Press Release - Dance Umbrella announces 2019 shows

[Jan McNulty]

DANCE UMBRELLA ANNOUNCES UK PREMIERE OF GISÈLE VIENNE’S CROWD AND WORLD PREMIERE OF GEORGIA VARDAROU’S WHY SHOULD IT BEMORE DESIRABLE... AT SADLER’S WELLS FOR 2019FESTIVAL

 

  Dance Umbrella announces two premieres at Sadler’s Wells as part of its2019 festival.

  Gisèle Vienne’s Crowd will open the festival on the Sadler’s Wells stage on 8 & 9 October

  Georgia Vardarou’s Why Should It Be More Desirable... will premiere at the Lilian Baylis Studio on 23 & 24 October

 

 

CROWD – GISÈLE VIENNE - UK PREMIERE

 

Photo credit:  Estelle Hanania

 

Opening Dance Umbrella 2019 will be the UK premiere of Crowd by French choreographer, director and visual artist Gisèle Vienne. Crowd is a hallucinatory rollercoaster, swept along by the intense emotions and collective euphoria of a committed party crowd, whose innermost selves are laid bare through intoxicating movement.

 

To the pulsating ebbs and flows of a techno-trance soundtrack, 15 mud-splattered individuals dance with articulate and stylised precision. Ritualistic scenes are slowed down to reveal moments of love, violence, intimacy and aversion amid exhilarating shifts in rhythm and pace. Drawing on her own experiences in Berlin, Gisèle Vienne expertly harnesses the undulating, stuttering, liquid physicality of the club scene to magnify the interactions of a group of revellers.

 

Gisèle has previously worked with Etienne Bideau-Rey, writer Dennis Cooper, musicians PeterRehberg and Stephen O’Malley, and lighting designer Patrick Riou.

 

 

WHY SHOULD IT BE MORE DESIRABLE FOR GREEN FIRE BALLS TO EXIST THAN NOT? – GEORGIA VARDAROU - WORLD PREMIERE

 

Photo credit:  Reinout Hiel

 

As part of Dance Umbrella’s milestone Four by Four initiative, launched in 2018 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the festival, the Greek artist was nominated by Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker as an up-and-coming talent making pioneering work for a 2019 Dance Umbrella commission. Georgia Vardarou has previously worked as a dancer with Salva Sanchis, Marc Vanrunxt, Cecilie Ullerup Schmidt, Lance Gries and Rosas.

 

For this premiere, Georgia draws on a highly personal physical language to illuminate the space between the audience’s perception and her own. Made in collaboration with visual artist David Bergé, known for his silent Walk Pieces, Why Should It Be More Desirable... intricately overlaps image and movement, inviting a range of potential narrative readings.

 

More Dance Umbrella 2019 programme announcements coming soon.

-ENDS-
 

LISTINGS

CROWD – GISÈLE VIENNE
Sadler’s Wells: Tuesday 8 – Wednesday 9 October at 7.30pm 
Tickets: £20
On sale 15 April at sadlerswells.com

Free post-show talk: Tuesday 8 October

 

WHY SHOULD IT BE MORE DESIRABLE... – GEORGIA VARDAROU

Lilian Baylis Studio: Wednesday 23 – Thursday 24 October at 8pm 
Tickets: £17
On sale 15 April at sadlerswells.com

 

NOTES TO EDITORS

 

GISÈLE VIENNE

Choreographic credits include: Crowd (2017), The Ventriloquists Convention (2015), The Pyre (2013),Last Spring: A Sequel (2011), This Is How Your Will Disappear (2010), Eternelle Idole (2009), Jerk(2008), Kindertotenlieder (2007), A Young, Beautiful Blond Girl (2005) and I Apologize (2004).

 

Her other credits include: Showroomdummies #3 (2013), Showroomdummies #2 (2009), Tranen Veinzen (2004), Stéréotypie (2003) and Showroomdummies (2001)

 

GEORGIA VARDAROU

Choreographic credits include: New Narratives (2016), Phenomena (2013) and Hardcore Research on Dance (2011).

As a dancer, credits include: Prototype (2017), Golden Hours (As You Like It) (2015), Now here (2011),For Edward Krasinski (2010), The Organ Project (2008), (2008) and Objects in mirror are closer than they appear/ Objects in Athens are closer than they appear (2008).

 

About Dance Umbrella

Dance Umbrella is London’s international Dance festival. We shine a light on new choreography everyOctober, sharing memorable shows from around the world with audiences across the capital.

 

We are committed to taking dance out and bringing audiences in by touring in inner and outer London, broadening definitions of contemporary dance, and developing partnerships with non-dance venues and organisations such as The Big Draw, National Theatre, Battersea Power Station and local councils.

 

Founded in 1978, Dance Umbrella has reached audiences of well over a million people. Pioneering commissions by world class choreographers have been presented at sites ranging from the Royal Albert Hall and inner city rooftops, to Tate Modern and outer London parks. Emma Gladstone was appointed Artistic Director & Chief Executive in 2013, and in addition to the festival, Dance Umbrella now runs digital projects, creative learning schemes and professional development programmes throughout the year.

danceumbrella.co.uk

[Jan McNulty]

 

DANCE UMBRELLA ANNOUNCES FURTHER LINE-UP FOR FESTIVAL 2019 INCLUDING DU DEBUTS FROM FEATURED ARTIST OONA DOHERTY; COMMISSIONED ARTIST MYTHILI PRAKASH, AND PHILIPPE SAIRE; PLUS THE RETURN OFGREGORY MAQOMA; A SUNDAY CINEMA PROGRAMME AND THE DU LECTURE

 

 

DU19 Hocus Pocus, Philippe Saire. Photo Philippe Pache

 

London’s international festival of contemporary dance takes place across the capital from 8 – 27 October 2019.

 

Emma Gladstone, Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Dance Umbrella, introduces the programme ‘Dance Umbrella is on the move. This year we will be reaching audiences right across the capital, travelling to more locations than ever before with performances made by choreographers hailing from Africa, Australia, USA and of course Europe.  Imagination is the force that makes change possible, and as creators, inventors, thinkers and dreamers they have things to share with all of us. Roll on October.’

Oona Doherty (Northern Ireland) is DU19’s Featured Artist. She will be presenting London premieres of two works, curating one of three afternoons of short dance films at theBarbican and creating work with girls as part of DU’s Access Croydon programme.

 

Hard to be Soft – London Premiere
Southbank Centre’s Queen Elizabeth Hall: Friday 11 October 8pm

 

Having picked up awards at Dublin and Edinburgh Fringe Festivals, Oona Doherty makes her London debut at Dance Umbrella with her searing evocation of the city streets of Belfast. Hard to be Soft unfolds over four distinct verses and, in a tender tribute, weaves everyday stories into a tapestry of mesmerising movement, religious iconography and haunting sound by DJDavid Holmes. Doherty’s unpredictable style and unique way of structuring her work,together with her knack for confounding conventions, has made her stand out as a highly original talent whose work is charged with raw physicality and poetic desire.

 

Presented by Dance Umbrella in partnership with Southbank Centre

 

Hope Hunt & The Ascension into Lazarus – London Premiere The Yard: Monday 14 – Wednesday 16 October 7.30pm

Oona Doherty’s solo performance is bursting with fury, swagger and humanity. Hope Huntshatters facades, dismantles stereotypes and finds beauty on the periphery. Doherty adopts multiple personas of disaffected male youth – too often disregarded and stigmatised – and channels aggression, humour, hedonism, joy and despair in quick-fire succession.

 

Fragmented and meticulously detailed, her intuitive social portrait vibrates with blistering physical and vocal energy. Gestures, words and utterances combine in a wholly distinctive body language, contorting ideas of masculinity and morality. Doherty invites audiences to look behind the mask of ego and affectation.

 

Presented by Dance Umbrella in partnership with The Yard

 

Gregory Maqoma (South Africa) – Cion: Requiem of Ravel’s Bolero – UK Premiere
Barbican: Thursday 17 –Saturday 19 October 7.45pm

 

A rousing dance theatre work, Cion transfixes us with choreography of rhythmic dexterity and ecstatic intensity to the sounds of a live South African choir.

 

Making his third Dance Umbrella appearance since 2015, celebrated dancer and choreographer Gregory Maqoma is Toloki – a paid mourner confronting a world in which greed, power and religious ideology lead so often to the normalisation of needless death and loss. Inspired by the protagonist from South African author Zakes Mda’s stories, this physical lamentation unfolds to the musical motif of Ravel’s Bolero, reinterpreted here through stirring song and percussion by four traditional vocalists joined onstage by eight gifted artists from Vuyani Dance Theatre.

 

Maqoma, who sees art as a commentary on how we treat others, created this soaring piece as a response to contemporary political events in his own country and globally.

