Artifact celebrates its new studios with music, dance

“We are calling this event ‘Down In Town’,” said Claire Hancock, co-founder of Artifact along with Ashley Bowman.

The space is an expansive dance studio at 17 E. Toole Ave., an open floor with lines of tall mirrors and ballet bars on opposite brick walls. Hancock says they can set up a performance area with seats for 100, and still have room for audience members who want to do their own dancing à la carte.

“Our studio will always be one of those downtown alternative spaces where you never know what’s going to happen next,” Hancock added, waving her arm in a large arc. “See those walls? Actors have their black-box theaters. We call these concerts our Brick Box studio series.”

Reverie has also been evolving from its original line-up of Lane Harmon, vocals, Roger King, various guitars and percussion, and Tom Dukes, various guitars, to include Brian Corkill on bass and percussion. Their music continues to draw on the roots of jazz and blues, folk and rock.

“Down in Town” will feature Hardy as a visiting guest artist.

“We have done five earlier performances with Heather,” said Harmon. “And now she has invited us to be a part of her ‘Lil’ Mama Soul Session’ show in January.

“We love the sound we get playing with her. We have similar sensibilities.

“Artifact is always collaborating with other groups, and so are we — always evolving in our own way,” Harmon added.

“We have worked with Reverie so many times,” added Hancock. “We know their style. This will be our sixth collaboration.”

Bowman and Hancock will be creating new choreography for the occasion and dancing with five other company members. Some pieces will spotlight the band without dancers.

“It’s going to be a really fun concert,” said Bowman. “A lot of the music will be from Reverie’s CD ‘Souls of Castelmuzio,’ plus a few of their newer compositions.

“We’ll do two sets, with about six or seven numbers in each set. This will be much more intimate than our big shows at the Stevie Eller theater. There will be lots of duets and trios, songs about relationships.”

Reverie has its own unique relationship with Artifact Dance Project. All were there at the beginning, back in 2009, when the original Reverie trio was formed just a short time before Hancock and Bowman began creating their “Dance in the Red” concert that inspired them to form the Artifact Dance Project.

Bowman’s brother Tim has been best friends with Harmon’s son Taylor “since they were in third grade,” says Harmon. “We’ve been supporting each other’s families for a long time.

“So when Artifact started we all sat around together sharing our artistic aspirations, in music and dance. Then Roger and I wrote ‘Shadow Dance’ for that concert.

“It’s on the program for Saturday, too. Whenever we play that song with Artifact dancing it always feels like coming home.”