Some Performances of Note:–  

• Via Katlehong Dance - Peak Performances at Montclair State University
  
•  “Season of Cambodia - a Living Arts Festival” – around New York
  
• The return of Dance Theatre of Harlem – Kudos to Virginia Johnson
  
• Stephen Petronio’s Like Lazarus Did (LLD4/30) at The Joyce
  
• Elizabeth Streb’s FORCES
  
• Cynthia Oliver and Souleymane Badolo - shared program at NYLA
  
• William Forsythe’s Sider at BAM
  
• New York City Ballet’s medley of George Balanchine works titled “Black and White” at Lincoln Center
  
• Nora Chipaumire’s rite riot - FIAF’s Crossing The Line Festival
  
• Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company and SITI Company’s A Rite at BAM 
  
• Andrea Miller’s Gallim Dance Company’s Fold Here - Peak Performances at Montclair State University.
  
• Bouchra Ouizguen’s Ha!  at NYLA
  
• Angelin Preljocaj’s  And then, one thousand years of peace at BAM
  
• Akram Khan’s Desh at Lincoln Center’s Rose Theatre
  
• Ronald K. Brown’s Four Corners – The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre
  
• The Apollo Theatre’s James Brown: Get On The Good Foot, A Celebration In Dance
  
• Anna Teresa De Keersmaeker’s En Atendant and Cesena  at BAM
  
• Patricia Hoffbauer’s Para-Dice (Stage 2) at Danspace Project
  
• Will Rawl’s The Planet-Eaters at The Chocolate Factory
  
• Susan Marshall & Company’s >II Play/Pause at BAM
  
• Reggie Wilson’s Fist and Heel Performance Group in Moses(es) at BAM

Some Performers of Note: –

• Eddie Taketa and Hsiao-Jou Tang - Doug Varone and Dancers
  
• Gabrielle Salvatto - Dance Theatre of Harlem
  
• Ebony Williams and Vânia Doutel Vaz - Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet
  
• Nicholas Sciscione – Stephen Petronio Company
  
• Annique Roberts – Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE
  
• Leslie Kraus – Kate Weare Company
  
• Rebecca Serrell-Cyr – Donna Uchizono Company 
  
• Rena Butler and Chalvar Monteiro – Kyle Abraham in Motion
  
• Some Ladies of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater - Jacqueline Greene, Belen Pereyra,  Ghrai DeVore, Megan Jakel and Demetia Hopkins
  
• Some Men of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater - Matthew Rushing, Daniel Harder, Jeroboam Bozeman and Michael Francis McBride
  

Very Special Moments –

• Trisha Brown Dance Company (TBDC) said goodbye to the dance world 
  
• Ntozake Shange and Dianne McIntyre sharing moments of times together at Barnard College 
  
• The Joyce Theater for bringing Monica Bill Barnes & Company to Lincoln Center
  
• Sadly, Dance New Amsterdam closed its doors
• Sadly, Benoit Swan Pouffer leaves Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet
  
• Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company’s revival of D-Man in the Waters with past company members at The Joyce
  
• Fall For Dance brings dance back to The Delacorte in Central Park hosted by The Public Theater 
  
• My interview with Ayodele Casel (http://www.charmainewarren.com/1/archives/06-2013/1.html )and 
  
• My interview with Nora Chipaumire – (http://www.charmainewarren.com/1/category/previews/2.html)
  
• Bill T. Jones and Gregory Vuyani Moqoma in conversation at The National Black Theatre
  
• Lisa Race in a solo and a beautiful duet with David Dorfman - Dorfman’s Come, and Back Again at BAM
  
• Ronald K. Brown and Annique Roberts in a tender duet as part of Brown’s On Earth Together  at BRIC
  
• Cynthia Oliver and David Thomson in Tere O’Connor’s Bleed
  
• Natalie Green, Jodi Melnick and Donna Uchizono in short Tahitian temper – Donna Uchizono Company at NYLA
  
• Kyle Abraham receives McArthur Genius Award - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYDI8dncbjw
  

(See YouTube link of Kyle talking about the McArthur...)

a(December 11) Robert Battle, Artistic Director of The Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater opened the evening by remembering that this is year three for him, then quoted May Angelou, “Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can't practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage.”  Fittingly, the evening opened with Ailey’s Memoria (1979), a tribute to Joyce Trisler and to students of The Ailey School who each year joins the Company in this work.  A poignant translation of Bill T. Jones’ gripping and mature 1989 work, D-Man in the Waters (Part 1) followed.  In each performer there was a lilt in every lift and a surge in every signature D-Man… dive that captured the emotional ride in the work.  Michael Francis McBride’s performance was particularly eye-catching.   Ohad Naharin’s Minus 16 (1999), an all-time audience favorite, closed the program.  The cast of twenty in black suits then grey shorts and tank tops championed Naharin’s humor and daringly agile choreography. 

