Music From The Sole
I DIDN'T COME TO STAY
Thursday July 17, 2025 at 7:00pm
Add To Calendar Overview
Thursday July 17, 2025 at 7:00pm
Music From The Sole is a tap dance and live music company that blurs the line between concert dance and music performance and celebrates tap’s roots in the African diaspora. Led by Brazilian tap dancer and choreographer Leonardo Sandoval and composer and bassist Gregory Richardson, I Didn’t Come to Stay explores themes of immigration and family, and pulses with influences from Afro-Brazilian, jazz, soul, house, rock, and Afro-Cuban music. Commissioned by Works & Process at the Guggenheim in 2020, the piece was first supported through a pioneering bubble residency at Kaatsbaan Cultural Park in summer 2020.
Choreographed by Leonardo Sandoval, with improvisation by the dancers
Music by Gregory Richardson, with Leonardo Sandoval, José Cruzata, Josh Davis, Noé Kains, and Jennifer Vincent
Lighting Design by Kathy Kaufmann
Costume Design by Dede Ayite
Sound Design by Christopher Marc
I Didn’t Come to Stay was made possible by the New England Foundation for the Arts‘ National Dance Project, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. This project is funded, in part, through a Seed Fund for Dance grant from the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone Development Corporation, thanks to the support of the Mertz Gilmore Foundation. The piece’s creation was also supported by a 2022 grant from the O’Donnell-Green Music and Dance Foundation, and a 2022 APAP ArtsForward grant. Music From The Sole is supported by Dance/NYC’s Dance Advancement Fund, made possible by the Howard Gilman Foundation and the Ford Foundation, and by the New York State Council on the Arts.
About Music From The Sole
Music From The Sole is a tap dance and live music company that celebrates tap’s Afro-diasporic roots, particularly its connections to Afro-Brazilian dance and music, and its lineage to forms like house dance and passinho (Brazilian funk). Led by Brazilian choreographer Leonardo Sandoval and by composer Gregory Richardson, their work embraces tap’s unique nature as a blend of sound and movement, incorporating wide-ranging influences like samba, passinho, Afro-Cuban, jazz, and house.
As part of its mission to bring tap dance, America’s original vernacular dance form, to new audiences, the company appears at both music and dance venues. Recent credits include appearances at Lincoln Center, Kaatsbaan, Jacob’s Pillow, The Yard, Caramoor Jazz Festival, Battery Dance Festival, and Tap in Rio. They were recently commissioned new pieces by Works And Process at the Guggenheim, and have received support from the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, The Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, New England Foundation for the Arts, and the Jerome Foundation.
Driven by a firm belief in the transformational power of both dance and music, the company has also partnered with organizations like the National Dance Institute and Lincoln Center Education, highlighting a deep commitment to community engagement, inclusivity, and social impact. Beyond theatres and concert halls, they have brought performances, and discussions to schools, hospitals, prisons, parks, and community centers.
Seating Options
Garden Listening / For those who prefer a more casual concert environment, Garden Listening tickets are $20, and are free for Members and children under 18 years old. Enjoy a picnic, admire a starry sky, or relax with the family. Please Note! This ticket option has no view of the stage or access to the theater. The concert will be broadcast onto Friends Field with audio only. We ask that you bring your own seating for Garden Listening. If you like this seating option, check out all of the summer concerts that have Garden Listening.
Know Before You Go
Summer Season Shuttle / Take the FREE shuttle from Metro North’s Katonah train station to and from Caramoor! The shuttle runs before and after every summer afternoon and evening concert. There is no RSVP to get on the shuttle, it will be there when you arrive (in the parking lot side of the station). If it’s not there, it’s just making the loop and should be back within 5–10 minutes.
The shuttle will start running 2.5 hours before the concert, and 1 hour after the concert ends.
Rain or Shine / All events at Caramoor take place rain or shine. However, this performance is under our fully covered Venetian Theater tent.
Make the Most of Your Time at Caramoor
Explore the Rosen House / Select rooms of the Rosen House are free to explore during our Open House hours. No RSVP is required; feel free to attend and discover more about Caramoor’s history and founders.
Related Events
