available in the Bank of America parking lot on Main & Beach Streets in Tiburon. These ushers would have to take the Tiburon ferry back to Tiburon. http://angelislandferry.com/schedule/
RSVP via email to Shannon Preto lenoraleedancemanager@gmail.com with:
1. Which role or location you wish to volunteer
2. Which date you would like to volunteer
3. Which date you would like to see the show
4. Your cell phone number
We will try to assign you to the location of your choice, but cannot guarantee it. If you know of anyone else who may like to volunteer, please pass along this email.
For more information about the performances:
http://www.lenoraleedance.com/2019/01/re-staging-of-critically-acclaimed-award-winning-within-these-walls-and-world-premiere-of-sequel-dreams-of-flight/
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/within-these-walls-its-sequel-dreams-of-flight-tickets-54015520877
March 2019: with cinder, ash to ember
Coming this month, MARCH 2019
Asian Art Museum, Asian Improv aRts, API Cultural Center & Lenora Lee Dance present:
with cinder
ash to ember
new choreographic works by Jory Horn, Yi-Ting (Gama) Hsu, and Hien Huynh
as part of the Museum’s Thursday Nights series
Thursday, March 28
6-7:15 pm and 8-9:1 5pm
Asian Art Museum
200 Larkin Street
San Francisco, CA 94102
www.asianart.org/events/1662
Free with general admission
with cinder, ash to ember features new choreographic works by Jory Horn, Yi-Ting (Gama) Hsu and Hien Huynh inspired by their mothers. The three pieces will focus, respectively, on reincarnation, rebirth and the transmigration of refugees; the bond between mother and child separated by distance; and the merging of embodied memories and imprinted experiences with unspoken and recovered history. Co-presented by Asian Improv aRts, API Cultural Center and Lenora Lee Dance.
PROGRAM
When Smoke Escapes the Body
Choreography, text, and performance by Jory Horn
“It was as if I was reborn…” a phrase Jory’s mother, Sarou Mouy expressed when speaking of surviving the Khmer Genocide from 1975-1979 and coming to America in 1990. Including the elements of fire as an ignition to release a trapped soul and water as the metaphor for rebirth, this piece speaks of spirituality through the lens of Jory’s Cambodian Mother’s past traumas and the strength it has taken to build a new life and raise a family of 8 on foreign soil.
*This project was created through a research study in Cambodia January 15 through March 15, 2019. Supported in part by Dancers’ Group’s CA$H grant program.
Unfold
by Yi-Ting (Gama) Hsu
A collaboration performed by Chinchin Hsu, Yaoru Kong, Yi-Ting (Gama) Hsu
As we unfold our own paths of memories, we start perceiving our traumas with love, support, and comprehension. To acknowledge them as we unfold and unfold into clarity with harmony as mother and daughters.
Soft Wounds
by Hien Huynh
Soft Wounds is a duet performance between Hien Huynh and his mother, Moui Lu.
A movement art and shared moment that unites mother and son on stage together for the first time. Through sharing and understanding his mother’s imprisonment in post-war Vietnam, physical injuries, and recollection, Hien and his mother engage in memories and experiences and charge the performance space with unspoken and recovered history.
*This piece is supported in part by Dancers’ Group’s CA$H grant program.
photo Jory Horn by Tony Nguyen
photo Hien Huynh by Hoa Huynh
photo Yi-Ting (Gama) Hsu by Jason Lam
BIOGRAPHIES
Jory Horn combines Cambodian culture and dance, as a means of advocacy to address challenges and celebrations of the Cambodian-American community. His guidance and mentorship of the Cambodian art form is a true testament of the strength and resilience of his people and survived through living dance masters Chayra Burt, Chey Chankethya, and Prumsodun Ok. Jory holds a BA in Dance and minor in Recreation Administration from CSU Sacramento.
Yi-Ting (Gama) Hsu was born and raised in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, and has trained in contemporary, ballet, modern, Chinese martial art, Chinese folk dance, Tai-chi initiation, composition, choreography and improvisation. Yi-Ting is a graduate of Tsoying High School, and received her BFA from University of Taipei of the Arts. She moved to San Francisco in 2015 and has danced with Hsu Chen Wei Production, Les Petites Choses Production, David Herrera Performance Company, Lenora Lee Dance, Alyssandra Katherine Dance Project, Epiphany Dance Theater and Kinetech Arts. www.gamahsu.com
Hien Huynh was born in Da Nang, Vietnam. At 3 years old, he migrated with his family to Oakland, CA. Through embodied practices, Hien aspires to seek understanding and recognition of the vibrations of life, deepen awarenesses, and open heart for human compassion. He is honored to have performed in the works of Lenora Lee Dance, Kim Epifano, Robert Moses’ Kin, Kinetech Arts, PUSH, Deborah Slater Dance Theater, Christy Funsch & Nol Simonse, and punkkiCo. www.hien-huynh.com
Chinchin Hsu is a native of Kaohsiung, Taiwan, who loves to move, create, share, eat and listen to stories. She has trained in ballet, various modern techniques, Tai Chi, Chinese martial art and improvisation. Chinchin graduated cum laude and received her BFA from New World School of the Arts. In 2008, Chinchin moved to San Francisco and has worked with ODC, KUNST- STOFF, Anne Bluethenthal and Dancers, Tanya Bello, Kara Davis, Lenora Lee, LEVYdance, Katie Faulkner, Christy Funsch and Margaret Jenkins Dance Company. Outside of studio time, Chinchin is an artist mentor with Performing Arts Workshop serving various youth communities in the Bay Area. Thanks to her husband and family for their support through time.
