Pro/Motion – Week of April 15

Performances

Hello BDA Community,

Happy World Art Day! Art and in particular dance has the power to bring beauty & light into a world that can often be dark.

We at Boston Dance Alliance appreciate & celebrate all of you movers & shakers who brighten our world with your artistry.

Keep shining!


Aaron Myers, Interim Executive Director

 

BDA Member Events This Week

A Radical Welcome poster with event information and photos of performers.

Choreographer Liana C. Percoco has been collaborating with the Boston Public Quartet to create a new dance for their premiere of composer Lavell Blackwell’s “On the Impulse to Move”. Dancers Dana Alsamsam, Hannah Brown, Erica Codd, and Sophie Nash have been in the studio with Liana since January creating a dance that meets and complements the musical score in unique ways. See the premiere of “A Radical Welcome”  this Friday, April 19, 7:30 PM at the Strand Theatre, 543 Columbia Road, Dorchester. Tickets are pay-what-you-can.

 

Dancer in traditional Indian dance costume kneels and opens arms up.

The Dance Complex presents In Between, exploring the position of being in-between two concepts through South Asian music, dance and poetry. Reflect on the binaries that can affect us in a myriad of ways: between people, places, identities, schools of thought, and arts. Through the lens of South Asian poetry that spans from centuries ago to modern thought, In Between delves into the performance traditions of Bharatanatyam using novel compositions of Carnatic music and its respective visualization. Saturday, April 20, 7-8 PM, at The Dance Complex, 536 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge. Tickets: $20.

 

MM Choreo Projects poster with photos of groups of dancers and workshop information.

Boston-based dancers Anara Frank, Eli Pabon, Maite Abadia and Tina Cavicchio from MetaMovements are collaborating with a group of artists on each island, as they develop exciting new choreographies to share with the world. Choose to be part of one choreo project from Cuba or DR or choose to be part of both. These choreographies will help you dive into and expand your movement vocabulary with dances that originated in Cuba (Son, Rueda, Afro-Cuban, Timbaton, and more) and in the DR (Merengue, Bachata, Dembow, and more). Through Bootcamps and Tech Rehearsals prepare for Local and International performance opportunities available starting in June. Boot camps start this Sunday, April 21 and run on April 28, May 5, May 12, May 19 & June 2, 12:30-3:30 PM (1.5h per project). Three Tech Rehearsals will happen Wednesday evenings in June & July. Email mmteam@metamovements.net with questions. Registration: $195 (one island of choice) or $350 (both choreos from Cuba & from DR).

 

Other events in the community this week:
FREE! – A Deepest Blue explores humanity’s multifaceted relationship with water, focusing on origin stories from both Cambodia and Japan. Watch the Avant-Premiere this Thursday, April 18, 7 PM, at Laurie Theater in the Spingold Theater, Brandeis University, 415 South St, Waltham.

FREE! – To wrap up the Winter 2024 trimester, the Boston Dance Theater Trainee Program will present an informal showing. Trainees will have the opportunity to perform company repertoire, a new creation by guest choreographer Tushrik Frederickson, and solos choreographed by Olivia Coombs and Henoch Spinola. Friday, April 19, 1-2 PM at The Brookline Ballet School, 1431 Beacon St, Brookline.

Tufts’ Spring Dance Concert will feature senior capstone projects, marking the conclusion of the 40th Anniversary year of the Dance Program at Tufts University. Friday, April 19 & Saturday, April 20, 7 PM in the Jackson Dance Lab, 50 Talbot Ave, Medford. Tickets: $10-$20.

The Harvard-Radcliffe Modern Dance Company presents “the eleventh hour”, exploring concepts of  movement and struggle against time and limits, something that drives us to chase a goal or brings us to a point of no return. Evening will feature 10 original student works and premiering a brand-new piece by Boston’s Colleen Roddy. Friday, April 19, 7 PM, and Saturday, April 20, 2 PM & 7 PM, at the Harvard Dance Center, 66 Garden St, Cambridge. Tickets: $5-$10.