 

Presented by Dance Umbrella in partnership with the Barbican

 

Mythili Prakash (USA) Here and Now – World PremierePart of DU: FAIRFIELD TAKEOVER
Fairfield Halls: Friday 18 October 7.30pm

 

Selected by Akram Khan as his ‘choreographer for the future’ as part of DU’s 40th anniversary commissioning initiative Four by Four, LA-based Mythili Prakash presents a worldpremiere as part of DU’s takeover of Croydon’s gleamingly refurbished Fairfield Halls for acaptivating start to the weekend’s events. Classically trained in the Indian dance form BharataNatyam, Mythili’s first contemporary work features live percussive and vocal accompaniment with lighting by Guy Hoare.

 

Fairfield Takeover is the latest and largest scale phase of DU’s ongoing relationship with Croydon and the full weekend programme will be announced in May.

 

Commissioned by Dance Umbrella
Produced and presented by Dance Umbrella in partnership with Fairfield Halls Supported by Croydon Council

 

Philippe Saire (Switzerland) Hocus Pocus – London PremiereVarious London venues 11 – 26 October – see listings for full details.

For DU19’s London Orbital Tour, Lausanne-based choreographer Philippe Saire directs a dreamlike spectacle, with dance, theatre and stage trickery set to music from Grieg’s Peer Gynt. Igniting the imaginations of children aged six+, this international hit features two awesomely dextrous performers, vivid costumes and eerie props. Voyage into the unknown with this bewitching gem of a family show, in which gravity dissolves, bodies bravely contort and optical illusions conjure other worlds.

 

A Dance Umbrella Orbital Tour in partnership with artsdepot, Fairfield Halls, Stratford Circus Arts Centre, The Albany, The Place and Watermans

 

Presented at the Barbican Cinema, Dance Umbrella Sunday Shorts brings three mixed bills of choreographically inspired films curated by DU19 featured artist Oona Doherty, Out of the System curator Freddie Opoku-Addaie and Independent Dance Co-Director Gitta Wigro to the big screen.

 

Dance Umbrella: Sunday Shorts 1 – Oona Doherty Barbican Cinema: Sunday 13 October 3.30pm

Dance Umbrella: Sunday Shorts 2 - Freddie Opoku-Addaie Barbican Cinema: Sunday 20 October 3.30pm

Dance Umbrella: Sunday Shorts 3 – Gitta Wigro Barbican Cinema: Sunday 27 October 3.30pm

 

Curated by Dance Umbrella, presented in partnership with Barbican Cinema

 

Dance Umbrella Lecture: The Role of the Artist in Cultural Democracy

François Matarasso (France) in conversation with Lyn GardnerNational Theatre, Cottesloe Room: Wednesday 9 October 5pm

Community artist, writer and researcher, François Matarasso is a firm believer in the positive outcomes of people’s participation in art and he continues to combine community arts practice with research and consultancy all over the world. His latest book A Restless Art, How participation won and why it matters, was published by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in 2019; www.arestlessart.com

 

A Dance Umbrella event in partnership with the National Theatre Supported by One Dance UK

 

_____________________________________________________________

Previously Announced

 

Gisèle Vienne (France) - Crowd - UK Premiere Sadler’s Wells: Tuesday 8 – Wednesday 9 October 7.30pmhttp://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/crowd/
Supported by the Institut Français as part of FranceDance UK

 

Four by Four Commission: Georgia Vardarou (Greece) - Why Should It Be More Desirable... - World Premiere
Lilian Baylis Studio, Sadler’s Wells: Wednesday 23 – Thursday 24 October at 8pm http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/why-should-it-be-more-desirable-for-green-fire- balls-to-exist-than-not

A Dance Umbrella Commission
Presented by Dance Umbrella in partnership with Sadler’s Wells

 

-ENDS-

 

UPDATED FESTIVAL LISTINGS

CROWD – GISÈLE VIENNE
Sadler’s Wells: Tuesday 8 – Wednesday 9 October 7.30pm; Tickets: £20-£25; On sale now http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/crowd/ 

Free Post show Talk: Tuesday 8 October at 7.30pm

 

DANCE UMBRELLA LECTURE:
THE ROLE OF THE ARTIST IN CULTURAL DEMOCRACY
FRANCOIS MATARASSO IN CONVERSATION WITH LYN GARDNER
National Theatre, Cottesloe Room: Wednesday 9 October 5pm; Tickets £10/£8; On sale mid May http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/dance-umbrella-lecture-2019/

 

HARD TO BE SOFT - A BELFAST PRAYER – OONA DOHERTY
Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre: Friday 11 October 8pm; Tickets: £22/£18; On sale 2 May http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/hard-to-be-soft-a-belfast-prayer/

Talking Amongst Ourselves (DU’s popular audience-led discussion, giving audiences a chance to share opinions with your fellow audience members

 

HOCUS POCUS – PHILIPPE SAIRE
Watermans Arts Centre: Friday 11 October 8pm; On sale in August

The Albany: Sunday 13 October 2.30pm and 5pm; On sale in August
Fairfield Halls: Friday 18 October 11am and 4.30pm; On sale 8 May

The Place: Saturday 19 October 2.30pm and 5pm; On sale now
artsdepot: Thursday 24 October 11am and 2pm; On sale now
Stratford Circus Arts Centre: Saturday 26 October 11am & 2pm; On sale now

Tickets from £6 check venues for details http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/hocus-pocus

 

DU: SUNDAY SHORTS 1 – OONA DOHERTY
Barbican Cinema Sunday 13 October 3pm; Tickets £12/£11 concs; On sale 1 May

http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-sunday-shorts/

Hope Hunt promo - Oona Doherty & Luca Truffarelli (UK 2017)
Concrete Song - Oona Doherty, Dave Tynan, Hugh O'Connor (UK 2017)Lazarus & the Birds of Paradise - Oona Doherty & Luca Truffarelli (UK 2016)Sugar Army - Oona Doherty & Luca Truffarelli (UK 2018)
Meat Kaleidoscope - Oona Doherty & Luca Truffarelli (UK 2018)
Helium - Oona Doherty & Luca Truffarelli (UK 2018)
Heartbreak - Dave Tynan (UK 2017)
Sonny - Rubber Bandits (UK 2017)
Dad’s Best Friend - Rubber Bandits (UK 2014)
Here and Through - Luca Truffarelli (UK 2016)
The Wilderness Within - Luca Truffarelli & Neil Fleming Brown (UK 2019)

 

HOPE HUNT & THE ASCENSION INTO LAZARUS – OONA DOHERTY

The Yard: Monday 14 – Wednesday 16 October 7.30pm; Tickets: £14; On sale nowhttp://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/hope-hunt-and-the-ascension-into-lazarus
Tue 15 October: Free post-show talk

 

DU: FAIRFIELD TAKEOVER – HERE AND NOW - MYTHILI PRAKASH

Fairfield Halls: Friday 18 – Saturday 19 October 7.30pm; Tickets £12; On sale 15 May; http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-fairfield-takeover/

 

CION: REQUIEM OF RAVEL’S BOLERO – GREGORY MAQOMA

Barbican: Thursday 17 –Saturday 19 October 7.45pm; Tickets £16 - £28; On sale nowhttp://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/cion-requiem-of-ravels-bolero
Fri 18 October 7.45pm: Free post-show talk

 

DU: SUNDAY SHORTS 2 – FREDDIE OPOKU-ADDAIE
Barbican Cinema Sunday 20 October 3pm; Tickets £12/£11 concs; On sale 1 May

http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-sunday-shorts/

THICK AND GREY - Jorge Crecis and Jesus Robisco (ES 2013)
Ina (Light) - Aneil Karia & Alesandra Seutin | Vocab Dance (2018)

Ease On Down - The Motion Dance Collective (UK)Line Dance - Alex Reuben (UK 2004)
Don’t Look at the Finger - Hetain Patel (UK 2017)

 

WHY SHOULD IT BE MORE DESIRABLE... – GEORGIA VARDAROU
Lilian Baylis Studio, Sadler’s Wells: Wednesday 23 – Thursday 24 October at 8pm
Tickets £17; On sale now http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/why-should-it-be-more-desirable- for-green-fire-balls-to-exist-than-not
Wednesday 23 October: Free post-show talk

 

DU: SUNDAY SHORTS 3– GITTA WIGRO
Barbican Cinema Sunday 20 October 3pm; Tickets £12 / £11 concs; On sale 1 May

http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-sunday-shorts/

Vertical - Eddie Frost (UK)
Bhairava - Marlene Millar (CA)Pilgrimage - Marlene Millar (CA)Swarm - Emma Miranda Moore (UK)

Cargo - Jasmin Ellis (DE)
Crashing Waves - Emma Gilbertson (UK)Separate Sentences - Austin Forbord (USA)JA:PA - Jiri Karmasin (CZ)
Globe Trot - Mitchell Rose (USA)

 

NOTES TO EDITORS

 

About Dance Umbrella

Dance Umbrella is London’s international Dance festival. We shine a light on new choreography everyOctober, sharing memorable shows from around the world with audiences across the capital.

