Dorrance Dance and Shamel Pitts/TRIBE Named as 92Y 2020-21 Artists in Residence

Award-winning tap dance company Dorrance Dance, and choreographer/dancer/ performance artist Shamel Pitts and his Brooklyn-based arts collective TRIBE, are the 92Y Harkness Dance Center's Artists in Residence for the 2020-2021 season. This residency offers the artists digital educational and performance opportunities expanding their reach to include our online audience of millions, as well as give access to tens of thousands of students and educators around the country through 92Y's Young Leaders Series and Dance Education Laboratory (DEL), as well as the Harkness Dance Center.

"Throughout its 146-year history, the 92nd Street Y has supported and nurtured artists from a wide variety of fields-fine arts, classical music, jazz, literature, and dance just to name a few. That longstanding commitment to fostering the highest quality performers did not stop when we were forced to close our doors in March." comments Chief Executive Officer Seth Pinsky. "We could not be more proud to be continuing to stand by artists through this difficult time."

Harkness Dance Center director Taryn Kaschock Russell notes "During this crucial time when most artists have-unfortunately-found their audiences, performance spaces, and earning potential all evaporate overnight, we wanted to provide a platform for inspirational voices to be amplified - which is why we're especially proud to name Dorrance Dance and TRIBE as this year's Artists in Residence so that they are able to continue to bring their message of inclusion and representation to audiences around the world."

Both Dorrance Dance and TRIBE will be part of 92Y's Young Leaders Series, giving presentations on the legacy of tap dance, and choreography and improvisation - respectively - to schools and educators nationwide. They join such acclaimed artists as Roxane Gay, Christian McBride and Paquito D'Rivera in this series which connects participating classrooms with the artists via live virtual meetings and livestreams from 92Y's virtual stage, among other educational opportunities.

Dorrance dancers will also teach a series of virtual master classes and workshops for various skill and age levels, in connection with the Harkness Dance Center. The dancers will work in tandem with DEL to develop a dance curriculum for NYC public schools, and train teaching artists through DEL Professional Learning workshops.

Shamel Pitts/TRIBE's residency also includes a 92Y digital performance premiere as part of the 92Y Confronts Hate initiative, as well as a series of monthly online conversations and performances curated, in collaboration with Taryn Kaschock Russell, as part of Harkness' soon to be announced virtual fall season. This monthly series will highlight national and international collaborators and influential artists who have both inspired and informed the work of TRIBE.

Russell further comments, ""We are incredibly grateful to the Gilman Foundation for their flexibility in supporting for our Artist in Residence program. It is through the Foundation's understanding and forward focused vision that we were able to meet these collectives at this moment in time by providing new platforms, connections and opportunities to grow into the new future we are all embarking on together."

The Harkness Dance Center Artists in Residence (AIR) program receives major support from the Howard Gilman Foundation, Inc., and Mertz Gilmore Foundation. Additional support is provided by Deborah and Charles Adelman and Dede and Michael Rothenberg.

This program is part of the Harkness Dance Center, which recognizes the ongoing generosity of the Harkness Foundation for Dance, as well as the major support of Jody and John Arnhold.

About 92Y Young Leaders Series:

92Y Young Leaders Series is a curriculum-based event subscription series available to schools nationwide, connecting students in grades 3-12 with leading cultural figures who appear on 92Y's storied (virtual) stage as part of our public programming. The series draws on 92Y's long history of and commitment to connecting students with the talent presented on our stages and takes our commitment to education outreach and universal access across the country. Learn more here.

About 92Y Confronts Hate:

92Y Confronts Hate is a multidisciplinary response to racism and hatred designed to foster understanding and inspire action and change. The series aims to leverage 92Y's long history of bringing thought leaders to its stage to discuss and seek solutions to some of our most vexing societal challenges. In this series, 92Y will turn its attention to the scourge of racism and hate more broadly, phenomena that have long plagued the United States and demand, given recent events, to be addressed head-on. The series includes events across 92Y's many program areas with a particular focus on the accumulated impacts of centuries of racism and hate on the Black community in the United States. 92Y Confronts Hate will include programming from 92Y's iconic Talks series; both curated and commissioned performances from the Harkness Dance Center; parenting classes on raising children with empathy; Poetry Center readings of seminal texts on the subject and a special leadership award for high school students working to abolish hate in their communities.

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