Jan McNulty Posted April 26, 2023 Share Posted April 26, 2023 PRESS RELEASE25 April 2023 Dance Umbrella announces the UK premiere of MOS by Ioanna Paraskevopoulou for the 2023 Festival MOS will be at the Barbican 11 - 14 October This is the Dance Umbrella debut of Ioanna Paraskevopoulou Tickets available from 1 May Co-presented by the Barbican and Dance Umbrella Dance Umbrella is delighted to announce the first show in the festival programme for 2023. MOS, by Athens based choreographer Ioanna Paraskevopoulou will be at The Pit, Barbican from 11 - 14 October. The Festival, which will be a hybrid live / digital programme will run from 6 - 31 October, with further programme announcements to follow. Witness the stage transform into a cinematic soundscape, as two performers create a captivating audio-visual experience. Using everyday objects: umbrellas, plungers, and coconut shells, MOS evokes the movie sounds created by foley artists in the days before digital effects. The physical act of generating audio while following the film becomes an energetic dance, with tap numbers turned into recordings that are looped, distorted, paused and intensified. Making her Dance Umbrella Festival debut, Athens-based Ioanna Paraskevopoulou is an award-winning dancer/choreographer who focuses on the interplay between movement, sound and imagery, and whose past collaborators have included DU Artist Dimitris Papaioannou. Dance Umbrella Artistic Director Freddie Opoku-Addaie said ‘We’re thrilled to get our first show for 2023 announced, and to be returning to, and working in partnership with, the Barbican as part of our 45th Festival across London. Ioanna Paraskevopoulou is a very unique artist and I am looking forward to presenting her DU debut with this UK premiere. Look out for more programme announcements in May and June.’ Ioanna Paraskevopoulou is a dancer and choreographer based in Athens. She graduated from the Greek National School of Dance and is currently studying at the Department of AudioVisual Arts (Ionian University). Her artistic practice focuses on the relationship between audio-visual media and movement, reconfiguring the expansion of the choreographic field. She has collaborated, among others, with Iris Karayan, Christos Papadopoulos, Dimitris Papaioannou and Alexandra Waierstall. She was awarded the Best Performance prize for the dance film Sans Attente by Konstantinos Rizos at InShadow International Festival and second prize for her performance in mneme [action] 21 by Maria Koliopoulou at International Dance Festival, Algiers. She was awarded the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Artist Fellowship by ARTWORKS in 2019-2020. Her choreographic video project All She Likes Is Popping Bubble Wrap was created as part of Onassis New Choreographers Festival 8. ALSIPBW was selected by several video art festivals and awarded Best Sound Design at FIVideodanza Festival, Mexico and Best Video Art at MIFVIF, Venezuela. MOS premiered at Onassis New Choreographers Festival 9 and had its European premiere at Julidans Next. She presented Coconut Effect at the 7th Danse élargie competition and won the Young Jury award. She was selected to present MOS at Aerowaves Twenty23. Listings Information Dance Umbrella & the Barbican presentMOS Ioanna Paraskevopoulou performed by Ioanna Paraskevopoulou and Georgios Kotsifakis Wed 11 - Sat 14 October, 7pm, The Pit, Barbican Running time: 45 minutes, no interval Age guidance: 7+ Post-show talk (BSL-interpreted) Thu 12 Oct, 7.45pm Produced by Onassis STEGI and first presented as part of Onassis New Choreographers Festival 9. The presentation of MOS at Dance Umbrella is made possible with the support of Onassis STEGI Athens – "Outward Turn” Program. Notes to editors About Dance Umbrella Dance Umbrella is London’s international dance festival, celebrating 21st century choreography across the capital and beyond. Its mission is to entice audiences, nurture artists, innovate practice, and stimulate interest in the power of the body in motion. Since 1978, the annual festival has brought outstanding contemporary dance to London, presenting more than 785 artists from 40 countries to over one million people. Dance Umbrella has commissioned over 85 new works and presented at 136 different venues ranging from Smithfield Market to the British Library; from canal long boats to Alexandra Palace Ice Rink; from inner city car park rooftops to outer London parks. Alongside the festival, Dance Umbrella creates year-round creative learning initiatives for all