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The world of dance leaps onto the stage in this East Coast premiere. In a bare, mirrored studio high above Broadway, a well-known choreographer with a highly-guarded private life, creates a new work for two dancers — a veteran who’s seen it all, and a newcomer who wants it all. Secrets are exposed and the stakes become increasingly personal when the artists reveal just how far they’ll go to achieve success. Combining dance, music, and text, The Studio throws open the doors of the rehearsal room revealing a passionate, sexy world where dancer and choreographer come together to create art and ultimately discover themselves. Original produced by South Coast Repertory
The Studio is receiving praise from audiences and critics alike. And due to popular demand, we've EXTENDED the show one week to December 9! TAKE THE LEAP and buy tickets today to see this "transcendent" (The Washington Times) dance play. EVERYONE’S LOVING THE STUDIO! "90 breathtaking minutes... winningly staged... forceful and intimate work." - The Washington Times
"Vivid and engrossing... an experience of pure theater." - Talkin' Broadway
"A moving and arresting piece of theater. Signature Theatre's The Studio is a lovely way to spend an evening and a chance to ponder just how art is created." - Pentagram
"What an amazing night! It is a beautiful evening and very striking at the same time. I can't put words to it and was so moved at the end, I could not speak." - Stephen Gregory Smith
"I saw it for the second time and it is just a beautiful piece of theater. The dancers, the bare stage, dramatic lighting, and wonderful music swept me away. The cast is great!" - Shirlington Blogspot
Click here to buy tickets now!
THE STUDIO CAST
STEPPING FORWARD It’s been an exciting time at Signature Theatre — we kicked off our 18th season with a vibrant, re-imagining of Sondheim's Merrily We Roll Along featuring our 12-piece Signature Orchestra, the ARK Theatre is overflowing with the passionate and powerful words of the world premiere play The Word Begins, and now, we throw open the doors of The Studio, written, directed, and choreographed by Christopher d’Amboise. I have had the great pleasure of working with Christopher on three other projects, and I believe in his work. When I read The Studio, his new play about the creation of dance and the soul searching of artists, I knew that it had to grace our stage. He has captured the creative process unlike anything I’ve ever seen in a play. It's thrilling to be in a studio and not just see, but feel, the blood, sweat, and tears of the creative spirit. Once you witness this journey, you will have a new appreciation for what it takes to work in the arts today. I can only hope it opens many eyes and ears to the unglamorous and unspectacular lives of artists and our unending and unrestrained passion for our crafts. Whether it’s The Word Begins or The Studio, we're trying to continually break new ground and take you on uniquely artistic journeys — challenging your senses and unlocking your souls. Only at Signature. Thanks for having the courage to take the trip with us, supporting us, and feeding all of our souls. Enjoy!
Eric Schaeffer Take the trip with Signature! Click here to buy tickets to both The Word Begins and The Studio.
THE DANCING d’AMBOISE FAMILY
Growing up, Jacques was enamored of dance and was encouraged by his parents as means to stay busy. But at 15, Jacques left school to dance with the New York City Ballet, and by the age of 17, he was one of the company’s Principal dancers. The incomparable Balanchine choreographed many of his works expressly for Jacques. In 1954, Hollywood also opened its doors to the young dancer. He appeared in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers with Howard Keel and Russ Tamblyn; The Best Things in Life are Free with Gordon MacRae, Ernest Borgnine and Sherri North; and in Carousel with MacRae and Shirley Jones. Even with his increasingly demanding schedule, Jacques found time to fall in love with a beautiful dancer named Carolyn George, who began her dance career in the 1954 Broadway revival of On Your Toes and soon after became a soloist with the New York City Ballet. She and Jacques married on New Year’s Day 1956. Following in the family tradition, two of their four children are well-known dancers including The Studio writer, director, and choreographer Christopher and their daughter Charlotte.
Christopher has managed to forge his own unique path. Like his father, he was a Principal dancer in the New York City Ballet, where he also worked closely with Balanchine and Jerome Robbins, originating several new works. His career led to Broadway, where he co-starred with Bernadette Peters in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Song and Dance for which he received a Tony® nomination. At the age of 30, Christopher was named the Artistic Director, President, and CEO of the Pennsylvania Ballet, one of the country’s leading regional ballet troupes. During his tenure, he commissioned 20 new works of contemporary choreographers. As a choreographer himself, Christopher has created ballets for companies world wide including The San Francisco Ballet, The Het Nationale Ballet in Amsterdam, The Royal Ballet of Flanders, and the New York City Ballet.
Signature is proud to welcome Christopher and his legacy of work. The Studio, his portrait of the creative process of dance, is one rooted in truth and past experience. Join us as we throw open the doors of the studio and reveal the passionate world where dancer and choreographer come together to create arts and ultimately discover themselves.
