Massachusetts Dance Festival’s first annual statewide events, sponsored by the UMass Amherst Department of Musicand Dance, will be held August 21st and 22nd at Boston Ballet, 19 Clarendon Street,Boston, and August 28th and 29th, at UMass Amherst (Totman Building) and The Fine Arts Center, Amherst. 2010 events at both sites includeSaturday evening performances by eleven professional dance companies, andSunday late afternoon performances by eleven emerging dance companies,representing genres of ballet, jazz, modern, contemporary, multimedia, EastIndian, and hip hop/jazz. Each presentation reveals the sheer creative power ofdance – the breadth of training and talent across the Commonwealth – ofphysicality, technical excellence, emotional exuberance, and compellingartistry, that is certain to attract and engage audiences of all ages andbackgrounds.
Innovative choreographies of two weekends include: 1) “Marionette,” which questions the notion of “success,” reflectingthe “struggle to get ahead in business, financial, and personal lives…driven byrelentless social images,” choreographedby Katherine Hooper of BoSoma DanceCompany, where athleticism and the “constant energy of phrasing” propelsdancers ahead three steps, and back only two; 2) A dramatic selection by Contrapose Dance entitled “Sanitas,” which approaches society’s “recent obsession withcleanliness and staying free of sickness,” plummeting deeply into the humanpsyche … gripping audiences while challenging dancers through feats of athleticand artistic elocution; 3) Monkeyhousedancers’ newest creation, “"Times New Roman Italic""">Against the Odds11.0pt"">,” which “explores themes of endangerment and stagnancy,” and theenormous effort required to get “unstuck,” using a series of ‘found sound’recordings of rain and train station buskers; 4) A multi-media celebration ofthe Connecticut River by Sorvino DanceProject called “Downstream,” where fluid movements are adapted to the power,stillness, and interruptions of the river, against a backdrop of SamPettengill’s visual artwork, and a magnetic improvisational and polyrhythmicmusical landscape; 5) An energetic and uplifting piece, Mariah Steele’s “Simon &Garfunkel Suite,” which portrays a“desire to celebrate life and the human experience in all its grit and humor,dust and glory… a love of community, awe of our bodies’ vast capabilities … anda deep faith in humanity.”
Additional to dance performances are a total of 48 dance classes for adults and childrenin Boston, August 21st and 22nd, and in Amherst, August28th and 29th, between the hours of 11:00 am and 5:00 pmon Saturdays, and between 11:00 am and 3:00 pm on Sundays. Massachusettsmaster dancers, college and K-12 educators, and industry specialists covergenres of ballet, jazz, tap, modern, African, Cuban Salsa, hip hop, “inclusivedance for physically disabled dancers,” and a diverse range of innovativechildren’s dance classes. Specialty workshops on “dance photography,” “managing a successfulcultural business,” and “healthy dancers” will also run adjacent to movementclasses, offering a full spectrum of activities for all ages and levels ofaudience participants.
MDF’s Emcee for both Saturday nights is Massachusetts native and national jazz icon, RebeccaParris, who will open both performances and sing two of her favorite,popular jazz standards. She is an ardent supporter of music and danceperformance and education in Massachusetts, and a tireless promoter of theMassachusetts Dance Festival’s mission:
“…to revitalize dance and arts-related professions by developing partnerships withbusinesses, corporations, institutions and communities. MassachusettsDance Festival believes that dance, as a major component of arts and culture,is essential to meaningful lives and healthy communities. Dance and artseducation contribute to quality life in the 21st Century byproviding rich education for youth and promoting cultural understanding andtolerance within diverse communities.”
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Tickets are $25.00 and can be purchased in advance or at the door. Discounts areavailable for Boston Dance Alliance Members, students, senior citizens, andgroups of 10 or more. Call: (508) 429-7577 for ticketsales information. You may alsopay for tickets in advance, through Pay Pal, at the Massachusetts DanceFestival web site http://massdancefestival.org.
For a full listing of performing artists and adult and student dance classes, go to: 11.0pt"">http://www.massdancefestival.org/performers.html and 11.0pt"">http://www.massdancefestival.org/schedule.html.
MDF is a registered 501(C) 3 non-profit, with its 2010 summer dance festivalsupported by: Body Grooves,Boston Dance Alliance, Dancing Arts Center, the Dance Inn, Hot Stepz Magazine, North Shore Dance Alliance, Red Fez Restaurant, and Teddy Shoes.yes""> Senator Sonia Chang Díaz,Chair of the Tourism, Arts, and Cultural Development Committee, endorses the Massachusetts Dance Festival.
MDF can help to establish Massachusetts asan important destination for arts, culture and tourism.
Photo of BoSoma Dance Company
