New York City Ballet - Justin Peck & Sufjan Stevens (EXCERPTS)

On Sun and Mon, Sept 23 and 24,2012, Works & Process at the Guggenheim Presented New York City Ballet principals Joaquin De Luz, Robert Fairchild, Craig Hall, Tiler Peck, Teresa Reichlen, and Janie Taylor accompanied by musicians from the New York City Ballet orchestra, performing a special string quartet arrangement by Michael Atkinson, performing excerpts from the October 5 world premiere of choreographer Justin Peck's new work "Year of the Rabbit." Commissioned by New York City Balllet, the collaboration with composer Sufjan Stevens and Michael Atkinson was set to music Stevens wrote for "Enjoy Your Rabbit," an electronica album and song cycle based on the Chinese zodiac. For the new ballet, Stevens and Peck collaborated on all aspects of the production, including a new orchestration of "Enjoy Your Rabbit," created specifically for the ballet. The Stevens/Peck ballet will be an elaboration of Peck's "Tales of a Chinese Zodiac," which the choreographer created on students from the School of American Ballet for the New York Choreographic Institute's 2010 summer session, and was then presented at the Institute's 10th Anniversary Celebration at the Miller Theatre at Columbia University in November 2010. Peck, Stevens, and Atkinson discussed their creative process with moderator Ellen Bar.

PANEL
Michael Atkinson, music arrangement and conductor
Ellen Bar, moderator
Justin Peck, choreographer
Sufjan Stevens, composer

PERFORMERS
Joaquin De Luz, principal
Robert Fairchild, principal
Craig Hall, principal
Tiler Peck, principal
Janie Taylor, principal

Michael Atkinson, conductor
Maureen Gallagher, viola
Lydia Hong, violin
Eugene Moye, cello
Kurt Nikkanen, violin