Jacob's Pillow Presents Tere O'Connor's Inventive Work Cover Boy, July 17-21

Jacob's Pillow presents Tere O'Connor Dance in Cover Boy, July 17-21 in the Doris Duke Theatre. Created by choreographer and Artistic Director Tere O'Connor in 2011, Cover Boy explores the closeted gay experience and universal feeling of "otherness" in a poignant and thought-provoking way. Gia Kourlas in Time Out New Yorkcomments "Cover Boy looks at beauty, the body, fear, and desire to find the positive in what would otherwise be thought of as a marginalized existence." Siobhan Burke of The New York Times notes "...hopeful and fearful, aggressive and affectionate, communal and solitary. Mr. O'Connor's dancers embody those contradictions with superb audacity and elegance." This performance is presented as part of the Pillow's annual LGBT Weekend OUT, featuring a packed schedule of free and ticketed performances, talks, and special events, including a Ted Shawn and His Men Dancers tour led by Director of Preservation Norton Owen Sunday, July 21 at noon.

Cover Boy features a quartet of skilled male dancers-Michael Ingle, Niall Jones, OisínMonaghan, and long-time company member Matthew Rogers-who eloquently portray isolation and connection through post-modern choreography that ranges from tender interplay to physical aggression. Original music by electro-acoustic composer James Baker combined with an expansive wing-like set design by Aptum Architecture adds to the atmosphere of the performance, which critic Deborah Jowitt of ArtsJournal calls a "moving, beautifully imagined and performed work."

A much sought-after teacher and choreographer, O'Connor is recognized as an incredibly influential contemporary artist. This year alone, he received a Doris Duke Performing Artist Award and a Faculty Award for Excellence in Research from the College of Fine and Applied Arts at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. O'Connor has also received three New York Dance and Performance (Bessie) Awards-one for Heaven Up North in 1988, another in 1999 for Sustained Achievement, and most recently for his work Frozen Mommy in 2005. Upcoming projects include a new duet created for Cynthia Oliver and David Thomson, and O'Connor's newest ensemble piece entitled BLEED, both set to premiere later this year.

In addition to his company's performance of Cover Boy, O'Connor will share his views on dance and choreography in the free PillowTalk The Essential Tere O'Connor on Friday, July 19 at 5pm with Pillow Scholar-in-Residence Maura KeefE. O'Connor will also teach a master class on Sunday, July 21 at 10:30am in the Doris Duke Theatre for intermediate/advanced dancers.

Company History: Tere O'Connor has been making dances since 1982 and has created more than 35 works for his company, which has performed throughout the United States, Europe, South America, and Canada. O'Connor has created and commissioned numerous works for artists and dance companies around the world including dancer Jean Butler, Lyon Opera Ballet, White Oak Dance Project, De Rotterdamse Dansgroep, Dance Alloy, and Zenon Dance. He also created the 1996 work Greta in a Ditch for dance legend Mikhail Baryshnikov's company White Oak Dance Project, as well as a solo piece for Baryshnikov in 2003 entitledIndoor Man.

Festival Connections: Tere O'Connor first appeared at the Pillow with Matthew Diamond Company in 1980 and then later as a soloist in 1989 at Splash Festival, a festival within a festival prior to the construction of the Doris Duke Theatre. Tere O'Connor Dance performed in the Doris Duke Theatre in 1994 and O'Connor performed the following year in 1995 as a member of White Oak Dance Project in his original work, Greta in a Ditch.

PERFORMANCE AND TICKET INFORMATION

Tere O'Connor Dance

Doris Duke Theatre

Wednesday, July 17 through Saturday, July 20 at 8:15pm

Saturday, July 20 and Sunday, July 21 at 2:15pm

· Free Pre-Show Talks with Jacob's Pillow Scholar-in-Residence Suzanne Carbonneau are offered on the Doris Duke Theatre porch 30 minutes before every performance.

· A Post-Show Talk with Tere O'Connor and a Pillow Scholar will take place onstage on Thursday, July 18.

· Tickets $22-$38. Under 35 Friday Tickets are available for $19 on Friday, July 5 (ages 18-35), two per person, must show I.D. when picking up tickets.

· Box Office hours: Sunday through Tuesday, 11am-5pm; Wednesday through Saturday 11am-8pm.

· Now on sale online at jacobspillow.org, via phone at 413.243.0745, or in person at the Jacob's Pillow Box Office. Under 35 Fridays Tickets and Youth Tickets are available by phone and in person only.

· Jacob's Pillow is located at 358 George Carter Road in Becket, MA, 01223 (10 minutes east on Route 20 from Mass Pike Exit 2). The Jacob's Pillow campus and theatres are handicapped-accessible.

Jacob's Pillow, celebrating its 81st Festival in 2013, is a National Historic Landmark, recipient of the National Medal of Arts, and home to America's longest running international dance festival. The Festival includes more than 50 national and international dance companies and 350 free and ticketed performances, talks, tours, classes, exhibits, and events. The School at Jacob's Pillow, one of the most prestigious professional dance training centers in the U.S., encompasses the diverse disciplines of Ballet, Cultural Traditions, Contemporary, and Jazz/Musical Theatre Dance, as well as an Intern Program in various disciplines of arts administration, design, video, and production. The Pillow's extensive Archives, open year-round to the public, chronicle more than 80 years of dance in photographs, programs, books, costumes, audiotapes, and video. Year-round Community Programs enrich the lives of children and adults through public classes, residencies in area schools, and more than 200 free public events. Through Jacob's Pillow Curriculum in Motion, a nationally-recognized program, artist-educators work with Berkshire County teachers and students grades K-12, transforming curricula such as biology, literature, and history into kinesthetic and creative learning experiences. Creative Development Residencies, in which dance companies are invited to live and work at the Pillow and enjoy unlimited studio time; choreography commissions; and the annual $25,000 Jacob's Pillow Dance Award all support visionary dance artists and choreographers. Virtual Pillow is aimed at expanding global audiences for dance and offers the opportunity to experience dance and Jacob's Pillow from anywhere in the world via online interactive exhibits, global video networks, and social media. As part of the Virtual Pillow initiative, Jacob's Pillow Dance Interactive is a curated online video collection of dance highlights from 1936 to today. On March 2, 2011, President Obama honored Jacob's Pillow with a National Medal of Arts, the highest arts award given by the United States Government. Jacob's Pillow is the first dance presenting organization to receive this prestigious award. For more information, visit www.jacobspillow.org.

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