(December 17) This evening was set aside to celebrate Matthew Rushing (Company Member - 1992, Rehearsal Director/Guest Artist – 2010).  “It’s so good to be here for Matthew Rushing,” said Judith Jamison (Artistic Director Emerita) who opened.  Jamison then introduced Battle, who shared more accolades about Rushing, “…even his name is mobile…Rush---ing…” Battle said smiling.  The curtain went up and it was all about Rushing!  In Ronald K. Brown’s Grace (1999) Rushing’s sinewy movements captured Brown’s signature polyrhythmic movements with ease, in Ailey’s Pas De Duke (1976) and Love Songs (1972) his delivery is breathless and unending, in Rennie Harris’ Home (2011) we couldn’t help but watch how he indulges each gesture, and finally, in Ailey’s signature Revelations (1960) Rushing is just a joy. 

(December 22) Kudos to the Ailey dancers (Jeroboam Bozeman, Sarah Daley, Ghrai DeVore, Jacqueline Green, Daniel Harder, Demetia Hopkins, Samuel Lee Roberts, Glenn Allen Sims, Jermaine Terry and Marcus Jarrell Willis) for taking on Wayne McGregor’s Chroma (2006) and delivering it with Ailey flair.  The curtain rose and we see scantily dressed and compelling still bodies against a stark white backdrop and floor—forecast—this work would be different—and so it was.  Chroma was a non-stop sea of pencil straight legs and arms cutting the air, sculpted backs bent so that heads nearly touch buttocks, articulating necks and daringly pensive stillness.  Ok, yes, there were a few fussy group sections, but the smaller pairings boasting complicated partnering sequences were terrific.   Another cast danced Jones’ D-Man… they also delivered.  Meagan Jakel gave a standout performance.   Aszure Barton’s very dark Lift (2013) though danced well, prompts some questions:  Why, for instance, were the men costumed in a chain-like necklace, bare chests and tight pants?  Why, for example, were the women costumed in grass-like skirts? Why did the term Minstrelsy come to mind? Why was the cast jumping like the Maasai, slapping their thighs, grunting and stomping?  Just some questions.  

For his new work, Bleed at BAM’s Fisher Space as part of the 2013 Next Wave Festival (December 11-14), Tere O’Connor brought together a cast of stars (Tess Dworman, devynn emory, Natalie Green, Michael Ingle, Ryan Kelly, Oisin Monaghan, Cynthia Oliver, Heather Olson, Mary Read, Silas Riener and David Thomson) in a solid hour of good dancing and good ideas.  Though O’Connor notes that “…Bleed is the culminating work of … three other pieces--Secret Mary, poem, and Sister—all from very different sources,” Bleed takes on a life of its own.  In Bleed nothing was predictable, and segment after segment, what we see is (pardon the pun), what we see.  For instance, there is a quartet of technically proficient boys on their tippy toes giving lots of leg, later, a continuous two-person chase around a circle of bodies (a run becomes a leap, then hops…), and there is the meditatively sweet, post-modern series of court dances led by Oliver and Thomson who fiercely manipulate and maneuver two groups through a series of gestures.  But that wasn’t all.  Bodies touch bodies, shapes respond to shapes, eyes look into eyes, there are guttural sounds and fleeting hugs…and this is just a glimpse.  O’Connor’s evening offers up more of these satisfying moments that can or cannot be one.

Dance Icon Marie Brooks joined the Ancestors on Monday, December 16th. 


Memorial Service planned: 
"Passages" – Marie Brooks Home Going
Abyssinian Baptist Church

132 Odell Clark Pl (West 138th St.), New York 

 
Saturday, December 28, 2013 at 11:00 AM
10:00 AM – 11:00 AM – Final Viewing



Be reminded - See YouTube links below: 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xr_k4nlZg4I - Manna House Award Winner
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YK62dNK6tqw - GBTV 1995 archive
 

Celebrate Kwanzaa – (the Swahili word meaning "first fruits of the harvest") and the seven principles of Kwanzaa: (Nguzo Saba): Umoja (Unity), Kujichagulia (Self-Determination), Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility), Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics), Nia (Purpose), Kuumba (Purpose), and Imani (Faith).  


