2018 Walking Distance Dance Festival

MAY 15 AND 16, 8PM

La Medea is a musical re-imagining of Euripides’ violent tragedy, dance-theater in the style of a Latin-disco-pop variety show. Directed, performed, filmed, edited, and streamed in real time with a live studio audience, La Medeabrings theater to cinema and cinema to theater. Embracing a multiplicity of cultural lenses, La Medea confronts the historically prevalent image of the hysterical, dangerous, foreign woman, while also offering the revolutionary female figure willing to destroy her own children in the name of justice. Chaos reigns beneath the skin of a classic myth.

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MAY 17 AND 18, 8PM

During a visit to the Musée du Quai Branly, choreographer Byb Bibene discovered the Nkisi Nkondi statue from the Kongo people in central Africa, a divine figure representing the moral and spiritual codes as well as political and religious symbols of power, resistance, fear, and defiance. Through this new work, Bibene questions the function of dances by the community - the ceremonial and sacred and those solely reserved for the initiated.

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MAY 19 AND 20, 6:30PM

We live in a world that is densely populated with repressive systems of control. Free improvisers offer an alternative - to gather from diverse cultures and create compelling and beautiful work with no plan, no pre-arranged agreements. It takes years of hard work to be prepared to live fearlessly in this manner, and the artists on display this evening have been living in this practice for decades. Set aside your devices and plans and witness what it’s like to free yourself of control.

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Stirring, mysterious and tremendously physical, Sharon Moore’s Anthem for the Living unleashes deep layers of McGuire through textured and magnetic movement, which synthesizes dance, theatre and circus. The Eight Propositions was created collaboratively by Emio Greco, McGuire and Pieter C. Scholten via ICKamsterdam with sound design by Jerome Begin. Originating from spherical imagery, McGuire etches each segment in space, defining the content, boundaries and dancer within.

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During this shared practice session, Belinda McGuire teaches a Limón-based technique class, aiming to break down preconceptions of physical limitations and encourage the discovery of potential breadth and power of expression. In a search to satisfy and adventurous spirit through movement, the class will broaden perception of range and appreciation of the depth and versatility that such newfound tools can bring.

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