Danse Lumière will showcase highlights from "The James Joyce Ballet"
and other works by Kathryn Roszak in pop-up performance at City Center March 30.

WHERE AND WHEN:
March 30, 2026 at 8:30 PM
City Center, 131 W 55th St. (enter stage entrance, 130 West 56th St., 5th floor.)
Presented by Danse Lumière
$30 gen. adm., $20 seniors & students
Buy tickets: https://tinyurl.com/5n7av3d9
Runs :30-:45
Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/sbtZFCuuC8eiHP8TA

NEW YORK, March 3 -- On March 30 at 8:30 PM, Danse Lumière, led by Artistic Director Kathryn Roszak, will present "Pop Up Ballet at City Center," an evening of highlights from "The James Joyce Ballet" and other works, at City Center's Studio 5, 131 West 55th Street (enter stage entrance, 130 West 56th St., 5th floor). This pop-up performance is intended to showcase new works that are now available for touring and to share new directions in Roszak's work, which merges choreography with classic texts.

The 45-minute program, choreographed by Roszak, will be danced by Max Barker (ABT), Jonatan Lujan (Metropolitan Opera Ballet), Maisee Anderson (formerly National Ballet of Canada) and Claire Bucci (formerly Atlanta Ballet). Music will be provided by guitarist Miles Johnson (https://www.ziggyandmiles.com/).

"The James Joyce Ballet" is a compilation of dances inspired by Joyce's major works, including "Ulysses," "Finnegans Wake" and the short story "The Dead." Beyond Joyce’s literature, the choreography explores the lives of his wife, Nora Barnacle, and their daughter, Lucia Joyce, who was herself a talented modern dancer. This highlights version of the work does not include spoken text.

In its development, "The James Joyce Ballet" has featured notable dancers including Max Barker of the American Ballet Theatre II and Maisee Anderson, formerly of National Ballet of Canada. Highlights of the work took stage June 15, 2025 at the United Irish Cultural Center in San Francisco to celebrate Bloomsday. It will be mounted again in the San Francisco Bay area in August, 2026 and the company is preparing an international tour of the work to Ireland and Croatia. 

Beside a sample of "The James Joyce Ballet," the program, in formation as of this writing, will also include an excerpt from "The Unspoken," based on "The House of the Spirits" by Chilean-American magical realist Isabel Allende, and other dances TBD.

ABOUT CHOREOGRAPHER KATHRYN ROSZAK
Kathryn Roszak was recently recognized by Oprah Daily (https://tinyurl.com/4wwhh9a5) for her work bridging literature, dance and women's leadership in the arts . Her adaptations of literary works include a ballet inspired by Isabel Allende's "The House of the Spirits" and tributes to figures like Jane Austen. She is the daughter of Theodore Roszak (author "The Making of a Counterculture") and feminist poet Betty Roszak ("Masculine/Feminine:Readings in Sexual Mythology and the Liberation of Women"). Her great uncle is the NY visual artist Theodore Roszak. She trained on Ford Foundation scholarships at San Francisco Ballet and at the School of American Ballet in New York and performed with San Francisco Opera Ballet, San Francisco Ballet and San Antonio Ballet. She also trained as an actor in the Advanced Training Program of ACT in San Francisco and LAMDA. She has performed, choreographed and/or taught at ACT, Berkeley Rep, San Francisco Opera Center, Shakespeare Festival and the Berkeley Symphony with Kent Nagano. She has been presented in New York by La MaMa, Scandinavia House, 92nd Street Y and Martha Graham Dance Series. In 1995, she founded Danse Lumière (known as Anima Mundi until 2006), recognized for adapting outstanding works of literature for stage and screen, and for highlighting works by women. She founded the Women Directors, Choreographers and Composers Program taking place in San Francisco and NYC. Her unique approach brings new audiences to classical art forms by blending and innovating within the disciplines of dance, literature, music, visual art and theater.

ABOUT THE DANCERS
Maisee Anderson trained at SF Ballet School and National Ballet of Canada. She guested recently with Columbia Ballet.

Max Barker trained with Fabrice Herrault, danced with ABT Studio Company, and was featured in Balanchine’s "Tarantella." He has guested with Ballet Venezia and Danse Lumiere and now dances with ABT.

Claire Bucci danced with Atlanta Ballet and attends Columbia University, dancing most recently in Balanchine’s "Valse Fantasie."

Jonatan Lujan dances with Metropolitan Opera Ballet. He’s partnered Misty Copeland and will dance in Balanchine’s "Apollo" with Ballet Vancouver in NYC. He will guest with Dance Lumiere on their upcoming European tour.

ABOUT DANSE LUMIÈRE (PRODUCER)
Danse Lumière, led by Kathryn Roszak, is is best known for adapting outstanding works of literature for the stage, giving new form and added context to these works through a fusion of dance, music, and theater, often focusing on some of the most pressing social issues of our time. The company has collaborated with writers Gary Snyder, Tomas Tranströmer, Maxine Hong Kingston, and Isabel Allende and has created works inspired by Rainer Maria Rilke, Emily Dickinson and beat poet Michael McClure. Artistic Director Kathryn Roszak is the founder of the annual Women Directors, Choreographers, and Composers Program, held in San Francisco and NYC. The company has produced collaborations, conversations and films with women leaders in the arts including Janet Eilber, Sidra Bell, Keerati Jinakunwiphat, Wendy Whalen, Gianna Reisen and Carla Lucero. The company has performed at La MaMa and 92Y in NYC; the Smithsonian Institution and George Washington University, Washington D.C.; Copenhagen Cultural Festival, Denmark; Les Amis du 7, Dijon, France; Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West, Scottsdale, Arizona; University of San Francisco; Herbst Theatre, San Francisco; the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco and many other venues. (https://www.dlkdance.com)

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Photos: https://photos.app.goo.gl/sbtZFCuuC8eiHP8TA