The season in dance
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Kidd Pivot will perform at the Byham Theater Oct. 3 as part of the Pittsburgh Dance Council season.
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If the Pittsburgh dance season could be labeled an indicator, the economy must be on the upswing. The fall portion of the season certainly will be the busiest ever, with an impressive first year for the August Wilson Center that includes three of America's finest black dance ensembles and Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre's upcoming local premiere, "Light/The Holocaust & Humanity Project," which will include collaborative performances with no less than 15 arts groups. Joining forces will be a recurring theme with Attack Theatre, now located at Pittsburgh Opera's Strip District home; Pillow Project and its army of young artists; Pittsburgh Dance Council's venerable Margaret Jenkins with China's Guandong Modern Dance Company; and Bodiography Dance Company with the nifty string quartet of a single stripe, Cellofourte.
THE ANDY WARHOL MUSEUM: The Warhol always features a blended artistry. Catch "Warhol Live: Music and Dance in Andy Warhol's Work" by Sept. 27. In the Off the Wall series, look for director and choreographer Jeremy Wade, who juxtaposes "layers of animation, still images, movement and sound in an ambitious visual and performance art work exploring global pop culture" (Jan. 23) and Attack Theatre's "Assemble This" (Feb. 24). 412-237-8300 or www.warhol.org.
ATTACK THEATRE: The Attackers will never stop this season in its new home base at Pittsburgh Opera, a nifty, exposed-brick facility at 2425 Liberty Ave., Strip District. After all, George Westinghouse began his air brake designs there. The season begins with the opera in "Eugene Onegin" (Sept. 26-Oct. 4, Benedum Center), then in Attack's new home with "Game Night and the Seven-Minute Dance Series" (Pittsburgh Opera studios, Oct. 10, also Jan. 29 and May 21). The first full-length performance takes place at Pittsburgh Opera studios Nov. 13-21, "Incident[s] in the Strip," with a skateboarding percussionist and martial arts cellist. During Feb. 12-24, Attack heads to nine galleries, museums and cultural institutions for "Assemble This," a "wickedly entertaining" kinetic canvas. After a dip into "Carmen" with the Pittsburgh Opera (March 20-28), the season ends with The Dirty Ball, location TBA (as always) on April 24. 412-281-3305 or www.attacktheatre.com.
AUGUST WILSON CENTER FOR AFRICAN AMERICAN CULTURE: The AWC's inaugural dance season begins with the crowd-pleasing Philadanco Sept. 26-27 with a new work from Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, then goes on to present Marc Bamuthi Joseph, spoken-word artist who incorporates movement (Oct. 28-29) and Alonzo King's LINES Ballet, a singular rainbow of contemporary ballet (Jan. 15-17). "First Voice -- A Pittsburgh International Black Arts Festival" concludes the season, running May 20-23 and spotlighting international hip-hop ambassador Rennie Harris: Puremovement on May 21 and 22. 412-258-2700 or www.augustwilsoncenter.org.
BODIOGRAPHY CONTEMPORARY BALLET: Artistic director Maria Caruso continues her work with the theme of survival at "Multiplicity," featuring works by company members. There Caruso salutes the Warriors in Pink with the breast cancer-inspired "No Bad Hair Days" at the Kelly-Strayhorn Theater (Nov. 14-15), then tackles "Heart (Function vs. Emotion)" in a collaboration with Cellofourte at the Byham Theater Feb. 19-20. 412-521-6094 or www.bodiographycbc.com.
