Digital Program | Baryshnikov Arts Presents: Ex Machina

ABOUT

Pianist Clara Yang and visual artist Xuan combine artistic forces in a multimedia performance that explores the evolving relationship between humanity and technology. An all-American program of piano music by composers such as Reena Esmail, Christopher Cerrone, and Philip Glass is combined with Xuan’s visual commentary to create an immersive theatrical experience that invites audiences to rethink the boundaries between human and machine. Ex Machina was developed in part during a Baryshnikov Arts Residency.

Program:
REENA ESMAIL Crystal Prelude No. 1
with Cryoacoustic Orb Sound Installation by Lee Weisert and Jonathon Kirk
LEE WEISERT Clinamina
CLARA YANG Nebula
YVETTE YOUNG, CLARA YANG Conception
PHILIP GLASS Etude No. 11
LILIYA UGAY Hammers Over the Moon
PHIL YOUNG RoboDream
ALLEN ANDERSON Think That’s You—A Personality Recognition Software Toccata
STEPHEN ANDERSON Drones
CHRISTOPHER CERRONE Hoyt-Schermerhorn

This performance forms part of Carnegie Hall’s United in Sound: America at 250 festival.

Etude #11 by Philip Glass
© 1999 Dunvagen Music Publishers Inc. Used by Permission.

CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM

Clara Yang (Pianist/Composer/Project Creator/Producer) has performed on major stages worldwide, including Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, the Forbidden City Concert Hall in Beijing, and the National Auditorium of Music in Madrid. She has been featured on prominent series such as Carolina Performing Arts and Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert Series. She currently serves as Head of Keyboard Studies at UNC-Chapel Hill. A charismatic performer, she has been praised for her “breathtaking technical prowess” (CVNC) and “probing emotional depth and daring individuality” (Peninsula Reviews). 

As a soloist, Yang has performed with renowned conductors including Vladimir Ashkenazy and Long Yu, with orchestras such as the European Union Youth Orchestra, China Philharmonic Orchestra, Banda Sinfónica Municipal de Madrid, and North Carolina Symphony. Her solo album Folding Time (Albany Records) won a Global Music Award Gold Medal.

A dedicated advocate for new music and interdisciplinary work, she performed the world and U.S. premieres of Chen Yi’s piano concerto Four Spirits, and she performed in the Complete Glass Etudes concert alongside distinguished artists including Philip Glass and Timo Andres. Yang has collaborated with leading artists such as pianist Aaron Diehl, rock guitarist Yvette Young, hip hop artist Suzi Analogue, and new media artist Xuan. 

Xuan (New Media Artist) is a new media artist, filmmaker, and pianist working at the intersection of music, visual art, and technology. A trained classical pianist with a passion for “visual music,” she actively develops innovative, cross-disciplinary projects that broaden the immersive scope of new music and performance. Driven by themes such as femininity, power, alienation and multicultural identity, her work encompasses abstract scenography, experimental film, interactive installations, and public art.

Her work has been seen at The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York), the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago (Chicago), the Smithsonian Museum of Art (Washington D.C.), Baryshnikov Arts (NY), Constellation (Chicago), SFJAZZ (San Francisco), Le Poisson Rouge (NY), Design Biennale 2019 (Zürich), the RESCUE Residency in Santo Stefano di Magra (Italy), Sound Forms 2021 (Hong Kong), ibug Festival für Urban Kunst (Saxony, DE), Ad Astra Music Festival 2020 (Virtual/Kansas), the Mizzou International Composers Festival 2021 (Missouri), CAP UCLA’s Tune In Festival 2021 (Virtual/California), the MATA Festival x Found Sound Nation 2023 (NY), the Ojai Music Festival 2024 (CA), the Experimental Media Performing Arts Center at RPI (Troy, NY), and Carnegie Hall (NYC).