ages, develops new choreographic talent, hosts thought-provoking debates and discussions, and offers skill sharing opportunities for creative industry professionals. About the Barbican A world-class arts and learning organisation, the Barbican pushes the boundaries of all major art forms including dance, film, music, theatre and visual arts. Its creative learning programme further underpins everything it does. Over a million people attend events annually, hundreds of artists and performers are featured, and more than 700 staff work onsite. The architecturally renowned centre opened in 1982 and comprises the Barbican Hall, the Barbican Theatre, The Pit, Cinemas 1, 2 and 3, Barbican Art Gallery, a second gallery The Curve, public spaces, a library, the Lakeside Terrace, a glasshouse conservatory, conference facilities and three restaurants. The City of London Corporation is the founder and principal funder of the Barbican Centre. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted May 11, 2023 Author Share Posted May 11, 2023 PRESS RELEASE10 May 2023 Dance Umbrella announces the UK premiere of Via Injabulo by South African commpany Via Katlehong Dance - Marco da Silva Ferreira & Amala Dianor - for the 2023 Festival Via Katlehong returns to Dance Umbrella following their 2018 debut Via Injabulo will be at Sadler’s Wells on 27 & 28 October Choreography by Amala Dianor and Marco da Silva Ferreira Tickets on general sale from 22 May Co-presented by Dance Umbrella and Sadler’s Wells Following the announcement of MOS by Ioanna Paraskevopoulou, Dance Umbrella announces a second show in the 2023 Festival programme. Intoxicating expression and pulsating rhythms combine as the award-winning South African dance company Via Katlehong returns to the Dance Umbrella Festival, following their critically acclaimed 2018 collaboration with Gregory Maqoma, to make their Sadler’s Wells debut. Via Injabulo is a celebration of global movement styles, which brings together choreography from two sought-after creatives on the international scene: Marco Da Silva Ferreira and Amala Dianor, who are both supported by the Big Pulse Dance Alliance, an organisation dedicated to strengthening and expanding the reach of high-quality contemporary dance. Mixing hip hop dance styles house and top rock with pantsula, a South African township dance, Marco Da Silva Ferreira’s førm inførms examines the idea of what it means to have a collective identity. In Emaphakathini, Amala Dianor seeks to break down borders with live DJing playing the rousing beats of house sub-genre Ama Piano. Drawing on traditional dance techniques and the company’s own pantsula roots, he explores the individual personalities within Via Katlehong, displaying character traits we all identify with. This is a rare and exciting opportunity to see the combination of these two international choreographers working with Via Katlehong on one the biggest stages for dance in the country. Artistic Director and CEO of Dance Umbrella, Freddie Opoku-Addaie said: ‘London’s audiences are in for a vibe like no other with Via Katlehong, back at Dance Umbrella for their Sadler’s Wells debut and the UK premiere of Via Injabulo. Last seen in DU’s Out of the System in 2018 when I was Guest Programmer, the company made a mark with its compositional curiosity and routes of Pantsula, a unique South African phenomenon. This double bill by Amala Dianor and Marco da Silva Ferreira (two of the most exciting dance makers in global contemporary movement) etches a wider contemporary sensibility that will put a spring in our step as we leave Sadler’s Well Theatre.’ Via Katlehong was formed in 1992 as a community troupe, composed of youths from the township of Katlehong in the notorious East Rand war zone of the 1980s South African uprising. During Apartheid, many of the country’s black population were relocated to urban townships where unemployment and illegal activity became a catalyst for a new culture: Pantsula. Via Katlehong have reinvented the art form by combining it with tap and Gumboot. Their community dance school and 18 professional dancers are led by Steven Faleni and Buru Mohlabane. Their awards include FNB Vita Dance, Dance Umbrella awards, Gauteng Dance Showcase, KTV Most Brilliant Achievement and Gauteng MEC Development Award. Marco Da Silva Ferreira is a choreographer whose work revolves around dance in urban contexts. His unique abstract expressionism and self-biographical style has earned him recognition in the international dance community. HU(R)MANO, premiered in 