Chamecki/Lerner, Flying Lesson.

Been naughty lately? Haven’t had the opportunity to get your dose of creative energy? Well, we have the solution you need! TRACE Magazine, GANG UP! and Monkeytown present an evening of short films, videos, performances, and music to benefit top-notch NYC choreographers — Will Rawls, Milka Djordevich, and Nohemi Contreras — who have received a scholarship by DanceWEB Europe to participate in this summer’s ImPulsTanz festival in Vienna. The three get a 2/3 scholarship to cover tuition for dance workshops, tutorials and housing for the five-week festival but lack the funds for such things as, say, a plane ticket over there. (Money for food would also be nice.) So, simple as that: Help some of the best dancers in NYC get their wings and snag a free ticket to heaven (or a Get Out of Jail Free card, your call).

The event will take place Tuesday, June 10th at Monkeytown. There are two programs jam-packed with performances and multi-media presentations, all donated by the generosity of the NYC artistic community.

The first program, GANG UP: A Creative Congress, features short films and videos from Chamecki/Lerner, Rachel Johnson, Jeff Larson, Dance Gang. Choreographers Andrea Lerner and Rosane Chamecki present their first foray into film, “Flying Lesson,” which won the 2008 Jury Award at Lincoln Center’s Dance on Camera festival in January. Rachel Johnson, an award-winning animator, will show her Oscar-nominated short film “The Toll Collector.” Also appearing, “A Store of Sucking Stones,” the Beckett-based video farce, starring film and stage designer, Jeff Larson. Guerilla public performance company, Dance Gang, will also screen its video, “Shadow Dance.”

The first program also includes live performances by pop-obsessed Neal Medlyn, composer Karinne Keithley, experimental musician Jon Monlaci, dancer/choreographer Felicia Ballos, and the all-woman artband, JERK.

The second program of the evening, The Green Beat Box, will feature live sets from beatbox extraordinaire Adam Matta and avant-garde guitarist Eyal Moaz, as well as director of New Amsterdam Records, composer of critically acclaimed Now Ensemble and DJ, Judd Greenstein. Accompanying visuals will be from Dance Gang’s public video project, “Last in a Series,” a kinetic portrait of New York City.

Will Rawls is a site-specific performer, curator and installation artist who toured and performed nationally and internationally with Shen Wei Dance Arts in Venice, Israel and New York. He has also appeared with Tiffany Mills Company, with collaborator Katie Workum/Workum Dance League. Milka Djordevich is a performer/choreographer/co-curator of Movement Research Festival 2008 who studied at UCLA and at PARTS in Brussels. Nohemi Contreras is a performer/choreographer/curator who obtained a Masters from Tisch in Performance Studies.

First program begins at 7:30; the second at 10. Entrance fee for the first program is $40 or $60 with three-course dinner. Second program is $15, with a $10 minimum. All proceeds from the door will go to the three artists’ tuition.

Ayo kicked off FIAF’s month-long World Nomads symposium with an amazing performance that had people literally dancing in the aisles. I must admit, it’s hard not to be taken by the organic sounds of this chanteuse, her lush voice filling the air with sweet harmony. But, after this show, I’m in love.

What was so special, you ask? Halfway through the concert, she tore down the fourth wall with a smile and invited the crowd to join her onstage. After a awkward moment, the first courageous few hopped right up and, like a flood, nearly sixty people followed. What a beautiful scene that was, Ayo dancing along with her fans, hugging them, laughing with them, singing her melodies in the midst of a sea of smiles. The energy in the room was quite remarkable, and everyone left with a little bit of peace inside.

If you are not familiar with her work, my suggestion is to see her live. Keep an eye on her Myspace page here for show listings, etc.

