Summertime Suite

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This suite of dances choreographed by Daniel Gwirtzman, held together by a narrative arc and a range of popular music, contains a few of the numbers from Encore, but has been re-contextualized to exist outside the script of that show. It is a stand-alone piece that grows from a solo, to a duet, to another solo, to three ensemble pieces for a cast of ten. This footage is from the Company’s debut in 2012 at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival.

SUMMERTIME SUITE PART 1

The story follows a young girl who is spending her first summer away from her home.

Tisket—A solo set to a different version, by singer Sarah Pillow, of the well-known A-Tisket, A-Tasket; danced by Stacy Martorana.  The role was created for Jamie Scott and has also been performed in the Company by Rebecca Chaleff.

Ain’t She Sweet—A brief duet set to the 1920s piano roll hit; performed by Daniel Gwirtzman and Madeline Hoak.

Character—A signature solo, Character, choreographed in 2005, depicts the complex emotions of an entertainer, the attraction to and separation from an audience, questioning the boundaries between performing and not performing.  Performed in this context for the young girl, as a gift from an adult, the character takes a softer side than in its usual placement.  Performed and choreographed by Company director Daniel Gwirtzman.  Music by Spencer Williams performed by Louis Armstrong and his Red-Hot ensemble.

SUMMERTIME SUITE PART 2

Once the father figure has left, the kids and teen-agers are at play.  Couples form and a mock wedding occurs.  These three ensemble dances were choreographed over a period of years. The first section was the first, in 2006 and is part of the finale of Encore. The second was commissioned by the Broadway DanceBreak Foundation and premiered in 2010. The last was commissioned by Nazareth College’s Summer Dance Festival and premiered in 2011.

In The Good Old Summertime–set to the popular music (a Tin Pan Alley song) composed in 1902 by George Evans with lyrics by Ren Shields.  Back Stage called this number “the best of them all.”

In The Summertime–set to the huge hit from 1970 by the English band Mungo Jerry.

Lazy, Hazy, Crazy–set to the 1963 song Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy-Days of Summer by Nat King Cole.  “Roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer.  Those days of soda, and pretzels and beer!”