The Pittsburgh Dance Council’s 50th anniversary celebration came to an abrupt end in early 2020 when the season was suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s best efforts, the ongoing shutdown scratched the next season, too.
Now organizers are hopeful that the long intermission is over. The Pittsburgh Dance Council, headed by Randal Miller, announced on Thursday its 2021-22 season, an eclectic mix of contemporary masters, new works and an outdoor spectacle that aims to challenge audiences’ assumptions about dance. There will be an emphasis on domestic companies throughout the season.
To ease back into things, there will be only one show this fall. For the first time since 2017, Pittsburgh native Kyle Abraham will be in town for a Dance Council program Nov. 13 at Byham Theater to stage his newest evening-length work, “An Untitled Love.” It will be presented in partnership with the Kelly Strayhorn Theater as part of its My People Festival.
All performances will be at Byham Theater, Downtown, unless otherwise noted.
“Kyle seemed like the right choice to start the next 50 years of the Dance Council’s history,” said Miller, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s director of dance programming and special projects. “Everyone loves a Pittsburgh hero. I think Kyle is in line with Martha Graham, Paul Taylor … those people of Pittsburgh origin who people talk about forever for their contributions to dance.”
In “An Untitled Love,” Abraham and his New York City-based company A.I.M will pay homage to the complexities of self-love and Black love, danced to a selection of songs from Grammy Award-winning R&B legend D’Angelo.
Sprinkled throughout the spring portion of the season will be companies that had to postpone their trips to Pittsburgh because of the pandemic.
“This whole thing came together very quickly,” Miller said. “Once we got the approval that we could go to 100% capacity, basically the season got put together in a month.”
In February, Botis Seva’s Far From the Norm — known for its blend of visual artistry and hip-hop — will travel from the United Kingdom for the U.S. premiere tour of its work “BLKDOG.” Pittsburgh is one of only three stops on the tour, Miller said.
“BLKDOG” is described as a “haunting commentary on surviving adulthood as a childlike artist.”
“That’s the most adventurous piece in the season,” Miller said.
The next two programs were originally slated for the 50th anniversary season. Pilobolus, which also had its golden anniversary cut short because of COVID-19, is now planned to bring its “BIG FIVE-OH!” program to Byham Theater next April. Expect fresh twists on some of its classics and a behind-the-scenes look at its signature shadow work, along with other surprises.
New York City-based Complexions Contemporary Ballet will presents its ballet-meets-hip-hop style in Byham Theater next May. The company is the product of two former Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater dancers, Desmond Richardson and Dwight Rhoden, a longtime Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre collaborator. Complexions will stage “Bach 25,” billed as a “fast-paced, jubilant” work celebrating the music of Johann Sebastian Bach, and “Woke,” a sociopolitical piece danced to songs by Kendrick Lamar, Logic, Diplo and Drake.
The 2021-22 season will conclude with an outdoor show-stopper at next summer’s Dollar Bank Three Rivers Arts Festival. U.K.’s Motionhouse — which specializes in “pushing dance-circus to its limits” — will deliver the U.S. premiere of “Torque,” which challenges four of its artists to dance in partnership with two JCB construction vehicles. The piece premiered at the International Dance Festival Birmingham in 2016.
During the 2017 and 2019 arts festivals, respectively, the Dance Council featured Blue Lapis Light scaling the Highmark Building and dancers on a shipping container in “Origami” in Point State Park.
“We’ve had such great attendance with arts festival engagements in the past,” Miller said. “I’m really excited to get this piece here.”
What he wasn’t able to reschedule for the 2021-22 season, he’s actively working to bring back for future Dance Council lineups, Miller said.
Single tickets start at $10 and will be available at a later date at trustarts.org/dance or by calling 412-456-6666. Subscription packages are available for $40-$220. For tickets for groups of 10 or more, call 412-471-6930. For the latest COVID-19 safety protocols in the Cultural District’s theaters, visit trustarts.org.
Sara Bauknecht: sbauknecht@post-gazette.com or on Twitter and Instagram @SaraB_PG.
First Published: July 29, 2021, 4:15 p.m.
