PUSH Physical Theatre: Innovative Acrobatic Performance Troupe, Exercises of Theatre

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It’s untheatre.

Intense athleticism, gravity-defying acrobatics,

and soulful artistry – award-winning

PUSH Physical Theatre, the genre-defin-

ing masters of physical storytelling, ex-

press what it means to be human: the joy

and sorrow, humor and tragedy, the big

questions and the simple things.

PUSH’s repeated sold-out performances

have led to creative collaborations with

the National Institute for the Deaf and

Rochester Institute of Technology, dur-

ing which PUSH created “Red Ball,” using

iPad technology. Choreography for the

Pulitzer-nominated cantata “Comala” re-

sulted in a Mexico and US tour. TruTV’s

national series, Fake Off, in which PUSH

became the season finalist, elicited this

from judge and Glee star Harry Shum Jr.:

“You guys are superhuman!”

Unparalleled performers bring the narra-

tives of our lives to the stage with hope

and optimism: The strength of the human

soul expressed by the power of the human

body.

Ready?

“By far, their performances were the highlight of the entire season. superb people, superb artists, and superb collaborators. They are a treasure.”

• Mark Cuddy Artistic Director Geva Theatre Center

Powerful. Provoking. Push.

Jekyll & Hyde (2016, evening length)

Dr. Henry Jekyll delves into the exotic – his own psyche – ripping himself apart, piece by piece-emptying out the villainy within, creating another crea- ture, the broken and mangled Edward Hyde. Gutted of guilt and conscience, Hyde is free to commit the sins Jekyll is too civilized to comprehend.

Strangers (2014)

Exploring human relationships and missed connections in a rapidly changing world. Made possible by a generous grant from the Rochester Area Commu- nity Foundation.

Job (2013)

The Book of Job: Job said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will return. ADONAI gave; ADONAI took; blessed be the name of ADONAI. My spirit is broken, my days are quenched, I am marked for the grave.”

Red Ball

Funded by a ($28,000) grant from the Max and Marian Farash Charitable Foundation, ‘PUSHinterPLAY’ was born as a collaboration with students and faculty from the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (at Rochester Institute of Technology) to explore the interplay between virtual and physical reality and communication. “Red Ball” was inspired by the use of iPads and other digital devices to create on-stage adventures for electronic characters.

Web (2012)

Aggression is a universal challenge. For every person who dies as a result of violence, many more are injured and suffer from a range of physical and mental health problems. Survivors often find themselves emotion- ally tied to their aggressors years after the physical incident. Made possible in part by generous donations from The Puffin Foundation, The Rochester Area Community Foundation, and the Arts and Cultural Council for Greater Rochester.

Evolution of Aviation

A tongue-in-cheek reinterpretation of the history of human flight through the lens of biological/evolutionary processes.

The Natural World (2011)

What does it look like – literally – to give someone a hand? Physical illusions and gravity-defying, ac- robatic high jinks show us how. The ramifications of kindness, respect, conflict, friendship, and more are discovered by a community of fantastical creatures created from the performers’ bodies. Meet The Two Headed Bug, The Scorpion and the playful Squat Frogs.

Dracula (2009, evening length)

Will you let him in? Can you keep him out? Dracula was made possible in part by a generous grant from The Arts & Cultural Council for Greater Rochester.

Grace (2007)

Often when grace is most present in our lives, we are most oblivious to it. Accepting help – whether from mentors, strangers or of a more spiritual kind – can be a humbling and sometimes difficult experience. A simple act of kindness is a powerful thing.

Journey (2007)

An exploration of long-term relationships. Commitment – even when it feels broken down, worn out, even aimless – is sometimes enough to carry us through. Journey was created as a collaboration between the choreogra- pher, the performers, the poets and the musician.

Galileo (2003)

Originally choreographed for composer Glenn McClure’s oratorio, The Starry Messenger, this piece in an homage to Galileo’s discovery of the he- liocentric universe. It premiered with Rochester chamber choir, Madriga- lia, and was inspired by the New York Times best seller, Galileo’s Daughter, by Dava Sobel. This work was made possible by a generous grant from The Arts & Cultural Council for Greater Rochester.