Alan Yip has had an interest in the Classical Chinese arts since childhood. With teachers in the United States and China, he has been a disciple of the foremost masters of the guqin, erhu, and court-style painting. Alan teaches in the Bay Area and at the University of California, Davis. A long time lover of nature and plants, he holds degrees in horticulture and botany. alanyip.art
with cinder, ash to ember is supported in part by Zellerbach Family Foundation, Dancers’ Group’s CA$H grant program, San Francisco Grants for the Arts
Lenora Lee named 2019 United States Artists Fellow!
A major announcement and congratulatory shout out to director Lenora Lee being named a 2019 United States Artists Fellow!
“The Chicago-based nonprofit United States Artists has revealed its list of 2019 fellows, who will each receive an unrestricted $50,000 cash prize. The 45 fellows this year, who are all based in the U.S., were awarded in 10 categories: Architecture & Design, Craft, Dance, Film, Media, Music, Theater & Performance, Traditional Arts, Visual Art, and Writing.” – Alex Greenberger Artnews
“Within These Walls” and “Dreams of Flight” trailer
Honored and grateful for the recognition, we continue to seek to share a sense of gratitude for life and our lived experiences. The power in sharing these truths is boundless and with emergence of a bountiful 2019, we will continue to bring the possibilities to life.
Re-Staging of Within These Walls & Premiere of sequel Dreams of Flight
Asian Improv aRts, API Cultural Center & Chinese Historical Society of America present
The Re-Staging of the Critically Acclaimed Award Winning multimedia immersive dance experience
Within These Walls and the World Premiere of its sequel Dreams of Flight
by Lenora Lee Dance
At the Angel Island Immigration Station, San Francisco Bay
Saturdays & Sundays, May 4th, 5th, 11th, 12th, 18th* & 19th*, 2019
11am-12:30pm & 1-2:30pm
Performances will begin on time, please arrive early.
Performances will commence rain or shine. Please plan to bring umbrellas and appropriate rain attire forecasted for closing weekend.
Note for closing weekend: These 5/18 & 5/19 performances are being recorded. While the recording is focused on the performance, your likeness may be filmed. By attending this performance you are granting Lenora Lee Dance permission to possibly film you.
www.LenoraLeeDance.com For questions, email LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com, (415) 913-8725
CALL FOR VOLUNTEER: CLICK HERE for more info
“Within These Walls” and “Dreams of Flight” trailer
Within These Walls (WTW) received a Special Achievement Award for Outstanding Production by the Isadora Duncan Dance Awards Committee. Hien Huynh, one of the main cast members who played a character inspired by the life of Wong Gong Jue, received an Outstanding Achievement in Performance by an Individual for his incredibly moving performance in the piece.
Lenora Lee Dance (LLD) celebrates its 12th Anniversary Season with the Re-Staging of the Award Winning Within These Walls (2017), and the World Premiere of its sequel Dreams of Flight, both site-responsive, immersive, multimedia dance works created for the Angel Island Immigration Station in San Francisco Bay, for three weekends 5/4 – 5/19/19. These works for 12 performers, integrating contemporary dance, video projection, recorded original music, and poetry, serve as a meditation on healing, resilience, and compassion.
Inspired by experiences of those detained and processed at the Station, Within These Walls & its sequel Dreams of Flight will transform and animate the historic Barracks and Hospital into sites for remembrance, as part of a community-wide celebrations for the grand re-opening of the Public Health Hospital as the Angel Island State Park Pacific Coast Immigration Center, which is being preserved and converted for reuse as an interpretive center, as well as in commemoration of the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, speaking to the power of individuals and communities to transcend.
The pieces are dedicated to the 170,000 Chinese who were detained, interrogated and processed at the Station between 1910 – 1940 as a result of the Chinese Exclusion Act, which tore families apart and resulted in a mass incarceration experience that forever stamps the experience of Chinese in America.
Audiences will journey within a labyrinth of rooms throughout the historic two story building experiencing intimate interactive environments, a tapestry of movement, sound, poetry and film integrated on the surfaces inside and outside of the building, and within the walls.
Audience Feedback from WTW:
“I thought about ICE jails, people who fear deportation, and refugees overseas. It was heavy….and so beautiful.”
“It was a truly unique and powerful experience, and I feel fortunate to have witnessed it. It snuck into my dreams last night.”
