Pro/Motion - week of March 11

Dear BDA community,

I hope you have been able to adjust to the daylight savings time adjustment and have enjoyed our longer days with sunshine. March is always a month filled with so many dance-related events: deadlines, performances, workshops and so much more. It’s inspiring to see our community so actively blooming as we get ready for spring.

Take a peek at all things dance happening in the next week in this edition of Pro/Motion! Find a special treat for our subscribers, opportunities to present work and develop professionally, as well as dance performances ranging from Indian classical dance to Gaga and Flamenco.

As always, please reach out if there’s anything we can do to support you in your dance journey. Wishing you the very best during this month,

Carmen S. Rizzo
Operations and Membership Associate

Next season’s Boston Dancemakers Residency applications are open!

Considered Boston’s most comprehensive dance-focused residency, the Boston Dancemakers Residency is designed to support new work from conception to performance. Produced through a partnership between Boston Center for the Arts (BCA) and Boston Dance Alliance (BDA), this intensive Dancemakers Residency offers incubation elements for research, experimentation, artistic risk-taking, and growth within the dance industry in a customized manner for the artist’s practice. Two choreographers selected for this opportunity will receive support for research, development, rehearsal, production support, marketing and mentorship. Apply by May 27, 11 PM.

Jacob’s Pillow Festival Lineup Announced!

Get to know the artists of this year’s Jacob’s Pillow Summer Festival. Get ready for nine weeks of performances, day and night, in the historic Ted Shawn Theatre and on the outdoor Henry J. Leir Stage! This summer’s dance performances are an eclectic mix of Jacob’s Pillow debuts and longtime audience favorites, including ballet, modern, Indigenous dance from across Turtle Island, hip hop, flamenco, circus, and more, with artists from Canada, England, Switzerland, Italy, Argentina, Spain, and beyond. Find out more about the artists through Jacob’s Pillow Dance Interactive and Jacob’s Pillow On Demand including free streaming of past performances from Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo and Ballet du Grand Théâtre de Genève on Jacob’s Pillow Dance Interactive, plus a recent Inside the Pillow Lab short film featuring Camille A. Brown on Jacob’s Pillow On Demand, focused on the world premiere that Camille A. Brown & Dancers will present in the Ted Shawn Theatre this summer.

Alvin Ailey special discount for Pro/Motion subscribers!

Celebrity Series presents Alvin Ailey at the Boch Center Wang Theatre. This season’s performances feature classic works by Alvin Ailey, notable selections by other modern and contemporary choreographers, and new commissions that carry forward the founder’s and the company’s legacy and depict the many facets of Black American life, culture, and history. Use the code MOVE25 to get 25% off your tickets! Performances take place May 2-5 at 270 Tremont St. Boston.

BDA Member Events This Week

Black and white photo of dancers and videographer at the ArtLab.

FREE! – tethered is a collaborative film directed by Tony-award-winning director-choreographer Raja Feather Kelly and interdisciplinary cinematographer Sue Murad, featuring multidisciplinary dance choreographers Jessi Stegall and Ilya Vidrin. Part dance theater and part documentary, the film’s unifying theme is the tethering of different dimensions within partnerships. The screening of this short dance film will be followed by a conversation with the creative team about their process for creating the film at the ArtLab in 2023. RSVP is requested. Wednesday, March 13, 6 PM at the Harvard ArtLab, 140 North Harvard Street, Boston.

Krithi Nathan brings her Semiclassical Workshop to The Dance Complex. Participants can expect to learn basic Indian classical dance techniques in a judgment-free environment while learning choreography to popular Indian songs. Let go and express your feelings! Wednesday, March 13, 8-10 PM. Registration $20.

Northeast Arts hosts Ana Harmon for an extra Gaga class. If you’d like to volunteer to check people in email anagogegaga@gmail.com. Saturday, March 16 at 12-1 PM, at Northeast Arts, 85 Seaverns Ave, Jamaica Plain. Registration is $20.

Elizabeth Epsen, performer, in a pink dress points toes in a coupé while bringing arms up over face.

