Brolly Arts

Brolly Arts’ Prayer to the Unexpected Flight Finds Hope in Darkness
Dance Complements Exposed Exhibition and Play

Who: Mary Johnston-Coursey, choreographer; commissioned and produced by Brolly Arts

We need the arts to help us restore equanimity and meaning in the aftermath of tragedy, such as the deaths suffered by downwinders, currently being commemorated in Mary Dickson’s new play, Exposed (a Plan B production), and the Pickle Company’s exhibition of the same title. Johnston-Coursey’s Prayer to an Unexpected Flight is one of the programs designed to augment and complement the play and exhibition. It has been performed previously in relation to other tragic circumstances—the first Gulf War and 9-11—but its broad message is equally appropriate to the downwinder syndrome. To make it even more relevant, Johnston-Coursey has added a new segment at the beginning specifically related to this radiogenic assault in Utah and Nevada.

Johnston-Coursey’s site-specific dance evokes the pain and fragmentation of today’s world. It opens with the new, downwinder segment, then moves on to a duet with a radio collage referencing catastrophes in general. Next comes a trio set to the driving music of Steve Reich; expressing the changing mood of America leading up to and entering into WW2. The following solo, with accompaniment by Kate MacLeod on the violin, references the aftermath of violence. In the final part, dancers pushing red sand on the floor imply rebirth through natural elements, a moving beyond cultural boundaries and calling upon the regenerative forces of the earth to bring new order out of chaos, spiritual fullness out of spiritual poverty

Following the dance, Barbara Rose Johnston, anthropologist and Senior Research Fellow at the Center for Political Ecology in Santa Cruz, California will speak on how the so-called Cold War actually waged a “hot” nuclear war on the environment and human health. Half-Lives & Half-Truths: Confronting the Radioactive Legacies of the Cold War. Half-Lives and Half-Truths, edited by Johnston, presents a compelling analysis of years of official secrecy in both the United States and Russia. Barbara Rose Johnston is the author of numerous books, articles and essays exploring the connections between human rights abuse and environmental crisis. Half-Lives & Half Truths is hot off the press and is available at bookstores or from the publisher, sarpress.sarweb.org. See Johnston’s CounterPunch essay at <http://www.counterpunch.org/johnston04212007.html>

About the Artist
Mary Johnston-Coursey has worked as an independent choreographer since 1989. After receiving her Masters at the University of Utah, Mary appeared in the works of various choreographers, among them Jan Erkert and Shirley Mordine, as well as in her own work. In 1991, Chicago recognized her performing talent with the Ruth Page Dancer of the Year Award. Through her involvement with the Chicago Dance Coalition, Mary helped develop the Choreosampler Series and the Choreofeedback Sessions at MoMing Dance and Arts Center, and the Choreographic Mentoring Project at Columbia College. Upon returning to Salt Lake City, Mary continued in this vein as co-founder of the Choreographers’ Lab at Snowbird, and as a facilitator for Fieldwork (a system of feedback in a performance workshop setting). She also ran her own company for several years, and taught at the Utah State University and the University of Utah. Mary always saw the performing she did as food for her choreographic appetite, helping her to understand from the inside how to create work. Besides working with talented artists, she found other ways to challenge herself choreographically.

About Brolly Arts
Brolly Arts was founded in 1995 in Salt Lake City, Utah, to fill a niche in a burgeoning arts community. Director and founder Amy McDonald Sanyer recognized a need for an organization that would support and enhance existing arts organizations and independent artists by creating forums for collaboration and experimentation.

The term "brolly" is British slang for umbrella, an appropriate name for an organization that has strived for inclusiveness since its inception. Through workshops, performances, installations, and commissions, Brolly Arts promotes the visual and performing arts, including dance, music, theater, literature, photography, and much more. Brolly Arts provides professional development for artists, creates collaborative opportunities for artists from a variety of disciplines, offers creative and educational experiences to the community, maintains overall excellence, and pays artists living wages. In meeting its goals, Brolly Arts contributes to the community's cultural vibrancy and artistic diversity.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact: Amy McDonald Sanyer, Founder & Director, 801-673-0904 or
Patricia Sanders, Eco-Arts Curator, 801-486-0870
Company Name: Brolly Arts
Email Address: brolarts@sisna.com
Web site address: www.brollyarts.org

Brolly Arts Raises Awareness of Sugar House Treasure

As They Present “The Legend of Hidden Hollow”

Salt Lake City, UT (DATE)—Artists will bring a touch of magic to one of Salt Lake’s most valuable resources, Hidden Hollow Natural Area, in central Sugar House on September 22. Brolly Arts, a local, non-profit arts organization, in collaboration with local artists, musicians, dancers and writers, presents “The Legend of Hidden Hollow.” The event will take place in Hidden Hollow to celebrate the history and ecology of the park which Brolly Arts believes will enhance a sense of community and will highlight the importance of the arts in Sugar House.