2013 and performed at various international festivals, was highlighted by Aerowaves Priority Companies in 2015. His latest work, Bisonte, premiered in 2019 at the Teatro Municipal do Porto and has been performed in Lisbon, Brussels, and Montemor-o-novo. Marco was an associated artist at the Teatro Municipal do Porto in 2018/19 and is currently an associated artist at the Centre chorégraphique National de Caen in Normandie. Renowned hip hop dancer and choreographer, Amala Dianor, continues to push boundaries with his distinctive dance style and poetic approach to ‘otherness’. After a decade of performing with renowned choreographers in various dance forms, Dianor founded his own company in 2012. He collaborates with electro-soul composer Awir Léon and other choreographers, composers, writers and visual artists. Dianor is a Big Pulse Dance Artist whose latest works include a nine-dancer piece called The Falling Stardust, and two short pieces, Point Zéro and Wo-Man. He also created CinéDanse with visual artist Grégoire Korganow, which was selected for the Villa Albertine dance film catalogue in the USA. Listings Information Dance Umbrella & Sadler’s Wells present the UK Premiere of Via Injabulo by Via Katlehong - Marco da Silva Ferreira & Amala Dianor Fri 27 - Sat 28 October, 7.30pm, Sadler’s Wells BSL Interpreted post-show talk on Friday 27 October Marco Da Silva Ferreira & Amala Dianor are Big Pulse Dance Alliance Scaling Up programme Artists. Choreography : First part - førm Inførms: Marco Da Silva Ferreira Second part - Emaphakathini: Amala Dianor Dancers: Julia Burnham, Katleho Lekhula, Monicca Magoro, Lungile Mahlangu, Tshepo Mohlabane, Kgadi Motsoane, Thato Qofela et Abel Vilakazi Music Emaphakathini : Awir Leon Lighting: Cárin Geada Costumes / Stylism førm Inførms : Dark Dindie styling concept Emaphakathini : Julia Burnham Project Directors: Buru Mohlabane and Steven Faleni (Via Katlehong) Production : Via Katlehong Dance, Damien Valette Prod Coproduction : Chaillot Théâtre National de la Danse, Théâtre de la Ville - Paris, Maison de la Danse - Lyon, Festival DDD - Teatro Municipal do Porto, Le Grand T – Théâtre de Loire Atlantique, Créteil - Maison des Arts, Festival d’Avignon, Espace 1789 – Scène conventionnée danse de Saint-Ouen Thanks to the City of Ekurhuleni : Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture Department Previously announced: Dance Umbrella & the Barbican present the UK premiere ofMOS by Ioanna Paraskevopoulouperformed by Ioanna Paraskevopoulou and Georgios Kotsifakis Wed 11 - Sat 14 October, 7pm, The Pit, BarbicanPress performance Wed 11 Oct, 7pm Running time: 45 minutes, no interval Age guidance: 7+ Post-show talk (BSL-interpreted) Thu 12 Oct Produced by Onassis STEGI and first presented as part of Onassis New Choreographers Festival 9. The presentation of MOS at Dance Umbrella is made possible with the support of Onassis STEGI Athens – "Outward Turn” Program. Notes to editors About Dance Umbrella Dance Umbrella is London’s international dance festival, celebrating 21st century choreography across the capital and beyond. Its mission is to entice audiences, nurture artists, innovate practice, and stimulate interest in the power of the body in motion. Since 1978, the annual festival has brought outstanding contemporary dance to London, presenting more than 785 artists from 40 countries to over one million people. Dance Umbrella has commissioned over 85 new works and presented at 136 different venues ranging from Smithfield Market to the British Library; from canal long boats to Alexandra Palace Ice Rink; from inner city car park rooftops to outer London parks. Alongside the festival, Dance Umbrella creates year-round creative learning initiatives for all ages, develops new choreographic talent, hosts thought-provoking debates and discussions, and offers skill sharing opportunities for creative industry professionals. About Sadler’s Wells Sadler's Wells is a world-leading dance organisation. We strive to make and share dance that inspires us all. Our acclaimed year-round programme spans dance of every kind, from contemporary to flamenco, Bollywood to ballet, salsa to street dance and tango to tap. We commission, produce and present more dance than any other organisation in the world. Since 2005, we have helped to bring more than 200 new dance works to the stage, embracing both the popular and the unknown. Our acclaimed productions tour the world. Since 2005 we’ve produced 64 new full-length works and performed to audiences of more than two