Cherished (2000)

Often, we prescribe the sorts of relationships people should have based on outward appearances or other arbitrary social standards, and approach life wearing the kind of masks we feel will help us to reach our goals.

Parenthood (1996)

Based on the lives of the choreographers, Parenthood almost didn’t make it to the stage. It was created when Darren and Heather’s two children were an infant and toddler during a near-hallucinogenic haze caused by lack of sleep and parental frustration. The choreographers just couldn’t see the funny side at the time.

The Soldier (1995)

Created in honor of the British holiday, Remembrance Sunday, this piece follows a young man from his bedroom and home to the battlefield. The work was the result of a study of the parallels between play and war, and is dedicated to the sacrifice of innocence and life by the men and women of the armed forces.

Balloon Animals (1994)

An exploration of the wonder of childhood and the frustration of trying to blow up bal- loons.

The Visit

During college, the choreographer had the opportunity to work at a nursing home. She made friends with a resident, Anna, who suffered from Parkinson’s disease. The “Visit” imagines Anna’s daughter and granddaughter spending time with Anna.

Repertoire

current

After your performance, a member of the audience made a comment that I came to hear over and over again throughout the following week: “PUSH made me laugh, they made me cry, they were just amazing! Are you going to bring them back next year?”

I am grateful for your attentiveness to the theme of the festival. PUSH so aptly and movingly explored the human condition or what I like to call “the universal condition.” The emotions, paradoxes and conflict we face as humans and that you explore through physical theater provides a mirror to illuminate our own values.

Bravo to you, PUSH Physical Theater. I was happy to join the Jackson Hole audience in their standing ovation to you. Your art form transcends the banality of our everyday actions and thoughts. You took us outside of ourselves to show us a bigger picture of the world we live in.

Thank you very much. I look forward to future collaborations.

Sincerely, Marylee White JH Wild Festival Director

This letter serves as an unqualified recommendation for Darren, Heather and the PUSH company.

The troupe gave a thrilling and artful performance and workshop to three, very diverse audiences, including a free showing for our local elementary and middle school students. PUSH was open and flexible to our program- ming and master class needs, and adapted their storytelling specifically for each audience. Their incredible experience, practice and skill showed through in their performances, and our programming for the year benefited from their imaginative contribution.

From first booking to the final performance, PUSH was open, communica- tive and professional. They were easy to work with, flexible, and engag- ing. We will be happy to have them back again, and we would recommend them highly for a performance or a workshop.

Sincerely, Alli Crandell Edwards College of Humanities and Fine Arts Coastal Carolina Univeristy

This letter should serve as an unqualified rave for the nimble and innova- tive PUSH Physical Theatre Company.

By far, their performances of their repertory were the highlight of the entire season – so much so that I invited them back this year to perform alone in our regular Nextstage season: the only company I did so.

Their work incorporates humor, pathos, musicality, character, and theme. They only create a piece if they have a question to explore, and any an- swers come out of their collaborative rehearsals. I was deeply involved in their rehearsal of a piece we commissioned from them after the Theatre- Fest performances so I know first-hand their process. I had asked them to create a wordless “announcement” of all ten plays that we would be producing – sort of a collage of scenarios inspired by our selections. They performed this at our annual subscriber night when I unveiled the new season…and again they stole the show. Good thing I didn’t have to follow them.

In short, Darren and Heather are superb people, superb artists, and superb collaborators. We are blessed to have them in our community though I am hopeful that they have an opportunity to reach audiences outside Western New York, too. They are a treasure.

Regards, Mark Cuddy Artistic Director Geva Theatre Center

Their innovative vision of bringing dance to communities and popula- tions that broaden the understanding and definition of dance movement and visual theatre continues to amaze and inspire audiences, sponsors and colleagues wherever they go. The level of aesthetic and artistic quality that PUSH produces – not only within their company but in the students they work with – is an astounding feat.

I have been able to observe their unique ability to work with and teach a wide variety of students from a myriad of backgrounds, abilities and ages. Their expertise is not merely in their breadth of knowledge and intimate understanding of dance, music, theatre, mime and the arts of nonverbal communication but as exceptional educators as well.

