CLOSE QUARTERS IV
June 30, 2026
The Slipper Room
167 Orchard St, New York, NY 10002
Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble
Choreography: Anna Sokolow
Artistic Director: Samantha Géracht
Associate Artistic Directors: Eleanor Bunker, Lauren Naslund
Staging and direction: Samantha Géracht and Lauren Naslund
Dancers: Margaret Mighty Oak Brackey, Ilana Ruth Cohen, Mikey Comito, Edu Hernandez, Samuel Humphreys, Krista Jansen, Brad Orego, Margherita Tisato
Guest Artist: Gabe Girson
Lighting: Seamus Ricci
Program
Bios
Contact Us or Sign Up for Email
Support
PROGRAM
Excerpts — From the Diaries of Franz Kafka (1980)
Music: Franz Schumann, Fantasiestúcke Op. 12, Des Abends
Gustav Mahler, Das Lied von der Erde, Der Abschied
Kafka: Gabe Girson
Sister: Margaret Mighty Oak Brackey
Father: Samuel Humphreys
Mother: Ilana Ruth Cohen
Chief Clerk: Edu Hernandez
Mikey Comito, Krista Jansen, Brad Orego, Margherita Tisato
Allegro misterioso — Lyric Suite (1953)
Music: Alban Berg, Lyric Suite, Allegro misterioso—trio estatico
Dancer: Ilana Ruth Cohen
Presto delirando — Lyric Suite (1953)
Music: Alban Berg, Lyric Suite, Presto delirando—tenebroso
Dancer: Edu Hernandez
Excerpt — A Short Lecture and Demonstration on the Evolution of Ragtime as Presented by Jelly Roll Morton (1952)
Music: Jelly Roll Morton
Text: Adapted from Jelly Roll Morton
Lecturer: Gabe Girson
Dancers: Krista Jansen, Brad Orego
Adventure 2 — Opus Jazz 1958
Music: Miles Davis, score for Ascenseur pour l’échafaud
Dancer: Margherita Tisato
The Pond, in the Cage, the Pond — Scenes from the Music of Charles Ives (1971)
Music: Charles Ives, The Pond, The Cage
Dancer: Mikey Comito
The Raven — Homage to Edgar Allan Poe (1993)
Music: Sergei Rachmaninoff, Prelude Op. 3 No. 2
Dancer: Samuel Humphreys
Monologue — Preludes: A Musical Fantasia Set in the Hypnotized Mind of Sergei Rachmaninoff
By Dave Malloy
Music: Sergei Rachmaninoff, Prelude Op. 3 No. 2
Rach: Gabe Girson
Go for it! (excerpt) — Everything Must Go (1982)
Music: Justin Comito
Dancers: Margaret Mighty Oak Brackey, Ilana Ruth Cohen, Mikey Comito, Edu Hernandez, Samuel Humphreys, Krista Jansen, Brad Orego, Margherita Tisato
BIOS
ANNA SOKOLOW (1910-2000) Known as one of the most dynamic and uncompromising of choreographers, Ms. Sokolow began her career as a dancer with Martha Graham. In the early thirties, she studied choreography with Louis Horst at the Neighborhood Playhouse and quickly became his assistant and most outstanding composition student. The work of Ms. Sokolow has had and continues to have a profound effect on the course of contemporary dance throughout the world. She founded the first modern dance companies in Israel and Mexico and influenced such artists as Alvin Ailey, Pina Bausch, and Martha Clark. Ms. Sokolow also made important contributions to the theater. Her choreography for the Broadway stage included Street Scene (1947), Regina (1949), and Candide (with Leonard Bernstein, 1956); in 1967 she created the original dances for the off-Broadway production of Hair. She was a founding member of The Actors Studio, where she taught movement for actors. As a teacher of dance, Ms. Sokolow covered much ground, from the Juilliard School (prominently featured in a 2002 documentary) and the 92nd Street Y in New York City to the Rubin Academy of Music in Jerusalem. Anna Sokolow created a body of work that combines dance and music with theater, poetry and prose. Called the “Solzenitsyn of twentieth-century dance,” she consistently and uncompromisingly reflected the realities of society through her work.
SOKOLOW THEATRE/DANCE ENSEMBLE (ST/DE) is the living legacy company dedicated to presenting Anna Sokolow’s vast body of emotionally riveting work. Over a 70 year career, Ms. Sokolow continuously defied the boundaries of modern dance, focusing on the human experience and drawing upon whatever genre best served her artistic purpose. Her masterpieces remain relevant to our times and touch the hearts of all people as we struggle with the universal issues of living, regardless of differences in place and culture. The company’s projects include reconstruction, reimagination, deconstruction, historical performance, teaching, lectures, archiving, and partnering with contemporary choreographers—all modes through which we step inside Sokolow’s masterworks and draw from this perspective to better frame our future. ST/DE was founded by Sokolow protégé Jim May and is currently under the artistic direction of Samantha Géracht.