Forces of Nature Dance Theatre
The Apollo Theater
December 27
The Apollo’s 7th Annual Kwanzaa Celebration: Regeneration Night featuring Abdel Salaam’s Forces of Nature Dance Theatre with WBLS Radio host, Gary Byrd will also include special guest Abiodun and Babatunde of The Last Poets, Michael Wimberly, Yacouba Sissoko and F the Elemental.   Find out more ~ https://www.apollotheater.org/



New Heritage, American Museum of Natural History and Community Works
American Museum of Natural History (Milstein Hall of Ocean Life)
December 28
This joint event hosted by storyteller Linda Humes, marks the 35th annual Kwanzaa celebration and will feature performers, guest speakers, and films highlighting the importance of Kwanzaa for the family.  There will also be an international marketplace, hosted by the Harlem Arts Alliance.  Find out more ~ http://www.amnh.org

Fresh Tracks Performance and Residency Program
New York Live Arts (NYLA)
December 19- 21

The 1965 creation – Fresh Tracks (by Dance Theater Workshop - now New York Live Arts) continues to celebrate young choreographers in the signature program, Fresh Tracks Performance and Residency Program.   Six artists are selected to present work in a showcase at NYLA, they then receive a 50-hour creative residency in the NYLA studios along with introductory level professional development workshops. Artists also participate in dialogue sessions facilitating open discussion about their creative process and one-on-one consultations with the Fresh Tracks Artistic Advisor.  This year’s artists are: Martita Abril, Maximilian Balduzzi, Ben Grinberg and Nick Gillette, Daniel Holt, Leslie Parker and Gabrielle Revlock, whose “…movement styles range from contemporary to hula-hooping to a fusion of krump and popping (and more),” according to the release.  Find out more ~ www.newyorklivearts.org

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre
New York City Center
December 4 – January 5
Ailey returns for a five-week season of premieres, classics and more.  The premieres are Aszure Barton’s LIFT, Wayne McGregor’s Chroma, Ronald K. Brown’s Four Corners, and the 1989 work by Bill T. Jones D-Man in the Waters (Part I).  Find out more ~ www.alvinailey.org

George Faison’s new musical
The Faison Firehouse Theater
December 5 – 15
BAH HUMBUG - A Hip Hop Musical adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic, looking at the rise of the Notorious E.B. Scrooge and his spiraling decent into the evils of the 21st Century. For more information ~ email - mail@faisonfirehouse.org

URBAN DANCE COLLECTIVE
Dixon Place
December 6 – 21
See works by Niles Ford, Carli Zackery-Rogers and Nathan Trice.  Find out more ~ www.dixonplace.org

Megan Kendzior
Danspace Project
December 19-21
Danspace Project presents Megan Kendzior's evening-length work with live, original accompaniment on the accordion by Terrence Karn.  Find out more ~ www.danspaceproject.org

Curated by Nia Love and Marjani Forte
Brooklyn Arts Exchange (BAX)
December 20 - 21
See how visual & installation artist Kimberly Mayhorn, choreographer Paloma McGregor, and film maker Tamu Favorite define the question posed: “What are "Acts of Wommanness"?” with their work.  Find out more ~ http://bax.org/

Fred Benjamin renowned dancer/teacher/choreographer/mentor and icon in the jazz dance world died on Saturday, December 14 after a very long illness.  According to sources at Clark Center for the Performing Arts, “…he went peacefully and was surrounded by loving friends.”  Benjamin was a Faculty Advisor and the chair of the jazz department at The Ailey School.  He was also a faculty member at Steps on Broadway beginning in 1985 until last Saturday, December 14 2013. 




FINAL RESTING CEREMONY FOR FRED BENJAMIN
SATURDAY DECEMBER. 21ST, 2013

JENKINS FUNERAL AND CHAPEL
1893 AMSTERDAM AVENUE
BETWEEN 153RD AND 154TH STREET
ACROSS FROM TRINITY CEMETERY.

THE CEREMONY WILL BEGIN AT 1PM.

IF YOU'D LIKE TO SEND FLOWERS PLEASE FEEL FREE TO SEND THEM TO THE CHAPEL FOR A SATURDAY MORNING DELIVERY.