“Moving and beautifully rendered, and of course, so timely given the global dialogue around immigration. I was there with my seven year old son, and the piece made a big impression on him.”
“I was deeply affected and moved by the performance. I left in tears, and literally cried every time I replayed the performance in my head for 4 days afterward.”
“It was brilliant and emotionally powerful.”
PRESS
Immigrants Tormented as Angel Island Detainees Recreated in Dance – By Beth Spotswood, SF Chronicle, 9/14/17
Angel Island a historical setting for Lenora Lee’s ‘Walls’ – By Leslie Katz, San Francisco Examiner, 9/7/17
Conceived, Produced & Directed by Lenora Lee
Choreography by Lenora Lee in collaboration with performers George Cheng, Derek Harris, Lynn Huang, Hien Huynh, Carl Irons, SanSan Kwan, Wei-Shan Lai, Chloe Luo, Johnny Nguyen, Dalmacio Payomo, Shannon Preto, Yi-Ting (Gama) Hsu, and contributions from some of the original 2017 cast: Yao Dang, Timothy Huey, Eric Koziol, Wayne Tai Lee, Kevin Lo, Stacey Yuen
Music Score by Francis Wong and Tatsu Aoki, with Kioto Aoki, JoVia Armstrong, Rami Atassi, Jonathan Chen, Suwan Choi, Deszon X. Claiborne, Coco Elysses, Jason Kao Hwang, Michael Jamanis, Jamie Kempkers, Chad Taylor, Edward Wilkerson Jr., Michael Zerang
Poetry & Text by Genny Lim and Wong Gung Jue
Voiceover by Lynn Huang, Hien Huynh, Todd Nakagawa, Johnny Nguyen, Shannon Preto
Media Design by Olivia Ting
Videography Directed by Lenora Lee
Filmed by Lenora Lee, Shannon Preto, Olivia Ting
Edited by Tatsu Aoki, Lenora Lee, Olivia Ting
Join us for the excursion and adventure!
Then click on the orange “SELECT A DATE” button, then on the green “TICKETS” button to see PERFORMANCE ADMISSION + TRANSPORTATION DETAILS. Group rate available. Email LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com to inquire.
SAN FRANCISCO DEPARTURES: Company: Blue and Gold Fleet
SUGGESTED TRANSPORTATION TIMES:
Outbound Angel Island Ferry Options
*Departs Pier 41 at 9:45am, arrives on Angel Island at 10:10am
*Ride the 10:30am shuttle to the Station
*See either the 11am or 1pm performance
*Departs Pier 41 at 11:25am, arrives on Angel Island at 11:50am
*No shuttle available. You must walk 25-30 minutes or bike to the Station
*See the 1pm performance after making your own way to the Station
Please check this website for updated ferry schedule http://www.blueandgoldfleet.com/ferry/angel-island/
Return to Pier 41 Ferry Options
*Departs Angel Island at 2:20pm, arrives at Pier 41 at 3:10pm
*Departs Angel Island at 4:55pm, arrives at Pier 41 at 5:25pm
Please check this website for updated ferry schedule http://www.blueandgoldfleet.com/ferry/angel-island/
TIBURON DEPARTURES: Company: Angel Island Tiburon Ferry
*Departs Tiburon hourly from 10am until 5pm
*Departs Angel Island hourly from 10:20am until 5:20pm
Those wanting to leave from Tiburon must purchase the GENERAL ADMISSION ONLY, ARTS PATRON ADMISSION ONLY, or STUDENT ADMISSION ONLY ticket options. Ferry tickets available for purchase at the facility as you board the ferry with cash or check ONLY. No advanced ferry ticket purchases. See those options and this link http://angelislandferry.com/schedule/ for more details.
ANGEL ISLAND SHUTTLE (can be purchased on this Eventbrite site, see TICKETS – LIMITED AVAILABILITY)
*Departs promptly from the Angel Island Cafe at 10:30am
*Departs Immigration Station 12:45pm and 3pm
Visit http://angelisland.com/usis/ for more info.
If a shuttle is not available at your desired time, walking to and from the Immigration Station takes 25-30 minutes each way. Maps are available at the Angel Island dock.
PARKING OPTIONS at Pier 41, San Francisco
*Academy of Art parking lot on Beach & Stockton Streets ($30 all day)
*2210 Stockton St between Northpoint & Bay ($25 all day)
Taking public transportation, taxi or Lyft are good options as well.
PARKING OPTIONS by Tiburon dock
Tiburon Parking information can be found online here:http://angelislandferry.com/parking-information/. Parking is between $5 and $15 for the day.
For more info: www.LenoraLeeDance.com, email LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com, or call (415) 913-8725
PLEASE NOTE:
The performance admission + ferry ticket packages we offer only leave from Pier 41 in San Francisco on the Blue & Gold Fleet.
If you plan to take the Angel Island Tiburon Ferry, purchase the Admission Only tickets on our ticket site. Then purchase Tiburon ferry tickets on board the ferry with cash or check.