 

We are committed to taking dance out and bringing audiences in by touring in inner and outer London, broadening definitions of contemporary dance, and developing partnerships with non-dance venues and organisations such as The Big Draw, National Theatre, Battersea Power Station and local councils.

Founded in 1978, Dance Umbrella has reached audiences of well over a million people. Pioneering commissions by world class choreographers have been presented at sites ranging from the Royal Albert Hall and inner-city rooftops, to Tate Modern and outer London parks. Emma Gladstone was appointed Artistic Director & Chief Executive in 2013, and in addition to the festival, Dance Umbrella now runs digital projects, creative learning schemes and professional development programmes throughout the year.

danceumbrella.co.uk

 

BIOGRAPHIES

Oona Doherty
Northern Ireland based choreographer Oona Doherty has created and performed dance and theatre works with companies and artists including TRASH (NL) Abattoir Ferme (BE), Veronika Riz (IT), Emma Martin /United Fall (IE) and Enda Walsh (UK). She won the Major Individual Award from the Arts Council of Northern Ireland in 2017 for Hard to be Soft - A Belfast Prayer. Accolades for Hope Hunt and the Ascension into Lazarus include Dublin Tigre Fringe Best Performance Award 2016,the Edinburgh Fringe Total Theatre Award 2017, The Place Dance Award Edinburgh Fringe 2017 and (RE) Conisaunce Choreographic Grenoble 1st Prize Jury and 1st Prize Audience Vote. Her newest work Lady Magma premiered recently at the Atelier de Paris.

Gregory Vuyani Maqoma

 

Born in Soweto Gregory Vuyani Maqoma became interested in dance in the late 1980’s as a means toescape the political tensions growing in his place of birth. He started his formal dance training in 1990 at Moving into Dance where in 2002 he became Associate Artistic Director. He founded Vuyani Dance Theatre (VDT) in 1999 when studying at P.A.R.T.S in Belgium under the direction of Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker. Since 2000 he has collaborated with choreographers such as Akram Khan, Vincent Mantsoe, Faustin Linyekula, Dada Masilo, Shanell Winlock and Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui.

 

Several works in his VDT repertoire have won accolades and international acclaim, including winning the FNB Vita Choreographer of the Year three times. In 2017 Maqoma was honoured by the French Government with the Chevalier de L’ordre des Arts et Lettres (Knight of the Arts and Literature award).

His 14-18NOW collaboration with visual artist William Kentridge, The Head and the Load, has sell out performances at Tate Modern last year and his choreography for Tree – a collaboration with Idris Elba and Kwame Kwei-Armah, will premiere at MIF this summer.

 

François Matarasso

François Matarasso is a community artist, writer and researcher. Between 1979 and 1994 he worked with communities in London and the East Midlands. He subsequently began to explore the theory, experience and outcomes of people’s participation in art through research, such as Use or Ornament? (1997).

 

His work has been widely published and translated. He has served as trustee of NESTA, Arts Council England and the Baring Foundation and held honorary professorships in the UK and Australia. He continues to combine community arts practice with research and consultancy, and has worked in many countries, from Colombia to Kyrgyzstan.

His latest book A Restless Art, How participation won and why it matters, was published by the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in 2019; www.arestlessart.com

 

Mythili Prakash

Classically trained in the Indian dance form Bharata Natyam, Mythili Prakash grew up in Los Angeles learning from her mother/dancer Viji Prakash, and is currently mentored by dancer/choreographer Malavika Sarukkai. She performed her solo debut at eight years old and has since presented her work worldwide. Her full length solo choreographies include Stree Katha, Yamuna, Seasons of Love, Chandalika, Aikya, and Jwala- Rising Flame. She has also collaborated with musician Anoushka Shankar in Svatantraya, with director Gowri Ramnarayan in Yashodhara, and with brother/musician Aditya Prakash in MARA. She has worked with Director Ang Lee in the film Life of Pi and was featured on NBC’s Superstars of Dance. A recipient of numerous accolades, Mythili has recently been nominated"choreographer of the future" by Akram Khan for one of Dance Umbrella’s Four by Four commissions.She will also be performing in Akram Khan’s latest touring production, Outwitting the Devil.

 

Philippe Saire

Swiss choreographer Philippe Saire has created more than thirty shows. His company Compagnie Philippe Saire, founded in 1986, contributed significantly to the emergence of contemporary dance throughout Switzerland and in 1995 opened its own workspace in Lausanne; the Théâtre Sévelin 36.Saire’s awards include the Grand Prix by the Fondation Vaudoise pour la Promotion et les CréationsArtistiques, the Prix d’auteur of Conseil général de Seine-Saint-Denis (France) for his piece Étude sur la Légèreté and the Swiss dance and choreography prize awarded by ProTanz Zurich. In 2013, Théâtre Sévelin 36 was the laureate of the “Prix spécial de danse” awarded by the Swiss Federal Office of Culture.

[Jan McNulty]

PRESS RELEASE – 15 May 2019

DANCE UMBRELLA ANNOUNCES FINAL SHOWS IN LINE-UP FOR FESTIVAL 2019 INCLUDING A CUNNINGHAM CENTENARY TRIPLE BILL, MORE OUT OF THE SYSTEM EVENTS, A DU DEBUT FROM LUCY GUERIN AND THE FULL DU: FAIRFIELD TAKEOVERPROGRAMME 

 

 

Twitter/ Facebook / Instagram / YouTube / Website  / #DUFest19

 

Artistic Director and Chief Executive Emma Gladstone said ‘Dance Umbrella today announces the final third of its 2019 programme. Sixteen of the eighteen artists this year are making their DU debuts and in his centenary year we are proud to present works by Merce Cunningham at the Linbury Theatre. Our pan-London festival is taking place in thirteen different boroughs spanning zones 1 to 5; so charge your oysters and prepare to come on a journey that crosses continents and reveals what dance is and can be. Come and join us.’

 

DU: THE FUTURE BURSTS IN 
Amala Dianor (Fr/Senegal) Somewhere in the Middle of Infinity - UK Premiere
CCN – Ballet De Lorraine (France) For Four Walls UK premiere 
CCN – Ballet de Lorraine Sounddance by Merce Cunningham (USA) 
Linbury Theatre, Royal Opera House: Thursday 24 – Saturday 26 October 7.45pm
Matinee Sat 26 October 2pm

Opening this celebratory evening is a radiant trio by Senegal-born Amala Dianor, replete with fluid, looping gestures exploring human bonds, Somewhere in the Middle of Infinity seduces with serene yet powerful encounters derived from a 21st-century meeting of African, hip-hop and contemporary styles. In the second half, CCN - Ballet de Lorraine’s connection with Cunningham is reflected in a re-reading of a once-lost 1944 work. Retaining John Cage’s piano score, For Four Walls sets 24 dancers in motion to new choreography by Petter Jacobsson and Thomas Caley inside a mirrored space. To end, the unpredictability and riotous dynamism of Cunningham’s 1975 classic, Sounddance – provides a perfect salute to his Centennial. 

 

PANEL DISCUSSION: MERCE IN THE UK 
Siobhan Davies Studio: Wednesday 23 October 7.30pm
Chaired by Jeremy Millar, panellists Richard Alston, Gavin Bryars, Julie Cunningham and Siobhan Davies will talk about the lasting legacy and influence of Merce Cunningham.

 

FREDDIE OPOKU-ADDAIE - OUT OF THE SYSTEM
In the third and final year of DU’s Out of the System initiative, choreographer, performer and educator Freddie Opoku-Addaie’s curational acumen reaches for the glitter ball in the sky with this timely and FUN-tastic vogue ball, which runs alongside a tantalising quadruple bill of UK talent; Freddie has also programmed an afternoon of Sunday Cinema as previously announced.

 

OUT OF THE SYSTEM – THE BIG PINK VOGUE BALL 
Jay Jay Revlon & Cai Revlon (UK) 
Shoreditch Town Hall: Saturday 12 October 8.30pm (Doors 8pm) – LATE
Anyone who came to CRXSS PLATFXRM last year will have a sense of how DU and Freddie embrace dance as a social, shareable and (optionally) participatory activity and with the recent storming success of TV show Pose, everyone is going to want to get in on this act! The Big Pink Vogue Ball will be a spectacle with a party atmosphere to end all party atmospheres. Get on down and strike a pose!   

