Danielle Agami Collaborates with Wilco's Glenn Kotche for CALLING GLENN

Israel has long been a hotbed for contemporary dance, with Batsheva Dance Company at its epicenter. Velocity + Seattle Theatre Group present former Batsheva dancer Danielle Agami's new work, Calling Glenn, for her Los Angeles based company Ate9, named one of the country's "hottest cultural commodities" (Dance Magazine). Rhythmic anchor of the beloved band Wilco, Glenn Kotche, performs original live music.

Agami's strong physicality, humor, and theatricality has made her one of the hottest choreographers in America today. Kotche will be performing his original music live in Seattle only. Costume design by,

GhostCircus Apparel, founded by a Seattle native Eli James.

DANIELLE AGAMI / ATE9 is considered one of America's most important, emerging dance companies. Agami was a member of Batsheva Dance Company from 2005-2010 under the artistic directorship of Ohad Naharin. She also served as the company's rehearsal director and in 2009 received the Yair Shapira Prize for Excellence in Dance.

Ate9 dANCEcOMPANY, based in Los Angeles, tours internationally, and was founded at Velocity Dance Center in 2012. The first beneficiary of Velocity's Made in Seattle program, Agami created her first full-length piece, Sally Meets Stu, which was commissioned and produced by Velocity. The show proved so popular that Velocity produced a sold-out encore performance. Velocity then brought Agami / Ate9's triumphant return to Seattle in 2015 with a sold-out run of the critically acclaimed mouth to mouth.

The premiere of Calling Glenn celebrates the wonderful & long lasting connection Ate9 has with her mother city Seattle and Velocity Dance Center. Calling Glenn is presented by Velocity and Seattle Theatre Group, with underwriting from Case van Rij.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

DANIELLE AGAMI, FOUNDER | ARTISTIC DIRECTOR was born in Israel in 1984, where she studied at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance High School and was a member of the Batsheva Dance Company. Between 2007 and 2009, Agami served as the Artistic Director of Batsheva Dancers Create, and functioned as the company's rehearsal director from 2008-2010. After 8 years with Batsheva, Agami moved to New York to serve as the Senior Manager of Gaga U.S.A.

In 2012 Agami relocated to Seattle, where she founded Ate9-an undertaking that fully realized her artistic voice as a dancer, choreographer, and teacher. "With intriguing imagination, well-developed craft and an eye for nuance, this budding choreographer may surprise us yet." (Ora Brafman, The Jerusalem Post). Danielle was the grand prize winner of the 2013 & 2014 Annual Choreography Festival at the McCallum Theatre and Dance Magazine's Top 25 to watch in 2015. In 2016, recognized with the Princess Grace Award for Choreography.

Since 2001, GLENN KOTCHE has been the rhythmic anchor in Wilco, one of the most beloved rock bands on the planet. His first studio outing with the Chicago-based band was the breakthrough Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, and has continued over the course of five albums, including the Grammy-winning A Ghost Is Born and the critically acclaimed The Whole Love. He has appeared on over 80 recordings by artists as diverse as Andrew Bird, Edith Frost, Neil Finn and Radiohead's Phil Selway, and he's a founding member of two other bands- Loose Fur, with Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy and longtime collaborator Jim O'Rourke, and On Fillmore, with upright bassist Darin Gray. He has also written music for classical and post-classical ensembles like Kronos Quartet, the Silk Road Ensemble, the Bang on a Can All-Stars, So Percussion, eighth blackbird and many more.

GhostCircus APPAREL was created by drummer/producer/designer Eli James for the simple reason that he wanted to make clothes that were cool and that he wanted to wear. Eli would always alter everything he wore. Whether he was going to meetings, running errands, practicing, playing shows, going out with friends or even hanging in at home, he really just wanted to be comfortable. "All you have to do is throw another layer on and keep on going." Through a variety of testing, he figured out what he was really after. His way of putting a few pieces together made it unique enough for him to want to wear. Welcome to our world, a lifestyle where music and fashion collide.

Mayor's Arts Award and Genius Award winning Velocity Dance Center is Seattle's forward-thinking laboratory and essential incubator for dance and emerging ideas. A national nexus for dance, Velocity is recognized as a leader in new dance development in the US. With artist-driven, community-centered artistic and education programs, Velocity is instrumental in making Seattle a destination city with one of the most active dance communities in the nation. With artist-led classes and workshops every day, performances every week, three annual dance festivals, ongoing humanities programs that activate thoughtful conversations, as well as weekly community events from social dances to family-style dinners, Velocity is a portal for those new to dance and an important community resource. Home to hundreds of independent dance artists and renowned for producing innovative, cutting-edge work, Velocity has featured performances and master classes by art stars Tere O'Connor, Pat Graney, Reggie Watts, Miguel Gutierrez, Anouk van Dijk, Deborah Hay, Faye Driscoll, 33 Fainting Spells, KT Niehoff, Zoe Scofield/Juniper Shuey, Danielle Agami and many more. Velocity is Seattle's only dedicated contemporary dance venue where groundbreaking work and disciplined practice coexist.

Velocity advances contemporary dance and movement-based art by fostering the creative explorations of artists and audiences through an invested commitment to education, creation, performance, inquiry, community participation, and inter/national exchange.

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