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THE STUDIO
Stephen Lee Anderson (Emil) BROADWAY: Wicked, Julius Caesar starring Denzel Washington, Fiddler on the Roof starring Alfred Molina, Life (X) 3, The Crucible starring Liam Neeson (dir. Richard Eyre), The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Footloose, The Capeman with music by Paul Simon, Pulitzer Prize-winning play The Kentucky Cycle. OFF-BROADWAY: Playwrights Horizons: Violet, Floyd Collins; Atlantic: Luck, Pluck, & Virtue written and directed by James Lapine; MTC: Juno, Groundhog. NATIONAL TOUR: The Who’s Tommy. REGIONAL: Long Wharf Theatre, Denver Center Theatre (seven seasons), Kennedy Center, New Jersey Shakespeare Festival. FILM/TV: The Treatment starring Ian Holm, One Life to Live, Law & Order; HBO: Autopsy V. TRAINING: Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London; Masters, National Theatre Conservatory in Denver.
Tyler Hanes (Jackie) BROADWAY: A Chorus Line (Larry), Hairspray, Sweet Charity (Charlie), The Frogs, The Boy From Oz, Urban Cowboy, Oklahoma!. NATIONAL TOURS: Fosse (first national), The Will Rogers Follies. REGIONAL: Footloose (Ren McCormick, Joseph Jefferson nomination). FILM: In the Blood (Out Takes Film Festival, Best Actor Award), Phoebe in Wonderland. TV: One Life to Live (recurring), The Tony® Awards, The View, Ellen, The Today Show, Good Morning America. RECORDINGS: A Chorus Line, Sweet Charity, The Frogs, The Boy from Oz. 
Chryssie Whitehead (Lisa) BROADWAY: A Chorus Line (Original revival company, Kristine). TV: Grey’s Anatomy (6th episode, Fall 2007), Two and A Half Men, Boston Public, MTV Movie Awards, TV Land Awards, The Jay Leno Show, The View, Ellen. FILM: Farm Girl in New York (Big Apple Film Festival), Riffraff (Tenerife International Film Festival), 57 Sunny Days (LA Film Festival), Save the Last Dance (Julia Stiles’ dance double). NATIONAL TOURS: The Producers, Fosse, Paul McCartney’s Driving Rain. REGIONAL: Goodspeed: All Shook Up; Casa Manana: A Chorus Line; Sacramento Music Circus: Will Rogers’ Follies; Tamarind Theatre, LA: Birdbath; Radio City Musical Hall: Rockettes. COMMERCIALS: Kraft, Subway, A Chorus Line on Broadway. EDUCATION: AMDA, NYC.
Christopher d’Amboise (Writer/Director/Choreographer) Born into a family of dancers, Christopher has had many careers: dancer, choreographer, director, and playwright. As a Principal dancer with New York City Ballet, Christopher worked closely with both George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins, originating works as well as performing major repertoire. On Broadway he earned a Tony® nomination co-starring with Bernadette Peters in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Song and Dance. As a Choreographer, Christopher works both in theater and ballet. He has created over 80 works seen worldwide in cities including London, Prague, Paris, Copenhagen, New York, Lisbon, and Istanbul. His ballets have been presented in over 30 companies including the New York City Ballet, Royal Ballet of Flanders, Pennsylvania Ballet, National Ballet of Amsterdam, and the San Francisco Ballet. His latest work, Tribute, premiered with NYCB at Lincoln Center in 2007. In 2006, The Studio was selected as a featured play at the Pacific Playwrights Festival. He has written a new adaptation of the classic Cole Porter musical Can-Can; Voice of the City, an original musical about Vaudeville with a New York workshop at Musical Theatre Works; and a new musical about Fred and Adele Astaire entitled Hang Onto Me. Christopher directed and choreographed Up the Avenue, an original comic act starring Bill Irwin and Charlotte d’Amboise at the Williamstown Theatre Festival. His other theatrical credits as a choreographer include You Never Know, a new musical by Charles Strouse at Trinity Rep.; the pre-Broadway production of High Society at ACT in San Francisco; and Romeo & Juliet: The Musical at the Ordway Theatre and the Goodspeed Opera House. Mr. d’Amboise has also collaborated with singer/songwriter Cat Stevens on The Road To Find Out, a new musical about the life and music of the artist. Christopher founded and directed Off-Center Ballet, a contemporary dance company in New York City and served as President/CEO and Artistic Director of Pennsylvania Ballet for four seasons. 
Jacques d’Amboise is the founder of the National Dance Institute, a school started with 30 boys, $3,000 of his own money, and Balanchine’s permission to use the stage of the New York State Theater between New York City Ballet performances. Within three years, Jacques had 300 children in his program. In 1984, the Academy Award for Best Documentary was awarded to He Makes Me Feel Like Dancing which chronicled the work of the Institute and Jacques d’Amboise as he taught school children in New York City to dance. He was born to dance. 
Charlotte d’Amboise is a Broadway star who made her debut in the musical Cats in 1983. She has frequently played the role of Roxie Hart in Chicago for which she has won the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Leading Performance and the Bay Area Theatre Critics’ Award. She has appeared in productions of the musical every year since 2001. Charlotte has twice been nominated for Tony® Awards for her performances in Jerome Robbins’ Broadway and in last season’s revival of A Chorus Line. 4200 Campbell Ave. Arlington, Virginia 22206 |
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