Caryn Cooper - Page 5

The Ballet Flamenco de Andalucia concluded the festivities at the New York City Center, March 18 to 19 as part of the 2016 Flamenco Festival New York. In a program entitled Images: 20 Years, the company dedicated this performance to celebrating its two-decade history as an internationally beloved flamenco dance ambassador by revisiting five of their most celebrated works in its repertoire. Each piece is a tribute to some of the most innovative and influential flamenco dancers: Mario Maya, Maria Pages, Jose Antonio Ruiz, Cristina Hoyos, and Ruben Olmo.

In light of their 10th anniversary, Dance Parade celebrated and launched its Decade of Dance campaign with a "Taste of Dance Parade" performances featuring ensembles and groups representing a wide variety of dance genres and cultures. This event brought a nice crowd of folks of all ages and backgrounds to support and celebrate dance.

Brooklyn Center for the Performing Arts at Brooklyn College, in conjunction with its third Annual Lunar New Year Celebration, partnered once again with the prestigious Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company in an all new celebration of Chinese arts and culture. Under the direction of renowned traditional dancer of Taiwan, Nai-Ni Chen, this ethnically diverse Chinese-American company seeks to bridge the gap of cultural understanding and appreciation of American modern dance and Asian art.

The Annual FLICfest, founded and curated by Jeramy Zimmerman and now in its sixth year, gave six choreographers an opportunity to present feature-length independent works at the Irondale Center, located in the heart of Brooklyn's Downtown Arts District. The work featured the world premiere of the piece Song and Dance You with choreography by Joya Powell and the members of the Movement of the People Dance Company -- Jenny Efremova, Brittany Grier, Jhia Jackson, Megan Minturn, Rachel Moore, Leah Moriarty, James Murray, Belinda Saenz, and Candace Tabbs -- along with live music by violinist Zoe Aqua and text by Amina Henry. Through the dissection of the sociocultural and sociopolitical constraints of our nation's racial divide, this piece seeks to answer the question "What does it take for Black Lives to actually matter in the eyes of all Americans?"

This past Thursday, Dance Theatre of Harlem (DTH) opened its doors to the community for an intimate gathering in their studios at the Everett Center of the Performing Arts on 152nd Street (between Amsterdam and St. Nicholas Avenues) to ring in the new year. As part of their Thursdays@DTH series, this evening's theme, Making Dance Communicate, consisted of an open rehearsal of two pieces and a conversation led by Artistic Director Virginia Johnson, with the incomparable Dianne McIntyre and the legendary Carmen de Lavallade.

This past Monday marked the opening night of the American Dance Machine for the 21st Century (ADM21) as they returned to New York City. Founded and Produced by Artistic Director Nikki Feirt Atkins, ADM21 is dedicated to creating a living and vibrant archive of classic and current notable musical theater choreography. Continuing the legacy of the late Lee Theodore, who established the original American Dance Machine in 1976 until her death in 1987, and believed that "many great choreographic works are lost with the musical they once embellished," the impetus to preserve these dances drove Theodore and continues to drive Ms. Atkins.

Dance enthusiasts from all walks of life gathered for an intimate showing of the fascinating Eye on Dance episode taped in 1986, entitled 'Nurturing A New Generation of Dancers, featuring two beloved dance figures and mentors- Bessie Schonberg and Louise Roberts, presented at Gibney Dance. Curated by Celia Ipiotis (Creator/Co-Producer/Host of Eye on Dance) and Jeff Bush (Co-Producer of Eye on Dance), put together this lovely event as part of the Eye on Dance Public Screenings and Conversation Series.

"American Cultural Ambassadors," Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, returns to the New York City Center stage for its 45th consecutive year December 2, 2015-January 3, 2016. This five week engagement, led under the direction of Artistic Director Robert Battle, has become such a wonderful holiday tradition here in New York.

New York based company Ballet Hispanico performed this November 20-21, 2015, at the historic Apollo Theatre, presenting the world premiere of "If walls could speak," by Brazilian native and acclaimed choreographer Fernando Melo. Artistic Director Eduardo Vilaro proudly presented Melo in his New York debut through a collaborative effort to co-commission the work in conjunction with the Apollo Theater and support by Univision Communications Inc.