OUT OF THE SYSTEM - MIXED BILL
Becky Namgauds (UK) – Exhibit F 
THĒO INARTS (UK) - FIM (Fragility In Man) Part 1 
Ffion Campbell-Davies and tyroneisaacstuart (UK) – Beyond Words 
Jonzi D (UK) – Aeroplane Man
Bernie Grant Arts Centre: Tuesday 22 – Wednesday 23 October, 7.30pm
Becky Namgaud’s Exhibit F is a creature of the night; half bold, free and sensual, half weak, suppressed and controlled. Veering between victim and predator, testing measures of power and submission in equal magnitude; we encounter the female form under a new gaze. The male form is the intimate focus of THĒO INART’s solo Fragility in Man, alive with telling symbolism and visual storytelling. Collaborating in Beyond Words, Ffion Campbell-Davies and tyroneisaacstuart call on their exploration of dance, music and authenticity to question how humans converse. Inspired by the experience of working-class racism and continual reminders from white England that ‘you ain't really from here...’ Aeroplane Man is Jonzi D’s now iconic, true story of a young black man’s global quest to find his spiritual homeland.  A unique fusion of rhyme and lyrically motivated movement, this critically acclaimed ‘choreo-poem’ is delivered with Jonzi’s trademark wit and closes the evening.
 

OUT OF THE SYSTEM – PANEL DISCUSSION
Tick Box / Break Glass / Look Pretty
Young Vic: Saturday 12 October 5.15pm
Examining the changes and opportunities in the arts for women of colour, this discussion explores how we can carve new and enduring pathways in and outside of the current system. Facilitated by Dawn Estefan (psychotherapist, writer, trainer & speaker) panellists including:
Julia Cheng (dancer, choreographer & Artistic Director of House of Absolute), Nike Jonah (Visiting Research Fellow, Central School of Speech and Drama), Tracy Gentles (Co-Director,The Sick of the Fringe).

 

SPLIT
Lucy Guerin (Australia) – UK Premiere 
The Place: Saturday 12 – Sunday 13 October 7.30pm
With one dancer clothed, one naked, two fearless female performers dance in flawless unison; their movements first poised, then animalistic.  Moving impeccably through their compelling duet, they navigate the terrain of a stark and diminishing set to a shamanistic, looping drum score by British electronic composer Scanner with increasing tension and an undercurrent of conflict.   

 

DU: FAIRFIELD TAKEOVER 
Boy Blue (UK) – REDD 
The Urban Playground Team (UK/France) To Fly Before We Fall – UK premiere
Mythili Prakash – Here and Now – UK premiere
Philippe Saire - Hocus Pocus – London premiere (DU Orbital Tour)
Fairfield Halls, Croydon: Friday 18 – Saturday 19 October

Filling and spilling out of Fairfield Halls’ beautifully redeveloped spaces, this weekend Takeover features a mix of international dance, pop-up events, performance-parkour thrills, homegrown talent, workshops and mayhem for all ages to the heart of Croydon. Joining previously announced artists Mythili Prackash and Philippe Saire, The Urban Playground Team is known for its authentic fusion of free running and streetwise dance. Superstar hip-hop company Boy Blue performs its latest large-scale production, wrapping up the weekend with the final Takeover performance. 

 

There are so many more ways to get involved, including your chance to become a DIY choreographer – see www.danceumbrella.co.uk for the full programme.

-ENDS-

 

 

FULL FESTIVAL LISTINGS 

 

CROWD – GISÈLE VIENNE
Sadler’s Wells: Tuesday 8 – Wednesday 9 October  7.30pm; Tickets: £20-£25; On sale now http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/crowd/
Press Night & Free Post-Show Talk: Tuesday 8 October at 7.30pm

 

DANCE UMBRELLA LECTURE: 
THE ROLE OF THE ARTIST IN CULTURAL DEMOCRACY 
FRANCOIS MATARASSO in conversation with Lyn Gardner 
National Theatre, Cottesloe Room: Wednesday 9 October 5pm; Tickets £10/£8; On sale now
http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/dance-umbrella-lecture-2019/

 

HARD TO BE SOFT - A BELFAST PRAYER – OONA DOHERTY
Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre: Friday 11 October 8pm; Tickets: £18-£22; On sale now http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/hard-to-be-soft-a-belfast-prayer/
Talking Amongst Ourselves (DU’s popular audience-led post-show discussion)

 

HOCUS POCUS – PHILIPPE SAIRE
Press Night: Watermans Arts Centre: Friday 11 October 8.30pm; On sale in August
The Albany: Sunday 13 October 2pm and 5pm; On sale in August 
Fairfield Halls: Friday 18 October 11am and 4.30pm; On sale now
The Place: Saturday 19 October 2.30pm and 5pm; On sale now
artsdepot: Thursday 24 October 11am and 2pm; On sale now 
Stratford Circus Arts Centre: Saturday 26 October 11am & 2pm; On sale now 
Tickets from £6 check venues for details http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/hocus-pocus

 

OUT OF THE SYSTEM – THE BIG PINK VOGUE BALL – JAY JAY REVLON
Shoreditch Town Hall: Saturday 12 October 8.30pm (Doors 8pm), Tickets: £10/£8 concs http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/the-big-pink-vogue-ball/

SPLIT – LUCY GUERIN – LONDON PREMIERE
The Place: Saturday 12 – Sunday 13 October 7.30pm; Tickets: £12-£18; http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/split/
Press Night: Saturday 12 October 8pm, & on Sunday 13 October Talking Amongst Ourselves (DU’s popular audience-led post-show discussion)

 

OUT OF THE SYSTEM – PANEL DISCUSSION
Tick Box / Break Glass / Look Pretty
Young Vic Theatre: Saturday 12 October 5.15pm; Tickets £5; http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/panel-discussion-out-of-the-system/

 

DU: SUNDAY SHORTS 1 – OONA DOHERTY
Barbican Cinema Sunday 13 October 3pm; Tickets £12/£11 concs; On sale now http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-sunday-shorts/
Hope Hunt promo - Oona Doherty & Luca Truffarelli (UK 2017)
Concrete Song - Oona Doherty, Dave Tynan, Hugh O'Connor (UK 2017)      
Lazarus & the Birds of Paradise - Oona Doherty & Luca Truffarelli (UK 2016)
Sugar Army - Oona Doherty & Luca Truffarelli (UK 2018) 
Meat Kaleidoscope - Oona Doherty & Luca Truffarelli (UK 2018)
Helium - Oona Doherty & Luca Truffarelli (UK 2018)
Heartbreak - Dave Tynan (UK 2017)
Sonny - Rubber Bandits (UK 2017)
Dad’s Best Friend - Rubber Bandits (UK 2014)
Here and Through - Luca Truffarelli (UK 2016)
The Wilderness Within - Luca Truffarelli & Neil Fleming Brown (UK 2019)

 

HOPE HUNT & THE ASCENSION INTO LAZARUS – OONA DOHERTY
The Yard: Monday 14 – Wednesday 16 October 7.30pm; Tickets: £14; On sale now http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/hope-hunt-and-the-ascension-into-lazarus
Tue 15 October: Free post-show talk 

 

CION:  REQUIEM OF RAVEL’S BOLERO – GREGORY MAQOMA                       
Barbican: Thursday 17 –Saturday 19 October 7.45pm; Tickets £16 - £28; On sale now http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/cion-requiem-of-ravels-bolero
Fri 18 October 7.45pm: Free post-show talk 

 

DU: FAIRFIELD TAKEOVER – BOY BLUE, MYTHILI PRAKASH, URBAN PLAYGROUND, PHILIPPE SAIRE AND MORE
Fairfield Halls: Friday 18 – Saturday 19 October; Times and prices vary; On sale 24 May
http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-fairfield-takeover/

 

DU: SUNDAY SHORTS 2 – FREDDIE OPOKU-ADDAIE
Barbican Cinema Sunday 20 October 3pm; Tickets £12/£11 concs; On sale now http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-sunday-shorts/
THICK AND GREY - Jorge Crecis and Jesus Robisco (ES 2013)
Ina (Light) - Aneil Karia & Alesandra Seutin | Vocab Dance (2018) 
Ease On Down - The Motion Dance Collective (UK)                  
Line Dance - Alex Reuben (UK 2004)                           
Don’t Look at the Finger - Hetain Patel (UK 2017)       

 

OUT OF THE SYSTEM MIXED BILL – JONZI D, THĒO INART, BECKY NAMGAUD, FFION CAMPBELL-DAVIES & TYRONEISAACSTUART
Bernie Grant Arts Centre: Tuesday 22 – Wednesday 23 October 7.30pm; Tickets: £12/£10 concs; http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/out-of-the-system-mixed-bill/

 