The last day to purchase the Admission + Roundtrip ferry package for the 5/4 & 5/5 performances on our ticket site is 4/29!
The last day to purchase the Admission + Roundtrip ferry package for the 5/11 & 5/12 performances on our ticket site is Tuesday, 5/6!
The last day to purchase the Admission + Roundtrip ferry package for the 5/18 & 5/19 performances on our ticket site is Tuesday, 5/13!
After that you must purchase Admission Only tickets on our ticket site and stand in line at the Pier 39 / 41 Blue & Gold Fleet Box Office, or board the Tiburon Ferry to purchase ferry tickets separately. You may be able to purchase Shuttle tickets from the Angel Island dock Group Leader if they are still available.
On the day of the performance, those who purchased online the Admission + Roundtrip ferry tickets or Shuttle tickets – arrive early to meet our Pier 41 Group Leader wearing the Fluorescent Yellow vest here by the topographical map between Pier 39 & 41 to pick up your tickets.
If you need to buy ferry tickets on the day of the performance, arrive early to stand in line at the Blue & Gold Fleet Ticket Booth between Pier 39 & 41.
Once you have your ferry tickets go to Gate 1 or 2 at the Pier 41 dock to board for Angel Island.
See above for information about the Tiburon Ferry.
If you purchased Admission Only tickets and Shuttle tickets, and ride the Tiburon ferry, you can pick up your Shuttle tickets from the Angel Island dock Group Leader in the Fluorescent Yellow vest once the ferry arrives on the Island.
Please Note:
– Comfortable footwear is encouraged.
– Guests may encounter situations in close proximity with performers.
– We encourage guests with special needs to contact us prior to arrival at: LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com or (415) 913-8725
BACKGROUND
From 1910 to 1940, Angel Island was the site of an Immigration Station that functioned as the West Coast equivalent of Ellis Island, although the Angel Island facility also enforced policies designed to exclude, rather than welcome, many Pacific Coast immigrants coming from eighty two countries. The processing time for most in the Station was two-three days, however for Chinese, the average was 3 weeks to 3 months of detention. One individual spent 22 months in the station.
In 1970, the site was slated for demolition because of its deteriorated condition; but the discovery of Chinese poetry that had been carved into the walls of the detention barracks saved it from destruction and led to renewed interest in the Angel Island Immigration Station. It increased awareness of the need to access the vivid lessons of sacrifice and triumph in the history of immigration. As a result of a broad advocacy campaign, funding was secured to preserve the site and to open the barracks to the public in 1983. Out of the community campaign the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation (AIISF) was founded to continue preservation and educational efforts for the site, and to increase awareness of the contributions Pacific Coast immigrants make.
The mission of the Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation (AIISF) is to promote a greater understanding of Pacific Coast immigration and its role in shaping America’s past, present and future. In partnership with the California State Parks, AIISF educates the public about the complex story and rich cultural heritage of Pacific Coast immigrants and their descendants.
LENORA LEE DANCE
LLD’s work integrates contemporary dance, film, music, and research and has gained increasing attention for its sustained pursuit of issues related to immigration, global conflict, and its impacts, particularly on women and families. The company is directed by San Francisco native Lenora Lee, who has been a dancer, choreographer and artistic director for the past 21 years in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York. In 2013 she was an Artist Fellow at the de Young Museum, a Djerassi Resident Artist, and was a Visiting Scholar at New York University 2012-2016. She is currently an Artist in Residence at Dance Mission Theater and has been recently awarded a Creative Work Fund with the Chinatown Community Development Center to collaborate on an immersive performance piece in 2020.
LLD creates works that are both set in public and private spaces, intimate and at the same time large-scale, inspired by individual stories as well as community strength. For the last 12 years, LLD has been pushing the envelope of large-scale multimedia dance performance that connects various styles of movement and music to culture, history and human rights issues. Its work has grown to encompass the creation, presentation and screening of films, museum and gallery installations, civic engagement and educational programming. www.LenoraLeeDance.com
Within These Walls is supported in part by California Arts Council, San Francisco Arts Commission, Zellerbach Family Foundation, Portsmouth Plaza Parking Corporation, Fleishhacker Foundation, San Francisco Grants for the Arts, Dance Mission Theater and to Generous Individuals. Special thanks to Casey Dexter-Lee & California State Parks, Grant Din and Penelope Wong.
Photos by Robbie Sweeny
1) Kevin Lo, Johnny Nguyen, Hien Huynh, Wayne Tai Lee. 2) Chloe Luo & Johnny Nguyen. 3) Shannon Preto & Yi-Ting (Gama) Hsu. 4) Chloe Luo. 5) Lynn Huang. 6) Hien Huynh, Wayne Tai Lee, Kevin Lo, Chloe Luo
LLD is seeking your support!
