Dear BDA Community,
It’s the first official day of Spring! It’s so lovely to experience longer and warmer days. I, for one, cannot wait until the weather is nice enough for performances to happen outdoors again!
Last year, we co-hosted a series of outdoor workshops in partnership with the Esplanade Association and we have been working on some more dance programing for you to enjoy this year! If you’re a BDA member, keep an eye out for some communications from us in the next month or so. You might have quite a special opportunity to present your work or teach a workshop. Not a BDA member? You can become one today for as low as $35/year. Find the tier that best suits you and sign up today!
Enjoy the spring,
Carmen S. Rizzo, Membership & Operations Associate
This year Mass Cultural Council awarded 447 grants of $5,000 each to artists, culture bearers, and creative practitioners – among them, 36 dance artists. BDA extends a huge congratulations to these dance artists! We are excited to see all the work you’ll continue to make and the impact you’ll have in our community. A win for one is a win for all!
BDA Member Events This Week
With choreography and text by Laila J. Franklin, and original composition and sound design by David Dogan, LOOSE is an evening-length multidisciplinary performance, exploring Black, queer, femme reflections on religious upbringings in Black churches. Through dance and sound design, LOOSE acts as a reckoning and an intervention for intersecting identities and formative experiences that feel at odds. The work explores the ways that deviance from tradition and self-acceptance can act as liberatory tools, as well as the pain and grief of the metamorphosis of spaces and practices that were once considered “home”. Friday, March 21 & Saturday, March 22, 7:30-8:30 PM, at SomArt Space at The Hive 561 Windsor St, 4th Floor, Somerville. Tickets: $15-$40.
DeCu (an abbreviation for “De Cuba,”) Modern Technique is a fusion of Modern Dance with Cuban Folkloric Dances, as well as elements of Flamenco, Ballet, Tai Chi and more. In this special DeCu Modern Dance Technique workshop designed by Anara & Javier, you’ll dive into key building blocks of Cuban Modern Technique, emphasizing torso undulations, arm fluidity, and core strength. Participants will leave with new ideas to incorporate into any dance style and techniques to work on at home! Saturday, March 22, 1:00-2:30 PM at The Dance Complex, 536 Mass Ave, Cambridge.
“Ouroboros” by Nejla Yatkin is an evening length interactive theatrical solo dance presented in the round. The dance piece resurrects and centers the ancient healing symbol of Ouroboros through personal story telling including multiple languages – English, German, Turkish and ASL, dance (contemporary and Middle Eastern dance), original audio composition by Shamou, and song (cabaret style, sung live by Nejla). Saturday, March 22, 8:00-9:30 PM, and Sunday, March 23, 7:00-8:30 PM, at The Dance Complex, 536 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge. Tickets: $15-$50.
The Field Center is hosting the bi-annual SHAKE Workshop! This somatic durational exploration is created and facilitated by Anya Smolnikova & Rose Cole-Cohen. Through multiple daily Group Shakes, guided movement, and supported rest, we will collectively shake up and nurture our sweet nervous systems. Thursday, March 20-Sunday, March 23.
The Folk Arts Center of New England and Mostly Waltz for Boston are pleased to welcome dance teacher and social dance historian Susan de Guardiola, of New Haven, CT for a weekend of waltz and other workshops, dancing, and fun. Friday, March 21-Sunday, March 23, at the Concord Scout House, 74 Walden Street, Concord. Registration $8-$115.
Urban Bush Women (UBW) burst onto the dance scene in 1984 with bold, innovative, demanding, and exciting works that brought under-told stories to life. A centerpiece of Urban Bush Women’s 40th Anniversary Celebration, This is Risk looks forward and back in celebrating four decades of operating at the vanguard of movement and social activism. At the ICA, Urban Bush Women will perform an evening of iconic works celebrating the Company’s 40-year history including Visibility, Batty Moves, Blues Medicine, and Shelter and will feature live music performed by Grace Galu Kalambay and Lucianna Padmore. This is Risk takes the audience through intentional storytelling to the next space of collective brilliance. Friday, March 21, & Saturday, March 22, 8 PM, Sunday, March 23, 2 PM at Barbara Lee Family Foundation Theater, 25 Harbor Shore Drive, Boston. Tickets: $30-$40.
Join the Artistic Athlete Health Collective for their first-ever Dancer’s Edge Masterclass, designed to enhance hip and spine mobility, strength, and control for more powerful and fluid movement. This workshop is open to dancers of all levels and backgrounds, offering expert-led education and movement exercises to improve strength, flexibility, and performance. Saturday, March 22, 11:30 AM-1:00 PM at Human Movement Lab, 98 Business Street, Unit 1B, Boston. Registration: $20.
The Roxbury Center for the Performing Arts (RCPA) is pleased to present, SANKOFA. This powerful production honors the history and heritage of the African diaspora, starting in African kingdoms, to the Middle Passage, slavery and Reconstruction, the Civil Rights Movement, and more. Through dance, song, and spoken word, SANKOFA brings these stories to the stage and celebrates the resilience, strength, and accomplishments of the Black community throughout history. We are confident that this experience will be enriching and inspiring for everyone, offering a deeper understanding of Black history and culture. Saturday, March 22, 2 & 7 PM, and Sunday, March 23, 3 PM at The Strand Theatre, 543 Columbia Road, Boston. Tickets: $25-$30.
Join Global Arts Live for a vibrant evening of music, dance, and community. Sona Jobarteh Band is the headlining artist for this year’s Gala. Your contributions are essential to their mission of presenting music and dance that breaks down barriers, fostering understanding, hope, and unity. Saturday, March 22, at 5:30 PM at the Crystal Ballroom, 55 Davis Square, Somerville. Tickets: $47-$73.
Join Pantos Project as they open studio doors for an informal showing of 7 premiere works by members of our adult collective, the ensemble. Saturday, March 22, 6-8 PM at Pantos Project Dance Studio 14 Warren St , Waltham. Tickets: $22.
FREE! – Curious to learn more about how dance is made, and more specifically, how dance is made at Human Movement Lab? Join Kim Holman and the incredible company of Human Movement Project as they rehearse a portion of their award-winning dance theatre work Contradictions + Casual Self Loathing that will debut in the neighborhood this fall. Email info@humanmvmtproject.com to RSVP. Sunday, March 23, 12-1 PM, at Human Movement Lab, 98 Business Street #Suite 1B, Hyde Park, Boston.
FREE! – You’ll have an opportunity to learn iconic choreography from an American masterpiece when teaching artists from the Ailey organization share the power and joy of Revelations in four events across Boston this weekend. Learn gestures, movements, and adapted steps from the dance that means so much to generations of audience members. These workshops are for everyone! Each event includes a get-together with refreshments to follow. Saturday, March 22, 10:30 AM-12:30 PM at the Boston Renaissance Charter School, Hyde Park; 2:00-4:00 PM at the Brooke Charter High School, Mattapan; 5:00-7:00 PM at the Roxbury YMCA; and Sunday, March 23, 12:00-2:00 PM at Chez-Vous Roller Skating Rink, Dorchester.
BDA is partnering with Celebrity Series again to make sure you get to see the historic and always relevant Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. BDA members and Pro/Motion subscribers are welcome to use our code “CR4JOY” to claim $49 tickets at ANY seat as long as they are available! Hurry to claim yours! Need other options? Email crizzo@bostondancealliance.org and Carmen will gladly help you find an option that works for you.