Pop-Up Dance Comes to Central Square, Come Join in the Fun Rain or Shine
For More information Contact:
Town of Bristol
Nicholas J. Coates (Nik), Town Administrator
5 School Street
Bristol, NH 03222
(603) 744-3354
[email protected]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 8, 2021
Pop-Up Dance Comes to Central Square, Come Join in the Fun Rain or Shine
BRISTOL – Lead With Arts is organizing a Pop-Up Dance performance in partnership with the Town of Bristol as a way to highlight the importance that performing arts and the downtown play in the community.
The event will feature three professional dancers in Central Square, Friday, 6:00-7:00pm. All are encouraged to attend and join in the fun. The event is rain or shine. If there is significant rain, the performance will move to the Historic Town Hall at 45 Summer Street.
“Pop-Up Dance is a casual and joyous way to share the craft of dance with the state of New Hampshire,” said Amanda Whitworth, founder of Lead With Arts. “The project sheds light on the cultural and performative movement traditions of diverse dancers who live, work and play here. The arts, in collaboration with business and community are unique economic drivers that showcase our state’s tremendous assets.”
The event is part of a Pop-Up Dance series around the State, which is at once a placemaking project and cultural tourism campaign, making visible professional dance and the dancers that are often under-represented or inaccessible to broad audiences. Spontaneous and playful, these tiny dances are meant to be taken in as community members shop, stop and explore the markets, towns and public spaces nearby.
The dances are literally “tiny” – they exist as solos and duets for small spaces and showcase dance genres from hip-hop to contemporary and cultural dance. Similarly, this project builds urban-rural exchange by bringing performances into the streets, fields and communities of rural and suburban neighbors, breaking free of traditional stage venues.
“I hope Pop-Up Dance will bring visibility to New Hampshire dance as well as our markets, downtowns and green spaces,” Whitworth said.
Lead With Arts is a multifaceted endeavor, with the goal of giving visibility to the arts, as well as healing and socioeconomic impact on the Granite State. Read about all the inroads into using the arts to promote and grow our state, by reading Lead With Art’s and Whitworth’s details here.
The collaboration is part of economic development program the Town has been developing over the last year to grow the arts and performance experience in the community and Newfound Region. Watch the Town website and social media for future events like Pop-Up Dance.
More about the dancers:
Theo Martinez
Theo Martinez is a Hip Hop, and Ballroom dancer/instructor living out of Manchester, NH. He is the owner of HTM Dance (www.htmdance.com), and has been dancing all of his life. He was first inspired by Michael Jackson, watching MTV music (dance) videos, and the movie 'Breakin'. He has performed at Jacobs Pillow, Alvin Ailey, through his involvement with Urbanity Dance, choreographed theatrical productions, and most recently performed at for the Boston Contemporary Festival, and the MAPC (Small Steps of Resilience). He loves sharing his passion for dance and helping other people get started so they can discover their own.
Sallie Werst (Ballet, Contemporary)
Sallie grew up in Merrimack, New Hampshire and received her early training at Southern NH Dance Theater under the directorship of Patricia Lavoie. She also studied at Vermont Chamber Ballet, Bossov Ballet Theatre, Central Pennsylvania Youth Ballet, and Ballet Austin. Her classical performance experience includes lead roles in Don Quixote, Le Corsaire, Giselle, La Bayadere, Swan Lake, George Balanchine's Valse Fantaisie, and The Nutcracker. Sallie received her Bachelor of Business from Pace University in NYC and also completed a minor in studio art through an exchange program with the Accademia di Bella Arti in Florence, Italy. During her time in NYC, Sallie was part of the scholarship programs both at Ballet Academy East and STEPS on Broadway training classically with such esteemed teachers as Darla Hoover, Peter Frame, Cheryl Yeager, Finis Jhung, and Nancy Bielski and also exploring hip hop with the help of Buddha Stretch, Jonathan Lee, and Vandana Hart. Upon graduating college, Sallie traveled to Africa where she took part in developing a dance outreach program in Arandis, Namibia. She moved back to NH and took her dancing to yet a new context as a New England Patriots Cheerleader. With the NFL, Sallie had the opportunity to perform on the sidelines of Gillette Stadium, model for the team's calendar shoot in Aruba, and appear on national TV during Super Bowl XXLV. She has performed locally with Ragged Edge and FreeFall Contemporary dance companies and more recently was on faculty at Regional Dance America's Northeast festival '18, the New England Inspirational Dance Collective '19 and RDA' s 85th National Choreographic Intensive. Sallie currently teaches full time locally and dances with NH based companies Saving Grace Dance Ensemble and NSquared!
Lisa Travis (Modern)
Lisa Travis is a dancer, teaching artist, choreographer, and yoga teacher. She served as a teaching artist for the department of Music, Theater and Dance at Plymouth State University until 2016 where she was honored to receive the Distinguished Undergraduate Teaching Lecturer Award.
Bristol, New Hampshire, incorporated in 1819, is a beautiful New England town that encompasses the southern portion of Newfound Lake, the fifth largest lake in the State. Bristol is located just twenty five miles northwest of Concord, New Hampshire, New Hampshire's capital. Bristol offers all the benefits of small town living, remaining close to major recreational attractions and business centers.
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