Within These Walls & Dreams of Flight Indiegogo
DEAR FRIENDS,
September of last year we exchanged sorrow and travesty of justices at the Immigration Station on Angel Island. Tears and hearts aligned in ways we couldn’t have imagined. Am so honored to announce of the re-staging and launch of Within These Walls, alongside its sequel Dreams of Flight. Now we are at a critical juncture and wholeheartedly ask for your love and support in re-staging this momentous and heartfelt work. We deeply hope you can join us in sharing the love and light of voice in this coming year. Join Lenora Lee Dance in the re-staging of its award winning immersive, multimedia dance piece, Within These Walls, alongside the creation of its sequel Dreams of Flight, and its full length dance film. In honor, these works are dedicated to those detained, interrogated and processed at the Angel Island Immigration Station.
WTW premiered in a two-week run 9/9-9/17/17 at the Angel Island Immigration Station Barracks and is receiving incredible acclaim, through a Special Achievement Award for Outstanding Production by the Isadora Duncan Dance Awards Committee. Hien Huynh, one of the main cast members who played a character inspired by the life of Wong Gong Jue, is nominated for Outstanding Achievement in Performance by an Individual for his incredibly moving performance in the piece. LLD has been touring excerpts of the work in Los Angeles, Boston, New York City, with the possible re-staging of the full work on tour in Boston and other cities in 2019 and 2020.
WTW is dedicated to the 170,000 Chinese who were detained, interrogated and processed at the Station between 1910 – 1940 as a result of the Chinese Exclusion Act. The Exclusion Act tore families apart and resulted in a mass incarceration experience that forever stamps the experience of Chinese in America. It was the first piece of legislation to restrict anyone from another country from immigrating to the U.S. It was enforced until 1943, with quotas until 1965, an 83 year period of Exclusion, which set precedent for anti-immigration laws to follow.
We are again at a particular crossroad in our nation’s journey with the current administration. The rights of immigrants, women, children, the impoverished, and communities of color are being heavily threatened. In the context of today’s mass detention of immigrants and the national debate taken to a new level, there is an acute sense of urgency in promoting efforts to engage the public in the process of reconciliation and restorative justice embodied in the effort to share the story of the Angel Island Immigration Station. The public’s engagement with this historic site is not only one of education or curiosity, but an affirmative, deeply felt, effort at healing.
GOING FORWARD INTO OUR 12TH SEASON
WTW remains one of LLD’s strongest and most ambitious works. It was an exhilarating experience that brought many to tears, including us. With immense displays of love and support from numerous communities across the country, we feel extremely thrilled and honored to announce the re-staging of WTW and its sequel Dreams of Flight at the Angel Island Immigration Station for three weekends in May, 5/4 – 5/19/19! This will be our longest performance run to date, a necessary and bold next step in making this pivotal work more accessible to the public.
Your support will also contribute to the creation of a dance film based on our WTW (2017) production, directed by award winning filmmaker/musician/composer Tatsu Aoki. Our last collaborative film with Tatsu, LIGHT, won Best Experimental Film at the Canada International Film festival in 2017. The WTW film will premier in Fall 2019, and will be made available to the broader public through the creation and sale of a DVD box set of this major signature piece.
ADDITIONAL WAYS TO CONTRIBUTE
– If your company has a Matching Gifts Program, your donation can go twice as far. Please contact me at LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com to inquire about the details
– If you have airline miles you can donate, we would greatly appreciate the contribution!! Please email LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com
YOU CAN HELP SPREAD THE WORD TO YOUR FRIENDS, COLLEAGUES, AND NETWORKS ABOUT THIS PROJECT AND OUR REQUEST FOR SUPPORT!
The timing is critical.
We seek to share a sense of gratitude for life and our lived experiences. The power in sharing these truths is boundless and with your support, we will continue to bring the possibilities to life.
With much appreciation, love, light & gratitude,
Lenora Lee Dance
Lenora Lee Dance receives 2 Isadora Duncan Awards!
Lenora Lee Dance is esteemed to be the honorary recipient of the Special Achievement Award for Outstanding Production by the Isadora Duncan Dance Awards Committee. Alongside Hien Huynh, one of the main cast members who played a character inspired by the life of Wong Gong Jue, received an award for Outstanding Achievement in Performance by an Individual for his incredibly moving performance in the piece. We fully embrace the commemoration, support, and love from the community and all those involved in voicing forward justice, ancestry, and compassion. With inspiration, and forging fires of motivation, we strive to seek and share a sense of gratitude for life and our lived experiences. The power in sharing these truths is boundless and with your support, we will continue to bring the possibilities to life.
links:
Izzies Press Release
Isadora Duncan Awards, SF Chronicle, Claudia Bauer
Lenora Lee Dance tours to New York City, December 2018!
12/12/2018 : Museum of Chinese in America
215 Centre St, New York, New York 10013
Wednesday, 6:30pm – 7:30pm MOCAtalks
Within These Walls by Lenora Lee Dance
artist talk & performance excerpts featuring Lenora Lee & Hien Huynh
In 2017, Lenora Lee Dance launched a world premier of Within These Walls an immersive, multimedia performance work integrating dance, film, music, and research, which premiered in a two-week run 9/9-9/17/17 at the Angel Island Immigration Station. Inspired by experiences of those detained and processed at the Station, Within These Walls transformed and animated these historic spaces into sites for remembrance, as part of a community-wide commemoration of the 135th Anniversary of the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, speaking to the power of individuals and communities to transcend. The Exclusion Act tore families apart and resulted in a mass incarceration experience that forever stamps the experience of Chinese in America. The piece will be re-mounted at the Immigration Station along with a sequel in May 2019.