WHY SHOULD IT BE MORE DESIRABLE… – GEORGIA VARDAROU
Lilian Baylis Studio, Sadler’s Wells: Wednesday 23 – Thursday 24 October at 7.30pm
Tickets £17; On sale now http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/why-should-it-be-more-desirable-for-green-fire-balls-to-exist-than-not
Free Post show Talk Wednesday 23 October

 

PANEL DISCUSSION: MERCE IN THE UK
Siobhan Davies Studio: Wednesday 23 October 7.30pm; Tickets £7/£5 concs; http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/panel-discussion-merce-in-the-uk/

DU: THE FUTURE BURSTS IN – MERCE CUNNINGHAM, CCN BALLET DE LORRAINE AND AMALA DIANOR 
Royal Opera House, Linbury Theatre: Thursday 24 – Saturday 26 October 7.45pm, Sat Matinee 2pm; Tickets: £7 - £35; On sale 7 August
Press performance: Thursday 24 October 7.45pm 
http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-the-future-bursts-in/

 

DU: SUNDAY SHORTS 3– GITTA WIGRO
Barbican Cinema Sunday 27 October 3pm; Tickets £12 / £11 concs; On sale now http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-sunday-shorts/
Vertical - Eddie Frost (UK)              
Bhairava - Marlene Millar (CA)                      
Pilgrimage - Marlene Millar (CA)                   
Swarm - Emma Miranda Moore (UK)
Cargo - Jasmin Ellis (DE)                 
Crashing Waves - Emma Gilbertson (UK)   
Separate Sentences - Austin Forbord (USA)
JA:PA - Jiri Karmasin (CZ)                                
Globe Trot - Mitchell Rose (USA)

 

NOTES TO EDITORS 

 

About Dance Umbrella

Dance Umbrella is London’s international Dance festival. We shine a light on new choreography every October, sharing memorable shows from around the world with audiences across the capital. 

 

We are committed to taking dance out and bringing audiences in by touring in inner and outer London, broadening definitions of contemporary dance, and developing partnerships with non-dance venues and organisations such as The Big Draw, National Theatre, Battersea Power Station and local councils.

Founded in 1978, Dance Umbrella has reached audiences of well over a million people. Pioneering commissions by world class choreographers have been presented at sites ranging from the Royal Albert Hall and inner-city rooftops, to Tate Modern and outer London parks.  Emma Gladstone was appointed Artistic Director & Chief Executive in 2013, and in addition to the festival, Dance Umbrella now runs digital projects, creative learning schemes and professional development programmes throughout the year.  

danceumbrella.co.uk

 

ARTIST BIOGRAPHIES

 

CCN - Ballet de Lorraine
Since acquiring the CCN title in 1999, the Centre Chorégraphique National - Ballet de Lorraine has dedicated itself to supporting contemporary choreographic creation. As of July 2011 the organization is under the general and artistic direction of Petter JacobssonThe CCN – Ballet de Lorraine and its company of 26 dancers is one of the most important companies working in Europe, performing contemporary creations while retaining and programming a rich and extensive repertory, spanning our modern history, made up of works by some of our generations most highly regarded choreographers.The CCN functions as an art centre and venue for multiple possibilities in the fields of research, experimentation and artistic creation. It is a platform open to many different disciplines, a space where the many visions of dance of today may meet.  The CCN-Ballet de Lorraine is also a resource, supporting many different developmental actions and outreach programs for school children, university students, artists in training, physically or mentally impaired audiences, amateurs …. offering workshops in choreographic practice, and classes in dance and improvisation.

 

Boy Blue
Founded in London in 2001, Boy Blue, the award-winning brainchild of producer Michael ‘Mikey J’ Asante and choreographer Kenrick ‘H2O’ Sandy MBE, encapsulates the pulse of the city it was born in. Weaving their frontline stage and screen work around the elevation of hip-hop culture, from the offset, artistic directors Asante and Sandy have created works that challenge common perception while delivering a new voice from the streets and clubs that have long inspired a generation. It was just over a decade ago, in 2007, that Pied Piper propelled Boy Blue to new heights in the world of UK theatre; first performed at Theatre Royal Stratford East, who had supported Asante and Sandy through its creation, it found a further home at the Barbican, London and won a Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre. By 2009, Boy Blue had joined the Barbican as an Associate Artist, where the company is still based, going on to create Touch (2011), The Five & The Prophecy of Prana (2013), A Night With Boy Blue (2013, 2015, 2016, 2018), the Olivier nominated Blak Whyte Gray (2017), Outliers (2018), Asante’s musical debut in the Concert Hall and the film R.E.B.E.L (2019). Blak Whyte Gray was nominated for Best New Dance Production at the 2017 Olivier Awards and in the Critics Circle National Dance Awards for Best Modern Choreography, while the UK Theatre Awards noted Dickson Mbi’s performance with a nomination for Achievement in Dance.  Described in The Stage as a “searing triptych… with the precision and musicality of a corps de ballet…” The Guardian (featuring Blak Whyte Grayin their Top 10 Dance of 2017) found “Political dance with heart, soul and muscle” with “issues of loss, displacement and fractured identity central to Boy Blue’s powerful hip-hop work…” Boy Blue contributed to the Opening Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics, where in collaboration with Danny Boyle, Kenrick choreographed hundreds of young dancers for the segment ‘Frankie and June say thanks Tim’, as well as staging the handover of the Olympic torch and the lighting of the Olympic Cauldron. With a company ethos befitting of the founders’ roots, and a long-term commitment to education, Boy Blue can be found running a highly respected dance education programme in east London. Using a typically unique approach, they enable more than 100 young dancers to train weekly alongside professionals.  In addition, their work Emancipation of Expressionism is a set work of the AQA GCSE Dance syllabus – the first hip-hop dance theatre piece to be included – and was filmed by Director Danny Boyle and screened on BBC2.

 

Jonzi D
Jonzi D is the founder and Artistic Director of Jonzi D Projects and Breakin’ Convention. A dancer, spoken word artist and director, he is the foremost advocate for hip-hop theatre who has changed the profile and influenced the development of the UK British hip-hop dance and theatre scene over the last two decades. Since graduating from the London Contemporary Dance School, he has performed and created dance theatre pieces around the world.  Since 2004 Jonzi D has been Artistic Director for Breakin' Convention, a Sadler's Wells London Project. The International Festival of Hip Hop Dance Theatre has gained worldwide recognition as being at the vanguard of the development of the art form with its unique festival format and supporting professional development programme. Jonzi's own work includes Lyrikal Fearta, Aeroplane Man, and The Letter, a critically acclaimed solo responding to receiving a nomination for an MBE award for services to dance in 2011. In 2015 Jonzi featured on TedX Warwick and is regularly invited to speak at international forums.

 

Amala Dianor
Hip hop dancer, Amala Dianor trained at the CNDC in 2000. Working as a performer in many diverse productions (from hip hop to neo-classical, contemporary and afro-contemporary dance), he quickly acquired undeniable recognition in the dancing community. With the company C dans C, he choreographed (or co-choreographed) and performed in his first shows. In 2012 he created Crossroads (winner of the Second and Third Awards at the Concours Renaissance), as well as his own company, the Amala Dianor Company, with which he developed his work as a choreographer. The following year, he created Parallèle, a feminine dancing quartet at the Centre National de la Danse. In 2014, he choreographed the Extension duo alongside Bboy Junior, a surprising encounter between two esteemed performers of the French hip hop scene. That same year, he created and performed in his first solo show, Man Rec, which premiered in the Avignon festival. In 2015, the company launched a regional project called A Wink of Time putting in the spotlight 18 amateur dancers on their way to becoming professionals. This project led to the creation of Overflow, co-signed with Mickael Le Mer, Pierre Bolo and Annabelle Loiseau. Amala also became the artist in residence at the Théâtre Louis Aragon in Tremblay-en-France, on a two-year contract. In 2016 he created Di(s)generation, bringing together several generations of hip hop dancers, and showcased New School, a trio from Di(s)generation inspired by Abstract dance.  His new piece, the duo Trait d’union was created in January 2018. The 2016-2017 season marks Amala Dianor's first of three years as an Associate Artist for the CDCN POLE SUD in Strasburg, as well as for the Scène des Pays de Mauges in Maine et Loire, France. The company is sustained by the French Ministery of Culture (DRAC Pays de la Loire) since 2018 as “compagnie conventionnée”.  

 

Lucy Guerin
Australian choreographer Lucy Guerin’s work includes Two Lies (1996), Robbery Waitress on Bail (1997), Heavy (1999) and The Ends of Things (2000).  In 2002, she established Lucy Guerin Inc in Melbourne whose recent works include The Dark Chorus (2016), Split and Attractor (2017) and Make Your Own World (2019). Guerin has toured her work extensively internationally and has been commissioned by Chunky Move, Dance Works Rotterdam (Netherlands), Mikhail Baryshnikov’s White Oak Dance Project (USA), Lyon Opera Ballet (France), Skånes Dansteater (Sweden) and Rambert (UK) among many others.  Awards include the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Award, a New York Dance and Performance Award (a ‘Bessie’), several Green Room Awards, three Helpmann Awards and three Australian Dance Awards. In 2016, Lucy received the Australia Council Award for Dance.

