Monmouth University students in DA151 – Movement for Performer taught by Professor Lawrence Edwards had the unique opportunity to participate in a masterclass with world-class dancers Myrna Packer and Art Bridgman of Bridgman|Packer Dance last week. Packer and Bridgman were on campus preparing for a November 15 performance with the Center for the Arts, which was partially funded through the Mid Atlantic Tours program of Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation with support from the National Endowment for the Arts. The award-winning choreographers worked with the students on creative movement, rather than just teaching them steps, they encouraged the students to find their own movements. The students learned some of the basic concepts in contemporary dance and the experience culminated in the students creating original collaborative choreography from the fundamentals they learned during the masterclass. The students then attended the mainstage dance performance with Bridgman|Packer in Pollak Theatre and wrote response papers based on the works they had seen. Bridgman|Packer Dance performed Voyeur, their highly acclaimed work that received a 2017 New York Dance and Performance Award and features the duo’s innovative work in “Video Partnering”—the integration of live performance and video technology.
Bridgman| Packer Dance has performed at Lincoln Center in New York City, City Center’s Fall for Dance Festival, 92nd Street Y Harkness Dance Festival, Dance Theater Workshop (now New York Live Arts), Central Park Summerstage, Baryshnikov Arts Center, and The Sheen Center. Their 2008 Guggenheim Fellowship was the first in the history of the Guggenheim Foundation to be given to two individuals for their collaborative work.
