New York Theatre Ballet At LongHouse Reserve – Krasner & Pollock / Uncaged

Two of the twentieth century’s most fearless artists. One marriage. One catastrophe. And one woman who turned an unbearable grief into some of the boldest paintings of her career. Krasner & Pollock / Uncaged is a dance theatre portrait of Lee Krasner and Jackson Pollock — the partnership that shaped them both, the addiction and infidelity that wore it down, and the August night in 1956 when Pollock, driving drunk with his mistress, crashed the car that killed him and a young woman, Edith Metzger. Krasner got the call in Paris. In the aftermath of Pollock’s death, Krasner left the small studio where they had once painted side by side and moved into his barn studio, where she worked through bouts of insomnia late into the night. This period gave rise to her Umber paintings, including the raw, intensely gestural canvas Uncaged. This piece ends where that painting begins: Krasner disappearing into the work itself.

Credits: Written and directed by Sara Joyce, choreographed by Antonia Franceschi (Artistic Director, New York Theatre Ballet), with an original score by Claire van Kampen performed live with costumes hand-painted for the production.

Host Committee: Jan Planit, Douglas Denoff, James Walker, Holly Hodder, Peter and Beth Poopat, and Jane Berliner.

Krasner & Pollock / Uncaged is a fifty-minute dance theatre work.

The performance will be followed by a reception.

The Company/About New York Theatre Ballet: New York Theatre Ballet performs small classic masterpieces and new contemporary works for adults and innovative hour-long ballets for young children, all at affordable prices. The mission is carried out in the work of the Professional Company, its Ballet School, and its LIFT Program. Together these divisions reach adults and family audiences across the country, building a love for dance and diverse audiences for the future. Founded by Diana Byer in 1978, the company for over four decades has staged works by choreographers including Frederick Ashton, Antony Tudor, and Jerome Robbins, worked with the estates of José Limón and Merce Cunningham to preserve their original works, and commissioned significant emerging and established choreographers. NYTB has performed at venues including DanSpace Project, New York Live Arts, Carnegie Hall, New York City Center, and Jacob’s Pillow. Antonia Franceschi, the company’s new Artistic Director, is a Time Out Award winner and New York City Ballet alumna, personally selected by George Balanchine. Krasner & Pollock / Uncaged is her latest work for the company.

Sara Joyce is an Irish director and writer based in London. She studied at Trinity College Dublin and trained at École Jacques Lecoq. She has directed in theatres across Ireland and the UK. She has multiple scripts in development for screen.