Most Sincerely, Thomas Warfield Director RIT/NTID Dance Company

RECOMMENDATION

Letters

Rochester Fringe Festival, Day 3:

PUSH Physical Theatre review

ONE OF THE MUST-SEE SHOWS

OF THE FRINGE

by Casey Carlsen

A large crowd filled the lobby and looped around the entrance to the TheaterROCS stage at Xe-

rox Auditorium Friday night as people waited patiently for the doors to open for PUSH Physical

Theatre ’s first show at Rochester Fringe. I gleaned from snippets of conversation in the rapidly

overheating space that many had seen PUSH perform before and were coming back for more.

They were, in PUSH parlance, “PUSHERS,” as followers are playfully dubbed on the group’s

website.

Darren and Heather Stevenson founded the group in Rochester in 2000, wanting a vehicle in

which to perform and create that embodied not just dance and not just theater, but a host of other

disciplines, including mime, gymnastics and acrobatics. In short, it was to encompass whatever

physical vocabulary they needed in order to convey what they wanted to express. In fact, the

company includes a classically trained actor, Jonathan Lowry; a parkour (climbing urban spaces)

instructor, martial arts expert and gymnast, Andrew Salmon; and an actor, juggler, and gymnast

from Cirque du Soleil, Avi Pryntz-Nadworny.

The company’s first piece last night, the premiere of “The Evolution of Aviation,” immediately

demonstrated the impact of combining these various forms of movement and expression. The

members of PUSH possess a startling ability to transform their bodies into other entities through

movement, sound, and expression. Without using any props, the performers became gliders,

helicopters, and planes, as well as the pilots of these vehicles. Starting with the basic position of

laying stomach to the ground, arms hovering sideways like wings -- the plunky strains of ragtime

music establishing the time period - the group progressed to more elaborate depictions of flying

machines. A flurry of hands became propellers. A central dancer supported a smaller dancer in

the air on either side of him to become a plane’s wings. PUSH possesses the beguiling ability to

access the inner world of the imagination through physical transformation, that innate gift of early

childhood that most of us, sadly, left behind long ago.

The audience responded with resounding enthusiasm throughout the show, bursting into laugh-

ter or chuckling with appreciation again and again. In fact, humor and accessibility are part of

the group’s wide appeal. Unusual for a dance company -- almost unorthodox, in fact -- Darren

Stevenson spends substantial time on stage during every show addressing the audience, his truly

funny anecdotes and insightful, self-effacing quips chipping away at that limiting wall between

performers and their audience.

By far my favorite piece of the evening was the gut-wrenching “Web,” a dark departure for the

group. The 2011 piece closely examines both the savagery of abuse and violence and its emo-

tional and psychological fall-out. Lowry was superb as the victim, literally harnessed and roped to

his torturers who yanked him around and mimicked striking him with ugly sneers on their faces.

Lowry’s classical background was evident, as finely filtered expressions moved across his face

to convey the pain, fear, and bewilderment at the brutality he was enduring. His body was no

less expressive than his face. He recoiled again and again as would an animal under attack,

each time his resistance fading incrementally. The most affecting 10 seconds of the night’s

performance -- in fact, the most affecting 10 seconds of anything I’ve seen in Fringe so

far -- transpired after the brutes had finally tired of their tormenting, unleashed Lowry and left

him, a collapsed heap of humanity. Salmon turned abruptly then and mimed a final fierce jerk in

the air. Brilliantly choreographed, Lowry responded as if he were still wearing the rope; his body

spasmed up into the air, then collapsed back into itself.

PUSH has performed in theatres, festivals, special events,

arts-in-education and residency projects. Audiences

ranged from 11,000 at the Blue Cross Arena in Rochester,

NY to around 200 for smaller theatres.

Activities include the following:

ɶ Finalist on TruTV’s national series, Fake Off

ɶ Collaboration with composer Ricardo Zohn-Mul-

doon for his Pulitzer-nominated opera, Comala, which

resulted in performances in Mexico at the Cervantino

Festival and a US tour.

ɶ Two-week teaching residency with performers from

Pilobolus in Monterey Bay, CA.

