SEAS: Sustainable Environment through the Arts & Sciences Upcoming event: SEAS: Plastics, Coral, Ice, and Earth at the Yamaha Artist Services, New York Apr 11, 2018, 7:00 PM. RSVP Climate change and environmental sustainability are rapidly snowballing global concerns, still poorly understood, inadequately addressed. Recognizing the problem as arising from (mis)communication, and driven to bring these issues to public attention, Juliann began searching for creative new languages to spark reform of how we understand and treat our planet. A melting pot of eclectic talents, SEAS unites artists and scientists in creating unique performing arts immersions translating environmental research into tangible, visceral experiences, awakening audiences to the impact we have on nature. SEAS seeks to challenge and diversify traditional audiences, roles, and settings of classical music, contemporary dance, and scientific research, serving as an innovative platform for professionals and audiences to interact and share ideas across often-segregated fields that would benefit through collaboration. SEAS Presents: Plastics, Coral, Ice & Earth Wednesday, April 11, 7 pm, the Yamaha Artist Services, New York. RSVP here We at the SEAS project invite you to join us at New York’s Yamaha Artist Services for an interactive concert and open discussion of our responsibilities in the face of a changing climate, and our common aspiration to manage human impact on our environment, and to achieve sustainability. ‘Plastic, Coral, Ice & Earth’ bring together leaders from diverse fields including music, dance, film, science, and education to join the audience in an open discussion of of our shared responsibility to better our environment. Given the limited reach of scientific publication, and the polarizing nature of the topic, communicating the subtle gravitas of climate change is notoriously challenging. SEAS attempts instead to communicate this global issue as a visceral, emotional message via its unique collaboration. We distill the scientific argument into an accessible message expressed as a performance, tangibly felt and easily shared. The event will feature live performances of music and choreography inspired by recent environmental observations, including two world premieres: a story of plastics in the ocean, and of disappearing ice. Also featured are musical classics reinterpreted as calls to save coral reefs, seabirds, and address other stresses on our planet. Each performance will be introduced by the artists and Jared Brewer (PhD candidate in Atmospheric Science, CSU; NOAA), who will also lead a Q&A session to reinforce, and discuss the goals and messaging of SEAS. SEAS will also present our debut music video, and discuss the storied history of the formation of our artistic collective. The event will be filmed and edited into a mini-documentary, in the hopes that it may inspire action beyond the guests of the the event. Please join us on April 11, at 7pm, and bring an open mind and a desire to do good. Entry is free and open to all, but you are encouraged to support our work via a donation. This event, and our continued collaboration is made possible by generous support from our sponsors. Program: ‘Rise, Awaken’, choreography by SEAS, music by Maurice RAVEL (‘Sad Birds’ 1905) - Deforestation. ‘Mircro Scope’ choreography by Angela FALK & Jesse OBREMSKI, music by Hannah SUN (‘The Whales’ 2018). Plastics in the ocean. World premiere! ‘Isostasy’ choreographed by Peter FARROW & Thomas WOODMAN, music by Marc EVANS (‘Formations’ 2014). Calving and melting of ice mass wordwide, rising sea levels. World premiere! ‘Greef’, choreography by Juliann MA, music by Maurice RAVEL (‘A boat on the ocean’ 1905) - Vanishing coral reefs. ‘Rebirth’, solo Igor STRAVINSKY (‘The Firebird Suite’ 1910 arr. Guido AGOSTI) - Climate change - 2017 mudslides and fires. Rise, Awaken In their debut music video, SEAS draws us into the world of birds. The artists step into the skins of a species endangered by our continued exploitation of our environment and are transported instantly into their realm, fraught with hunger, disease, plastics, pollution, deforestation, fires, and oil spills. Trapped in bird bodies, the artists undergo a transformation, until the human spirit and bird are one, suffering and diminishing together. It is Juliann’s hope that these works will stir audiences to take an active role in safeguarding the home they share with all life on Earth through mindful lifestyle practices (e.g. responsible recycling, composting, disposing, keeping up to date on environmental news, research, and policy), outreach, education, support for sustainable energy and conservation efforts. Events SEAS features their first major production April 11th, 2018, at 7 P.M. at Yamaha Artist Services New York, located in the heart of midtown Manhattan on Fifth Avenue and E 54th Street. This will be a 1 1/2 hour event, including 2 world premieres of all-new musical compositions and choreography, highlighting 3 global concerns centering on the ocean: disappearing coral reefs, disappearing ice, and the pervasiveness and hazards of plastic. An open discussion panel will be led by the team’s environmental consultant, Jared Brewer, NOAA, PhD candidate, Colorado State University. Previously, SEAS presented their first Open Workshop in May of 2016, in which they tested and built upon their choreography live in an interactive demo + discussion