Shapiro & Smith Dance Company

Anytown

"With grace and grand humor, Shapiro & Smith Dance demonstrated just how every-day situations can be turned into art." - The Maui News

"Demanding virtuoso dance ... inherently musical and marvelously expressive." - London Sunday Telegraph

A full-evening work featuring a fully-staged set and multi-media design, Anytown: Stories of America pairs the legendary music of Bruce Springsteen, Patti Scialfa, and Soozie Tyrell, the stunning choreography of husband-and-wife team Danial Shapiro and Joni Smith, and a cast of world-class dancers.

Inspired by the period between the two World Wars and featuring a multi-generational case of nine dancers, Anytown evokes the timeless plight of the working class so relevant to the current time - the daily struggles, life challenges and deep intimacies that make up humankind. The New York Times praises, "Shapiro and Smith touched on the subjects of love, death and hilariously grotesque excess. This program stood out for strong, sharp-edged dancing and a daring theatrical reality unusual in these days of pared-down dance presentation."

Anytown: Stories of America premiered in Philadelphia in October 2005, and has received rave reviews at every stop on its tour. The Tampa Tribune describes it as "a production without hesitation. If you have hesitated about going to the theater to see contemporary dance, this show takes you to the floor of your youth ... real choreography that - in your dreams - you could do."

A portrayal of three families, Anytown is set during a time when communities were broken and wealth was measured in human spirit. The performance explores the relationships within and among the three families, contextualizing universal experiences of American life with compelling choreography and contemporary music by American icons Bruce Springsteen, his wife Patti Scialfa and Soozie Tyrell, formerly of the Boss's legendary E Street Band. Performed to songs including "Crazy Talk" (Tyrell), "When You're Young in the City" (Scialfa) and "Human Touch" (Springsteen), this riveting interpretation of life, love and loss is about - and for - all of us.

This performance is funded in part by the National Dance Project of the New England Foundation for the Arts, with lead funding from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. Additional funding is provided by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and the Ford Foundation.