CONSERVATORY DANCE COMPANY: CDC, the dance performance arm of Point Park University, has a world premiere by Keisha Lalama-White, "The Bench," a celebration of family, on tap for the holiday season (Dec. 11-20) and a star lineup of choreographers for its annual Byham Theater series (Feb. 11-13) with Joffrey Ballet founder Gerald Arpino, hot ballet commodity Trey McIntyre and contemporary masters Doug Varone, David Parsons and Daniel Ezralow. The hometown pizzazz of "Pittsburgh Connections" will feature Point Park alumnus Marissa Balzer, former Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre soloist Jeffrey Bullock, former Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre artistic director Patrick Frantz and Krisofer Storey (PBT and PPU), who won Hubbard Street 2's 2000 National Choreographic Competition. The season begins with the Student Choreography Project (Oct. 2-4) and culminates with "Dance With Me," a celebration of PPU's faculty members (April 9-11). 412-621-4445 or www. pittsburghplayhouse.com.
DANCE ALLOY THEATRE: DAT is in transition under the leadership of newly appointed artistic director Greer Reed-Jones. But already Pittsburgh's oldest modern dance company is hitting the bricks at its studios in Friendship. First on the new programming is "Behind the Scenes," where local choreographers Pearlann Porter and Gwen Hunter Ritchie will preview their premieres (Nov. 6, DAT studios) for the Mainstage Series at the New Hazlett Theater (Dec. 4-7). In between there will be "Alloy on Alloy," where company members supply the choreography (Nov. 20-21) with "special guests, role reversals and a quick change of pace." 412-363-4321 or dancealloy.org.
DUQUESNE UNIVERSITY TAMBURITZANS: The Tammies take their latest Eastern European show to Ligonier (Oct. 24); Duquesne University Student Union (Nov. 4); Carson Middle School, McCandless (Nov. 21); Upper St. Clair High School (Jan. 23) and Valley High School Auditorium in New Kensington (March 28). 412-396-5185 or www.tamburitzans.duq.edu.
GUITAR SOCIETY OF FINE ART: Two flamenco programs provide the bookends for GSFA, including an intriguing flamenco rock opera, "Spanish Day," combining gypsy flamenco and Latin rock (New Hazlett Theater, Oct. 3) and the finale, Puerto Flamenco, a group of young artists from Seville (May 8). 412-281-1910 or www.gsfa@pittsburgh.org.
KELLY-STRAYHORN THEATER: Executive director Janerra Solomon is emerging not only as a community arts advocate, but also as a proponent of dance on the edge. Whether you call him Willi Dorner or Cie, this Austrian artist will bring "ABOVE UNDER IN BETWEEN," an everyday discourse on dance (Sept. 18-19). Kate Watson Wallace brings "STORE," a piece inspired by what and how we buy (Nov. 6-7). 412-363-3000 or www.kelly-strayhorn.org.
LA ROCHE COLLEGE DANCE THEATRE: Gerard Holt has programmed "Choreographers' Series," featuring works by students and alumni (Dec. 12, College Center Square), "Winter Rep," with "Scarlet Women of the Bible: Eve" and "Paquita" (Father Ryan Center for the Performing Arts, Feb. 5-6) and "The Classics & the Contemporary," spotlighting the Mahalia Jackson-inspired "Move on up a Little Higher" (Byham, April 14). 724-538-5856 or holtg1@laroche.edu.
THE PILLOW PROJECT: Pearlann Porter and company continue their "Urban Experiment" in the streets through Nov. 3 (see their Facebook page for hints). They perform indoors as well in "Second Saturdays," a series featuring an up-close, cool and casual lounge atmosphere, including "Time Capture" with eight-string Warr guitarist Bill Burke (Sept. 12) and followed by "Sophisticated Junk" (Oct. 10) and "Single-Serving Saturday"(Nov. 14). There will also be a "Secret Saturday" on Dec. 12, celebrating the company's first five years. All performances (save outdoors) will take place at the Space Upstairs in Construction Junction, Point Breeze. 412-225-9269 or www. pillowproject.org.
