'Dance Diplomacy With Jonathan' Comes to Battery Dance TV

Battery Dance launched Battery Dance TV on March 27, 2020 at https://batterydance.org/dancetv/ to provide free live dance classes and programming for the general public by Battery Dance and affiliated artists through a regularly scheduled program. Faced with the cancellation of its New York City public school dance classes and the postponement of its State Department Nigeria tour, and with its popular dance studios closed, the company staff members went into high gear (from living rooms and kitchens), creating online content. In its first week, Battery Dance TV was been seen by more than 11,500 viewers in 77 countries.

On Sunday, April 5, Battery Dance TV continues its weekly program, Dance Diplomacy with Jonathan. Last week's offering featured an interview with Unnath Hassan Rathnaraju in Karnataka, India: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iw0mJk1GKws&t=359s.

This week's guests - Christopher "Unpezverde" Núñez and Vladimir Campoy - will be introduced to each other for the first time by Jonathan Hollander, Artistic Director of Battery Dance.

Each artist has pursued a career in dance with compromised vision, and during the interview, they will share how and when they first lost sight, and how they have coped with it during the course of their careers. The conversation is very open and reveals how two different Latinx dancers approach their craft while pursuing, or not, an agenda of consciousness-raising and disability rights advocacy.

Vladimir Campoy, originally from Guadalajara and currently based in Xalapa, Mexico, came to New York on scholarship with the Joffrey Ballet School. While in New York, he performed in the works of Hanna Q, Aviva Geismar, Regina Nejman and others. Since returning to Mexico, he joined La Quinto Danza Teatro and performed in Guadalajara and Cuba; was principal dancer with Gineceo Danza Contemporanea of Guadalajara on the Company's tour of Spain; and is currently working Corpodanza with upcoming tour of Canada.

Christopher "Unpezverde" Núñez is a visually impaired choreographer, performance artist, curator and arts educator. He began his dance training in Costa Rica and earned his BFA in Performing Arts at the National University of Costa Rica. Since relocating to New York City, his performances have been presented at The Brooklyn Museum (The Immigrant Artist Biennale), The Kitchen, Movement Research at The Judson Church, Danspace Project, The Leslie Lohman Museum for Gay and Lesbian Art, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dixon Place and Performance is Alive at Satellite Art Show (NY & Miami). He has performed internationally in Peru, Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Salvador, Guatemala, Costa Rica and and his work has been featured in publications such as The New York Times, New York Magazine, The Brooklyn Rail, The Dance Enthusiast and The Archive: The Leslie Lohman Museum bi-annual journal. He has held residencies at New Dance Alliance (LiftOff, 2018), Battery Dance Studios (Space Grant, 2017-2019), The Kitchen (DAP, 2019) and Center for Performance Research (AIR, 2020). Núñez has collaborated with world-renowned artists such as Nacera Belaza (France), Christophe Haleb (France) and Mark Sieczkarek (Germany). Most recently, he performed in "Dressing Up for Civil Rights" by William Pope L, presented at MoMA, The Museum of Modern Art.

"Battery Dance TV allows us to continue connecting people across the world through dance at this time of social distancing and isolation," said Jonathan Hollander, artistic director of Battery Dance. "We and everyone we know at home and abroad are facing emotional, psychological, physical and financial challenges. For 45 years, we have explored the power of dance as an art form and a means for social impact and connection. We are not going to stop now when the need is so great."

Offerings will include:

• morning warmup/stretching/conditioning exercises to start your day off right
• mid-day classes in contemporary dance with afro, ballet and jazz fusion elements
• evening classes in varied ballroom styles
• a daily 4pm short video by dancers performing in their living rooms

Battery Dance will tap into its international network to host Artists Talks every Sunday at 9:00 AM (Eastern Time) with performers based in New York and from around the world, followed by Sunday classes in international dance genres such as Bharatanatyam dance from India, and African Fusion from Botswana.

Battery Dance also plans to expand its distance learning and programming by including online classes in lighting and production design, and classes in arts administration and cultural diplomacy. In the future, the Company plans to add short performances by youth around the world who will create short dances based on a specific weekly theme suggested by the Company.

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