The Bryn Mawr Film Institute (BMFI), located at 824 W. Lancaster Avenue in Bryn Mawr, PA, is a non-profit community theater founded in 2002 by the region’s academic, business, and civic leaders. Their goal has been to strengthen the community by providing the opportunity for diverse segments to meet, learn, share ideas, and develop talents and understanding through the catalyst of film.
BMFI shows independent, international, documentary, art, and repertory films. These fine films form the nucleus around which the community development and educational programs of the Institute revolve. Over 2,000 patrons visit BMFI weekly for films, classes, and special events.
A core component of BMFI’s programming includes a healthy slate of dance performances on film as well as through simulcast/broadcast through two of their distributors, Emerging Pictures and SpectiCast. Executive Director Juliet Goodfriend put it best, “We know that our patrons are interested in dance. We know that because we get requests for them and because audiences show up!”
BMFI’s Fall 2012 season offers a wide selection to its patrons starting with Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake on Thursday, September 27, 2012 at 7 pm. On Sunday, October 21 at 1:00 pm, see the beautiful L’Altra Metá del Cielo, choreographed by Martha Clarke to the music of Italian rock star Vasco Rossi and performed at the Teatro alla Scala in Milan. Then on Sunday, November 25 at 1:00 pm, experience An Evening with Kylian/Inger/Walerski, featuring work by Jiri Kylian and his protégés Medhi Walerski and Johan Inger performed by the Netherlands Dance Theatre. Finally, celebrate the season with the Royal Ballet’s production of the holiday classic The Nutcracker, showing on Sunday, December 23 at 1:00 pm.
Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake
Bryn Mawr Film Institute will be showing an HD broadcast of Matthew Bourne’s modern interpretation of the celebrated masterpiece Swan Lake, which features a predominantly male cast. The ballet will be screened on Thursday, September 27 at 7:00 pm and will feature a special introduction by Maurice Kaplow, the internationally recognized retired conductor of the New York City Ballet.
Swan Lake is the well-known tale of a young prince and an enchanted swan who tragically fall in love with each other. In this daring production, director and choreographer Matthew Bourne holds true to the famous story and Tchaikovsky’s marvelous music, but boldly replaces the historically female dance corps with a predominantly male cast. The ensemble includes Richard Winsor as the lead swan (Odette), Dominic North as the prince, and Nina Goldman as the queen. Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake has won over 30 awards, including three Tonys for Best Director, Best Choreography, and Best Costume Design. The longest running ballet in the West End and on Broadway, it has been a success since its premiere in 1995, thanks to the brilliance of Bourne’s modern interpretation. The show runs 120 minutes, and was recorded at Sadler’s Wells Theatre in London in 2011.
Maurice Kaplow, who is introducing the screening, has had an admirable career in the arts as a conductor as well as a violist, composer, and teacher. Kaplow joined the New York City Ballet in 1990 and was named principle conductor in 2006. In addition, before joining the New York City Ballet, Kaplow conducted the Pennsylvania Ballet. He has also guest conducted for many other orchestras, including the Philadelphia Orchestra, where he had previously been a violist. Kaplow has composed a number of works—including Return, commissioned by Penn State University, and Signatures for the Pennsylvania Ballet—and is a founder of the Pennsylvania Orchestra.
Tickets for Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake are $20.00 for general admission, $18.00 for Bryn Mawr Film Institute members, and $10.00 for students with ID. Advance tickets are available in person at the Box Office and online at www.BrynMawrFilm.org.
For a full schedule of upcoming events and classes, visit www.BrynMawrFilm.org.