 

THĒO INART 
Born and raised in London, Theo trained at the Brit School for Performing Arts & Technology and Trinity Laban, before being awarded a Post Graduate Diploma at London Contemporary Dance School. Performing and touring with companies such as Hofesh Shecther, Jean Abreu Dance, T.R.A.S.H-(Netherlands), The Drowned ManPunchDrunk Theatre, Akram Khan’s ITMOI as well as the Olympic opening ceremony, and the National Theatre’s Salome. Theo is an Associate Artist at Akram Khan Company.

 

Rebecca Namgauds
Originally from Cheshire, Rebecca is a choreographer, dancer and movement director based in London.   Her training began in Tae Kwon Do and Gymnastics before training in Hip Hop, and later discovering contemporary dance and capoeira. In recent years she began developing her own choreographic works which infuse her practices. Becky is a DanceXchange Choreography Award holder for 2018 and is also proud to be a panel member of Woman SRSLY, a female-run platform for  female-led performance work curated by Grace Nicol. She was also part of Hofesh Shecther’s East Wall at the Tower of London in 2018 in LIFT.

 

Ffion Campbell-Davies
Ffion is a performance artist who explores themes and subjects around psychoanalysis, gender politics and spirituality. She is interested in the contexts of race, culture and identity, looking at experimental devices and the influence of ritual. Born in Cardiff, Wales in 1991, of mixed ethnicity Welsh Grenadian,she graduated in 2013 from London School Of Contemporary Dance, she traveled to Brazil and Cuba to study Afro Brazilian, Afro-Cuban dance, Orixa’s and Candomble ritual influences. Involved since 2015 in the ‘London Underground Hip Hop’ scene working with House Of Absolute Company in Contemporary Theatre and Waacking under Director Julia Cheng. She worked with Vietnamese choreographer Dam Van Hyunh creating the work DEP at ThePlace in 2016. Winner of Krump vs Waacking with Crooked District and also BLOC battles organized by Kwame Asafo-Adjei [Winner of British Arts Foundation Trust] in experimental in 2017.

 

Ffion has developed experience with music production and management, shadowing and working alongside singer artist Lula Mbaretu with movement direction, backing vocals, percussion, collaborative performances and production assistance. Since 2017 she has been training as a performance martial artist in Indonesian Pencak Silat. In 2018 she worked with Paleta CalmQuality on a music video for music artist Roxanne Tataei. She developed further into multi disciplinary practices; strengthening in acting, dance, spoken word and singing for ‘Vault’ festival working with Chris Reyes, in the immersive theatre production ‘Caravan’.

 

Since the beginning of 2018 she presented 3 new solo works, and a duet, self produced with music and costume design. A duet by herself and Julia Cheng, The Footsteps Of Many presented at Shoreditch Town Hall for IDENTITY, run by EastLondon Dance; an Exhibition solo Boundless presented at Theatre Deli and an afro-latin contemporary piece Womb Paves Way presented first at Richmix for RootsOfRumba, later at The Place becoming the audience nominated winner of Starting Point Festival, produced by Hakeem Onibudo. She was selected to produce a hiphop contemporary South Asian solo presented at Redbridge Drama Theatre produced by Artist4Artist. In 2019 Ffion has been working on a choreographic collaboration with director Kyoung Shin-kim and Frankie Johnson in Seoul, South Korea, and will be performing in Seoul in May.

 

tyroonisaacstuart
tyroneisaacstuart is a multidisciplinary sound & movement artist. From the age of 14 Tyrone was working within the mediums of music and dance, playing Jazz Saxophone with the Tommorow’s Warriors Jazz Ensemble and Street Dancing with Barbican Associates Boy Blue. Upon graduating with a BA in Jazz Saxophone (MDX university/university of New Orleans) tyrone has performed for East London Dance/Joseph Toonga/Hofesh Schecter (East Wall), Anni Katrin Elmer/Irene Wernli’s (Multiplication of Rhythm), Freddie Opoku-Addaie (Concrete Dreams), Nora Chipaumire (Punk!), Boy Blue (The Five) and Soweto Kinch (The Legend of Mike Smith) to name a few. He has been developing his own work under platforms such as neXt Gen (Boy Blue), Resolution (The Place) and with Artists4Artists. This year shall see him release his Debut Audio (Album) Visual (Gallery Space) work: SICK.

 

Jay Jay Revlon
Described by Time Out as “one to watch” DJand dancer Jay Jay Revlon was born and raised in London to parents of Jamaican descent. From the early age of 14, Jay Jay has used the craft of dance to express himself and has used his talents to lead other young people in weekly classes & workshops.  Jay Jay has become a major force in the London dance scene where he is credited with being instrumental to the rise of London’s voguing scene and has single-handedly created highly stylized, modern dance house the Kiki House of Tea and leading ballroom collective, English Breakfast London. Jay Jay has used his love of vogue to establish inclusive and diverse events including the massively popular Let’s Have a Kiki birthed at private member’s club The Curtain Hotel, Now been brought to his community in Peckham at The Prince of Peckham and workshops at The Tate Britain & Southbank Centre. Jay Jay has also used vogue as a form of social activism, this was seen last year where hundreds of Londoners saw him pay tribute to the victims of the Orlando shooting at a vigil on Old Compton Street. A hugely in demand DJ his portfolio includes for Missguided x Pxssy Palace collaboration, Topshop Gay Pride 2017 in-store event and Popchips pop-up store event. Jay Jay’s talents behind the decks has taken his career nationwide and across Europe including Birmingham Pride, The Curtain, Pussy Palace, Belushi's (Paris).

 

The Urban Playground Team
The multi-award-winning Urban Playground Team ensemble is the original 2PK (performance-parkour) company, coining that phrase to describe their unique fusion of authentic French Free-Running with contemporary & urban dance, physical theatre & slapstick comedy.  Since 2006 the UPG Team has toured across five continents for clients including the British Council & the National Theatre, Watch This Space, and twice as a Re-Imagine India company.  Specialising in engaging difficult to reach participants, particularly at-risk communities of young people, all of the UPG Team's work is accompanied by workshops and opportunities to get involved. The team’s directors hold the gold-standard Diploma In Dance Teaching & Learning from Trinity Laban. In addition to touring shows the company produces site-specific work and has performed, taught, and played on London roof-tops & in Scandinavian swamps, on moving buses & mahogany trains, from the searing heat of an Australian summer and rural Southern Indian villages to the snowy depths of a Norwegian Winter.

[Jan McNulty]

PRESS RELEASE – 6 August 2019

 

DANCE UMBRELLA ANNOUNCES ADDITIONAL EVENTS AS PART OF ITS FESTIVAL 2019

 

 DATES ADDED FOR THE URBAN PLAYGROUND TEAM’S ZOO HUMANSAT LONDON BRIDGE ON 10 OCTOBER & IN WOOLWICH ON 11 OCTOBER

 

 EXTINCTION REBELLION TALK WILL CLOSE THE FESTIVAL AT SIOBHAN DAVIES STUDIOS ON 27 OCTOBER

 

THE URBAN PLAYGROUND TEAM – ZOO HUMANS
Guy’s Courtyard, London Bridge: Thursday 10 October 1:30pm and 5:30pm General Gordon Square, Woolwich: Friday 11 October 1:30pm and 5:30pm

 

Ahead of performances on Friday 18 and Saturday 19 October at Fairfield Halls, Croydon, The UPG Team bring their show Zoo Humans, inspired by the shocking statistic that three quarters of young people in the UK spend less time outdoors than prisoners, to London Bridge and Woolwich for two additional free outdoor performances. Their distinctive performance- parkour combines with David Attenborough’s resonant narrative to examine a group of humans on the verge of forgetting how to move.

 

Presented in partnership with Team London Bridge with King’s College London and WoolwichCultural Destinations

 

EXTINCTION REBELLION – CLIMATE CHANGE: HEADING FOR EXTINCTION AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT
Siobhan Davies Studios: Sunday 27 October 5pm

The planet is in ecological crisis: we are in the midst of the sixth mass extinction event this planet has experienced. Scientists believe we may have entered a period of abrupt climate breakdown. This is an unprecedented global emergency. Our children, our nation and our planet face grave risk.

 

In this talk, Kate Jeffery and Andrew Medhurst of Extinction Rebellion will share the latest climate science on where our planet is heading, discuss some of the current psychology around the climate emergency, and offer solutions through the study of social movements.

Everyone is welcome and there will be plenty of time to ask questions afterwards.