ABOUT BARYSHNIKOV ARTS

Baryshnikov Arts, founded in 2005 by Artistic Director Mikhail Baryshnikov and celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, is rooted in the belief that artists hold irreplaceable roles in our world by shaping perspectives, offering new approaches, and initiating crucial conversations in complex social, political, and cultural environments. Our mission supports artistic freedom, providing multidisciplinary artists with opportunities for creative exploration and unique artistic expression, and allowing audiences to view the world in new ways. We offer performance and commissioning opportunities, artist residencies, rentals, and more. baryshnikovarts.org

BARYSHNIKOV ARTS STAFF

Mikhail Baryshnikov, Founder and Artistic Director
Jamie Burns, Director

ADMINISTRATION
Nicole Proto, Business Administration Manager

PROGRAMMING
Sam Black, Artistic Associate
Pedja Muzijevic, Artistic Administrator

DEVELOPMENT
Chani Sebazco, Development Manager

MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS
Lydia Murray, Marketing and Communications Manager
Victoria Zdunkiewicz, Box Office and Digital Marketing Manager

PRODUCTION AND OPERATIONS
Tyler Benware, Director of Production and Operations
Natasha Bruno, Technical and Operations Manager
Jesse Campbell, Lighting Director

CONSULTANTS AND SPECIAL PROJECTS
Stephen Viksjo, Graphic Designer
Eric Wolfram, Web Developer
Sean Regan, Perfect Balance Bookkeeping, Inc., Bookkeeper

PRODUCTION OVERHIRE CREW FOR EX MACHINA
Kasey Price, Head Audio-Video/Sound Board Operator

Jimmy Dewhurst, Head Electrician/Light Board Operator

Alex Nemfakos, Lighting Assistant

FRONT-OF-HOUSE STAFF FOR EX MACHINA
Jennifer Rico, House Manager

Box Office Assistants/Ushers:
Felicia Avalos

Gina Bonati

Jason Guy

Katie Kirk

Alice Knight

Melanie Raush

Nelson Rivera

Julia Schemmer

Yua Watanabe

Special thanks to our production crew, front-of-house staff, and volunteers.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Dave Hattem, Chairman
R. Jarrett Lilien, Treasurer
Steven C. Dupré, Secretary
Mikhail Baryshnikov
Jamie Bishton
Sandy Choi
Frank Cordasco
Carlo Di Dio
William James Earle
Sandra Foschi
Jennifer Frautschi
Slavka B. Glaser
Rebecca Goldring
Anton LeRoy
Darryl Pinckney
Shelley Washington

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Baryshnikov Arts is grateful for the contributions of its generous supporters.