SOLD OUT! – Global Arts Live presents The Theremin Vignettes, directed and choreographed by Boston-and-Chicago-based and one of our fiscally sponsored artists Jessi Stegall. This ode to the late theremin virtuoso Clara Rockmore is set to her arrangements of classical scores for theremin, featuring a cast of 11 dancers blending ballet, contemporary, gesture, and spoken word. Developed during Stegall’s residency at Boston Center for the Arts, 2022-2023, the piece explores themes of grief, remembrance, and devotion through theatrical interpretations of real events from Rockmore’s life. Friday, March 15, 8 PM at the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston, 25 Harbor Shore Drive, Boston. Tickets: $33-$37.

One dancer dives over another on the floor

Global Arts Live presents Jean Appolon Expressions‘ An n Ale, featuring three powerful pieces conveying messages of collective healing and demanding that the company’s voices be heard. Ginen, an excerpt of Traka, illustrates historical trauma through Jean Appolon’s influential choreography. Black Is Black is an improvisational piece with Val Jeanty, JAE composer and accompanist, exploring Haitian folkloric rhythms and movements with JAE dancers. Petro is a new work that speaks powerfully about the strength of Haitians’ spirits and the way Haitians immerse themselves in the Haitian Vodou tradition. Saturday, March 16, 8 PM at the Institute of Contemporary Art/Boston, 25 Harbor Shore Drive, Boston. Tickets: $36-$40.

Photo of Laura Sanches in a dim lit stage kneeling and touching clogs

The Dance Complex presents Laura Sanchez in Welcome to Holland!?, a transformative experience blending flamenco with theatrical dance, poetry, humor, spoken word, film, and physical installation. This multidisciplinary work aims to illuminate the often overlooked role of caregivers
Saturday, March 16, 8 PM and Sunday, March 17, 7 PM at the Dance Complex, 536 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge. Tickets $15-$50.

Other events in the community this week:

FREE! – Join Tufts University Theatre, Dance, and Performance Studies Visiting Artists, Neta Weiner and Stav Marin for a performance of Cut. Loose on Thursday, March 14, 1:30-2:45 PM in Jackson Dance Lab, 50 Talbot Avenue, Medford.

Aftab Dance Group performs on Thursday, March 14, 6 PM & 7 PM at the Museum of Fine Arts Nowruz. Tickets are pay-what-you-can starting at $5. On Saturday, March 16, 12 PM at the Westwood Public Library Persian New Year Event. No registration needed.

KAIROS Dance Theater brings back Chiara D’Anna Physical Theatre for Dancers Workshop + Classes, offering dancers an opportunity to expand acting skills and emotional range within performing through the exploration of different approaches to physical characterization and character interaction. Saturday, March 16- Friday, March 22 at the Boston Center for the Arts, Studio 414, 539 Tremont St, Boston. Registration: $20-$150

The Common Ground Method is a class designed for adult contemporary dancers with an adventurous spirit. No two classes are alike, each taking a fresh approach to the five pillars of dance: technique, artistry, mobility, strength, community. Suitable for advanced beginners and up. Join the next workshop. Saturday, March 16, 11:30 AM-1:30 PM at 29 Bridge St, Salem. Registrations $20.

The Boston Conservatory presents WinterWorks, an annual dance concert that features the mainstage debut of Boston Conservatory’s first-year contemporary dance and commercial dance students performing new works created for them by alumni and guest choreographers currently working in the field. The program also presents dances by sophomore, junior, and senior student choreographers. Thursday, March 14 and Friday, March 15, 7:30 PM and Saturday, March 16, 2:00 PM & 7:30 PM at 31 Hemenway Street, Floor 2, Boston. Tickets $25-$35.

Boston Ballet presents Cinderella, with Sir Frederick Ashton’s choreography and musical score by Sergei Prokofiev. Thursday, March 14 through Sunday, March 22 at the Citizen’s Bank Opera House, 539 Washington St, Boston. Tickets: $25-$325.

Newport Contemporary Ballet presents Shifting Light including works by Janice Rosario and Kristopher Estes-Brown as well as the pas de deux from Light Rain. Thursday, March 14-Saturday, March 23, 7:30 PM at the Keats Theatre at St. Andrews School, 63 Federal Rd., Barrington, RI. Tickets: $20-$59.

Rose Woods Dance Collaborative is holding an informal showing of They Sat There, Feeling Happy Together. Saturday March 16, 5 PM at the Human Movement Lab, 98 Business Street, Unit 1B, Boston.