workshop with the audience. In November the same year, SEAS, gave its world premiere performance of Ravel’s complete Miroirs suite as part of Mannes Sounds Festival: Mirrors of Nature, curated by J.Y. Song. This past November, SEAS featured a live performance of ‘Rise, Awaken’ choreographed uniquely for Juliann Ma’s solo debut at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Recital Hall RSVP here. Support SEAS is made possible in part thanks to the Marin Alsop Entrepreneurship Award and Father Merlet Grant. SEAS salutes Maestro Marin Alsop (Baltimore Symphony Orchestra), Ms. Norma Deull, and Pro Musicis Foundation for their support through these grants, and to Mannes: The New School for Music and Yamaha Artist Services Inc. for generous extension of their resources and filming locations. If you would like to support SEAS directly, please consider donating to our cause. GIFT VIA PAYPAL SEAS thanks also the following individuals for their donated consultation, contributions, and general support: Stefania Bulbarella, Shimon Dotan, Hope Dougherty, Stanislav Fridman, John Haag, Casey Hess, Tanya Kalmanovitch, Ilia Lebedev, Qing Qing Miao, Aaron Ross, Lara Saldanha, Benjamin Simoens, J.Y. Song, and James Waldo. To support, partner with, or find out how you may join or feature SEAS, contact Juliann Ma . Our Collaborators Angela Falk Angela Falk earned her BFA at The Juilliard School, receiving the school’s highest award, the Joseph W. Polisi “Artist as Citizen” prize, for her work in the community. She is now in her first season dancing with the Limón Dance Company in New York City. She has performed works by choreographers Danielle Agami, Rosie Herrera, Larry Keigwin, Kate Weare, Matthew Neenan, Richard Alston, Ohad Naharin, Annabelle Lopez-Ochoa, Zvi Gotheiner, and Loni Landon, as well as classics by Paul Taylor, Martha Graham, among others. She trained with the School at Jacobs Pillow, the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance, the Joffrey Ballet, and the Boston Ballet. Angela recently danced with the Buglisi Dance Theatre under Jacqulyn Buglisi’s direction and was a principal dancer for the 2017 film biography “Reed Hansen, The Sacrosanct Accompanist,” cataloging the life and times of Martha Graham’s longtime accompanist. As a choreographer, Angela is a recipient of Juilliard’s Michael Marks Fellowship, and her work has been performed at venues around New York City including Juilliard’s Peter Jay Sharp Theater (2015-2017), Juilliard’s Meredith Wilson Theater (2016-2017), Ballet Tech, and Triskelion Arts. Her work has also been performed in New Orleans (2015) and the San Francisco Bay Area (2013). Angela Falk grew up dancing in the Bay Area at the California Academy of Performing Arts. Hannah Sun Hannah Sun is a soloist, chamber musician, teacher, composer-improviser, and poet. Currently a faculty member and collaborative artist at Stetson University, Florida, Ms. Sun has composed for solo piano, chamber music including a piano trio, piano quartet, string quartet, and preludes for orchestra, all premiered at The Juilliard School as part of the Double Vision concert series. Her compositional inspiration ranges from weaving her poetry with music in her quartet “Wind over Water” for baritone voice, clarinet, French horn, and cello, to experimenting with period instruments such as fortepiano and baroque cello in “Driftwood,” a two-movement work echoing the shores of Maine. An alumna of Kneisel Hall Chamber Music Festival, she has conducted workshops on composition, improvisation, and ensemble playing at Kneisel Hall-Blue Hill: Together in Music, an outreach program that connects the festival to the local community. An advocate for social justice, Ms. Sun has also arranged a collection of hymns for collaborative performances in churches and correctional facilities throughout the United States and Japan. She earned her Bachelor and Master of Music degrees at The Juilliard School studying piano performance with Seymour Lipkin and Jerome Lowenthal, and composition with Philip Lasser. Jared F. Brewer Jared F. Brewer is an experienced physical scientist and policy wonk. Jared is currently pursuing a PhD in Atmospheric Chemistry at Colorado State University. Previously, he worked at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) in Washington, DC as a Knauss Fellowship recipient. His expertise spans policy analysis, data analysis, science, environmental policy, and public policy. Jared holds a Master of Science (MS) focused in Marine Biogeochemistry & Marine Policy and a Bachelor of Science (BS) focused in Oceanography & Marine Policy from Stanford University. Jared enjoys biking, skiing, reading Twitter, and – as his name might suggest – brewing beer. Jesse Obremski Jesse Obremski, a native New Yorker described by DanceTabs as one “with fluent simplicity” and “quiet understanding”, trained at The Ailey School, and has graduated from Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School (2012), and The Juilliard School (2016), under the direction of Lawrence Rhodes. Jesse, an Eagle Scout Rank recipient, Father Fame Awardee, the Jadin Wong Dance Awardee (2016), administered by the Asian American Arts Alliance, and “Dancer to Watch” by Interview En L’air (2017), has also attended Springboard Danse Montreal, Earl Mosley’s Institute of the Arts (EMIA), and Jacob’s Pillow’s Contemporary Program. Jesse has performed works by Kyle Abraham, Robert