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| SERENDIP Dance Company Photo by Michelle Smith Lewis |
Chanterelle
November 30 and December 1, 8:00 pm, Velocity Dance Center
A diverse line-up of local choreographers is featured in this mixed bill. Jointly presented by 127th St. Dance, Katy Hagelin Dance Project, K & K, and SERENDIP, the show ranges in style from modern to contemporary ballet often drawing on jazz and hip hop influences. The choreographers (Barbara Caioli, Rochelle Rapaszky, Katy Hagelin, Jonathan Hansen, Kristen Kridelbaugh, and Sarah Kathryn Olds) each use the lens of his or her own experience while strive to create dance that unites the audience with one another, and with the Self. Through various ensemble and solo pieces, Chanterelle aims to takes viewers on a journey through the layers of human existence and bring them back to the surface of meaning and, ultimately, joy. Tickets are available here.
Spectrum Dance Theater: WEVERS/SPAETH/BYRD
November 30–December 2, 8:00 pm, Spectrum Studio Theater
A triple bill featuring two world premieres, this program showcases works by Olivier Wevers, artistic director of Whim W’Him; Crispin Spaeth, a long-time Seattle choreographer; and Donald Byrd, Spectrum’s own artistic director. Wever’s work, titled Back, sack and crack, is the culmination of his 2011 Princess Grace Award for which he was nominated by Bryd, and grapples with sexuality, gender identity, and politics. Spaeth’s Only You is a reiteration of her work Break a Heart, which premiered at On the Boards in 2010. A tumult of coupling and uncoupling, it was originally created as a Valentine for musician Dale Sather, who created the piece’s original composition. The two have since married. Byrd’s world premiere, A Meeting Place, takes its inspiration from a Renaissance and medieval music compilation of the same name. The music features the lute and the oud (its Middle Eastern equivalent) and Byrd uses the two instruments as metaphors for cultures, weapons, and ideologies. Spectrum’s roster of dancers is particularly talented this year and it will be a treat to see them tackle work by a variety of choreographers. Tickets are available here.
12 Minutes Max
December 2–3, 7:00 pm, Washington Hall
12 Minutes Max returns to its roots with its first performance in its former home of Washington Hall since On the Boards relocated to lower Queen Anne in 1999. This edition of the local arts percolator is curated by Jen Graves, the arts critic for “The Stranger;” Storme Webber, a performer and interdisciplinary artist; and Nilki Benitez, a poet and theater artist. The show will include performances by local choreographers Anna Conner, Amanda Oie, Scott Davis and Eric Nordstrom, and badmarmarDANCE. The topics explored range from Oie’s “tribute to the power of love,” to the transformative nature of gut impulses, to a revealing look at the loss of honesty. Also on the bill are performance artist Kat Larson, a theater work by Eleanor the Clown (aka Rachel Levens), and music by Stella Haze. Tickets are $8 and are sold only at the door, beginning 1 hour prior to the performance. Additional info about the show can be found here.
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| La Scala Ballet in L’altra Metá del Cielo |
La Scala Ballet: L’altra Metá del Cielo
December 3, 6:30 pm, SIFF Film Center
SIFF continues its presentation of premiere international ballet companies with a screening of the Italian company, La Scala Ballet and their production of L’altra metà del
Lectures/Discussions/Events
Travelogue: Cambodian + American Performing Artists in Dialogue
December 2, 5:00 pm, Velocity Dance Center
Part of Velocity’s Speakeasy Series this conversation features Seattle dance artists Peggy Piacenza and Amelia Reeber discussing and sharing the experience of their month-long creative process in Cambodia , working with four Cambodian artists last fall. Focused on “dreaming the sacred through traditional and contemporary forms of dance” the process culminated in an informal community showing in Phnom Penh . A short documentary film based on their experience was recently completed. This is a pay-what-you-can event.
