Come see excerpts of MoonFall!
50th Annual B. Iden Payne Awards
Monday November 11, 7:30p, Scottish Rite Theatre
The Sun & Moon duet, danced by Ty Graynor and Rachel Culver
First Street Studio - The Barefoot Ball, Saturday November 16th, doors open at 5:30p
The Magician & Muses, danced by Kanami Nakabayashi, Josh Martinez, Elaine Fields, Mia Moi
We are performing in the 6:30p show!
Photos by Sarah Annie Navarette
thank you austin for a beautiful sold-out run of moonfall!
a new immersive ballet with chamber orchestra
Response to MoonFall
“So powerful, and then so tender. Not often are such disparate qualities drawn so beautifully into juxtaposition. Gentle love duets turn into angry ensemble conflicts. The shambling, morose movements of sun-scorched villagers segue into the powerful dances of the magician, seemingly in a heartbeat. That note is key, because while MoonFall, the newly premiered ballet by Red Nightfall Dance Theatre and Density512 danced to an original score by Sam Lipman deals directly in duality and opposites, it comes deeply and profoundly from the heart.
MoonFall creators have a scrupulous devotion to ballet, within which they create and innovate with a sense of liberation. […] All these ballets may have a proud place on the stage of world performing arts. Austin is so lucky.”
“The MoonFall immersive ballet WOWED me. An incredibly ambitious, beautiful, complex, funny-and-serious musing on celestial bodies, mythology, nature, environmental degradation, role-player fantasy games. Novel and adventurous in its staging and presentation but not self-consciously so. Always ever-so-slightly winking at you while it delivers its message. And beautiful, athletic choreography and dazzling, inspiring music from a 12-piece chamber orchestra! The small breakout performances in the middle of the production had me laughing out loud in several instances. I was lucky to see it in its entirety and hope I get the chance to do so again!”
Audience Response:
Overall, what did you find meaningful, evocative, interesting, exciting, striking?
“The easy ability to strike to the elemental core of complex reality, day/night, sun/moon, alive/dead, suffering/joy, and the ability to draw in and entrain audiences of moderns in a somewhat abstract and mythic story touching on the genetic structures in us all.”
“Choreography was stunning. At times, I saw more acting expressed by your performers than I see in professional Actors on stage in Austin. The score and orchestra were on another level of excellence as well.”
“The professional choreography to the music composed by Lipman. Sensitive, haunting no words needed. Graphics, scenery so unique.”
“The community of the arts coming together to bring something new to the people of Austin.”
ATX Premiere | May 10-11, 16-18, 2024, 7:30p
Barnstorm Dance Festival, Houston Texas - Tuesday May 28th and Friday May 31st, 7:30p
connect(TX)ions Dance Festival, Austin, Texas - Friday May 31st and Saturday June 1st, 7:30p
Presented by Red Nightfall Dance Theatre and Density512
Artistic Direction, Choreography, by Dorothy O’Shea Overbey
Story, Music, Artistic Direction by - Samuel Lipman
Producer, Story Consultant - Kenzie Slottow
Interactivity designed by Kenzie Slottow & Dorothy O’Shea Overbey
Art & Projection by Yuliya Lanina
DadaLab - 2008 Alexander Avenue (between MLK and Manor)
To our incredible donors, thank you!
We would not be here without you
For the Wonder, Production Underwriter
Sylvia Arabian & Andrew Schwartz
Dave Glassco
Lauren Sheppard
Nancy Scanlan
Marvin Brittman
Richard Hartgrove
Carol Williams
Karin Richmond
Joel Hobbs
Tim & Marie Slottow
Jane Schwartz
Harriet Kirsch Pozen
Andrea Trisdale
Wei Li
Peter Rock
Alyson Wagner
Steven Rutkowski
Maria Thompson
David G. Robinson
MP Mueller
Brad Robb
Glenda Moore
Margaret Murray Miller
Blair Johnson
Laura Snavely
Lisa Kramer
Donna Lipman
Sabrina Mikan
Nina Mosier
Photo at the KMFA Classical Draylen Mason Theatre by Rachael Hall Photography.