Individual

Deborah & Charles Adelman
Jane L. Algus
Sarah Arison
Jody & John Arnhold
David Aron & Jake Poses
Adrienne Arsht
Joanne & Tuvia Barak
Karen Barbarese
Mikhail Baryshnikov & Lisa Rinehart
Douglas Baxter
Lori Belilove
Dr. Miriam Roskin Berger
Glenn Bergman
Leo Biagini
Jamie Bishton & Christian Kraus
Anne Boardman Miller
Emily Bookwalter
Christine Bonde
Wendy Smith Born
Antonina Bouis
Judith Bowman
Jacqueline Brogan
Ed & Sophie Bronstein
Bob Bronzo
Lynne & Jerald Brownstein
Chris Buckley & Liz Sharp
Christopher Cahill
Stacy China
Anne Clark
Cohen & Company
Anya & Peter Cole
Amy Collins
Liam Collins
Mary Genovese Colvin
Nicole Contreras
Beth Cooper
The Cordasco Family
Katie Ichtertz Cordova
Jovan Dansberry & Norman Simon
Emme Deland
George de la Pena
Jennie L. DeScherer
Janet A. Dewan
Carlo Di Dio
Alyce Dissette
Libby Rosof & Murray Dubin
Larry Dubinski & Vicki Markovitz
Steven C. Dupré, Cheryl Lee Jorgensen & Emilee Dupré
William Earle
Ruth E. Eisenberg
Auri Fenouil & Sebastian Garcia
Bradley Fenton & Marie Savard
Lynn Feinson
Robert Fisch
Alan & Judith Fishman
Gustave Fleury
Anne & Chris Flowers
Marci & Michael Frankenthaler
Meryl & Barry Freedman
Jenia & Alex Fridlyand
Diane Friedman
Kirk Gerchberg
Barbara & Steven Gilbert
Joseph Goddu
Slavka B. Glaser
David Goldenberg
Rebecca Goldring
Allen Greenberg
Agnes Gund
Laura R. Hamilton
Cynthia Harvey
Gary Hattem & Frazier Holloway
Dave & Rita Hattem
Huong Hoang
Joan Hooker
Gail Howard
James F. Ingalls
Munib Islam & Kamila Islam
Edward Jackson
Robert Jetmundsen
Kate Johnson & Marshall Hagins
Kat & Roland Jones
Susan Justman
Donalee Katz
Dorothy B. Khella
Olga Kovalishina
Larry Krantz & Margie Berman
Sali Ann Kriegsman
Linda Larson
Eugene & Deborah Lefevre
Emily lemer
Patricia Lent
LeRoy Family
Abby Levy-Westhead
Jarrett & Maritess Lilien
Michael C. Lillys
Lucy H. Lin
Josefina Lyons
Lynne & Jeff Sandhaus
Jeffrey Seller
Rebecca Malcolm-Naib
Leslie Marcus
Dan Markley & Alison Sheehy
Tonda Marton
Cynthia Mayeda
Karen McLaughlin & Mark Schubin
Justyn Millamena
Adam Miller
Catherine & Bill Miller
Maurizio Montobbio
Mark Morris
Paul Adler & David Mortimer
Kirsten Munro
Franci Neely
David Neumann & Erica Sweany
Zoe Nousiainen
Nicky Obolensky
Meredith & Jeffrey Oppenheim
Amy Sherman-Palladino & Daniel Palladino
Lorenza Panero
Katerina Papacosma
Estelle Parsons
Steve Pesner & Peace in memory of Michele Pesner
Bo Phillip
Tricia Pierson
A. Robert Pietrzak
Darryl Pinckney & James Fenton
Loren H. Plotkin & Carol A. Baxter
Noah & Georgina Poses
Fred & Nancy Poses
Arin Amanda Prisand
Aidan & Elizabeth Quinn
Caren Rabbino
Svetlana Rabey
Frank & Haydée Rainieri
Douglas P. Reetz
Jenny Rickard
Cookie & Jerry Riesenbach
Laila Robbins
James Roe & Gemzel Hernandez
Robert Rosener
Howard & Vesna Sacks
Ann Sacks & Rick Stratford
Herbert Sambol
John Sansone
Laura Schoen & Bob Kaufman
Robert Schulman
Alan Schuster
Laura & Howard Schwartz
Wallace Shawn
Linda Shelton
Sondra Siegel
Sheree Silvey
Kraemer Sims
Leslie Smolan
Lenore Steiner & Perry Lerner
Ellen Steiner
Christina Sterner & Steve Poses
Karin Strasswimmer
Shelley Washington & David Swenson
Lisa Takemoto
Michael Tersigni & David Palachek
Jennifer Tipton
N Beber
Nancy Umanoff
Julie C. Van Camp
Illiana van Meeteren
Deidra Wager
Roberta Waldman
Deborah E. Ward
Suzanne Weil
Gwen Welliver
Jedediah Wheeler
Thomas Whitburn
Edgar Wilson
Joe Wisenblit
Vicente Wolf
Cooper Wright
Matthew Yee
John & Evonne Yonover
Peter Ziemba & Terry Siegel

As of March 2, 2026.

Institutional

Alphadyne Foundation
Apotheosis Events
Arnhold Foundation
KK Auchincloss Creativity Fund
Bloomberg Philanthropies
Norris & Debra Bishton Foundation
Brooklyn Fare
Cohen & Company
Cyrus Capital Partners
Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation
New York City Department of Cultural Affairs
Enoch Foundation
The Marshall Frankel Foundation
Gartner
Global Atlantic
Howard Gilman Foundation
The Goldring Family Foundation
The Harkness Foundation for Dance
The Francena T. Harrison Foundation Trust
William Talbott Hillman Foundation
Hudson Yards/Related
Hudson Yards Hell’s Kitchen Alliance
Alex Katz Foundation
Danny Kaye and Sylvia Fine Kaye Foundation
Mertz Gilmore Foundation
New York State Council on the Arts
Omega Systems
Muriel Pollia Foundation
The Poses Family Foundation
Fundación Frank & Haydée Rainieri
The Jerome Robbins Foundation
The Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, Inc.
The Shubert Foundation
The Thompson Family Foundation

As of March 2, 2026.

Baryshnikov Arts programming made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature.

Funding made possible in part by public funds provided through the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs.

Yamaha is the official piano of Baryshnikov Arts.