million, touring to 51 countries. Each year, over half a million people visit our three London theatres - Sadler’s Wells Theatre, Lilian Baylis Studio and Peacock Theatre. Millions more attend our touring productions nationally and internationally or explore our digital platforms, including Sadler’s Wells Digital Stage. In 2024 we’re opening a fourth London venue in Stratford’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. Sadler’s Wells East will house a 550-seat mid-scale theatre, as well as facilities for the Choreographic School and Hip Hop Theatre Academy. Supporting artists is at the heart of our work. We have associate artists and companies, which nurture some of the most exciting talent working in dance today. We host the National Youth Dance Company, which draws together some of the brightest young dancers from across the country. Sadler’s Wells Breakin' Convention runs professional development programmes to champion and develop the world’s best hip hop artists, as well as producing, programming and touring groundbreaking hip hop performances. Around 30,000 people take part in our learning and engagement programmes every year. We support schools local to our theatres in Islington and Stratford, designing experiences for children and young people to watch, explore and critically engage with the arts. We also run Company of Elders, a resident performance company of dancers aged over 60 who rehearse with renowned artists to make new work for public performances locally, nationally and internationally. Sadler’s Wells is an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation. www.sadlerswells.com 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted June 14, 2023 Author Share Posted June 14, 2023 More information from Dance Umbrella PRESS RELEASE 14 June 2023 DANCE UMBRELLA ANNOUNCES FULL PROGRAMME FOR THE 2023 FESTIVAL DANCE UMBRELLA 2023 WILL BE A HYBRID FESTIVAL OF LIVE PERFORMANCES AND DIGITAL EXPLORATIONS THE FESTIVAL RUNS FROM 6 - 31 OCTOBER IN VENUES ACROSS LONDON ARTISTS INCLUDE JADE HACKETT, IOANNA PARASKEVOPOULOU, SONYA LINDFORS, AND VIA KATLEHONG 2023 MARKS THE FESTIVAL'S 45TH YEAR AND THE ORBITAL TOURING NETWORK’S 10TH YEAR Dance Umbrella, London’s annual international dance festival has today announced its full programme of live and hybrid performances for the 2023 festival, taking place between 6 - 31 October in venues across the capital and beyond. Artistic Director & CEO of Dance Umbrella, Freddie Opoku-Addaie said “In 2023, Dance Umbrella celebrates 45 years in motion. This year the programme showcases the very best of hip hop culture, performance art, audio-visual experiences and operetta from artists originating from Cameroon, Greece, South Africa, Taiwan and Croydon. The breadth of work in the programme is astounding. Along with our funders and presenting partners we are proud to make excellence affordable with a range of ticket prices, as well as free, and pay what you can events across London and online. It’s a privilege to be able to introduce audiences to some of the most inquisitive, boundary-pushing dance artists from around the globe.” London Battle will take over Somerset House’s iconic open-air courtyard for a day packed with showcases, workshops, cyphers, live DJs and a big outdoor party. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of hip hop culture and with Breaking set to be the highlight of the 2024 Paris Olympics, Dance Umbrella and Somerset House are bringing together some of the most exciting talent from the four corners of London to go head-to-head across a diverse range of styles. Curated by choreographer Jade Hackett, you will be the judge, deciding which part of our global city brings the best dance flavour – north, south, east or west. For the live programme, Change Tempo returns for 2023 to introduce London to two international artists whose transformational works blur the line between dance and visual art, challenging cultural biases. As part of Change Tempo’s double bill, SU PinWen’s performance art piece Girl’s Notes interrogates notions of gender, drawing inspiration from the traditional views set out in a Taiwanese text which directs girls in the ‘correct’ way to be a woman. Featuring a live on-stage pianist, LIN Mai-ke, this captivating work explores the intentions behind our everyday actions. SU PinWen will also present an accompanying digital piece that will be available as part of Dance Umbrella’s Digital Programme. Completing the doubleheader for Change Tempo, in Comme un symbole, French visual artist and