By Anne Levin

Princeton University Concerts (PUC) is expanding its popular Late Night Annual Chamber Jam to include movement.

Following the concert at Richardson Auditorium on Thursday, April 10 by British saxophonist Jess Gillam, audience members will have an opportunity to learn some simple choreography to music they have just heard — by Benjamin Britten, John Dowland, George Gershwin, and Francis Poulenc, among other composers — with Gillam and piano accompanist Thomas Weaver playing live.

This new initiative is presented in collaboration with American Repertory Ballet (ARB). Specifically, the post-concert event will be led by dancer/choreographer/educator Rachel Stanislawczyk, who has created a dance with movement for all levels and abilities. She has already begun to teach a seated version to ARB’s Dance for PD (Parkinson’s disease) classes.

“We first partnered with American Repertory Ballet around our Healing with Music event exploring the effects of music on those dealing with Parkinson’s disease,” said PUC Outreach Manager Dasha Koltunyuk. “Participants from ARB’s Dance for PD chapters danced on the stage of Richardson Auditorium as part of this event. We look forward to welcoming them back, and to welcoming Rachel back, to the stage, this time dancing alongside other members of our community.”

Anyone who attends the concert can attend the post-concert Dance Jam for free. Those who might want to get a head start on the choreography can attend a free workshop with Stanislawczyk at Princeton Ballet School in Princeton Shopping Center on Sunday, April 6 from 1:30 to 2:45 p.m. The dance can also be learned via videos that will be posted on PUC’s Facebook and Instagram (@princetonuniversityconcerts) in the lead-up to the event.

PUC Communications and Events Coordinator Alexis Branagan, a former professional ballet dancer and instructor, is especially enthused about the Dance Jam.

“Having the feeling of choreography in your bones when you listen to a piece of music allows you to hear the music differently, and we look forward to giving that experience to our community,” she said. “Dancing to live music is also a gift, and when it’s played by a musician as talented and vibrant as Jess Gillam, then all the better.”

The concert on April 10 marks Gillam’s return to PUC. The first saxophonist to reach the finals of “BBC Young Musician” and the youngest ever soloist to perform at the “Last Night of the Proms” concert at London’s Royal Albert Hall, she is also a radio and television performer. During lockdown from the pandemic, she formed her “Virtual Scratch Orchestra,” inviting musicians of any level to come together and play music virtually with her.

“After Jess Gillam’s PUC debut, we immediately started thinking of opportunities to bring her back,” said PUC Director Marna Seltzer. “She’s not only a uniquely talented trailblazer in the world of classical chamber music, but she is also a warm presence who has now connected with PUC audiences in deep and varied ways: performing for our audiences virtually during pandemic lockdowns, appearing on our Performances Up Close series, mentoring Trenton High School students through our Neighborhood Music Project partnership program with Trenton Arts at Princeton, and making profound connections with Live Music Meditation participants. We can’t wait to have her back for a varied and exciting mainstage program on our Concert Classics series followed by what’s sure to be a memorable community experience dancing to her playing during our first dance edition of our Annual Chamber Jam.”

Tickets for the concert and Dance Jam are $30-$50 ($10 students and Admit All Program members). Visit puc.princeton.edu or call (609) 258-9220.