Dayton Contemporary Dance Explores African-American Experience
KEENE, N.H., 3/8/10 - Dayton Contemporary Dance Company will perform dances rooted in the African-American experience during a concert on Tuesday, March 23, at 7:30 p.m. at the Redfern Arts Center on Brickyard Pond at Keene State College. For tickets, which range from $30 to $12, call the box office at 603-358-2168.
DCDC will open the performance with J. Lawrence Paint (Harriet Tubman Remix) by choreographer Donald Byrd, who based the work on a series of paintings by Jacob Lawrence, a Harlem Renaissance painter and printmaker. The dance depicts the exhaustive travails of slavery and the strength of one woman, Tubman, always leading her people onward towards freedom through the Underground Railroad. “This large ensemble piece touched on slavery, escape, emancipation, lynching, salvation, and more, compressing 100 years into 20 glorious minutes of movement and music. It was breathtaking and one of the best,” wrote the Dayton Daily News.
Vespers, by choreographer Ulysses Dove, captures the passion and spirituality of women who have a faith and belief in God that sustains and supports them all their lives.
Rainbow ‘Round My Shoulder, choreographed by Donald McKayle, mirrors the lost hope and frustrations of men on a chain gang, which at one time was a common sight in the South.
Children of the Passage, choreographed by Donald McKayle and Ronald K. Brown, follows a party of decadent lost souls that are haunted and later rescued by spirits that reconnect them to their ancient and ancestral character. Set to the vibrant rhythms of the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, this dance celebrates the cultural rituals of yesterday and today.
Founded in 1968, DCDC is the oldest modern dance company in Ohio and one of the largest companies of its kind between Chicago and New York City. The company has won national and international acclaim and is renowned for powerful, artistic performances, a diverse repertoire of works by world-class choreographers, and excellence in educational programming.
To request accommodations for a disability, please call the Redfern Arts Center at least two weeks before the performance. For further information about the performance, call the box office, 603-358-2168, or visit www.keene.edu/racbp, where you can view video clips of Dayton Contemporary Dance Company and other upcoming performances at the Redfern Arts Center.
