A Green Afternoon

Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre will present “Green Afternoon IX,” an excerpt from “Threads,” on August 6, at 5 p.m. at the home of architects Marcia Previti and Peter Gumpel, 230 Old Stone Highway, East Hampton. This outdoor performance will be held in a unique garden setting, featuring movement installations in the various outdoor “rooms” throughout the property and a seated performance on the great lawn. Wine and hors d’oeuvres will be served.

“‘Threads’ explores what holds us together in isolation and the practice of letting go,” said Amanda Selwyn, artistic director of the dance company. “This pandemic has brought into focus where priorities are, the value of our human connections, and the very fleeting nature of it all. We are just a moment away from change. The threads can be fixed, torn, mended, or woven. The music and the movement in this innovative evening-length work will embody these ties that hold us together and their fragility to pull us apart.

“This is a story of heartbreak, forgiveness, loss, new beginnings, agency, and powerlessness. Threads build bridges, celebrate differences, and connect us. We are only as alone as the next knot — accidental or purposeful. We are meant to be tangled in this dance of our lives,” she continued. “‘Threads’ is a tribute to the grit and resilience of this moment — a willingness to do the work and to inquire, to sit in uncertainty and ponder what is on the other side. It starts as a thread of an idea and, from that thread, a fabric of meaning emerges. One thread at a time. By listening, pulling, teasing, tearing at each piece. Showing up in it. We can only see when our minds, eyes, and hearts are open. We can only see when we are ready. When we aren’t looking. In this pause, we step forward and balance on a thread to discover divine beauty. We measure risk, we acknowledge what is gone, we let go.”

Dancers for this performance include Torrey Harada, Manon Hallay, Misaki Hayama, David Hochberg, Isaac Kerr, Minseon Kim, Ashley McQueen, Michael Miles, Oscar Antonio Rodriguez, Lauren Russo, John Trunfio and Evita Zacharioglou.

Founded in 2000, Amanda Selwyn Dance Theatre has presented over 95 productions at New York City and other venues. The company creates dynamic dance theater that activates emotional expression in a rich and abstract collage. Through an interplay between athletic and articulate motion, the dancers present theatrical and immediate works that engage audiences and beckon a response of thought, feeling and soul.

Tickets to the August 6 performance are $150 ($500 patron tickets) and are available at amandaselwyndance.org.