The Hamptons Dance Project and Guild Hall will bring Jose Sebastian, the project's artistic director; choreographers, and a company of dancers from the American Ballet Theatre to East Hampton for outdoor performances Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at 6 p.m. at the 20-acre Fireplace Lodge in Springs.
Mr. Sebastian discovered the site during the group's first season in 2019. "I knew it would provide an exquisite setting for dance," he said, but it wasn't until two years later that the company performed there because of the pandemic. "To experience the beauty of dance with the bay as a backdrop in the natural evening light was incredible."
The Hamptons Dance Project pairs dancers from American Ballet Theatre and beyond with master choreographers in fresh, dynamic works --including world premieres -- that explore a wide spectrum of dance from contemporary to classical.
The project's fourth summer will feature world premiere performances by Houston Thomas, a choreographer and dancer, and Luke Hickey, a New York-based tap dancer and choreographer, along with pieces by Jorma Elo, a choreographer with the Boston Ballet, and Adriana Pierce, a New York-based choreographer.
The choreographers Christopher Wheeldon and Justin Peck will return this year. Mr. Peck's ballet "Chutes and Ladders" was explored in January during the dance project's William P. Rayner Residency at Guild Hall.
In addition to Mr. Sebastian, this year's company includes the Ballet Theater dancers Skylar Brandt, Catherine Hurlin, Isadora Loyola, Lauren Bonfiglio, Ingrid Thomas, Sierra Armstrong, and Michael de la Nuez.
As a boy, Mr. Sebastian spent many summers in East Hampton. "I met some amazing people along the way through camps and everything," he told The Star in 2019. "I always look back and I say those were my best childhood memories, with my friends on the beach."
Those memories led him back to East Hampton when he decided to inaugurate a project of his own, one that reflected his feeling that while the East End was a "hotbed of creativity," it hadn't had much dance programming over the years.
General admission tickets are $125 ($112 for members) and do not include seating. For $200 ($180 for members), V.I.P. tickets offer preferred seating and a pre-show cocktail party. Sunscreen, comfortable shoes, and insect repellent have been recommended.
