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Hooba Bjornevold (dancer/rehearsal assistant) has a Bachelor’s Degree in Dance and Movement Counseling from the Norwegian College of Dance. In 2006 he moved to NYC and started the Visa Program at Dance New Amsterdam. While in New York, Hooba has performed with dance companies including SOTU Productions, Tweeds, and Paco Presents. He also took part in the Marc Jacobs holiday party 2006 at Gotham Hall, the Midsummer Night Swing at Lincoln Center, and “Measurements, The Making of a New Musical.” Hooba is an energetic performer who practices body suspension and loves body art. Besides dancing, he has choreographed shows in Norway and NYC, like Stavanger 2008, the Biz Bash event style awards at Nokia Theatre, and “Ord.” Hooba joined the Mariana Bekerman Dance Company in Fall 2008. | |
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Danielle Cortier grew up and began her dance training in South Bend, Indiana. She is a graduate of Ball State University, where she received her Bachelor's Degree in Dance and a minor in Dance Education. Since moving to New York, Danielle has worked with the Puppeteers' Cooperative, and performed at events like"On the Matter of Moby Dick" at Lincoln Center, "Big City Blues" in the 'Out of Doors' Festival, and "IndepenDance" at City Center. In addition to MBDC, she is also working with Common Thread Dance Company. Danielle currently works as Rehearsal Director for Eidolon Ballet in Concert and teaches at Ballet Academy East. Danielle joined the Mariana Bekerman Dance Company in the spring of 2009. | |
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Lindsay Hilscher (dancer/rehearsal assistant) is proud to be a Pittsburgh native. She trained at Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School as well as at Point Park College. While at Point Park she had the opportunity to dance in a new work choreographed by David Storey. She went on to Purchase College Conservatory of Dance, and graduated with a BFA in Dance Performance with the Class of 2007. There she had the opportunity to work with instructors including Megan Williams (whose work she performed at the Queens Museum of Art), Stephanie Tooman, Kevin Wynn, and Neil Greenberg. She was also chosen by the Dean of Dance to perform a solo choreographed by Zvi Gotheiner. This is Lindsay’s first season with the Mariana Bekerman Dance Company, which she joined in 2007. | |
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Julia Kobceva, born and raised in Latvia, began dancing when she was ten years old. She graduated from Riga Choreographic School with a Professional Ballet Dancer's Diploma and went on to join Riga Ballet Theater Company in 1999. Julia attended the Latvian Academy of Culture, where she received a BFA. She continued her training in France at "L'Institut de Formation Professionelle de danse jazz de Rick Odums” for three years as a scholarship student, where she studied jazz dance. Julia has performed, toured, and assisted master classes with "Ballet Jazz Rick Odums." In 2006 she received a scholarship to attend Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival. She attended a three- week intensive contemporary dance workshop/festival ,where she had an opportunity to study with choreographers Robert Battle, Elisa Monte, and Lisa Viola from Paul Taylor Dance Company, as well as Arkady Zaides from Batsheva Dance Company. In 2007 Julia continued her studies at Dance New Amsterdam (New York) as a scholarship student for two years, studying diverse techniques in modern dance, street jazz, yoga, pilates, etc. Since 2007 she has regularly worked in New York with choreographers Gina Graham, Nathan Trice, Mariana Bekerman, and Yayoi Kubota. Eventually, Julia wants to build her own dance company and choreograph herself. | |
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Ashley Matthews is originally from Pittsburgh, where she trained at the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre. She attended New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study, graduating with a concentration in Dance and Performance Studies. While studying and performing at NYU, she continued her dance training as a work-study student at the School at the Mark Morris Dance Center and, upon graduation in May of 2009, began dancing with choreographer Rachel Korenstein. This is Ashley’s first season with The Mariana Bekerman Dance Company | |
