Clymove's DANCE GALA 2023 Honoring ELISA MONTE
Company:
Clymove Dance
SAVE THE DATE for the DANCE GALA 2023 Honoring ELISA MONTE
May 26 & 27, 7 PM
Center for Performance Research, 361 Manhattan Avenue, Brooklyn
CLYMOVE Dance will present an evening-length concert choreographed by Clymene Aldinger, former Principal Dancer with Elisa Monte Dance (2009-2017) and Elisa Monte’s last protégé, on May 26th and 27th, 2023, 7:00 PM, at Center for Performance Research in Brooklyn, New York.
CLYMOVE is a message-driven dance company committed to virtuosic dance focused on authentic self-exploration. As a newly formed 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, CLYMOVE will present Clymene Aldinger’s choreographic works 2021-present in honor of her mentor and artistic advisor, Elisa Monte. There will be a post-performance party and social fundraising event on opening night, May 26th.
The inspiration for CLYMOVE’s first annual dance gala is the fervent wish to celebrate all the women responsible for the company’s successful dance journey thus far. It is most apt that we have chosen Clymene Aldinger’s mentor, Elisa Monte, as our first Honoree. In honoring Ms. Monte we hope to tell our story, to document on the stage CLYMOVE’s beginnings, which instrumentally includes her teachings. We desire to highlight a genealogy, a unique lineage of modern/contemporary dance that praises the gift of womanhood and mentorship in dance. We hope that CLYMOVE is an example of what happens when women support each other and share wisdom. Within a two hour program you will experience everything that has been created by CLYMOVE since we began in 2021.
CLYMENE ALDINGER, CLYMOVE FOUNDER, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR, & CHOREOGRAPHER
Clymene Aldinger, MA, LMHC (NY, NY) originally from Jacksonville, Florida, graduated with a BFA in Dance and with an Honors Award for Distinction in Choreography from The Ailey School/Fordham University in 2002. During her time at The Ailey School, under the direction of Denise Jefferson and Ana-Marie Forsythe, she performed for numerous acclaimed choreographers and apprenticed with Sean Curran Company. Clymene then spent several years as dance faculty, teaching and choreographing for Douglas Anderson School of the Arts in Jacksonville, Florida, and remains on faculty as a guest artist (DASOTA is also Clymene’s alma mater, where she has been honored with several prestigious awards) . Clymene graduated with a MA in Mental Health Counseling from Rollins College in 2006, and worked as a Specialist in Student Counseling at the University of Central Florida Counseling Center until her move back to NY in 2009. At both universities Clymene developed and facilitated racial/social justice, leadership, and community engagement programs, as well as psychoeducational workshops and group therapy. She is currently a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in the State of New York in private practice: Artist Within, Psychotherapy for Artists & Creative Professionals since 2009.
Clymene performed with Elisa Monte Dance for eight years. Elisa Monte Dance was a critically acclaimed dance company in New York City that toured domestically and internationally for forty years. Clymene joined the company as a Lead Dancer and performed as Principal Dancer for seven years until her retirement in June 2017. One of her favorite performances was her first professional tour to Italy and Luxembourg in 2010, where she performed for the Duke and Duchess of Luxembourg/Royal Family. Clymene acknowledges Elisa Monte as a lifelong mentor, and assists her in teaching and setting choreography all over the world. In her time with the company, she performed 20 of Elisa Monte's choreographic works, including Monte’s seminal Treading. Clymene teaches and performs in Bali, Thailand, China, Florida and NYC.
She is the Founder and Artistic Director of CLYMOVE Dance, Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit established in Brooklyn, NY in 2021. The company premiered her first evening-length production Femmenisto Chapter One in December 2021, followed by a second annual NYC season in December 2022: both received full house standing ovations. Clymene also holds a MA in Performance Studies from New York University, Tisch School of the Arts. Lastly, in addition to the birth of a new dream, forming her own dance company and exploring her choreographic vision, Clymene became a proud mother of two.
Photo credits:
- Roy Volkmann / Elisa Monte (permission to use from Monte)
- Theik Smith / Clymene Aldinger
- Kasai NYC / JoVonna Parks + Bridget Cronin
