Join the Wave, make a Splash at Arts on the Lake
The biennial Global Water Dances is celebrating its tenth year of connecting local and global groups with a full week of festivities and actions from Tuesday June 8th through Sunday July 13.
Putnam County Dance Project and local musician Pierre de Gaillande collaborate in this international event that is held around the world on the same day with: Global Water Dances - Dance, Art & Music for Clean Water. This family-friendly event invites all to enjoy the view at Lake Carmel as dancers young and old join in to bring attention to local and world water issues.
Putnam County Dance Project, co-created and directed by Stormville neighbors Erin Jennings and Marie Carstens, celebrates the Global Water Dances Festival Saturday, June 12 th at Arts on the Lake, Kent, NY with a free dance concert, art and a short film display in the gallery.
Donations are welcome.
The program starts at 2:30 p.m. led by Maureen Fleming, Kent’s Town Supervisor, educating us about the concerns of toxic algae in and around Kent, NY. This opening is followed by several dances including early modern “Water Study” choreographed by Isadora Duncan as well as collaborative new works by Jennings, Carstens and the other dancers from the area: Madelyn Barti, MaryBeth Hraniotis, Steven Jeltsch and Faith Kimberling. The gallery exhibit showcases film that includes music by Pierre de Gallande featuring youth in the community and art by students under the tutelage of Kent Elementary’s art teacher Mrs. Berry. The films feature the dancers and youth improvising by various water sources such as the Hudson River, White Pond, and even sources such as the rain. This Putnam County Dance Project event is sponsored by the Town of Southeast Cultural Arts Coalition and made possible in part through the Putnam Arts Council’s Arts link Grant program with public funds provided through the NY State Council on the Arts with support from Governor Andrew Cuomo and the NY State Legislature. For more information about Putnam County Dance Project please follow us on at
https://www.facebook.com/putnamcountydanceproject
The founders of Global Water Dances believed that community-based dance performances could be a powerful non-verbal way to mobilize people to learn about the whole spectrum of water issues and to take action to protect access to safe drinking water. And with the Internet, it was possible to coordinate a sophisticated but inexpensive online production, both live and pre- recorded, that would allow people in all the performance locations to connect with each other.
“Since we started in 2011, more and more people have been coming together to use dance to celebrate the fundamental importance of water in all our lives,” said Artistic Director, Vannia Ibarguen. “In 2019, over 180 sites on every continent except Antarctica streamed their events across the globe. And this year, we’re expecting more than 200 sites to participate.”
The organizers decided to extend the event from a single day to open the way for more people to participate, and to offer more options to connect. The first day, June 8, will kick things off with a “Splash Mob,” a one-minute choreographed dance that can be done individually or with a group and posted to social media. The next three days will feature online films of local-issue water dances, past and current. On Saturday, local groups will be performing a dance using the same choreography and sharing the results online. And on the final day, there will be two opportunities for participants to do synchronous sharing of the Global Dance choreography via video conference by using Zoom.
Global Water Dances has released a special half-hour long documentary featuring interviews with three of the founders together with video excerpts from dance performances from the last 10 years, ranging from Johannesburg to Bogota to Paris. The documentary is available on the Global Water Dances Youtube Channel @GlobalWaterDances or use direct link below
Global Water Dances is housed at the Laban/Bartenieff Institute of Movement Studies (LIMS) in New York City. LIMS’ international network of dancers and choreographers is aspiring to cultivate a new generation of socially aware artists, who use dance to actively care for our planet and people. Dance is a powerful channel that connects human beings and makes visible what is invisible. Participating in a Global Water Dances event near you contributes to building communities of movement enthusiasts and water advocates around the world.
(Photos of PCDP at Arts on The Lake by Mike Kimberling)
