The Pearl Company

Carmen…?: Playing January 8 and 9, 15 and 16, 2010 at 8:00. Tickets $15. A tragic-comedy dance theatre presentation based on Bizet’s Carmen.  Sergiy Shvydkyy, an internationally renowned avant-garde dancer, mime-actor, choreographer, and leading figure in contemporary performance arts in the Ukraine brings his unique choreographic vision, to The Pearl Company. He does this with a fresh imagining of the famous story of love and betrayal, Carmen, unique in both its dance style and its interpretation of the tale. Emanuela Dussin, a graduate of the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City, brings the fire and beauty of flamenco to the stage. And then, of course, Gary Santucci has found himself willingly drawn into Shvydkyy‘s world where the musician not only performs the music but is a character within the production.  Not the same old Carmen! Time has changed her, you will love her more than ever? Reserve your seat! Call 905-524-0606.

From the “Cairo International Festival for Experimental Theatre” and the Toronto Fringe Festival for Independent Dance Artists, Shvydkyy, classically trained in Kiev, creates an intriguing new art form, which combines powerful expressive movement and dramatic virtuosity to rave reviews. He focuses not only on the physical but also on the emotional level of his characters.

Shvydkyy has founded the “Art Quick Dance Company” in Canada to showcase his powerful gesture-based and intensively interpretive choreography. The mission of Shvydkyy’s unique dance style is to “create and then create more, for creativity is the secret fuel which endows people with the ability to think and further understand themselves in relation to others”.

Michael Crabb, Dance Critic of the Toronto Star: “Sergiy Shvydkyy … brought a deliciously provocative take on Carmen…. The often surreal imagery, combined with his own extraordinary presence, was a potent combination.”

Emanuela Dussin is a graduate of the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City and has a background in various types performance art, ultimately discovering the fire and beauty of flamenco, She has studied flamenco with the Paula Moreno Spanish Dance Company and Dionisia Garcia in New York City; she currently attends the Academy of Spanish Dance with Esmeralda Enrique in Toronto. Her innate desire to create and her lifelong dedication to performance have propelled Emanuela to found a Hamilton flamenco company, Flamenquitas, with co-dancer Mirella Agro.

Gary Santucci, Guitarist / Composer and Artistic Director of The Pearl has found himself willingly drawn into Shvydkyy‘s world where the musician not only performs the music but is a character within the production interacting with both dance performers. He also has had a lifetime love affair with flamenco. This is his first collaboration with dance theatre at The Pearl Company