#contemporary-dance

#contemporary-dance

Candle-lit circular corridors dotted with quirky props, distressed plaster walls and surely the most stylish bar in London add to the very special atmosphere of its 195-seater auditorium raked so that every sight line is unimpeded, and a smaller studio space. Taken together, all this creates the perfect setting for veteran dancer/choreographer Russell Maliphant's latest strand of work: small-scale, intense, intimate.

Dance Umbrella bills itself as a festival of all things dance. Now just three years shy of its half-century, over the years it has brought to London a mind-blowing variety of dance makers and performers, both established and untested, national and international. And it never ceases to evolve. Under the directorship (2013-2021) of the late, lamented Emma Gladstone, it unapologetically stretched its boundaries to become more umbrella than dance.

The evening began as the audience filled their seats, a DJ booth with glowing, orange lights visible in the darkness. A dark, shadowy figure appeared behind white fabric hung across the stage. As music created by the live DJ sounded, the figure moved a glowing orb. It played with depth of shadow until morphing into two distinct figures. The delicate electronica soundscape matched the dark whimsy of the scene, indicating a moist forest atmosphere.

With acrobatic finesse, the figures in Artez's large-scale murals interpret the boundaries of the walls themselves through contemporary dance and moments of repose.

The new ballet, Quadrophenia, offers a fresh orchestral lens to Pete Townshend's timeless rock opera, enhancing its emotional depth and narrative richness.

The DUMBO Dance Festival provides a platform for over 400 performing artists to showcase their work while offering New York audiences access to an extraordinary range of excellent and visionary choreography at an affordable price.

When I first came into contact with hip hop ... it was a very empowering time and moment,... at the age of 26 after my classical training, I felt compelled to reach back and connect to that part of me I left behind in Los Angeles.