Hi Everyone - It's a new year and another update!  I'm Rashaun Mitchell (MCDC 2004-2011) and I’ve been a Trustee since 2017. I'm now the Director of the Merce Cunningham Trust, and I'm hoping to ring the bell on this new era with excitement for the future, and reverence for the past.  My first performance with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company was in January of 2004, in Berkeley, CA, at Zellerbach Hall. Andrea Weber (2004-2011), Marcie Munnerlyn (2004-2011), and I were the newest dancers, with big shoes to fill (and iridescent unitards to squeeze into). The Bay Area program opened with Ground Level Overlay (1995) and ended with Merce’s singular masterpiece, BIPED (1999), a blueprint for the explosion of dance and technology we see today. This February offers the rare opportunity to see BIPED—again, or for the first time—performed at New York City Center (February 19-21) by the Lyon Opera Ballet, now led by acclaimed dancer, Cedric Andrieux (MCDC 1999-2007). On opening night, Feb. 19th, the memories are sure to come flooding back as Gavin Bryars and his musicians fill the house with his meditative soundscape.  In celebration of the Robert Rauschenberg Centennial, The Brooklyn Academy of Music, another historic home for Merce’s work, presents two works with Rauschenberg décor: Trisha Brown’s Set and Reset (1983) with a Laurie Anderson score, alongside Merce’s Travelogue (1977), with a lively multi-sourced score by John Cage, reimagined by Adam Tendler. You won’t want to miss this convergence of postmodern master works, from February 26th-28th. In other news, we are thrilled to announce the addition of two new Trustees! We welcome Michael Cole (MCDC 1989-1998) and Jeannie Steele (MCDC 1993-2005), who are already bringing fresh ideas and new energy to the ongoing work we do. We are also excited to welcome Nhyira Oforiwaa Asante and Ryan Charles-Marc, the two extraordinarily talented recipients of the 2026 Barbara Ensley Award! Read more about these young artists here. Here’s to 2026! Happy New Year from us all. Rashaun Mitchell, Director Andrea Weber, Director of Licensing and Operations Manager Jennifer Goggans, Program and Media Director