After Michela Marino Lerman learned to make music with her feet, she never stopped.
The New York tap-dancing enthusiast was already fascinated by the art form at the age of 5, when her mother brought films with tap dancing legends Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers to the cinema. What cemented her love for this dance style, however, was Gregory Hines in the 1989 film “Tap”.
“I fell in love with Gregory’s spirit and also his artistic achievements,” said Marino Lerman from his home in New York City. “He was an advocate of considering tap as music as well as a dance form. He tried to share this concept of the dancing musician with the public.”
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The town of Green Mountain Falls may be tiny, but it attracts some big names each year at the Green Box Arts Festival, including Marino Lerman. The New York Times called her a child prodigy and described her dancing as a “flash of genius.”
In past years, the festival has featured one dance company; this year, there are five, including Marino Lerman, who will perform with her husband, bassist Russell Hall; New York City-based Ephrat “Bounce” Asherie and her company Ephrat Asherie Dance, which has its roots in black and Latin dances, including hip-hop, house and vogue; modern dance company GALLIM Dance from Brooklyn, NY; Jesús Muñoz Flamenco from Albuquerque; and Barkha Patel, a Kathak dancer, choreographer, teacher and artistic director of the Barkha Dance Company in New York City.
The festival runs Monday through July 14 and includes more than 140 events, including two additional new art installations, a Fourth of July block party with Stillhouse Junkies, the launch of water lanterns, performances by Theatreworks, short films, ARTDESK talks, fitness and art classes, and walking tours. Reservations are recommended for the free and ticketed events, as many sell out.
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Acclaimed Australian installation artist James Tapscott is adding his flair to the festivities. His immersive work, Arc ZERO: Nimbus, is already hanging on the bridge of the city’s Gazebo Lake. It will be on display in the city until September and is the 10th work in his Arc series, which spans 12 years. The work uses water from the lake to create a ring of mist that visitors can walk through and which glows at night.
Artist James Tapscott’s immersive work “Arc ZERO: Nimbus” uses water from Gazebo Lake in Green Mountain Falls to create a ring of mist that visitors can walk through and that glows at night.
The annual Green Box Arts Festival in Green Mountain Falls features more than 140 events during its two-week run, including performances by five dance companies from across the country, music, ARTDESK talks, fitness classes, hikes and more. Renowned Australian installation artist James Tapscott’s immersive work “Arc ZERO: Nimbus” will also be unveiled on the bridge over Gazebo Lake. Photo by James Tapscott
“Diversity in dance was the cornerstone of the arts program,” said Scott RC Levy, executive director of Green Box. “This idea extends throughout the festival.”
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Other musicians include opera singer Amy Maples, the Hot Toddies Jazz Band, the Mont Alto Motion Picture Orchestra and the Manitou Chamber Music Festival. This year’s six ARTDESK Conversations include author and poet Andrew Krivak, who wrote “The Bear,” and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Emily Nussbaum.
One of Marino Lerman and Hall’s pieces is called “Suite Oovoo,” and is a tribute to her parakeet, who was “the love of our lives” and died last year, she said. She appreciates the festival for how it captures the true nature of tap dancing. At other festivals, it is often forced to be presented in the same way as contemporary or modern dance or ballet, and the element of improvisation that underlies tap dancing is stripped away.
“This dance festival embraces the concept that made me fall in love with this art form in the first place, and the concept of the dancing musician, improvisation, call and response, connecting with the audience and expressing the moment,” she said.
“It’s not always about presenting something clean, polished and choreographed, but about connecting with the spirit and the human soul.”
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