Dance enthusiasts will have to wait until the fall to travel to Manhattan to see the return of most of the country’s top companies. In the meantime, the NYC dance world is coming to the Garden State.

Axelrod Contemporary Ballet Theater (AXCBT), the professional ballet company founded by Elise Feldman and Gabriel Chajnik as a program for Ocean Township’s Axelrod Performing Arts Center (APAC), will present “Three’s a Crowd” at Bell Works in Holmdel on July 29 through August 1.

This original program, curated by AXCBT company director Gabriel Chajnik, includes iconic masterpieces by Paul Taylor and Martha Graham and premieres new dance pieces by members of New York City Ballet, Martha Graham Dance Company, and The Juilliard School.

“Three’s a Crowd,” it is hoped, will be the final chapter in Covid dancing, with each dance created for one, two and, even, three dancers.“…and the company will completely be unmasked!” says APAC Artistic Director Andrew DePrisco. “There’s no need to take the bridge or the tunnel when this very New York dance experience is happening here at the Shore…just 40 miles from the city!”

Since the spring of last year, AXCBT has continued teaching classes and making dance happen at its studio at Bell Works.

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An intimate program of beautiful and exciting dances, “Three’s a Crowd” will include an eclectic playlist of music from Wagner and Mendelssohn to Astor Piazzolla and Zoe Keating. Houston composer Chris Becker has created an original string quartet, inspired by glam rocker David Bowie’s epic ballad “Heroes.”

Blakely White-McGuire believes the piece “is inspired by the tenacity and devotion of performing artists, audiences and presenters who continued to explore their art and expression for the love of life during isolation. It is a love letter to people who refused to let their light dim.”

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“‘Three’s a Crowd’ represents dance from its very foundation, from master dance makers Paul Taylor and Martha Graham to national and international new choreographers who willingly take risks on and off the stage,” says Chajnik. “This program comes full circle after a year of struggle and a reminder that dance is about passion, drive, and a vehicle for healing.”

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The program brings together an elite roster of world-renowned artists, including Michael Trusnovec, who is staging an excerpt from Paul Taylor’s “Roses.”  White-McGuire, who is performing Martha Graham’s “Lamentation” and “Satyric Festival Song,” Juilliard Dance Faculty Emeritus Maestro Hector Zaraspe and AXCBT Artistic Director Gabriel Chajnik, in addition to young emerging choreographers, including Italy’s Riccardo de Nigris (La Scala), New York City Ballet’s Gilbert Bolden III as well as and two company members, both graduates of the Ailey/Fordham B.F.A. Dance Program, Olivia Miranda and Lindsay Jorgensen.

AXCBT President Elise Feldman is thrilled to welcome all dance lovers to Bell Works. “‘Three’s a Crowd’ will bring us together once again, leaving us refreshed, stimulated, entertained, and uplifted,” says Feldman.

“Three’s a Crowd” will take the stage for a limited six-show engagement at Bell Works in Holmdel, NJ.