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Stine Moen, a native of Norway, first fell in love with dance at a young age. She got her Bachelor's Degree from the Norwegian College of Dance in 2006 and then moved to New York. She did the visa program at Dance New Amsterdam for a year and had the privilege of dancing for such companies as SOTU productions, Shirdance, and PACO. In the city for two years, she has performed in Midsummer Night Swing at Lincoln Center, “Measurements, Makings of a New Musical”, Marc Jacobs holiday party 2006 at Gotham Hall, Biz Bash event style awards at Nokia Theatre, and more. Stine has also had the opportunity to work in Norway, where she's been choreographing and performing in shows like the opening parade of Stavanger 2008,“Huldrenatt, ” “Ord, ”“Flashback Fever,” and Robbie Williams Xperience. In addition to performing, Stine has worked as a dance teacher and movement counselor for children and youths at different cultural schools and high schools in Norway. Stine joined the Mariana Bekerman Dance Company in the Fall of 2008. | |
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Alice Sunderland is a native of England, where she began dancing at eight years of age. She graduated with a BA (honors) from the dance theater program at the Laban Center in London. In 2006, she moved to New York to study as a scholarship student at the Merce Cunningham studio, where she had the honor of studying under the master himself. Since moving to NYC, she has had the opportunity to work with Douglas Dunn, Oliver Steel, Pam Tanowitz, and Megan Bryne. This is her first season with the MBDC. | |
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Jessie Tomanek received her BA in Dance Performance from The Hartt School at the University of Hartford. Jessie is from Seoul, South Korea and began studying dance at the Nutmeg Ballet in Torrington, Connecticut. From 2000 to 2006, she was a member of the Olga Dunn Dance Company, where she studied ballet, modern, jazz, hip- hop, and African Dance. While dancing with Olga Dunn, she had the opportunity to choreograph and teach her own works at the Mahaiwe Theater. She has worked with Peggy Lyman, Hilda Morlas, Annmaria Mazzini, Robert Kleienedorst, Milton Myers, Amy Marshall, Moses Peddleton, Scott Rink, and Kurt Peterson. She has been a member of the Yosakoi Dance Company, Dance Visions Dance Company, and Linda Diamond and Dancers. Jessie is also the artistic director of JT Lotus Dance Company. |
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MissionThe Mariana Bekerman Dance Company fuses classical dance technique with New York City's underground dance culture and style. In combining both the classical and the vernacular, MBDC hopes to reach a broad spectrum of people from various backgrounds and of various age groups. Bekerman strives to introduce dance to people who would otherwise not have access to the arts while continuing to reach and to challenge audiences familiar with the arts. Through her fusion of dance styles, Bekerman hopes to challenge standards of modern dance by appealing to both the classical aspects of the dance form while introducing styles and techniques that have been influenced by a young generation of underground dancers. And with this, she hopes to avoid the gloom, doom, and angst so common in concert dance! History/Past PerformancesBased in Queens, NY, the Mariana Bekerman Dance Company (MBDC) burst onto the New York City dance scene in January 2000 with a unique amalgam of classical dance informed by references to the city’s underground dance forms, in particular a style known as “Vogue.” The artistic director and choreographer of MBDC, Bekerman is also a La Guardia HS graduate, where the company rehearses, and she holds a BFA from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. To date, the dance company has performed more than seventeen original works throughout the tri-state area at numerous venues and festivals including Carnegie Hall, 92nd Street Y, White Wave Dance Festival, Riverside Church, Theatre for the New City/LES Festival (2000-present), DanceNOW Downtown Arts Festival (2001/2004) and more. MBDC has also self-produced five dance concerts in Manhattan and Queens, including one at the Joyce SoHo. In 2001, the company proudly received an award for Performance Excellence from the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) in Queens for their performance of I’m G-d. In April of 2005, the company started working in the schools through “Woodside on the Move” and recently joined the educational programming organization Arts Horizons. Through this organization, the company has been performing and teaching existing repertoire in the public schools throughout New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. Bekerman was one of the ten artists selected for the Individual Artist Initiative 2007, where she received a three-month business consultant from the Queens Council on the Arts. MBDC was one of just four companies chosen to perform before the public last month by the Dance Jamaica! Festival at the newly renovated Jamaica Performing Arts Center. |
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at Carnegie Hall