-ENDS-
 

LISTINGS

 

ZOO HUMANS –THE URBAN PLAYGROUND TEAM
Guy’s Courtyard, London Bridge: Thursday 10 October 1:30pm and 5:30pm

General Gordon Square, Woolwich: Friday 11 October 1:30pm and 5:30pmTickets: Free

http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/zoo-humans/

 

EXTINCTION REBELLION - CLIMATE CHANGE: HEADING FOR EXTINCTION AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT
Siobhan Davies Studios: Sunday 27 October 5pm
Tickets: £8 (+booking fee)

https://www.siobhandavies.com/whats-on/talks-events/extinction-rebellion-talk-climate-change- heading-e/

 

NOTES TO EDITORS

 

Extinction Rebellion

Extinction Rebellion is an international movement that uses non-violent civil disobedience in an attempt to halt global heating and mass extinction, and avert societal collapse. At the core of ExtinctionRebellion’s philosophy is nonviolent direct action (also called civil disobedience). They promote disruptive direct action and rebellion because they think it is necessary to bring about the drasticchanges needed. They aren’t focussed on traditional methods like marches, petitions or writing to MPs,and instead are more likely to take risks (e.g. arrest / jail time) in order to create impact. They are completely nonviolent: their actions are done in full public view and they take responsibility for them.They don’t want or need everyone to get arrested – for some this is not a good idea – but they do want everyone involved to support civil disobedience as a tool for change. They organise in small groups, which are connected in a complex web that is constantly evolving as they grow and learn. They are working to build a movement that is participatory, decentralised, inclusive and just. They are about political change, not personal change (though they welcome the latter) and they aim to halt ecological collapse, build a better political system and change the world.

 

The Urban Playground Team

The multi-award-winning Urban Playground Team ensemble is the original 2PK (performance- parkour) company, coining that phrase to describe their unique fusion of authentic French Free- Running with contemporary & urban dance, physical theatre & slapstick comedy. Since 2006 the UPG Team has toured across five continents for clients including the British Council & the National Theatre, Watch This Space, and twice as a Re-Imagine India company. Specialising in engaging difficult to reach participants, particularly at-risk communities of young people, all of the UPG Team's work isaccompanied by workshops and opportunities to get involved. The team’s directors hold the gold- standard Diploma In Dance Teaching & Learning from Trinity Laban. In addition to touring shows the company produces site-specific work and has performed, taught, and played on London roof-tops & in Scandinavian swamps, on moving buses & mahogany trains, from the searing heat of an Australian summer and rural Southern Indian villages to the snowy depths of a Norwegian Winter.

 

About Dance Umbrella

Dance Umbrella is London’s international Dance festival. We shine a light on new choreography everyOctober, sharing memorable shows from around the world with audiences across the capital.

 

We are committed to taking dance out and bringing audiences in by touring in inner and outer London, broadening definitions of contemporary dance, and developing partnerships with non-dance venues and organisations such as The Big Draw, National Theatre, Battersea Power Station and local councils.

Founded in 1978, Dance Umbrella has reached audiences of well over a million people. Pioneering commissions by world class choreographers have been presented at sites ranging from the Royal Albert Hall and inner city rooftops, to Tate Modern and outer London parks. Emma Gladstone was appointed Artistic Director & Chief Executive in 2013, and in addition to the festival, Dance Umbrella now runs digital projects, creative learning schemes and professional development programmes throughout the year.

danceumbrella.co.uk

[Jan McNulty]

TWO WEEKS TO GO UNTIL DANCE UMBRELLA 2019
WITH NEW IMAGES RELEASED FOR THE FESTIVAL

• DANCE UMBRELLA FESTIVAL 2019 WILL HAVE EVENTS ACROSS LONDON FROM 8 – 27 OCTOBER 2019
   
• 
  DU19: Out of the System Mixed Bill – Ffion Campbell-Davies and tyroneisaacsstuart. Photo by Miguel Altunaga (Darkjungle) for SystemsLAB

 

Dance Umbrella, London’s international dance festival, shines a light on new choreography every October; sharing memorable shows from around the world with audiences across the capital.  Dance Umbrella 2019, opens two weeks from today on 8 October with Gisèle Vienne’s Crowd, an epic piece inspired by the Berlin rave scene at Sadler’s Wells.  This year the festival will take place in thirteen different boroughs spanning zones 1 to 5.  Other highlights include: 

• Dance Umbrella’s Featured Artist Oona Doherty, presents her epic Hard to Be Soft – A Belfast Prayer at Southbank Centre, as well as her hard-hitting solo Hope Hunt & The Ascension Into Lazarus at The Yard. 
   
• One of South Africa’s most acclaimed artists Gregory Maqoma (Tree, MIF/ Young Vic), returns to Dance Umbrella to present Cion: Requiem of Ravel’s Bolero at the Barbican.  
   
• DU: The Future Bursts In, a triple bill in the Linbury Theatre at the Royal Opera House, celebrates the work of four choreographers including Merce Cunningham in his centennial year, Senegal-born Amala Dianor and CCN-Ballet de Lorraine’s Jacobsson and Caley.
   
• The Big Pink Vogue Ball by Jay Jay Revlon and Cai Revlon is at Shoreditch Town Hall. Created originally by and for queer and trans people of colour as a safe space, means of survival, expression and fun, ballroom has developed into a worldwide community.
   
•  A festival takeover of the newly reopened Fairfield Halls in Croydon, will see performances by The Urban Playground Team, Mythili Prakash, Boy Blue and CiePhilippe Saire, among many other events. 
   
• Freddie Opoku-Addaie curates his third Out of the System Mixed Bill featuring Jonzi D, Thēo Inart, Becky Namgaud, Ffion Campbell-Davies & tyroneisaacstuart.  

Full programme details are below and here danceumbrella.co.uk

 

LISTINGS

 

CROWD – GISÈLE VIENNE   
Sadler’s Wells: Tue 8 & Wed 9 Oct 7.30pm 
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/crowd/
Link to video footage: https://youtu.be/ZGW9LxiBQhI

Drawing on her own experiences in Berlin, Gisèle Vienne expertly harnesses the undulating, stuttering, liquid physicality of the club scene to magnify the interactions of a group of revellers. 

Ritualistic scenes are slowed down to reveal moments of love, violence, intimacy and aversion amid exhilarating shifts in rhythm and pace. 15 mud-splattered individuals dance with articulate and stylised precision.

 

DANCE UMBRELLA LECTURE: 
FRANCOIS MATARASSO IN CONVERSATION WITH LYN GARDNER 
National Theatre, Cottesloe Room: Wed 9 Oct 5pm
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/dance-umbrella-lecture-2019/

Cultural democracy is back in fashion; a generation after the term was first coined, contested, and then forgotten. Why? Are these two seemingly popular words really such natural allies? Perhaps this connection is more demanding than it seems, and more radical too.

Community artist, writer and researcher François Matarasso explores the role of the artist in culture democracy with Lyn Gardner.

 

ZOO HUMANS – THE URBAN PLAYGROUND TEAM
Guy’s Courtyard, London Bridge: Thursday 10 Oct 1.45pm & 5.30pm
General Gordon Square, Woolwich: Friday 11 Oct 1.30pm & 5.30pm
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/zoo-humans/ 

Inspired by the shocking statistic that three quarters of young people in the UK spend less time outdoors than prisoners, Zoo Humans sees The UPG Team bring their distinctive performance-parkour and David Attenborough’s smooth narrative to a group of humans on the verge of forgetting how to move. 

Join us for these FREE, outdoor performances.

 

HARD TO BE SOFT - A BELFAST PRAYER – OONA DOHERTY
Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre: Friday 11 Oct 8pm
Link to event:http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/hard-to-be-soft-a-belfast-prayer/
Link to video footage: https://youtu.be/Oo6iiuEr9XE

Oona Doherty is DU19’s Featured Artist. She will be presenting London premieres of two works, curating one of three afternoons of short dance films at the Barbican and creating work with girls as part of DU’s Access Croydon programme

Doherty delves into the psyche of her native Belfast in Hard To Be Soft; a searing evocation of the city’s streets and inhabitants rich in simple yet revealing imagery, shot through with visceral physicality. This tender tribute weaves everyday stories into a tapestry of mesmerising movement, religious iconography and haunting sound by DJ David Holmes (Killing Eve, Ocean’s Eleven, Hunger). 