Really, it is the Hammerstein Ballroom but for some reason Leslie Feist repeatedly called out to the audience at the “Hammerstone” again and again last night. This past Tuesday and Wednesday, Feist filled the NYC venue to capacity, bringing together a very eclectic crowd of downtowners and American Idol fans. Not what I expected at first, but I guess it makes sense after all: Feist blew up the f* up last year and rallied together a massive following with her soft lullabies of passion and poetry. Yes, it is a proven fact (I’ve read it somewhere), Feist is addictive. I’ve experienced it, you’ve experienced it; hell, my girl’s mom only owns one CD (The Reminder) which is on constant rotation in her car for months now.

That said, there are some downsides to this. One, the aforementioned (lolli)pop fans in attendance. Two, the constant bickering between friends trying to claim ultimate wisdom and ownership of the music after just a few licks of each new song: “My Moon My Man!, Yes!” “Whoa, Mushaboom!” “That’s my song!” “No wait, this is my song.” Third, even the dudes try to sing along. And I don’t mean muted, barely-moving-your-lips-on-your-way-home-from-work-on-the-subway singing-along.

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Tori Sparks is a rock star of sorts in the contemporary dance world. Her work will quiet your thoughts, allowing a flood of emotions to have their way with you. It is mysterious and sly, or joyful and smiley. Either way, it is damn potent.

Sparks as an artist is a do-er. Her work doesn’t stop with the stage. She uses the camera to take dance, as an established art form, out of the traditional venues and into a new era of expression. This weekend, Sparks presents this other form of visual choreography at the Bushwick Starr. “Trilogy of Two” is three movement-based videos featuring music by Towers of Hanoi and Antler.

Sparks was recently featured in TRACE’s Sporting Life issue along with a portfolio of six other dancers making quality work. Check out her reel for examples of brilliant performance work, or, for those of you nowhere close to Bushwick this evening, view some of her vids here and keep an eye out for her.

Trilogy of Two, three movement-based music videos by Tori Sparks, The Bushwick Starr, Bushwick, Brooklyn. April 4 & 5th, 8pm. $12

TRACE: Describe the work that you’re presenting this weekend.

Tori Sparks: I am presenting a series of movement-based music videos we at sharpelbow have been crafting, called “Trilogy of Two.” I use the term “music videos” lightly as they are not your typical formula, but they are not straight-up dance films either. I have been working in movement and costume design with the concept of “twinning” and the pitfalls of seeking individual sovereignty. With that in mind for the concept, I then juxtaposed music from independent bands like Towers of Hanoi (Gainesville) and Antler (New York).

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It’s that time of year again here in NYC. The tangy fragrance of the nouveau riche clouds the West Side of Manhattan as people crowd Armory 94, the home of the annual Armory Show. Unlike Art Basel Miami Beach — the Armory Show’s only US competitor in terms of scale — there are no café con leches, no quick breaks on South Beach and definitely no thongs. Instead, we get a crappy Londontown drizzle.

But brave this weekend’s winter weather redux with this To-Do List, New Yorkers. Here’s a map. Now, go get your culture on.

1. Armory Show
The show is $30 but, hey, it’s massive. I wouldn’t expect to see much in terms of cutting-edge work here. This is the marketplace, this is where the big bucks stroll. Think of it as an uber-museum juiced up on green-dollar Viagras.

2. Scope
Scope is the David Letterman of the fairs: a happy #2. It’s scope (sorry!) is focused on younger, more experimental artists. $15.

3. PULSE
Also $15.

4. Bridge
Bridge parties all weekend, topping off with the Williamsburg After Dark After Party at Supreme Trading on Saturday. Keep in mind that all Billyburg galleries will be open late this weekend, just in case you want to keep it anti-commercial or what-have-you.

5. Art Now Fair

6. DiVA
Some video art for ya, stationed in storage units lining the streets of Chelsea. Yup, it’s free.

7. LA Art in New York
$10? Really?

8. POOL
A must-see, three thumbs up.

9. Red Dot
Very consistently worth a peek.

10. Volta
Use the Armory Show card to gain admission here as well.

One way to attack all this art is either go big or go small. Go Armory, or choose two or three parasitical fairs. Besides that, enjoy! Notice, I haven’t listed the Dark Fair above because I’m keeping that one for myself. (Probably the most interesting offering this season.)