Imagine quality art in a natural setting. The audience will be invited to wander through the part, where they will encounter dancers, storytellers, actors and musicians and where they will discover imaginative works by visual artists. The overall concept is the work of Brolly Arts and Chicago-choreographer, Ann Boyd.

Natosha Washington and Nicholas Cendese were commissioned to choreograph a routine specifically about and for Hidden Hollow
Philip Bimstein has written three songs based on Sugar House history for this event; they will be sung by Kate McLeod and Charlotte Bell
Singer Marv Hamilton will perform the songs of Joe Hill
Jean Howard and other slam poets will perform poems that reference this place
Doug Wright’s “Hymn of Hidden Hollow” will be recited
Site-specific art by Mary White, Trent Alvey, Kinde Nebeker, Color Maisch, Davina Pallone, Ryan Perkins, Shawn Porter and Walt Sorensen will be on display
L. Isabella Iasella has written a play referencing the old Hygeia Ice Plant, starring its namesake, the Greek goddess, Hygieia (played by Candace Christensen) and a modern, male hypochondriac (played by Alexis Baigue)
Many other artists too numerous to mention will also contribute to this unique event.

“The timing of this event is perfect,” says Brolly Arts founder and director, Amy McDonald Sanyer. “As Sugar House begins to undergo redevelopment in the Granite Block; the essence of the community is being reevaluated and questioned. We see this event as being foundational to the continued sense of community in Sugar House.”

The two hour “Legend of Hidden Hollow” will be followed by a performance by alternative-rock band, RavenHorse, from 5:30 to 6:30 pm in the Hidden Hollow amphitheater.

All performances are free, but donations are welcome.

Hidden Hollow Natural Area is located in the Sugar House business district behind Sugar House Commons (between 2100 South and Wilmington Avenue and between 1300 East and Highland Avenue). There is plenty of free, public parking at Sugar House Commons. .

Hidden Hollow is preserved as a natural area in central Sugar House thanks to K.O.P.E. (Kids Organized to Protect Our Environment) and Utah Open Lands. Students from Hawthorne Elementary School discovered a bit of tree-lined stream in the heart of the Sugar House business district in 1990. The area had been used as a dump for decades, but the Hawthorne students were determined to renovate and restore it. Because few knew about it, the students named it Hidden Hollow. Year after year, students in teacher Sheri Sohm’s classes took on the tasks of lobbying for its preservation and writing grants to clean up the area and buy native plants. Utah Open Lands accepted a conservation easement donation from Salt Lake City and so Hidden Hollow Natural Area is preserved in perpetuity.

Contributors to the Legend of Hidden Hollow include the Salt Lake County Zoo Arts and Parks (ZAP) Program, The Utah Arts Council, Salt Lake City Arts Council, George S. and Dolores Dore Eccles Foundation, Ian and Annette Cummings Foundation, Bikram Yoga of Utah, City Centered Yoga, Utah Humanities Council, Zions Bank, ReDirect Guide, Westminster College, TRASA Urban Arts Collective, Catalyst Magazine, Dave Foster Foundation, and Nicole Wheelwright. It has been endorsed by Parley’s Trail Coalition (P.R.A.T.T), the Sugar House Historical Society and the Sugar House Community Council.

Brolly Arts was founded in 1995 in Salt Lake City, Utah, to fill a niche in a burgeoning arts community. Founder and director, Amy McDonald Sanyer, recognized a need for an organization that would support and enhance existing arts organizations and independent artists by creating forums for collaboration and experimentation.

The term "brolly" is British slang for umbrella, an appropriate name for an organization that has strived for inclusiveness since its inception. Through workshops, performances, installations, and commissions, Brolly Arts promotes the visual and performing arts, including dance, music, theater, literature and visual art. Brolly Arts strives to provide professional development for artists, create collaborative opportunities for artists from a variety of disciplines, offer creative and educational experiences to the community, maintain overall excellence, and pay artists living wages. In meeting its goals, Brolly Arts contributes to the community's cultural vibrancy and artistic diversity.

Over the years, Brolly Arts has directly served nearly 300 artists working in a variety of disciplines. Participating artists include the Ahn Trio, Mary Johnston-Coursey, Kenji Bunch, Eric Stern, Stephen Koester, Bonnies Sucec, Susan Beck, Tristan Moore, Ford Evans, Stephen Brown, Jan Ekert, Della Davidson, Tina Mantel, and Charlotte Boye-Christensen.