choreographer Alexandre Fandard embodies the image of the marginalised youth, bursting onto the stage to portray a figure as despised as it is eroticised. The work subverts this stereotype in a way that is both deeply compelling and ultimately surprising. For children aged 3-5 years, Skydiver will tour venues around London on the Orbital Touring Network, which celebrates its 10th year. Prepare to soar through the fluffy clouds where flocks of birds and butterflies flutter. Explore the dream-like world that waits above us, in this multi-sensory dance experience for families. Take your little ones on a magical journey with Skydiver and experience how movement, sound and stunning visuals bring whimsical characters to life in an enchanting encounter in the skies. Greek dance artist, dramaturg and director Xenia Aidonopoulou makes visually compelling dance-theatre works filled with wonder and imagination that will captivate even the youngest audience members. Presented by Little Big Dance and Dance Umbrella in partnership with the Orbital Touring Network. Get ready to experience a collision of analogue and digital worlds as hip hop movement architects BirdGang Ltd bring together an intergenerational cast from the communities of Croydon for Family (dys)Function, part of This is Croydon, The Mayor of London’s London Borough of Culture. Boomers, Millennials, Gen Z and everyone in between are invited to join a family gathering at Stanley Arts. This new production will feature BirdGang’s unique blend of movement, spoken word and music, in a light-hearted exploration of connectivity across generations. An award-winning company with hip hop at its heart, BirdGang Ltd choreograph, teach and produce avant-garde dance for stage, screen and live events. Don’t miss this opportunity to experience their latest dance invention. Presented and produced by Dance Umbrella with support from Stanley Arts. Completing the live programme, ONE DROP is by turns a speculative summoning, a decolonial dream, an autopsy of the Western stage, and an operetta. The title refers to two concepts – the one drop reggae drumbeat, and the one drop rule of the Race Separation Act, created in the US in the early 1900s, in which a single drop of “Black blood” made a person “Black” despite their appearance. This work interrogates the ghosts of the Western stage and its relationship to capitalism, coloniality and modernity. Award-winning Cameroonian-Finnish choreographer and artistic director Sonya Lindfors creates important work exploring power, representation, and Black body politics. Available to a global and national audience from 6 - 31 October, Dance Umbrella’s digital programme consists of a curated selection of dance films from Ioanna Paraskevopoulou, Trajal Harrell, Vincenzo Lamagna & Danilo Moroni, and SU PinWen. Trajal Harrell will provide a Choreographer's Cut. Now in its fourth year, this edition of Choreographer’s Cut sees Harrell selecting his 2019 work Dancer of the Year to discuss exclusively for Dance Umbrella audiences. Stopgap Dance Company presents Dance Tapes. This provides a series of choreographies of speech and sound created by Disabled artists from the UK, Japan, and Zimbabwe. These artists are Kazuyo Morita, who presents On The Way To My Body and Shyne Phiri with Within My Own Bones. Finally, Artist Encounters is an online professional development workshop with a guest artist focusing on cultivating practical skills, sharing knowledge, and asking questions that resonate. On sale from September, Dance Umbrella’s Digital Pass is Pay What You Can and will give audiences access to the entire digital programme within this year’s festival, available online to global and national audiences from 6 - 31 October 2023. As previously announced, marking a UK premiere at the festival this year, and making her Dance Umbrella Festival debut, Athens-based Ioanna Paraskevopoulou brings MOS to the Barbican. Witness the stage transform into a cinematic soundscape, as two performers create a captivating audio-visual experience. Using everyday objects: umbrellas, plungers, and of course, coconut shells, MOS evokes the movie sounds made by expert foley artists for film and TV. The physical act of generating audio while following the film becomes an energetic dance, with tap numbers turned into recordings that are looped, distorted, paused, and intensified. Ioanna Paraskevopoulou is an award-winning dancer and choreographer who focuses on the interplay between movement, sound, and imagery, and whose past collaborators have