Bill T. Jones, one of the most innovative and powerful forces in the dance world, will offer his lavish multimedia performance piece Serenade/The Proposition at 7:30 P.M. on April 15 at the Asheville Civic Center. The production, brought here by Asheville Bravo Concerts, is based on the life of Abraham Lincoln, and is a mesmerizing combination of the company’s dancers, video projection, live music, recorded sound collage, and live actors.

Serenade/The Proposition draws from the Civil War era to examine how we talk to each other and ourselves about history. In a set of movable columns animated by video projection, time and place shift as the cast of dancers, musicians, and actors assemble and reassemble a sense of history, both shared and personal. The original live score draws from Mozart’s Requiem, “Battle Hymn of the Republic,” and “Dixie” to create a contemporary, playful musical collage for cello, piano, and soprano.

Bill T. Jones has been honored and recognized in many ways for his work. He is the recipient of a MacArthur “Genius” Grant, an Obie Award and a 2007 Tony Award for choreography for Spring Awakenings, and a second Tony in 2009 for his musical Fela! based on the life of groundbreaking Nigerian composer Fela Kuti. In 2010, Mr. Jones was named a Kennedy Center Honors recipient alongside fellow honorees Paul McCartney, Jerry Herman, Merle Haggard, and Oprah Winfrey

Serenade/The Proposition was commissioned for Lincoln’s bicentennial, and the piece premiered in 2008 at the American Dance Festival in Durham, earning praise from many sources: “Exciting ... playful and stirring” (The New York Times), “Compel- ling storytelling and deeply romantic choreography” (Washington Post), and “A thing of immense beauty and consequence” (Chicago Sun-Times).

Individual tickets range from $20–60 and can be purchased by calling the Asheville Bravo Concerts office at 828.225.5887, online at ticketmaster.com, or in person at the Civic Center box office. Students receive half- price tickets for all Bravo concerts. For more information, visit ashevillebravoconcerts.org.