On March 28th, I had an amazing experience at The New York Library at 42nd Street and 5th Avenue. A friend invited me to attend a Lunch Dance and I had no clue what to expect but I said, “Sure, let’s go.” So we got to the Stephen A Schwarzman Building at 476 5th Avenue at about 1:15pm to check in at The Visitor’s Center. When we got there we each got headphones to wear and we were told that we were going to follow the pages (the dancer’s who were dressed up like waiters/you’ll see the images below) and there was also a guy who was going to be the narrator that we were also going to follow.

What I found out about Monica Bill Barnes & Co., the dance company that we were about to witness, was that is was led by the Robbie Saenz de Viteri and Monica Bill Barnes. That these two extraordinary talents created a performance that combined their shared interest in the underlying comedy found in the mundane at our work places and they loved to do that by crossing genres that included, dance, theater, storytelling, creative nonfiction as well feminist treatises.

The experience was extremely visceral. We moved in silence to all the rooms in the library in our headsets and watched this storytelling take place in real time.

I strongly recommend that you google The New York Public Library at 42nd Street to find out when the next Lunch Dances will take place. I promise you that it’s an experience that you will not forget. And…if you don’t live in the vicinity then check out your local libraries. You never know what they might have planned for you!

Here are some images from this very impressive experience!