Join us on this special evening at the Museum of Chinese in America, for an in depth conversation and live performance by Lenora Lee and Hien Huynh.
Tickets are $10 and include Museum general admission. MOCA members receive complimentary tickets. Not a Member? Join today here: MOCAmembership
Photography: Robbie Sweeny
Dancers: Lynn Huang & Hien Huynh
12/17/2018 : Chen Dance Center New York City
70 Mulberry St, New York, NY 10013
Monday, 6:30pm – 8:30pm
LIGHT (2017), 57 minutes
by Lenora Lee and Tatsu Aoki
film screening, artist talk with Lenora Lee, Tatsu Aoki & Larry Lee
performance excerpts featuring Hien Huynh, Lenora Lee & Wayne Tai Lee
Awarded Best Experimental Film at the Canada International Film Festival
Inspired by the life of Bessie M. Lee, who, after migrating to New York City, spent two years in indentured servitude, LIGHT is a film in which dance, memory, music and poetry collide in a visual and aural landscape; a meditation on women being propelled into the unknown by courage and faith to risk their lives and everything they have for freedom. In LIGHT, Aoki and Lee highlight the lives of women, including Bessie M. Lee, who through the resilience and triumph over unimaginable experiences, were grounding forces in the creation of the New York Chinatown community in the early 1900s.
Join us for a free special dance film screening, talk back, & performance excerpts from LIGHT (2017)
In association with Lenora Lee Productions, Innocent Eyes and Lenses Films, and Asian Improv aRts, powered by Asian Improv Nation
In memory of Bessie M. Lee
(1894 – 1955)
Photography: Keira Heu-Jwyn Chang
Dancer: Wei-Shan Lai
BIOGRAPHIES
Tatsu Aoki (director and filmmaker) is a prolific artist, a filmmaker, composer, musician, felloweducator, and a consummate bassist and shamisen lute player. Based in Chicago, Aoki works in a wide range of musical genres, ranging from traditional Japanese music, jazz, experimental, and creative music and producing experimental films. Aoki studied experimental filmmaking at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, where he is now adjunct associate professor in the Film, Video, and New Media Department, teaching film production and history. He has produced more than 30 experimental films and is one of the most in-demand performers of bass, shamisen, and taiko, appearing in over 90 recording projects. www.tatsuaoki.com
Hien Huynh (dance) was born in Da Nang, Vietnam. Through embodied practice, Hien endeavors to access channels with the inner and outer to circulate awareness and human compassion. He is honored to have performed in the works of Lenora Lee Dance, Kim Epifano, Robert Moses’ Kin, Kinetech Arts, PUSH Dance Company, The MoveMessenger(s), Christy Funsch & Nol Simonse and punkkiCo.
Larry Lee, MSW, recently stepped down as the Executive Director of Womankind, formerly the New York Asian Women’s Center. Womankind is the largest domestic violence agency in the country focused on Asian Americans. It is a premier agency serving survivors of human trafficking and a national model for culturally-centered sexual assault services. Womankind is one of a few victim service agencies funded nationally to dedicate services to survivors of DV age 50 and above. Womankind provides a 24/7 helpline, counseling, case management, advocacy and shelter to survivors and their children. It offers employment, financial literacy, ESL and immigration and family legal services. Larry wrote MAP (Moving Ahead Positively), perhaps the only practice model organized to help survivors of violence in their recovery from trauma. Among other features, MAP utilizes the relationship between the survivor and counselor as the nexus for change and employs Asian wellness techniques – including acupuncture, tai chi, yoga and meditation. In October 2015 NYAWC received the Social Work Image Award from the National Association of Social Workers – NYC for the design and implementation of MAP. Larry successfully proposed and led a collaborative of Asian DV agencies to change Asian community attitudes toward domestic violence. He inspired an art therapy program that successfully engages and creates a community for teen children of DV survivors and a wellness program for highly probable human trafficking survivors. Womankind has collaborated with health, legal and child abuse prevention programs on many funded programs. Larry is a distinguished social work administrator, community leader and civic advocate. He is the founder of the first Mandarin and English dual language and dual culture public school in the Nation. Larry has been honored as a leading New Yorker; a top social worker; and outstanding alumnus of Hunter College.