Abilities Dance Boston presents “Intersections V3“, the third installment of a series that highlights BIPOC and disabled artists/activists past and present. Through original choreography/artistic direction by Ellice Patterson and original score by Andrew Choe (who also identify on the intersections of race and disability), they bring the interviewees’ stories to life with dancers, musicians, and more. In addition, they also relate honorees’ stories to current bills on the Massachusetts state floor in collaboration with Disability Policy Consortium. Friday, April 19, and Saturday, April 20, 8 PM at the Multicultural Arts Center, 41 Second Street, Cambridge. Tickets: $35. Unlimited free tickets available.

FREE! – Calling improvisers and observers! MEET is an improvisational series where artists of different performing art disciplines can meet each other through practice. The night of names will be drawn from 3 “hats” each focusing on different “spaces”: the sonic space, the visual space, and the embodiment space. MEET is a great way to meet other artists not in your discipline through jamming (and performing) with each other. You may also come as an observer as well. A donation box will be available in order to cover the space and be split up amongst performers at the end of the night. Saturday, April 20, 7-9 PM, at SomArt @ the Hive, 561 Windsor St., Somerville.

FRONTERAS is a new work choreographed by two of flamenco’s most exciting artists: Jose Maldonado and Karen Lugo, with an original score by Jose Luis de la Paz. FRONTERAS asks, “What is stronger – what unites us or what separates us?” Watch the season closing performance at UMass Amherst. Saturday, April 20, 8 PM at the Frederick C. Tillis Performance Hall, 151 Presidents Drive, Amherst. Tickets: $15-$55.

Audition poster with photo of dancer in red dress in a lunge.
BoSoma Dance Company is seeking male and female dancers trained in classical ballet, modern, contemporary and/or jazz techniques for their annual 2024-2025 season. The audition will be in the form of a company class which will include a warm up and progressions, as well as improvisation. Bring a copy of your resume and head shot. Audition registration forms will be provided at the audition. To reserve your spot, email your resume and headshot to company@bosoma.org. Saturday, April 20, 1-3 PM, at the BoSoma School of Dance, 15 Walnut Road, 2nd Floor, Hamilton.
Festivals & Projects Grants poster
The next grant round of Festivals & Projects Grants will fund activities that provide public benefit using the arts, humanities, or sciences and take place between July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025. These awards of $2,500 will support cultural celebrations, concert series, film festivals, public art projects, art workshops, pop-up markets, art and nature hikes – and more – across the Commonwealth. Eligible festivals, projects, and programs are publicly available or community-based. Funds will be available to support activities that are open to the general public, or focused on serving the needs of a particular community. Projects must also have a minimum of $2,500 in cash expenses, including the full cost of the project – there are no limits on overhead or indirect costs. The application deadline is May 23, 2024. Program guidelines are now available.
Photo of three AXIS dancers performing at the outdoor stage at Jacob's Pillow.

Operating Grants for Organizations provides multi-year, unrestricted operating grants to nonprofit organizations and cultural affiliates that enrich Massachusetts’ cultural life. Application Deadline: June 13, 11:59 PM.

 

Photo of ballerina in a rélévé passé

City Ballet of Boston is offering BDA members a 10% discount on tickets on their next show! “Ballet Banquet,” an unforgettable celebration of dance. The performances will celebrate a range of ballet styles and music. Friday, April 26, 7 PM, Saturday, April 27, & Sunday, April 28, 3 PM at the Strand Theatre, 543 Columbia Road Boston, MA. Check your member portal for details or email info@bostondancealliance.org for more information on how to redeem your discount!

 

Sambanismo poster with photos of featured artists

Sambanismo Experience is an international dance, music and art event dedicated to combining the energy and rhythm of music with the vibrant essence of Brazilian culture. The 3-day festival is highlighted by a world-renowned teaching panel of experts & pioneers of Hip hop, House, Waacking and Afro Dance teaching dance workshops for all levels of dancer at the Cambridge Multicultural Arts Center.  The event will also feature high level Popping, Hip Hop, House dance battles with cash prizes for the winners. Friday, April 26-Sunday, April 28, at 41 Second Street, Cambridge. Tickets: $400.

The weekend concludes with an after-party that features the legendary DJ Spinna who visits Boston to celebrate the culmination of Sambanismo at La Fabrica Night Life in Central Square. Patrons will be treated to the best hiphop and house music, as well as a DJ set all the way from Brazil from DJ G! Sunday, April 28, 8 PM-2 AM, at 450 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge. Tickets: $20. Contact beejerks@gmail.com with any questions.