ɶ Original, full-length work, Arc of Ages, ran for two

weeks with an expanded cast of 24 performers.PUSH’s

world premiere of “Dracula” ran for three-weeks to sold-

out audiences at Geva Theatre Center.

ɶ Residency at Rochester Institute of Technology’s

National Technical Institute for the Deaf to collaborate on

the creation and premiere performance of “Red Ball” was

supported by a $28,000 grant from the Farash Foundation.

ɶ Darren Stevenson has spoken at TEDx Rochester and

several colleges about PUSH’s unique artistic process.

ɶ PUSH continues to run a year-long training and

development program for its professional company as well

as the Teen Mentorship program, PUSH Pins Summer

Camp for Kids and a Summer Intensive for adults, attract-

ing students from all over the world.

Partial list of venues:

Theatres

Organización Para Las Artes (Guatemala) Degollado Theater (Guadalajara, Mexico) Festival Internacional Cervantino (Guanajuato, Mexico) The Symphony Space (New York, NY) The Center for the Arts (Jackson Hole, WY) Casella Theater (Castleton, VT) Van Nostrand Theatre (Brentwood, NY) Michael D. Palm Theatre (Telluride, CO) The Bishop Center (Aberdeen, NY) The Wheelwright Auditorium (Conway, SC) Rialto Center for the Arts (Atlanta, GA) The Miller Outdoor Theatre (Houston, TX) Eastman School of Music, Kilbourn Hall (Rochester, NY) Xerox Auditorium (Rochester, NY) Abbey Theatre (Hardwick, MA) Caribbean Festival for Mime & Physical Theatre (San Juan, Puerto Rico) Centro De Bellos Artes (San Juan, Puerto Rico) Cleveland Convention Center (Cleveland, OH) Blue Cross Arena (Rochester, NY)

Geva Theater Center (Rochester, NY) Mechanics Hall (Worcester, MA) State Theatre (Ithaca, NY) Rochester Institute of Technology, Panara Theatre (Rochester, NY)

Special Events

US Classic Gymnastics Championship (Rochester, NY) Cuyahoga County Fair (Cuyahoga, OH) Dixon Schwabl Advertising (Rochester, NY) Kodak (Rochester, NY) Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (Rochester, NY) M&T Bank (Buffalo, NY) Rochester Contemporary Art Center (Rochester, NY) Chatterbox Club (Rochester, NY) Rockpointe Church (Detroit, MI) Temple B’rith Kodesh (Brighton, NY) Young Audiences (Rochester, NY) Rochester Indie Fest (Rochester, NY) Melissa’s Living Legacy Foundation (Rochester, NY) The Strong, National Museum of Play (Rochester, NY) Met Life Dance for Life (Rochester, NY) Utica Monday Nights (Utica, NY)

Educational Institutions

Coastal Carolina University (Conway, SC) SUNY Purchase (Purchase, NY) Belhaven University (Jackson, MI) Nazareth College (Rochester NY) Roberts Wesleyan College (North Chili, NY) Cortland University (Cortland, NY) Buffalo State College (Buffalo, NY) Genesee Community College (Batavia, NY) Aesthetic Education Institute (Rochester, NY) Greece Arcadia High School (Greece, NY) Bancroft School (Worcester, MA) Irondequoit High School (Irondequoit, NY) William R. Satz Middle School (Holmdell, NJ) Oswego County/Madison-Oneida BOCES Rochester BOCES Numerous schools throughout the Northeast US.

Teaching

Annual PUSH Summer Intensive 2001 - Present (Rochester, NY) Annual PUSH Pins Camp for Kids 2005 - Present (Rochester, NY) Eagle Hill School (Harwick, MA) Inlet Dance Theatre (Cleveland, OH) University of Rochester (Rochester, NY School of the Performing Arts (Greece, NY) The Next Step Workshop (Green Bay, WI) Greece Community Education Fine Arts Camp (Greece, NY) University of Rochester (Rochester, NY) Youth with a Mission (Long Island, NY) Youth with a Mission (Lake City, MT) Art Peace (Rochester, NY) Nazareth College Dance Department (Rochester, NY) Teens Living With Cancer (Rochester, NY) Rochester Children’s Theatre (Rochester, NY)

Accomplishments