Founder and Artistic Director: Sally Jacques

Sally Jacques has had several “aha moments” in her life and career and at least two of them have made her and her dance company, Blue Lapis Light, a must see in Austin.

Her first “aha moment” came while spending a whole week in a New York City window. She realized that bringing her art out of the theater and to the people, she was able to interrupt the drudgery of their daily routines, and in a sense, force them to look at the beauty in the world around them. Construction scaffolding along then Town Lake brought her to the second “aha moment” – 360 degrees of dance.

As artistic director for Blue Lapis Light, Jacques has taken dance to a new dimension in the capitol city and mesmerized Austin with her site-specific aerial dance group. Harnesses, silks and rappelling gear catch the audience’s imagination by angelically suspending the dancers in mid-air against an unexpected background. The stage for Blue Lapis Light is ever-changing; the structured lines of architecture seem to speak to Jacques, almost begging to be juxtaposed with the fluidity of dance.

Very few people attempt what Jacques has produced beautifully over the past 28 years. For that work, she was named “Best Site-Works Artist” in 1995, and “Choreographer of the Air” in 2002, by The Austin Chronicle’s Best of Austin Critics Poll.

Born an activist and trained a dancer, Jacques has found a way to meld her two passions and create a beautiful statement of life. She is not simply bringing art to the streets of Austin; she is giving confidence and an awareness of life to those who are often overlooked. For the past 20 years, Jacques has taught movement and awareness of the body’s ability to at-risk teenagers, senior citizens, the differently-abled and prison inmates.

In recognition for her work and her passion, Jacques was inducted into the Austin Arts Hall of Fame in 2007 and nominated for a USA Fellowship Award in 2008.

The Event: Premiere of Impermanence
June 18, 2009. 9:15 p.m. Premiere of Blue Lapis Light’s new show, Impermanence. J.J. Pickle Federal Building 300 E. 8th St. (Enter on the west side of Trinity St., 800 block.) Casual Attire.

Enjoy a spectacular show, meet the artists and indulge in hors d’oeuvres, wine and live music before touring the historic LBJ Suite. Cost: $100 Platinum, $75 Gold. Tickets available at the door or at www.austix.com. (A special gift awaits Platinum guests.)

Bang for the Buck: The Organization and its Mission

Blue Lapis Light is a local site-specific aerial dance group with a mission. Jacques and her group offer works set in a time and place where the evils of this world do not exist. Their work is about coming together as a global community and creating beauty rather than destruction. The name Blue Lapis Light refers to being in-the-moment. “The hope is that audiences can come to see and experience beauty…to feel connected to that beauty and to something greater,” said Jacques.

Once the audience has been entranced by their work, Blue Lapis Light does not simply leave them hanging. The group offers classes and workshops in aerial dance, as well as Youth Taking Flight, an outreach program for Austin’s youth.

Monies from the premiere are put towards artists and crew compensation, production costs, and funding their “Pay What You Can Night.”

http://www.bluelapislight.com

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