 

HOCUS POCUS – PHILIPPE SAIRE
The Albany: Sun 13 Oct 2pm & 5pm
Fairfield Halls: Fri 18 Oct 11am & 4.30pm
The Place: Sat 19 Oct 2.30pm & 5pm
artsdepot: Thur 24 Oct 11am & 2pm
Stratford Circus: Sat 26 Oct 11am & 2pm
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/hocus-pocus
Link to video footage: https://youtu.be/NcYcqnQZQVI

Leaving room for the imaginations of children to soar, this international hit features two dextrous performers, vivid costumes and eerie props. Lausanne-based choreographer Philippe Saire directs the work, with dance, theatre, mime and stage trickery set to music from Grieg’s Peer Gynt. 
Age 7+

 

OUT OF THE SYSTEM – THE BIG PINK VOGUE BALL – JAY JAY REVLON
Shoreditch Town Hall: Sat 12 Oct 8.30pm (Doors 8pm) 
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/the-big-pink-vogue-ball/

Bring it to the runway in categories inspired by pink for Jay Jay and Cai Revlon’s Vogue Ball. Whether Barbie, baby, hot, millennial, peach, fuchsia or rose quartz, it’s a colour associated with many social and cultural meanings, fashion moments, candyfloss and pink lemonade.

Created by and for queer and trans people of colour as a safe space, means of survival, expression and fun, ballroom has developed into a worldwide community.

 

SPLIT – LUCY GUERIN 
The Place: Sat 12 – Sun 13 Oct 7.30pm
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/split/
Link to video footage: https://youtu.be/fuI8XuWIVlE   

With one dancer clothed, one nude - dancing in flawless unison, their movement at times poised, at others animalistic - two fearless female performers demand nothing less than our full attention.  Having won great acclaim with audiences around the world, Split by renowned Australian choreographer Lucy Guerin comes to London.

 

OUT OF THE SYSTEM – PANEL DISCUSSION
Tick Box / Break Glass / Look Pretty
Young Vic Theatre: Sat 12 Oct 5pm 
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/panel-discussion-out-of-the-system/

Examining the changes and opportunities in the arts for women of colour, this panel discussion explores how we can carve new and enduring pathways in and outside of the current system.

Panelists: Julia Cheng (Dancer, choreographer & Creative Director House of Absolute); Tracy Gentles (Co-Director The Sick of the Fringe); Nike Jonah Bio (Creative Producer)

 

DU: SUNDAY SHORTS 1 – OONA DOHERTY
Barbican Cinema: Sun 13 Oct 3pm
Link to the event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-sunday-shorts-1/

Marking the first of three Sundays featuring choreographically-inspired films, this programme is brought together by Dance Umbrella Featured Artist 2019 Oona Doherty.

 

HOPE HUNT & THE ASCENSION INTO LAZARUS – OONA DOHERTY
The Yard: Mon 14 – Wed 16 Oct 7.30pm
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/hope-hunt-and-the-ascension-into-lazarus
Link to video footage: https://youtu.be/qalG99dX-tQ

DU Featured Artist Oona Doherty’s solo performance is bursting with fury, swagger and humanity.
Hope Hunt shatters facades, dismantles stereotypes and finds beauty on the periphery.

 

CION:  REQUIEM OF RAVEL’S BOLERO – GREGORY MAQOMA                 
Barbican: Thur 17 –Sat 19 Oct 7.45pm  
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/cion-requiem-of-ravels-bolero/
Link to video footage: https://youtu.be/biaMVI4mtPI

One of South Africa’s most celebrated artists, Gregory Maqoma, makes his third Dance Umbrella appearance since 2015. Inspired by the protagonist from South African author Zakes Mda’s stories, this physical lamentation unfolds to the musical motif of Ravel’s Bolero, reinterpreted here through stirring song and percussion by four traditional vocalists joined onstage by eight gifted artists from Vuyani Dance Theatre.  

 

DU: FAIRFIELD TAKEOVER
BOY BLUE, MYTHILI PRAKASH, URBAN PLAYGROUND, PHILIPPE SAIRE 
Fairfield Halls: Fri 18 – Sat 19 Oct 
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-fairfield-takeover/
Link to video footage: https://youtu.be/802Css16r18

Vibrantly filling and spilling out of Fairfield Halls’ redeveloped spaces, DU’s weekend Takeover brings a mix of international dance, pop-up events, performance-parkour, homegrown talent, workshops and mayhem to the heart of Croydon.

Catch the vaults, spins and falls of The Urban Playground Team, while superstar hip-hop company Boy Blueunveils its latest big-scale production REDD. New work comes from captivating LA-based Mythili Prakash and Philippe Saire directs a dreamlike family spectacle, with dance, theatre and stage trickery.

 

DU: SUNDAY SHORTS 2 – FREDDIE OPOKU-ADDAIE
Barbican Cinema Sun 20 Oct 3pm
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-sunday-shorts-2/

Driven by the power of the body in motion this mixed bill reveals artists inspired to create worlds beyond the everyday. Curated by Dance Umbrella Guest Programmer Freddie Opoku-Addaie under the scope of his Out of the System project.

 

OUT OF THE SYSTEM MIXED BILL – JONZI D, THĒO INART, BECKY NAMGAUD, FFION CAMPBELL-DAVIES & TYRONEISAACSTUART
Bernie Grants Arts Centre: Tue 22 – Wed 23 Oct 7.30pm
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/out-of-the-system-mixed-bill/

Turning their gaze on society through four highly personal short works, the artists in DU’s Out of the System Mixed Bill intrigue with physicality, lyricism, surreal visuals and experimental sound.  

In Exhibit F, Becky Namgauds confronts ideas around control and submission of the female body. The male form is the intimate focus of THĒO INART’s solo Fragility in Man, alive with telling symbolism and visual storytelling.

Collaborating in Beyond Words, Ffion Campbell-Davies and tyroneisaacstuart call on their exploration of dance, sound, music and authenticity to question how humans converse. And to close, hip-hop theatre legend Jonzi D revives his modern classic Aeroplane Man.

 

WHY SHOULD IT BE MORE DESIRABLE… – GEORGIA VARDAROU
Lilian Baylis Studio, Sadler’s Wells: Wed 23 – Thur 24 Oct at 8pm
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/why-should-it-be-more-desirable-for-green-fire-balls-to-exist-than-not/

For this premiere, Georgia Vardarou, chosen Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker as her “choreographer of the future” for Dance Umbrella’s milestone Four by Four campaign, plays with the parameters of dance by drawing on a highly personal physical language to illuminate the space between the audience’s perception and her own. Made in collaboration with visual artist David Bergé, the piece intricately overlaps image and movement, throwing up a spectrum of potential narrative readings.

 

PANEL DISCUSSION: MERCE IN THE UK
Siobhan Davies Studio: Wed 23 Oct 7.30pm
Link to the event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/panel-discussion-merce-in-the-uk/

In celebration of Merce Cunningham’s centennial year, join Richard Alston, Julie Cunningham, Gavin Bryars and Siobhan Davies as they reflect on and share their personal experiences of working with Merce and his company. The evening is chaired by Jeremy Millar, visual artist and lecturer at the Royal College of Art.

 

DU: THE FUTURE BURSTS IN - CCN BALLET DE LORRAINE & AMALA DIANOR TRIPLE BILL 
Royal Opera House, Linbury Theatre: Thur 24 – Sat 26 Oct 7.45pm, Sat Matinee 2pm; 
Link to event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-the-future-bursts-in/
Link to video footage: https://youtu.be/fe0bYwCiu5s

This galvanising triple bill celebrates four choreographers known for pushing their own frontiers of contemporary dance.

Somewhere in the middle of infinity, a radiant trio by Senegal-born Amala Dianor, reveals serene yet powerful encounters derived from a 21st-century meeting of African, hip-hop and contemporary styles.

The second half of the programme features CCN-Ballet de Lorraine in tribute to the Cunningham Centennial. Jacobsson and Caley present a reimagined piece based on a once-lost 1944 work, Four Walls. Retaining John Cage’s piano score, For Four Walls features 24 dancers performing new choreography inside a mirrored space. The programme concludes with the unpredictability and riotous dynamism of Cunningham’s 1975 classic, Sounddance.

 

DU: SUNDAY SHORTS 3– GITTA WIGRO
Barbican Cinema: Sun 27 Oct 3pm
Link to the event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/du-sunday-shorts-3/

The third and final programme of choreographic films within Dance Umbrella festival features work from Finland, Canada, Czech Republic, USA and the UK. Eight films spin and weave to create a portrait of one, a pull between two, and dynamics between many. Curated by Gitta Wigro, freelance dance film programmer.

 

CLIMATE CHANGE: HEADING FOR EXTINCTION (AND WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT) – EXTINCTION REBELLION
Siobhan Davies Studio: Sun 27 Oct 5pm
Link to the event: http://www.danceumbrella.co.uk/event/extinction-rebellion-talk-climate-change-heading-for-extinction-and-what-to-do-about-it/

In this talk, members of Extinction Rebellion will share the latest climate science on where our planet is heading, discuss some of the current psychology around the climate emergency, and offer solutions through the study of social movements.