SAMANTHA GÉRACHT, MFA (Artistic Director) performed with Anna Sokolow’s Players’ Project for eleven years and is a founding member of the Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble. Samantha was appointed the ensemble’s artistic director in 2017. She has toured and taught Sokolow internationally and reconstructs Sokolow repertory on professional companies and soloists and for university dance programs. She taught at Hoboken Charter School for 16 years. She also performed the Humphrey/Weidman repertory with Deborah Carr Theatre Dance and Gail Corbin, as a guest artist with David Parker and The Bang Group, and with Rae Ballard. Samantha served as a panelist for the Library of Congress opening of the New Dance Group archives, and presented her own research at the Library for the opening of the Sokolow archives. Samantha holds an MFA in Dance from Montclair State University and a BS in dance from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. She is a recipient of a Jersey City Arts and Culture individual artist grant and is a New Jersey Council of the Arts finalist in choreography. Samantha is committed to the preservation of early American Modern Dance, making the works of modern dance pioneers more accessible to dance education programs, young artists, and new audiences.
ELEANOR BUNKER (Associate Artistic Director) holds degrees from Hartford College for Women and SUNY Empire State College. She began her modern and ballet training at the Hartford Ballet where she studied with Enid Lynn, Lisa Bradley, and Michael Uthoff. She was a soloist and rehearsal director for eleven years with Rondo Dance Theater, a repertory company which featured masterworks of the American Modern Dance genre under the artistic direction of Elizabeth Rockwell. She continues to perform the repertory of Isadora Duncan, and is dance faculty at Dominican Academy in NYC. Eleanor was a member of Anna Sololow’s Players’ Project for 14 years and is a founding member of Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble. Eleanor reconstructs Anna Sokolow’s repertory and directs rehearsals for the company and for schools and professional dancers. She also oversees costuming for the company.
LAUREN NASLUND (Associate Artistic Director) began her modern dance studies in Chicago with Frances Allis. She holds degrees in biology from the University of Chicago and Harvard. Lauren danced in Cambridge, MA with the Performing Arts Ensemble and the Massachusetts Dance Ensemble, and in New York with the theater/dance company Plath/Taucher Productions, Alan Danielson, and Andrew Jannetti & Dancers, among others. She has performed the works of Charles Weidman and Doris Humphrey with Deborah Carr’s Theatre Dance Ensemble, and works of Doris Humphrey under the direction of Gail Corbin. She currently also performs with Rae Ballard’s Thoughts in Motion. Lauren was a member of Anna Sokolow’s Players’ Project for 15 years, and is a founding member of Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble. She reconstructs and directs Anna Sokolow’s repertory for the company and for university dance programs and solo artists.
MARGARET MIGHTY OAK BRACKEY (dancer) is a New York City-based dancer/choreographer/artist. Originally from Madison, Wisconsin, she grew up studying Graham Technique, Ballet, and Dance Composition at Kanopy Dance Company. In 2022, Margaret graduated with a BFA in Dance from Adelphi University. Her honors thesis, “Birds Into Bodies: Synthesizing Research and Dance”, which mitigated bird/window collisions on campus, was awarded the Levermore Prize for Best Senior Thesis. A collaborative choreographer, Margaret’s works have been shown around NYC and nationally, including as part of the Governors Island Eco-Arts festival and Colorado Fringe Festival. Besides dancing, Margaret runs the Instagram page and publicity for ST/DE. She was introduced to the work of Anna Sokolow in 2017 by Jim May and Samantha Géracht and joined Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble in 2022.
ILANA RUTH COHEN (dancer) is from Portland, Oregon, where she grew up dancing in the rain. She graduated from Pomona College with a BA in Modern Dance and Chemistry and is currently a PhD student at the City University of New York where she investigates how aquatic plants and microbes can help to clean our water resources. Ilana’s dance training included study at the Limón Institute and the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance. Ilana has performed in works by Anna Sokolow, Doris Humphrey, Jose Limón, Isadora Duncan, Matthew Nelson and John Pennington. Additionally, she has performed with New York Baroque Dance Co. and with Shadow Box Theatre. In 2021, Ilana assisted in setting Anna Sokolow’s Rooms, working both virtually and in person, and has taught modern dance to children at Bay Ridge Ballet and through the Limon4Kids program. Ilana has been a member of the Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble since 2018.