Conductor and Density512 Artistic Director Jacob Schnitzer, Composer Sam Lipman, Director/Choreographer/Dancer Dorothy O’Shea Overbey, Dancers: Navaji David Nava, Ty Graynor, Tikiri Shapiro, Rachel Culver and Density512 ensemble.
"Magnificent" – "Absolutely loved it!! Bravo!!!" – "Spectacular"– "Beautiful" – "Fantastic and this is just the beginning!"
Thank you for joining us at the Preview Performance of MoonFall as part of KMFA Day, the birthday celebration of Austin’s treasured classical music radio station!
A huge THANK YOU to KMFA for supporting their incredible support of performing artists in Austin!
Thank you also to our wonderful cast of dancers, Dorothy O’Shea Overbey, Navaji David Nava, Ty Graynor, Tikiri Shapiro, Rachel Culver
Promotion photography by Sarah Annie Navarette - 2023 performance photos by Jack Kloecker
Meet the Team behind MoonFall
Dorothy O’Shea Overbey, Artistic Director, Choreographer, Director of Red Nightfall Dance Theatre.
Dorothy O’Shea Overbey believes that the creation and practice of art is humanity’s most powerful means of healing and transformation. Overbey is a classically trained dancer, choreographer, pianist who grew up in Austin and went on to become an international performer and producer. Overbey offers her audiences experiences of connection, inspiration, and empowerment. She founded Red Nightfall Productions in 2017, and she serves the Central Texas arts community as co-owner of First Street Studio, an affordable rehearsal and performance venue in East Austin. dorothyoshea.com
Sam Lipman, Story & Music
Sam Lipman is a passionate advocate for the transformation of tradition. Part classical scholar, part innovator, Lipman has composed for multiple genres and stages across the world. His award-winning productions for theater, film and the concert stage marry artistic discipline with story-telling fluency that appeals to all. Lipman’s work has shortlisted for an Oscar, won the Austin Critics Table award, and been performed in Carnegie Hall, the Lincoln Center and Sydney Opera House. He teaches his innovative philosophy as a Professor of Composition at UT Austin.
Jacob Schnitzer, Music Director, Director of Density512
Jacob Schnitzer is a conduit through which the powers of music, storytelling, and art connect with others. In the 2022-23 season Jacob enters his sixth year as Artistic Director and Conductor of the chamber orchestra and new music collective Density512 in Austin, Texas, and starts as Assistant Conductor of The Missouri Symphony (MOSY). Jacob’s studied with Bramwell Tovey at Boston University, Yannick Nézet-Séguin at Domaine Forget de Charlevoix, and is a doctoral candidate at the UMKC Conservatory. Visit https://jacobschnitzer.com/
Density512 is a chamber orchestra and collective of brave and open musicians in Austin, TX, who champion contemporary programming. We tell stories through imaginatively curated experiences, amplify the voices of groundbreaking and emerging artists, and cultivate interdisciplinary collaborations.
Yuliya Lanina, Projection Design
Yuliya Lanina is an interdisciplinary artist whose work bridges traditional media with new technologies. She creates alternate realities in her works—ones based on sexuality, trauma and identity. Lanina has exhibited and performed extensively both nationally and internationally. Lanina's professional honors include fellowships and scholarships from Fulbright (Vienna, Austria), Headlands Art Center (CA), Yaddo (NY), Artpace (SA), and Honorable citation from New York State Assembly (NYC). Lanina’s work was featured on the front cover of Austin Chronicle (2023) weekly newspaper and has been reviewed in many publications. Lanina is an Assistant Professor of Practice at the Department of Arts and Entertainment Technologies at The University of Texas at Austin. yuliyalanina.com
Kenzie Slottow, Producer, Story Consultant, Interactivity
Kenzie Slottow believes that everything is connected, and makes work that bridges art forms, challenges the impossible, and feels human. Their work of the last few years includes an original musical made for live YouTube performance from across the country and a virtual interactive comedy experience with improvised live scoring by 6 musicians. Slottow’s productions have won B. Iden Payne awards, sold out shows, invited audiences to actively participate in the act of creation, and brought together local Austin production companies and artists to collaborate.