Dance Canvas to Celebrate 15 Years - Returning to the Ferst Center With New Works & Films

Dance Canvas is returning to the Ferst Center for the Arts on March 23rd - 25th with the acclaimed annual performance series. This season, Dance Canvas will premiere pieces from 8 choreographers ranging in styles from Ballet to Contemporary to House. Returning after a successful 1st season is Dance Canvas' new program for filmmakers: Dance Canvas: on Film.

"This season is rooted in celebration!" says Executive Artistic Director, Angela Harris. "Each choreographer was selected based on their unique way of expressing joy and celebration. We really wanted to embrace that theme this year, not just because it is our 15th Anniversary, but also because our world has changed so vastly over the past 3 years and we wanted to approach work through a joyful lens this season!"

The pieces this year span many genres of dance and the choreographers have been working with their casts since October 2022. "Selecting choreographers each season is so challenging," says Harris, "because the pool of working dance artists who call Atlanta home keeps growing. That is exciting for our dance community! It also gives us an opportunity to provide resources to keep investing into their artistic growth and development."

At the heart of Dance Canvas' season is the Choreographer Career Development Initiative. Each year, Dance Canvas selects up to 10 choreographers to create and present work through the program. With the assistance of Dance Canvas resources, staff and artistic mentors, the selected choreographers create world premiere dance works.

"Our program provides opportunities not only to our choreographers, but also to the Atlanta community, shining a light on these talented artists as they blossom on the local and national stage. I always love meeting new dance artists who call Atlanta home and it's so important to provide space and resources to emerging choreographers...they are the future of this artform!"

Dance Canvas 2023 Choreographers (w/ recent affiliations):

Akeem Edwards (Former dancer - Garth Fagan Dance)

Billy Hawkains III (Artistic Director - The iii Collective; Professor - Kennesaw State University)

Whitney Jackson (CalArts; Former dancer/rehearsal director - B. Dunn Movement Dance/Theater Company in Los Angeles)

Lashonda Johnson (B.F.A. Slippery Rock University; T.Lang 'Incubation Learning Laboratory Residency')

Andre Lumpkin (MFA - Florida State University; Emory University)

Jacquelyn Pritz (Meli Kaye Resident Artist; South Arts Emerging Leaders of Color)

Gwynn Root Wolford (Former dancer - Louisville Ballet, Columbia Classical Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, Festival Ballet Providence

Xiang Xu - Philadelphia/NYC (Professor - Temple University; Resident Artist - La Salle College of Arts - Singapore)

Tickets on sale through the Ferst Center Box Office: www.dancecanvas.com or 404-894-9600

Dance Canvas: on Film...3 new film projects

In 2022, Dance Canvas launched a new initiative, Dance Canvas: on Film, which provides resources, mentorship and assists with producing dance films from new artists. The program was envisioned to help choreographers develop films to be presented virtually and/or to film festivals. Last season's films premiered at the Ferst Center, and each film went on to be selected by local and national film festivals. This season, Dance Canvas: on Film is premiering three new films, including an animated short. The films will premiere during a screening for Atlanta audiences on Thursday, March 23rd at the Ferst Center for the Arts.

"Our Dance Canvas: on Film program was suggested to us by one of our 2020 choreographers, Terelyn Jones, who took her piece and re-worked it for a film after our shows were cancelled due to the pandemic. Terelyn suggested that we provide resources for dance film makers, and she came onboard in 2021 to help us develop the program, " says Harris. The program also had guest mentors from the dance film world: Britt Fishel and Andrea Knowlton.

Selected 2023 Dance Film makers:

Anicka Austin

Marley Carter

Jodie Jernigan

For more information on the 2022-23 Season, please visit www.dancecanvas.com

Tickets on sale through the Ferst Center Box Office: 404-894-9600

Dance Canvas' 2022-23 Season is funded in part by:

Community Foundation of Greater Atlanta

Fulton County Arts & Culture

Harland Family Foundation

The City of Atlanta's Office of Cultural Affairs

Georgia Council for the Arts

Home Depot Foundation

Bloomberg Philanthropies

X-Factor Solutions, LLC

Dance Canvas' 2022-23 Partnerships:

Georgia Tech/Office of the Arts

Academy of Ballet Norcross

Atlanta Dance and Music Academy

Georgia Institute of Technology

Spelman College

Kennesaw State University

Aurora Theater

Company Information:

Dance Canvas' mission is to provide opportunities and venues to increase the awareness of professional dance in Atlanta. Our vision is to be the premiere ground for the "next generation" of dance makers, while finding interactive ways of making dance more relatable to the public. Dance Canvas successfully accomplishes our mission through three major program areas of service: Choreographer Career Development, Youth Outreach & Engagement, and Audience Development.

Since 2008, Dance Canvas has presented 14 acclaimed choreographer showcases at the Ferst Center for the Arts, Woodruff Arts Center, and Rialto Center for the Arts. Since its inception, Dance Canvas has premiered new works by 104 emerging professional choreographers, presented 200+ professional dancers, performed for over 20,000 Atlanta audiences, and worked hands-on with 10,000+ Atlanta area students through our outreach efforts and youth programs. Dance Canvas' youth programs DC NEXT and DC INTERNS serve as a springboard for students to learn, develop, and polish their skills in the business, production, and creative aspects of the dance profession. The DC NEXT curriculum has been implemented by both the City of Atlanta's Office of Cultural Affairs & Department of Recreation, as well as recording artist Usher's New Look Foundation. In addition, each season is full of free public performances, community festivals, youth summits, and collaborations to give back to the Atlanta community.

Dance Canvas is a 501 (c) 3, non-profit organization.

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