Winter Rhapsody
Saturday, Dec 5, 2026 at 7:30 pm
Sunday, Dec 6, 2026 at 2 pm & 5:30 pm
West End Theatre
263 West 86th St, NYC
Tickets $35 / $25 students & seniors
Join us for an evening of winter celebration, with choreography from across the generations, presented by Dances We Dance (Francesca Todesco, artistic director) and Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble.
Fuga y Misterio
Choreography by Francesca Todesco (2022), with an additional new section by Rosy Gentle (2026)
Music: Astor Piazzolla
Fuga y Misterio draws inspiration from works of art and the lives of women artists whose talents and contributions often went unrecognized in their time. The work celebrates their determination to pursue their artistic vision despite the limitations they faced, honoring the creative voices now being rediscovered. At the heart of the piece is Astor Piazzolla’s evocative Fuga y Misterio, performed by twelve cellos. The music’s compelling tango rhythms evoke the strength of character, sensuality, and complexity of the women who inspire the work.
Hidden Light
Choreography by Sandra Kaufmann (Premier, Athens 2026)
Music: Hildegard Von Bingen
Hidden Light enacts a mysterious communion between the three-as-one earth goddess and a sphere of light. Seeped in archaic symbolism and the imagery from mythology, alchemy and the tarot, this dance evokes a dark grace hidden within a circle of magic.
Two Preludes
Choreography by Anna Sokolow
Taught and coached by Evelyn Shepard
Music: Sergei Rachmaninov
A passionate, introspective solo created by Anna Sokolow for Evelyn Shepard, who has taught it to ST/DE company member Margaret Mighty Oak Brackey.
Les Jeunes Filles
Choreography by Francesca Todesco
Music: Mozart Serenade No. 10
Marie Laurencin’s striking 1910 painting Les Jeunes Filles (The Young Girls) inspired this new work by Francesca Todesco. The graceful, breathing rhythms of Mozart’s Serenade No. 10 awaken seemingly still figures. Who are these young women? Are they connected? Do they belong to the same world, or do they exist somewhere between memory, dream, and reality? Through the interplay of music, painting, and dance, the piece invites us to enter their mysterious world and imagine the stories that lie beneath the surface.
Ave Maria
Choreography by Isadora Duncan (c1914 at Carnegie Hall)
Staging: Francesca Todesco
Music: Schubert Ave Maria, D.839
Isadora Duncan’s Ave Maria, set to the deeply moving music of Franz Schubert, is a meditation on faith, tenderness, and spiritual devotion. Through restrained gestures, slow, flowing movements, and an expressive stillness, Duncan transforms the dance into an intimate portrayal of the Virgin Mary receiving the Annunciation and embracing the sacred mystery of motherhood. A work of profound simplicity and emotional intensity, it reveals Duncan’s extraordinary ability to convey an entire inner world through the smallest movement.
Avinash (Sanskrit for indestructible)
Choreography by Ann Moradian (1994)
Music: Loreena McKennitt Tango To Evora
Avinash has been described as a “mysterious ritual” for four women, inspired by the ever-changing nature of fire. At its heart is a simple truth: a solitary flame may fade or waste away, yet kindled together the fire can burn. These women illuminate the power of connection to sustain what might otherwise be extinguished. Our spark is both vulnerable and vital. As long as one remains, the fire endures, a quiet testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the strength we can find in one another.
Bach’s Christmas Oratorio (excerpts)
Choreography by Charles Weidman (premiered midnight, Dec. 25, 1934, revived 1961
Taught and directed by Gail Corbin
Music: J. S. Bach Christmas Oratorio
With a cast of 11 dancers, Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble presents a suite from Charles Weidman’s glorious tour de force, Bach’s Christmas Oratorio. Just as Bach does in his music, Weidman interweaves joyous, everchanging patterns with illustrations of the Christmas story. Like a stained glass window come to vibrant life, Oratorio conveys joy and hope.