Seating is limited BUT the first 10 people to donate $5 or more to our Go Fund Me get reserved seats to the informal showing! Hop on it ASAP for your seat!!

Boston Dance Theater, in partnership with Movement Arts Gloucester, Massachusetts (MAGMA) and Matthew Swift Gallery, will be holding a world premiere dance performance and artistic presentation on Saturday, March 16, 5-8 PM beginning at MAGMA studios, located at 11 Pleasant St., Suite 64, Gloucester, MA. Tickets: $300.00.

Folk Arts Center New England presents the 35^th Balkan Music Night, a vibrant event, that highlights the rich musical and dance traditions of the Balkans. Saturday, March 16, 6 PM-12 AM at the Center for the Arts at the Armory, 191 Highland Ave, Somerville. Tickets: $20-$100.

The Metropolis of Boston Dance Group presents Industry Night, an evening of Greek dancing with music by DJ Kosta Blathras and appetizers by Kosmos. Saturday, March 16, 8 PM at St. Nectario’s Church, 39 Belgrade Ave, Roslindale. Tickets $20-$25.

Northeast School of Ballet is hosting a Spring Variation Workshop for ages 12 and up with Christiana Cecere and Denise Cecere. Email northeastschoolofballet@gmail.com to register. Sundays, March 17 & 24, April 21 and May 19, 12-2 PM, at NSB Studios, 32 Lowell Street, Reading. Registration $25/class or $80 for all 4.

Abilities Dance call for dancers poster with information over performance photo.

Abilities Dance Boston is seeking dancers for their upcoming virtual only show centering Climate Justice and Disability Justice! This is a special show that is dancer led, meaning other ADB dancers are choreographers diving into issues that resonate with them. Compensation is $18/h for rehearsals. Email lizbeth@abilitiesdanceboston.org for more information.

Multiple people gather by the Jacob's Pillow famous "pillow" rock.

Jacob’s Pillow and the New England Foundation for the Arts invite anyone who presents dance – including performing arts venues, universities and/or municipal and community settings – to apply to the 2024 National Dance Presenters Forum. The forum will be a six-session virtual experience that will take place monthly between May and October, 2024. Deadline: Friday, March 15.

Open Call for black artists with residency application information over photo of black dance artist on knees and reaching one arm up.

Open call for applications! In honor and celebration of February’s Black History Month, Earthdance will once again be offering a free week-long residency to two selected black dance-based artists. This annual program is part of their commitment to equity & access and one of the ways they are using their unique resources to further the careers and artistic development of black dance-based artists. If you have any questions around the residency or application form, feel free to email Melanie at programming@earthdance.net. Apply by Friday, March 15.

Photo of castle at top of mountain in Georgia.

Call to Somerville dancers/movers/makers/choreographers! Also seeking percussionists/drummers. Apply to participate in an international exchange called “Exchanging Notes,” produced by SAC and the Harvard’s Davis Center on Georgian Studies. Selected participants will receive a stipend and airfare and lodging to Tbilisi, Georgia will be covered. Deadline is Monday, March 18.

Photo of multiple people gathered together smiling and reaching arms out.

NAS has opened applications for the next Creative Community Fellows: New England cohort! Driving change in your community with an arts-based project? Take your work to the next level in a fellowship tailor-made for artists, community organizers, administrators, and entrepreneurs across New England who are passionate about making a positive impact. Apply by Sunday, March 31. Join the virtual info session on Wednesday, March 20, 3 PM.

Photo of multiple people dancing in the streets.

Calling all Dancers/Choreographers: The Somerville Arts Council ArtBeat 2024 calls are now available. Now in its 38th year, ArtBeat is one of the area’s largest festivals of the season. Applicants are invited to explore all themes related to “wild.” Dancers and choreographers, present your work “indoors” on the Somerville Theatre stage during ArtBeat. Work will be performed on a proscenium stage with lights and sound tech provided. Deadline: Monday, April 15.

Boston Dance Film Fest poster with submission information.

Boston Dance Film Fest submissions open on Thursday, March 14. Use FilmFreeway to submit your short dance film (up to 30 min accepted). Submission deadline is Friday, May 24. The festival will take place on Saturday, September 14.