MIKEY COMITO (dancer) is from Long Island, New York. He attended SUNY Brockport in the fall of 2021 with a dance scholarship and trained under James Hansen. He has worked with and is influenced by Kathryn Alter and Jim May, and was a member of the second company of the Limón Dance Foundation. Mikey joined Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble in 2024.
GABE GIRSON (guest artist) is a Brooklyn-based actor, director, and tap dancer, and began taking classes with Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble in 2024. As a tap dancer, he has performed with companies/choreographers including M.A.D.D. Rhythms, Chicago Human Rhythm Project, Christina Carminucci, Derick Grant, and Caleb Teicher. His theatre credits include Atlas Shakespeare Company, Arachne Theatre, EPIC Players, American Theatre of Actors, 92NY Theatre for Young Audiences, Theatre 315, and Theatre for the New City. He also frequently performs in cabaret and independent film, and is an educator with Storytime Chess and the neuroinclusive theatre company EPIC Players. gabegirson.com
EDU HERNANDEZ (dancer) is from Morelos, México. He graduated from Cal State Long Beach with a BFA in Dance. He has performed the works of Kathryn Alter, Rebecca Lemme, José Limón, Ohad Naharin, Omar Román De Jesús, Anouk Van Dijk, Anna Sokolow, and Charles Weidman. As an artist, his work has been selected for the APAP New York City Center, 92Y Harkness Center, the Palm Springs Dance Festival, Triskelion Arts, and recently the BAAD! By Arthur Aviles. He is a Movement Research Artist In Residence for 2025-2026. Edu joined Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble in 2024.
SAMUEL HUMPHREYS (dancer) received his initial training from Brynar Mehl, and then from Larry Ensign, Lori Belilove, the Gelsey Kirkland Ballet conservatory, and the Martha Graham School. He has performed in New York City with Anabella Lenzu, Ballet for Young Audiences, and Shadow Box Theatre and is a member of the Isadora Duncan Dance Company and NY Baroque Dance Company. A long-time student of Jim May, Sam performed with Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble in 2007 and 2008 and rejoined the company in 2019.
KRISTA JANSEN (dancer) is a dancer and choreographer born, raised, and based in New York City. She is one half of the duet company Jansen & Holm, where she performs and choreographs alongside CJ Holm. Her own choreography has been performed at Dixon Place, Triskelion Arts, the Flea, STUFFED! at Movement Research, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, the 92nd street Y, and for an award-winning film with director Bat-Sheva Guez. She was an original cast member and Assistant Rehearsal Director for the critically acclaimed “Doug Elkins & Friends’ Fraulein Maria,” and for seven years performed and toured with that production around the United States and Canada. Krista is also a teaching assistant with Ellen Robbins, and choreographs for the Theater program at Beacon high school. Krista joined Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble in 2022.
BRAD OREGO (dancer) hails from Buffalo, NY. He comes from a diverse background in sport, martial art, and dance. His formal dance training began at the University of Rochester, where he earned the University’s first Minor in Dance, along with degrees in Computer Science and Psychology. In 2011, he moved to Madison, WI, where he has danced with Kanopy Dance Company since 2013. Brad moved to NYC in 2017 and continues his training at the Martha Graham Center for Contemporary Dance. He has performed classic works by Anna Sokolow, Charles Weidman, and Martha Graham as well as contemporary work by Lisa Thurrell, Robert Cleary, Corrine Soum & Steven Wasson, Pascal Rioult, Martin Lofsnes, Lonny Gordon, and Stanley Love among others. Brad joined Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble in 2017.
MARGHERITA TISATO (dancer) started studying dance in Italy at the age of 8. Her background is in Humphrey-Limón, contemporary, and dance-therapy. She counts in her roster of practices a variety of movement techniques including dance and yoga, Butoh, somatic movement, and recently the exploration of body suspension. Margherita moved to New York in 2006, and also works with Dances We Dance, and others. Margherita was a principal dancer with the Vangeline Theater from 2008 until 2017, and has presented her own work in New York and abroad. She is a teacher for the New York Butoh Institute and teaches Butoh workshops internationally. Margherita lives in Brooklyn, teaching yoga and mindful movement in studios, jails, and substance abuse recovery facilities, and coaching individuals in finding embodiment and recovering from PTSD. Margherita has danced with Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble since 2008.
CONTACT US OR SIGN UP FOR EMAIL
SUPPORT
Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble is a non-profit tax-exempt organization. Contributions in support of the Sokolow Ensemble’s work are greatly appreciated and may be made on our website or by check payable to Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble, PO Box 351, Old Chelsea Station, New York, NY 10113. Contributions will be used to pay for performers’ salaries, rehearsal space rental, and production costs. All contributions are fully deductible to the extent allowed by law.