ARTS

Yaledancers to perform in fi rst full capacity performance since pandemic

BY BRI ANDERSON CONTRIBUTING REPORTER

Yaledancers’ fall show, “After Dark” will debut this Thursday, marking the first time the company has performed for a full audience since before the COVID-19 pandemic began.

The oldest dance company at Yale, YD features a wide variety of dance styles, including classical and modern ballet, jazz, hip hop and modern. “After Dark” will run from Nov. 3 to Nov. 5 at the ECA Theater on Audubon Street, beginning at 8:00 p.m. and lasting approximately one and a half hours.

“We are hoping that it will be a packed house,” said YD treasurer Colby Bladow ’24. “We have six new members of the company, and they are all incredible with their own styles that they’ll be bringing. The six taps have their own piece they’ll be choreographing, so that will be fun.”

Bladow emphasized the diversity across styles and music featured in the show, adding that there is something for everyone — be it a slow lyrical piece, a ballet piece or a fast-paced jazz dance.

All the pieces are student choreographed, and include the music of Amber Run, Adele, Stevie Nicks and Miley Cyrus.

“At the beginning of each semester, anyone who is a member of the YD can propose a piece that they’re interested in choreographing to the entire company, and we’ll decide what they want to do,” Publicity Chair Santana Vannarath ’24 said, explainYaledancers will put on their fall show ‘After Dark’ Nov. 3 through Nov. 5 at the ECA Theater on Audubon Street.

YALE DAILY NEWS

ing the company’s process of choosing music and dance styles for this show. “So basically it’s a collage of different things everyone wanted to do.”

The overall tone of the pieces will tie back to the central theme of “After Dark,” in keeping with YD tradition of framing the show’s theme around the final dance in its program. Debuting the weekend after Halloween, the show is “a little sexy, a little spooky, and gives this fun, youthful night time energy,” according to YD Publicity Chair Molly Smith ’25.

“‘After Dark’ is about creating the aesthetic of a fun, youthful vibe,” Publicity Chair Molly Smith ’25 told the News. ”That’s the energy of our company.”

Smith described YD as the “highest caliber of dance” available at the University, emphasizing the company’s high level of athleticism and artistic ability.

Bladow, too, told the News that the show would be a tribute to the company’s appreciation for dance and art.

She wants people to come away from the show feeling inspired, having had fun and having enjoyed seeing their performance.

“We work very, very hard and have been practicing the pieces since early September,” Smith added. “I’m really proud of what we’ve created.”

Tickets for the fall show cost $10 and are available online.

Contact BRI ANDERSON at bri.anderson@yale.edu .

School of Music hosts pianist Jan Jiracek von Arnim

TIM TAI/PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR

Pianist Jan Jiracek Arnim, who Yale recently tenured, performed a piano recital at the Yale School of Music.

BY MIA CORTÉS CASTRO CONTRIBUTING REPORTER

On Wednesday, Nov. 2, pianist Jan Jiracek von Arnim will perform a piano recital at the Yale School of Music.

Jiracek von Arnim was recently appointed visiting professor at the School of Music. The pianist is the youngest tenured professor at the University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna. He is an enthusiastic public figure and his passion for music matches his love of teaching.

Jiracek von Arnim stressed the importance of balancing performing and teaching in his career as an international pianist.

“Both are extremely interconnected,” Jiracek von Arnim said. “It is very important for every musician to follow their heart and express something, but also to give your head a question. It is about the emotions you are transmitting but it is about your control. I want to be a storyteller as a musician, so I hope I can get my audience to forget that they live in 2022 and just connect.”

Learning new piano repertoire is a regular part of Jiracek von Armin’s artistic practice, routine and life philosophy. He believes in the power of achieving deeper meaning behind the physical action of daily instrumental practice and performance. Helping other musicians is a form of doing just that on a daily basis, he explained, because he is able to pass down knowledge to the current generation as his mentors once did for him.

This is equally inspiring for students who have the potential of both hearing and studying with him.

“To me, Jiracek’s dedication to teaching makes him a complete artist. It’s such a blessing to be in a place where we have access to these opportunities,” said Gillian Mui ’26.

Music-loving Yalies are looking forward to Jiracek von Arnim’s performance, which is part of the Horowitz Piano Series.

“As a student who really enjoys music, it is wonderful to get an opportunity to hear excellent repertoire performed at such a high level on just a normal weeknight,” said Evan Daneker ’26.

Jiracek von Arnim’s own artistic process involves asking existential questions in relation to the music he learns and interprets. His choice of repertory for the Wednesday night concert is personal.

“I chose to play Beethoven because it is extremely connected to Vienna and my origins but also [as I am coming to Yale as a teacher], I wanted to bring Liszt- to tell my students to make them look for connections,” Jiracek von Arnim said. “I want to fi nd a way to bridge Beethoven to Liszt.”

Paul Ji ’26, a Young Steinway Artist, said that he “especially liked how at the concert in France [von Arnim] gave the audience a spoken introduction to each piece by o ering background information as well as his own insights and interpretative thoughts. “It is always a matter of trying again and getting better,” Jiracek von Arnim said. “You can’t say to an audience that you will simply repeat what you played the day before — there is no safety on the stages, never something stays the same … in music there is never an ending”.

After all his international accomplishments, Jiracek von Arnim’s goal is to “always stay open” and that is why he looks forward to continuing teaching and connecting to the new generation of musicians.