



december 5-6, 2026
*WINTER RHAPSODY*
DANCES WE DANCE
2026 WINTER SEASON
THE WEST END THEATRE
263 West 86th st 2nd fl
New York ny 10024
Saturday, December 5 at 7:30 pm
Sunday, December 6 at 2:00 pm and 5:30 pm
Tickets $25/$35
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On December 5 & 6, Dances We Dance is delighted to present its Winter 2026 season with the Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble, bringing together works that explore femininity, identity, spiritual and the evocative relationship between music, visual art, and movement.
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Join us for an evening of winter celebration, with choreography from across the generations, with choreography by Isadora Duncan, Anna Sokolow, Charles Weidman, DWD artistic director Francesca Todesco, guest choreographers Sandra Kaufmann and Ann Moradian, and DWD member Rosy Gentle.
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Now all serving as artistic directors of their respective companies, Francesca Todesco, Samantha Geracht, and Lauren Naslund share a long history of dancing together. Reuniting their artistic visions and creative sensibilities, they bring to the stage an emotionally rich evening of dance that celebrates their shared artistic journey while offering fresh perspectives on the power of movement to express the complexity of the human experience.
​Fuga y Misterio
Choreography by Francesca Todesco (2022), with an additional new section by Rosy Gentle (2026)
Music: Astor Piazzolla
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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.
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Hidden Light
Choreography by Sandra Kaufmann (Premier, Athens 2026)
Music: Hildegard Von Bingen
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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.
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Two Preludes
Choreography by Anna Sokolow
Taught and coached by Evelyn Shepard
Music: Sergei Rachmaninov
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A passionate, introspective solo created by Anna Sokolow for Evelyn Shepard, who has taught it to ST/DE company member Margaret Mighty Oak Brackey.
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Les Jeunes Filles
Choreography by Francesca Todesco
Music: Mozart Serenade No. 10
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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.
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Ave Maria
Choreography by Isadora Duncan (c1914 at Carnegie Hall)
Staging: Francesca Todesco
Music: Schubert Ave Maria, D.839
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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. This piece will be performed by students of DWD Echoes of Isadora's fall workshop.
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Avinash (Sanskrit for indestructible)
Choreography by Ann Moradian (1994)
Music: Loreena McKennitt Tango To Evora
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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.
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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
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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.
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