Art Animal » Dance

Dance and Diaspora: Persian Dance at the ODC Theater

Setsu Uzume — Sat, 01 Feb 2014 05:29:10 +0000

I went to church to find God, he was not there. I went to the Hindu temple, to the ancient pagoda, God was not there. I went to the Kaaba of Mecca, God was not there. I crossed the wilderness and asked about him from Avicenna, the philosopher but he was beyond the range of [&hellip

The post Dance and Diaspora: Persian Dance at the ODC Theater appeared first on Art Animal.

High-art Haunted House: Layla Means Night

Setsu Uzume — Mon, 21 Oct 2013 06:43:19 +0000

Just in time for Halloween, “Layla Means Night” by Rosanna Gamson is a high art haunted house that explores perception and intimacy through retellings of 1,001 Arabian Nights. Held at the ODC Theater in San Francisco, audience members are led through the theater in three groups to view performances of the 4th night, 40th night [&hellip

The post High-art Haunted House: Layla Means Night appeared first on Art Animal.

Exploring Relationships at the Intersection of Film and Dance

Setsu Uzume — Fri, 02 Aug 2013 05:42:09 +0000

When I was a kid I thought that falling in love meant floating on air like Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire. Now, in my late twenties, I have a much more complex vision of love and relationships. Deconstructing the Surrogate, a multimedia dance performance, sums up that complexity with over a thousand layers of audio [&hellip

The post Exploring Relationships at the Intersection of Film and Dance appeared first on Art Animal.

Taking Classical Ballet to New Heights

Setsu Uzume — Fri, 02 Aug 2013 05:40:04 +0000

Milissa Payne Bradley takes classical ballet to new heights in her most ambitious work, Up in the Air, showing at this summer’s sixth annual Summer Performance Festival in San Francisco. The piece transforms grounded, classical movement into flight, inviting the audience on a majestic and exhilarating journey. Nine dancers balance the technique of classical ballet [&hellip

The post Taking Classical Ballet to New Heights appeared first on Art Animal.

BodiGram Wants Their Audience to Get Tipsy

Setsu Uzume — Fri, 02 Aug 2013 05:20:57 +0000

BodiGram Dance Company has come a long way from their roots in Asian philosophy. Founded by choreographers Blair Bodie and Julia Graham, BodiGram bridges the gap between pop culture and elite modern dance, smashing through the fourth wall to shed light on current social issues. At the ODC Theater in San Francisco this month, Bodie [&hellip

The post BodiGram Wants Their Audience to Get Tipsy appeared first on Art Animal.

Bad Unkl Sista’s Butoh Transcends the Sense of Self

Elizabeth Coleman — Fri, 10 May 2013 05:07:03 +0000

There is a wide array of reactions to a Bad Unkl Sista Butoh-inspired performance, ranging from confusion and shock, to wonder and amazement. But no matter what the reaction, each member of the audience — and the dancers themselves — leave the performance feeling somehow changed by the experience. Anastazia Louise, the artistic director and choreographer [&hellip

The post Bad Unkl Sista’s Butoh Transcends the Sense of Self appeared first on Art Animal.

Feature: Your Body Is Not A Shark

Alicia Coombes — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 21:30:01 +0000

Choreographer Cid Pearlman and her collaborators don’t see limitations as being negative. Pearlman and three other women — Denise Leto (poet), Maya Barsacq (musical director) and Joan Jeanraud (composer/cello) — recently came together to create Your Body is Not a Shark, a performance piece that combines dance, live music and sound collage. The piece plays off of [&hellip

The post Feature: Your Body Is Not A Shark appeared first on Art Animal.

Transformative Dance Workshop with Anna Halprin

Elizabeth Coleman — Fri, 19 Oct 2012 06:50:21 +0000

When you have the chance to dance with a legend, you shouldn’t pass up the opportunity. I had the privilege of participating in a two day Movement Ritual and Dance Exploration workshop in Kentfield, CA, led by pioneer of postmodern dance, Anna Halprin. At age 92, her career has spanned six decades, yet she still travels, [&hellip

The post Transformative Dance Workshop with Anna Halprin appeared first on Art Animal.

Morgan Thorson’s Spaceholder Festival

Alicia Coombes — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 04:01:36 +0000

What do an auctioneer, an archaeological dig, your trash from last year and repetitive movement have in common? Choreographer and 2010 Guggenheim Fellow Morgan Thorson might have an answer in her latest dance performance piece, Spaceholder Festival, playing at the ODC Theater in San Francisco on October 5, 6 and 7. After reading some of [&hellip

The post Morgan Thorson’s Spaceholder Festival appeared first on Art Animal.

Sweating Through Bharatanatyam with Jessica Albrent

Allison McCormick — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 04:23:09 +0000

Though the Western world has now fully embraced yoga, meditation and even Bollywood dancing, far fewer westerners know of Bharatanatyam, a traditional south Indian dance. The dance is as difficult to perform as the word is to pronounce, yet one American has boldly made her way into the Indian world of Bharatanatyam and will soon showcase her talent [&hellip

The post Sweating Through Bharatanatyam with Jessica Albrent appeared first on Art Animal.