Cherylyn Lavagnino Dance will celebrate the company’s 24th anniversary season with the showing of two of Cherylyn Lavagnino’s artistic works, “Tales of Hopper” and “The Winter’s Tale.” “Tales of Hopper,” inspired by the work of the iconic American painter Edward Hopper, will be presented on May 30 and May 31. “The Winter’s Tale,” based on one of William Shakespeare’s last great plays, will be shown on June 5 and June 6. Original music created in an artistic collaboration between choreographer Cherylyn Lavagnino and composer Martin Bresnick, will be performed live for CLD’s company of 11 dancers. All performances begin at 7:30pm.

“Tales of Hopper” was first shown in February of 2020, two weeks before the onset of the Covid pandemic. This theater-dance work casts the dancers as figures plucked from selected Edward Hopper paintings, illuminating human connections through gestural movement. Transparent set pieces reference Hopper’s environments, contextualizing each of eight vignettes as they unfold. Set to Martin Bresnick’s original composition for piano, violin, and cello, “Tales of Hopper” was CLD’s first evening-length theater-dance repertory work.

“The Winter’s Tale,” based on one of William Shakespeare’s last great plays, was first shown as a work in process in Fall, 2022. This new, fully-produced version, with reworked plot and additional choreography, aligns with Cherylyn Lavagnino’s long history of illuminating the various societal challenges faced by women. A story of improbabilities, loyalty, love, and forgiveness, at times a comedy and others a tragedy, “The Winter’s Tale” resides in a patriarchal society in which the role of women is constantly thwarted and limited by male dominance. As Shakespeare’s female characters contradict the gender mores of the period, these strong, grounded women display thoughtful judgment and a compassionate morality. Utilizing gestures inspired by sign language, the movement vocabulary lends itself to the performers’ embodiments of joy, madness, betrayal, jealousy, and passion. Several roles are portrayed by gender opposites to the original casting; Lavagnino utilizes this device to speak to the rich and interesting dimensionality of all people and urges the audience to lean into the acceptance of these differences to embrace the distinct expression of each individual.

“The Winter’s Tale” is CLD’s third collaboration between choreographer Cherylyn Lavagnino and composer Martin Bresnick, who created the original score for this production.

“Martin Bresnick has been writing a large, diverse roster of works that are admired by performers across America – music that seems at once ancient, elegiac and awesomely new – listen and you will hear.” – Anthony Tomassini, The New York Times

“Warm and heartfelt… beautifully choreographed and executed. Already a compelling piece of choreography and dance theater.” – Critical Dance on The Winter’s Tale (2022)