Welcome to the Friday Round-Up, a place for the Vancouver community of dancers and dance lovers to come together and share what is going on in the local dance community. In this new world in which we find ourselves, it is now more important than ever to find ways to connect and share all the many new and innovative ways in which we create, communicate and relate in the world of dance. So if you have something you would like to share with the Friday Round-Up, please send it to debora@dancehouse.ca. We look forward to hearing from you!
Ecole-des-sables in Dancing at Dusk – A Moment with Pina Bausch’s The Rite of Spring
We are so excited to share everything DanceHouse has to offer this fall! Today we will give you a taster, and over the coming weeks, as we draw closer to each event, we will share more about the artists and their works being presented. So read on to plan your fall of contemporary dance!
DanceHouse opens the season October 21 to 27 with company École des Sables from Senegal in Dancing at Dusk – A Moment with Pina Bausch’s The Rite of Spring. In this stunning film, Pina Bausch’s 1975 seminal work The Rite of Spring takes place on a remote beach near Toubab Dialaw, Senegal. Created as the world descended into pandemic lockdown, the performance captures the final rehearsal of 38 dancers from 14 different African nations. In addition to offering a rare opportunity to watch one of the world’s greatest dance works, the performance documents a singular moment in time, as the performers gathered in preparation for an international tour. Check out the teaser– it will en-trance! For more information, including ticketing and details as to how to stream the film, please go here.
In the next best thing to being there, on November 6-8 experience Nederlands Dans Theater 2: Dare to Say – LIVE from the Hague. In Dare to Say, dancemakers Alexander Ekman and Dimo Milev challenge their performers with distinct new approaches to movement and choreography, necessitated by the restrictions imposed by COVID-19. The result is radically exciting new choreographic works. The livestream presentation will include an introduction to the work followed by a fully staged performance. Collapsing time and space, the digital livestream will allow audiences to enjoy the dancers on stage in The Hague, from the comfort of their own home.
NDT2 Dare to Say © Rahi Rezvani
Right on the tail of NDT2, on November 15 Montreal based Jack of all Trades brings live, from Montreal, Battle / Street Dance. Recognized worldwide for its international festival which brings together street dance and related arts such as visual arts, music production and DJing, Battle / Street Dance is an artistic presentation that showcases the creativity of artists in a form commonly known as “battle”. The 8 dancers will be accompanied by three renowned DJs, in an atmosphere of expression, exchange and confrontation. As those of you who have experienced a dance battle will know, the audience response is an integral component of the experience, and this live screening will be no exception: giant screens will be placed in front of the dancers enabling audience members to react to the battle, just like when they attend in person. It will be about as close to a live experience as you can get with out being in the room! Ticket info for this event is coming soon.
We also want to share news of our Speaking of Dance Conversations, presented by DanceHouse in partnership with SFU Woodward’s Cultural Programs. The new online series Speaking of Dance focuses the spotlight on the exceptional artists who have previously presented work on the DanceHouse stage, who will be asked questions centred around upcoming creative practice and projects, as well as their individual perspectives and histories. Utilizing the theme of future works is intended both as a protest against the uncertainty of our times, as well as a call to creativity and the importance of hope. The series will open on November 26, when we will be joined by Jacob Boehme of the Ilbijerri Theatre Company and Hervé Koubi of Compagnie Hervé KOUBI, and others. These online conversations will be an opportunity to engage in meaningful conversations and dialogue via a live chat during the video-streaming. Moderators will select questions from the online chat sessions, allowing for the speakers to personally respond to questions. For more information, and for updates on upcoming conversations, go here.
DanceHouse is not the only place you can experience dance this fall! Vancouver dancers and organizations have much to offer as we move into the shorter days and longer nights of fall, so check out some of these events!
Made in BC – Dance on Tour is in the midst of an online series titled Configurations in Motion: Performance Curation and Communities of Colour. While the dates for the online discussions have passed, on October 16, 6pm you still have an opportunity to experience an online showing of works-in- process from dance artists participating in PROJECT 686km Artistic Exchange between Vancouver and Calgary. Collectively, these events aim to mobilize knowledge, foster critical dialogue, and bring heightened awareness of dance research in theory and practice with and beyond the academic setting to explore topics that impact communities of colour. Go here for registration, and this event is FREE!
Sujit Vaidya Photo Chris Randle
On October 15 to 29, the Dance Centre Discover Dance! series presents Sujit Vaidya. One of Vancouver’s leading exponents of the exquisitely beautiful South Indian dance style of bharata natyam, Sujit Vaidya also creates work which reflects a modern sensibility and questions arbitrary limitations set in the name of ‘tradition’. In this stimulating presentation, Sujit will perform short solo works, and discuss how he and other artists are increasingly challenging the traditional hierarchies, politics and stereotypes surrounding bharata natyam. This performance will be streamed online at thedancecentre.ca. For more info