Lenora Lee (producer, choreography director) Lenora Lee has been a dancer, choreographer, artistic director, and producer for the past 20 years in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York. She has been an Artist Fellow at the de Young Museum, a Djerassi Resident Artist, an Artist in Residence at Dance Mission Theater, and was a Visiting Scholar at New York University 2012-2016. She is a 2018 recipient, along with the Chinatown Community Development Center, of the Creative Work Fund award. Her work integrates contemporary dance, film, music, and research and has gained increasing attention for its sustained pursuit of issues related to immigration, global conflict, and its impacts, particularly on women and families. www.LenoraLeeDance.com
Wayne Tai Lee (dance) received a minor in dance from UC Berkeley and works as a professional statistician. Wayne enjoys learning all matters related to statistics and dancing.
World Premiere of “Beneath The Surface” 10/6 – 10/14/18!
Asian Improv aRts and API Cultural Center present
The World Premiere of
Beneath The Surface
A new underwater, multimedia experience by Lenora Lee Dance
Saturday, 10/6 – 8:30pm
Sunday, 10/7 – 6:30pm & 8:30pm
Saturday, 10/13 – 8:30pm
Sunday, 10/14 – 6:30pm & 8:30pm
Performances will begin on time, please arrive early.
Lenora Lee Dance (LLD) celebrates its 11th Anniversary Season with the World Premiere of Beneath The Surface, LLD’s first underwater, multimedia experience premiering in a two-week run 10/6 – 10/14/18. Beneath The Surface serves a meditation on forgiveness, reconciliation, and redemption, speaking to the power of individuals to transcend.
Audiences are reoriented for a unique perspective that merges memory, contemporary reality, and social commentary, experiencing epic storytelling inside an underwater world.
Conceived, Produced & Directed by Lenora Lee
Choreography by Lenora Lee in collaboration with performers Yi-Ting (Gama) Hsu, Hien Huynh, SanSan Kwan, Johnny Nguyen
Music Score by Tatsu Aoki, with Kioto Aoki, JoVia Armstrong, Rami Atassi, Suwan Choi, Coco Elysses, Jamie Kempkers, Edward Wilkerson Jr., Avreeayl Ra
Media Design by Olivia Ting & Lenora Lee
Videography Directed by Lenora Lee
Filmed by Lenora Lee, Shannon Preto, Joel Wanek
Text by Carl Irons
Voiceover by Hien Huynh
In Water Consulting by Edward Goo
LOCATION:
YMCA of San Francisco Chinatown Branch
855 Sacramento (between Stockton & Grant)
SUGGESTED PARKING:
Portsmouth Square Parking Garage
733 Kearny (between Clay & Washington)
ADMISSION:
There are a VERY LIMITED number of tickets available. Purchase your tickets early!
Arts Patron – $60 (reserved seating & invitation to VIP celebration with the cast on 10/22/18)
General Admission – $40
Seniors 65+, Students with Valid ID – $30
Standing Room Ticket – $25
You can sign up online on the Waitlist if General admission tickets are sold out, however we are filled to seating capacity for almost all shows.
If a show is completely SOLD OUT, there may be a limited number of tickets for sale at the door, depending on availability. Those arriving without a ticket can put themselves on the Waitlist at the venue. The tickets will be released by Waitlist order and ONLY if space allows.
If there are Standing Room tickets, but no seated tickets available online for a show, we recommend purchasing the Standing Room tickets, rather than arriving with no ticket at all. We cannot guarantee admission if you arrive without the purchase of a ticket beforehand.
For more info: www.LenoraLeeDance.com
For questions or high resolution images, email LenoraLeeDance@gmail.com, (415) 913-8725
We encourage guests with special needs or questions to contact us in advance.
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Press Coverage for “Within These Walls”
“‘Beneath the Surface’ may be the hottest ticket in town…The world premiere is another bold undertaking for San Francisco choreographer Lenora Lee…”
– Ruthe Stein, San Francisco Chronicle Datebook, August 22, 2018
“As it unfolded, I spun my own narrative from the fragments of spoken text and the poetic grappling of the dancers—on video, live on the pool deck, and underwater.”
– Carla Escoda, KQED Arts, October 2, 2018
“What struck me most was how Lee managed to embed the narrative into the installation’s structure. It shows how carefully Lee wove the narrative into everyone’s experience, including the viewer’s.” – Heather Desaulniers, Dance Commentary, 2015
“It starts with one dancer and eventually blooms to six and looks as if the dancers are exploding out of the film and into the world.” – John Wilkins, KQED, 2016
Audience Feedback for “Within These Walls” (2017) by Lenora Lee Dance
“It was a truly unique and powerful experience, and I feel fortunate to have witnessed it. It snuck into my dreams last night.”
“Moving and beautifully rendered.”
“I was deeply affected and moved by the performance.”
“It was brilliant and emotionally powerful.”