PITTSBURGH BALLET THEATRE: PBT's foundation rests on full-length ballets such as "Sleeping Beauty" (Oct. 16-18), "The Nutcracker" (Dec. 11-27) and "Swan Lake" (April 16-18), all at the Benedum Center. But Pittsburgh's largest dance company is trying to stretch its wings. Look for "Light/The Holocaust & Humanity Project," a major series that will involve 15 local companies who will pay tribute to the Holocaust over the course of three weeks (PBT at the Byham, Nov. 12-15) and a powerhouse contemporary duo in Paul Taylor's "Company B" and Twyla Tharp's "In the Upper Room" (Benedum, Feb. 12-15). 412-456-6666 or www.pbt.org.
THE PITTSBURGH CULTURAL TRUST: The Trust will nurture niche audiences with LADO, the national folk ensemble from Croatia (Byham, Oct. 18), Step Afrika!, which celebrates -- what else -- stepping (Byham, Jan. 17,) Bellydance Superstars Present the Art of Bellydance swirling in from the fringe into the mainstream (Byham, Feb. 18) and China's Golden Dragon Acrobats (Byham, Mar. 13). 412-456-6666 or www.pgharts.org.
PITTSBURGH DANCE COUNCIL: PDC is concentrating on North America in a season that, for the first time, totally takes place at the Byham (no Benedum) and focuses on the young and the restless. Canada's talented Crystal Pite brings her company, Kidd Pivot (Oct. 3) and San Francisco's Margaret Jenkins pairs with Guandong Modern Dance Company from China (Oct. 24). Aspen Sante Fe Ballet makes its Pittsburgh debut with Twyla Tharps "Sue's Leg" (Feb. 26) and one of PBT's most popular guest choreographers, Dwight Rhoden, shows up with his own group, Complexions, featuring the incomparable Desmond Richardson, (April 3). BJM Danse from Montreal introduces Aszure Barton, resident choreographer from Mikhail Baryshnikov's Arts Center, and the season concludes with the only completely foreign program, Great Britain's Vincent Dance Theatre. 412-456-6666 or www.pgharts.org.
PITTSBURGH YOUTH BALLET COMPANY: The annual "Nutcracker" performances will take place Dec. 4-6 at Upper St. Clair Theatre with an additional orchestral collaboration at Pittsburgh High School for the Creative and Performing Arts, date TBA. The annual spring performance, anchored by a George Balanchine work, will be April 10-11 at USC. 724-969-3000 or www.pybco.com.
PNC BROADWAY ACROSS AMERICA: This Broadway series has a quartet of movement-filled productions, including the rhythmically astute STOMP, which made its original appearance at the Dance Council (Benedum, Sept. 15-20), The Radio City Music Hall Spectacular featuring the Rockettes (Benedum , Nov. 11-Dec. 6), Cirque Dreams: Illumination," a Soleil-styled acrobatic cityscape (Heinz Hall, Jan. 5-10) and the perennial "Cats," (Benedum, Jan. 26-31). 412-456-6666 or www.pgharts.org.
SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY: SRU Dance Theatre members will be working with Doug Varone in "Tomorrow," accompanied by Slippery Rock faculty members Nanette Kaplan Solomon, pianist, and Colleen Gray, soprano, plus River North Chicago Dance Company's artistic director Frank Chavez and SRU alumnus Chad Hall during the course of the season. The year begins with the Jazz and Tap Ensemble Concert (Nov. 14-15, location TBA), followed by the Department of Dance Fall Concert (Dec. 12, Swope Recital Hall) and Winter Concert (Miller Auditorium, Jan. 28-30).
SLIPPERY ROCK PERFORMING ARTS SERIES: The SRU group will present the jazz-based contemporary dance ensemble, River North Chicago Dance Company (Feb. 5, Miller Auditorium).
THE SPILLING INK PROJECT: Bharatanatyam dancers Vijay Paliparty and Nalini Prakash will perform the U.S. premiere of "Alekhya: Spilling Ink," an artistic and spiritual journey that reveals how creativity is a form of prayer (Carnegie Mellon University's Kresge Hall), with a preview Sept. 10 at the same location. 1-440-212-2928 or vijay.palaparty@gmail.com.
First Published September 10, 2009 12:00 am