WE APOLOGIZE FOR THE SHORTNESS OF NOTICE.  THIS WILL BE A BRIEF MOMENT TO SAY OUR FAREWELL
AND SEND FRED FORWARD WITH OUR LOVE AND RESPECT

A MEMORIAL SERVICE IS BEING PLANNED FOR EARLY 2014

PLEASE COME AND PASS THIS NOTICE ON

The International Association of Blacks in Dance announces auditions for Institutions, Festivals, Scholarships, Summer Intensives and Programs, and Professional Dance Companies at the 26th Annual IABD Conference in Dallas, TX.

Auditioning Dance Organizations, Summer Intensives, etc., include:
Atlanta Dance Connection
Bates Dance Festival
Belhaven University
Cleo Parker Robinson Dance
Dallas Black Dance Theatre
Howard University
Joffrey Ballet
Lula Washington Dance Theatre
Philadanco!

Auditioning Dance Companies include:
Philadanco!
Dallas Black Dance Theatre
Cleo Parker Robinson Dance
Lula Washington Dance Theatre
And many more...

Saturday, January 18, 2014 - Members Only
Institutions, Festivals, Scholarships, Summer Intensives and Programs
TIME: 2:00pm - 4:00pm
PLACE: Marriott City Center Hotel
650 North Pearl Street
Dallas, TX  75201
FEE: $20 IABD Members

Sunday, January 19, 2014 - Open Auditions
Dance Companies
TIME: 12:00pm - 3:00pm
PLACE: Dallas Black Dance Studio
2700 Flora Street
Dallas, TX  75201
FEE: $20 IABD Members, $25 Non-IABD Members

For more information: www.iabdassociation.org 

Donna Uchizono Company journeyed back to 1990 (short Tahitian temper) and 1999 (State of Heads) before presenting the premiere Fire Underground (December 4 – 7) at New York Live Arts.  Lights go out and immediately, this evening of retrospective begins with a bang up dance (short Tahitian temper), and a bang up cast!  On Thursday (12/5) Natalie Green and Jodi Melnick joined Uchizono, and these equally hot women, with hips shaking and fists pumping were on fire in this short female dance of power.  Quickly shift to State of Heads an austerely minimal work colored with stillness and mannequin-like movement that took time; nothing but time, in a starkly white space (walls, floor and costumes) conveying Uchizono’s command of the genre.  State of Heads was nicely performed by Rebecca Serrell-Cyr, Levi Gonzalez, Hristoula Harakas.   Serrel-Cyr returns with Uchizono in Fire Underground an intimate and thought-provoking look at Uchizono’s process in adopting a child from Nepal.  After intermission, the space is changed and some audience members were moved to the stage—the closer the better it seemed.  Serrel-Cyr begins with a chain/belt weighted at the end with a bundle that wraps and unwraps around her waist as she spins and build speed, getting dangerously close to the audience.  Uchizono joins later; her dress balled up in front, then pulls out two smaller versions of Serrel-Cyr’s prop and daringly cross and swipe them in and around her body.  Though it took a while in getting there, a beautifully intimate section comes later when back-to-back and then facing each other, they match each other’s movement step after step—in a minimized two-step prompted by their instinctual breath and rhythm.  

Reggie Wilson makes work that honor tradition.  For his company, Fist and Heel Performance Group, Wilson premiered Moses(es) as part of BAM’s Next Wave Festival (December 4-7) and, not unlike his other works, for Moses(es), he breaks the fourth-wall and immediately welcomes the audience into the space.  At the top of the show, Wilson introduces himself, and then one by one, the others follow offering their name, birthplace, and time with the company.  Long-time company members Rhetta Aleong (22 years) and Lawrence A. W. Harding (20 years) drew especially loud applause.  In telling his story of Moses, Wilson’s picture is framed with many components—there are obvious references to Moses and the Red Sea, or not, but, for sure, there are reminders.  The bright red costumes with white polka dots, the compelling lyrics that come through in songs, and the incessant lines of bodies replacing bodies, are only a few.  Wilson, Aleong and Harding are the voices throughout.  In guttural drawls they sing “…Moses…don’t get lost…in the Red Sea…find your rod and come across…” here, we can choose to “see” the crossing, or wait until the end, when the six sweaty bodies fall flat on their backs in an “X,” then we could confirm that they didn't’ survive, or not.  What is accurate however, is Wilson has a way of bringing the audience into his stories because they stand firm.