What a wonderful and stimulating compilation of works by both seasoned and emerging contemporary dance artists! REVERBdance, in partnership with Steps Beyond Foundation, presented the 10th anniversary of the REVERBdance Festival at the Baruch Performing Arts Center on November 6-8, 2015. Here, dancers and choreographers come from across the U.S. and the world, including South Africa, London, and Japan. A special feature of this program was the festival awards based on audience vote in three distinct prizes: the Steps on Broadway Dancer Award--one month of free classes at Steps on Broadway, a commission by the Steps Beyond Foundation for the Steps Repertory Ensemble, and a $1,000 REVERB Award.

In a mix of old favorites and two world premieres by Norwood Pennewell and, of course, Fagan himself, Garth Fagan Dance celebrated its 45th anniversary at The Joyce Theater in a week-long engagement, November 3-8, 2015. Honoring such a significant milestone in the company is a great time to showcase the popular pieces of the past, in conjunction with a few new ones that highlight its diverse range and achievements. And Fagan did not let his audience down!

The Dance Enthusiast, commemorating 8 years of The Dance Enthusiast's dedication to Dance Communication, kicked off its 2015 fall season with "Dance-Art-Fusion-Family-8th Birthday Party" at Gibney Dance to celebrate the power of the arts. As part of the Enthusiastic Event Series, this is a place where master artists share their creations, ideas, and methods with their audiences. The theme, "fusion," is to show the connection through the arts because "fusion is the definition of how we live," as stated by Christine Jowers, editor-in-chief of The Dance Enthusiast.

This past Wednesday kicked off the 12th edition of the annual Fall for Dance Festival, which will feature 20 acclaimed dance companies and artists from around the world at the New York City Center. Fall for Dance is a two-week festival that has become a cultural staple here in New York-a commitment to making dance accessible to everyone by providing an opportunity for audiences to enjoy a wide array of artists from around the globe at a affordable price. This year's festival will consist of five unique programs, in addition to several pre-show events which include dance lessons and panel discussions with choreographers, artists, and dance educators.

Camille A. Brown & Dancers, notably recognized for their introspective approach to cultural themes and socio-political dialogues, kicked off its 2015-2016 season tour with the world premiere of their newest work entitled BLACK GIRL: Linguistic Play for a week-long engagement at The Joyce Theater, running through September 27. Choreographed by Bessie Award and Doris Duke Artist award-winning choreographer Camille A. Brown, and performed by an all-female cast featuring live music by composers Scott Patterson (piano) and Tracy Wormworth (electric bass), this piece reveals the complexity of carving out a self-defined identity as a black female in urban America. Moderated conversations with Mark Anthony Neal and Dream Hampton engage audiences following each performance in a 'second-act' dialogue around the cultural and universal themes presented in the choreography.

As part of the 2015 Next Wave Festival, the Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan had its US premiere of the piece Rice on September 16-19 at the BAM Howard Gilman Opera House. The company's founder and Artistic Director, Lin Hwai-min, s a recent recipient of the Samuel H. Scripps/American Dance Festival Award for Lifetime Achievement, putting him in the same category as other notable choreographers such as Martha Graham, Merce Cunningham and William Forsythe. Cloud Gate is the first contemporary dance company in the greater Chinese-speaking community and was founded in 1973 with its name drawn from the oldest-known Chinese dance. Lin, a writer-turned-choreographer, often draws inspiration from Asian cultures and aesthetics in his work.

On September 11-12, choreographer and company director Miro Magloire kicked off the New Chamber Ballet's 2015-16 season with an intimate gathering at the City Center Studios. Magloire, a native of Munich, Germany, began his career as a composer before moving to New York to pursue dance. His work draws from his background in music and home country to present an evening of lovely and sophisticated choreography that is masterfully accompanied to live music, which is integral to the company's artistic identity.  This engagement marked the first of five two-night seasons in their home base at City Center.

As part of an on-going series, “GrahamDeconstructed,” the Martha Graham Dance Company presented an intimate showing at the Martha Graham Studio Theater of the iconic piece Embattled Garden, Graham's wry meditation on love's strife inspired by the story of Adam and Eve, with music by world-renowned composer, Carlos Surinach. Through this series, audience members have a rare opportunity to experience the inside workings of a great American modern dance company.