Battle, Brian Brooks, Stijn Celis, Nacho Duato, Jasmine Ellis, Sharon Eyal, Martha Graham (principle role), José Limón (soloist and principle roles), Lar Lubovitch, Earl Mosley, Ohad Naharin, Crystal Pite, Paul Taylor (principle role), and Kate Weare amongst others. Jesse has performed with Diversity of Dance Inc., Kate Weare Company, Brian Brooks Moving Company, Wilder Project, Smashworks Dance Collective, Buglisi Dance Theatre, Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, and the Limón Dance Company. Jesse has been on faculty across Canada and America with FRESH Dance Intensive, Bay Ridge Ballet, EMIA, MOVE(NYC), and guest faculty at LaGuardia High School, Montclair State University, and The University of Hawai’i at Manoa.. His choreography has been presented at EMIA, Playscape 2016, The Juilliard School’s Choreographic Honors Concert and has been commissioned by Zest Collective and NOVA: Movement and Sound for choreographic work. He also enjoys singing, stagecraft, and photography. Kara Chan Kara Chan is a New York based artist and teacher, hailing from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Currently, Kara dances with Twyla Tharp Dance and Pam Tanowitz Dance. Well versed in classical and modern styles, Kara has performed as a guest artist with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, Mark Morris Dance Group, and has additionally appeared with the Merce Cunningham Trust, Keigwin + Co, Janis Brenner & Dancers, Kathryn Posin Dance Company, Gleich Dances, Trainor Dance and MorDance. A BFA graduate from The Juilliard School, Kara was the recipient of the inaugural Juilliard Career Advancement Fellowship Award (2015). Kara has a passion for teaching and is on faculty at Tate Academy and New York Music & Arts. Marc Evans Marc Evans’ music has been featured at festivals in the US and internationally, including the Seoul International Computer Music Festival, the Atlantic Music Festival, and the Bowdoin International Music Festival, where he won the Composition Contest in 2015. He has collaborated with artists such as Aperture Duo, Hocket Duo, the Formalist Quartet, and Ignition Duo. Marc has a strong interest in computers, interactivity, and algorithmic composition, which he has been exploring as a PhD student in Music Composition, and as an MS student in Media Arts and Technology, at UC Santa Barbara. In particular, he is interested in working with systems that, as Luciano Berio put it, establish an “organic and unstable reciprocity” between their elements. He hopes that, as computers become more and more integrated into the fabric of our lives, we can take the time to interact with them thoughtfully, and with an eye towards the human and environmental impacts of our actions. Peter Farrow Peter Farrow began dancing in 2005 in Richmond, Virginia, and is currently pursuing his BFA at the Juilliard School. He started in Richmond Ballet’s youth outreach program Minds In Motion, which allowed him to perform throughout Virginia and in New York City with the National Dance Institute and Rosie’s Broadway Kids. He began his formal training two years later at the School of Richmond Ballet, where he later became a trainee for the 2013-14 season. Over the years, Peter has performed works by choreographers such as Emery LeCrone, Ohad Naharin, José Límon, Jerome Robbins, Menghan Lou, Nacho Duato, Maxine Doyle, and others. He has also attended summer programs at Juilliard, Arts Umbrella, Nederlands Dans Theater, and Springboard Danse Montreal. SooA Kim SooA Kim is a multimedia artist based in New York. She works primarily with the mediums of sound, performance and video installation. Her work has been selected for eminent exhibitions across the globe including at Industry City, Hecksher Museum of Art, Pier Sixty, Abrons Art Center, Sheila C. Johnson Design Center, NRM Gallery, 25 East Gallery, Edison Price Lighting Gallery, The Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College, Mannes College The New School for Music in New York; Hermitage Museum of Art in Russia; RomaNeum Concert Hall, Landesmusikakademie NRW, Düsseldorf Festival in Germany; and Toronto Centre for the Arts in Canada. Her current works examine socially constructed ideas within the sphere of performing arts, creating interdisciplinary work that brings together contemporary fine arts, music and cinematic theatre. She has received BFA from Parsons the New School for Design and is currently a candidate for Video and Media Design MFA at Carnegie Mellon University. Thomas Woodman Thomas Woodman started his dance career at three years old in the Bay Area, California. By fourteen, he began his professional career when he was hired into Mark Foehringer Dance Project | San Francisco (MFDP|SF) and began freelancing with various companies throughout northern California. After touring in Peru with MFDP|SF and working as Assistant to the Director, he moved to New York to begin his BFA at The Juilliard School. While at Juilliard, Thomas has had the opportunity to perform original works by Gustavo Ramirez Sansano, Aszure Barton, Pam Tanowitz, and Austin McCormick. He has performed repertory of Paul Taylor, Jose Limón, Mark Morris, and Merce Cunningham. Thomas attended Movement Invention Project and Springboard Danse Montreal. Thomas also pursues numerous leadership through and around Juilliard. Copyright © 2018 JULIANN MA. All Rights Reserved. Biography Work Concerts Photography Press Contact