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BIOGRAPHIES
LENORA LEE DANCE
LLD’s work integrates contemporary dance, film, music, and research and has gained increasing attention for its sustained pursuit of issues related to immigration, global conflict, and its impacts, particularly on women and families. The company is directed by San Francisco native Lenora Lee, who has been a dancer, choreographer and artistic director for the past 20 years in San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York. In 2013 she was an Artist Fellow at the de Young Museum, a Djerassi Resident Artist, and was a Visiting Scholar at New York University 2012-2016. She is currently an Artist in Residence at Dance Mission Theater. LLD creates works that are both set in public and private spaces, intimate and at the same time large-scale, inspired by individual stories as well as community strength. For the last ten years, LLD has been pushing the envelope of large-scale multimedia dance performance that connects various styles of movement and music to culture, history and human rights issues. Its work has grown to encompass the creation, presentation and screening of films, museum and gallery installations, civic engagement and educational programming. www.LenoraLeeDance.com
Olivia Ting (media & graphic design) is interested in the role of digital technology in the fabric of contemporary lives and how our perception of recorded media (film, photography, audio) as “reality” has shifted as technology becomes more sophisticated. olivia has done design work for San Francisco dance Center, San Francisco Performances, and the Brooklyn Children’s Museum. www.olivetinge.com
Tatsu Aoki (music) is a prolific composer, musician, filmmaker, and educator. Based in Chicago, Aoki works in a wide range of musical genres, ranging from traditional Japanese music, jazz, experimental and creative music. Aoki studied experimental filmmaking at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and is currently an adjunct Full Professor at the Film, Video and New Media Department, teaching film production and history courses. To this date, Aoki has produced and appears in more than 90 recording projects and over 30 experimental films. www.tatsuaoki.org
Carl Irons (text) is a writer, poet, and actor who performs public readings and is occasionally privileged to collaborate with some very talented people. Carl also holds a BA in Political Science and has completed significant post graduate work in the field of Public Administration.
Yi-Ting (Gama) Hsu (dance), was born and raised in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, and loves to create and share. She has trained in various techniques in dance such as contemporary, ballet, modern, Chinese martial art, Chinese folk dance, Tai-chi initiation, composition, choreography and improvisation. Yi-Ting is a graduate of Tsoying High School, and received her BFA from University of Taipei of the Arts. She moved to San Francisco in 2015 and has danced with Hsu Chen Wei Production, Les Petites Choses Production, David Harrera Performance Company, Lenora Lee Dance, Alyssandra Katherine Dance Project, Epiphany Dance Theater and Kinetech Arts. She’s choreographed “Shi-Ben-Jao-Tu”, “Goodnight Mom”, “Allow”, “coinciDance” and “Arcane keys”. Yi-Ting has produced shows during her studies in Taiwan. www.gamahsu.com
Hien Huynh (dance) was born in Da Nang, Vietnam. Through embodied practice, Hien endeavors to access channels with the inner and outer to circulate awareness and human compassion. He is honored to have performed in the works of Lenora Lee Dance, Kim Epifano, Robert Moses’ Kin, Kinetech Arts, PUSH Dance Company, The MoveMessenger(s) and punkkiCo.
SanSan Kwan (dance) teaches dance and dance studies at UC Berkeley. She has performed with Jonathon Appels, Joanna Mendl Shaw, Chen and Dancers, Maura Nguyen Donohue/In Mixed Company, and composer Scott Rubin, among others. This is her seventh year with Lenora Lee Dance.
Johnny Huy Nguyen (dance) is a dancer, performance artist, and hip hop educator. In 2007, he was on course to complete a graduate degree in mechanical engineering, but dance completely changed the direction of his life. In addition to Lenora Lee Dance Company, Johnny is a member of Embodiment Project, and has completed productions with Kularts and the Global Street Dance Masquerade. In all of his work, Johnny’s vision is to use his craft and creativity to activate dialogue, healing, and action in ways that are raw, vulnerable, and honest.
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Beneath The Surface is supported in part by San Francisco Arts Commission, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, Zellerbach Family Foundation, Asian Improv aRts, Asian Improv aRts Midwest, Chinese Historical Society of America Museum, Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center, San Francisco Grants for the Arts, Portsmouth Plaza Parking Corporation, DAE Advertising, Donaldina Cameron House, Oakland Asian Cultural Center, Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation, and Generous Individuals. Special thanks to Alson & JoAnn Lee, Andy Chu & Aquatics Staff at the YMCA of San Francisco Chinatown Branch.
Sponsored by the YMCA of San Francisco Chinatown Branch. Our mission is to build strong kids, strong families and strong communities by enriching the lives of all people in spirit, mind and body. The Chinatown Y serves over 4,900 individuals a year of all ages with offerings in after school, health and wellness, teen, enrichment, aquatics, and community services. We are committed to building equity through our diversity, inclusion and global engagement efforts. We work to ensure that everyone, regardless of ability, age, cultural background, ethnicity, faith, gender, gender identity, ideology, income, national origin, race or sexual orientation has the opportunity to reach their fullest potential.
PHOTOS by Robbie Sweeny & courtesy of Lenora Lee Dance, featuring:
- SanSan Kwan
- Yi-Ting Hsu
- Hien Huynh
- Hien Huynh & Johnny Nguyen
- Yi-Ting Hsu, Hien Huynh & SanSan Kwan
- Johnny Nguyen & Hien Huynh
- SanSan Kwan
December 2017 Performances
In Gratitude