included Dance Umbrella Artist Dimitris Papaioannou. Intoxicating expression and pulsating rhythms combine as the award-winning South African dance company Via Katlehong returns to Dance Umbrella, to debut on the Sadler’s Wells stage. Bringing together choreography from two sought-after dance creatives, Via Injabulo is a celebration of global movement styles. Mixing house dance and top rock with pantsula, a South African township dance, Marco da Silva Ferreira’s førm inførms examines the idea of collective identity. In Emaphakathini, Amala Dianor seeks to break down borders with a feast of rousing beats from live on-stage DJing, drawing on traditional dance techniques to explore the individual personalities within the Via Katlehong company. LISTINGS & BOOKING INFORMATION DANCE UMBRELLA FESTIVAL 2023 | LIVE PROGRAMME SU PinWen and Alexandre Fandard: Change Tempo Taiwan / France The Place | Friday 6 & Saturday 7 October, 7.30pm Tickets: £18/£14 concessions Jade Hackett: London Battle UK Somerset House | Saturday 7 October from 1pm Tickets: Free Ioanna Paraskevopoulou: MOS Greece The Pit, Barbican | Wednesday 11 October - Saturday 14 October, 7pm Post Show Talk | Thursday 12 October, 7.45pm (BSL interpreted) Tickets: £18 Sonya LindfOrs: ONE DROP Cameroon / Finland Battersea Arts Centre | Thursday 19 October & Friday 20 October, 7pm Tickets: Thursday 19 October: Pay What You Can (recommended £18) Friday 20 October: £18/£15 concessions Birdgang Ltd: Family (dys)Function UK Stanley Arts | Saturday 21 October, 2.30pm & 7pm Tickets: £10/£8 concessions Via Katlehong / Marco da Silva Ferreira / Amala Dianor: Via Injabulo South Africa / Portugal / Senegal / France Sadler’s Wells | Friday 27 October & Saturday 28 October Post Show Talk | Friday 27 October (BSL interpreted) Tickets from £22 Xenia Aidonopoulou: Skydiver Greece / UK Orbital Touring Network Unicorn Theatre in partnership with Team London Bridge | Saturday 21 October Stanley Arts | Sunday 22 October The Place | Tuesday 24 October Studio 3 Arts | Wednesday 25 October Watermans Arts Centre | Sunday 29 October Tickets: check venue websites for details All booking links can be found at danceumbrella.co.uk/festival Please note, additional fees and levies may apply, please see venue websites for details. DANCE UMBRELLA FESTIVAL 2023 | DIGITAL PROGRAMME The digital programme is available online to global and national audiences from 6 - 31 October 2023. FILMS Ioanna Paraskevopoulou: All She Likes is Popping Bubble Wrap Greece Trajal Harrell: O Medea USA / Switzerland / Greece Vincenzo Lamagna & Danilo Moreli: KINGDOM Italy / UK / Spain SU PinWen: Girl’s Notes Film Work Taiwan Stopgap Dance Company | Dance Tapes UK Kazuyo Morita: On The Way To My Body Japan Shyne Phiri:Within My Own Bones UK / Zimbabwe Artist Encounters: guest artist to be announced Choreographers Cut | Trajal Harrell USA/Switzerland / Greece The Digital Pass is Pay What You Can and will give you access to the entire digital programme within this year’s festival, available online to global and national audiences from 6—31 October 2023. £5 / £10 / £15 / £30 / £50 (recommended price £15) NOTES TO EDITORS About Dance Umbrella Dance Umbrella is a London festival 45 years in the making and moving with the times. Every year our festival ignites London and online with the next generation of trailblazing artists. Since 1978, we have been an international home for dance across a global city, presenting more than 1000 artists from 45 countries to over one million people. We have brought outstanding dance to more than 145 venues throughout London and online; from the high-profile stages of Sadler’s Wells, Southbank Centre and Barbican to local arts centres – and taking in the more unexpected locations of canal boats, ice rinks and car park rooftops in between. Since 2020, we have also given online audiences the chance to experience the festival through a curated programme including dance films and artist encounters. Dance Umbrella is also a commissioner of new work, co-producing with partners based in the UK and abroad, to invest in the next wave of international choreographic talent. Alongside this, we create year-round creative learning initiatives for all ages and nurture the development of arts professionals. Appointed in 2021, Dance Umbrella’s new Artistic Director/CEO Freddie Opoku-Addaie's vision for the festival builds on its 45-year track record of commissioning and producing excellent work. This new chapter introduces a programme that puts emerging and diverse talent at its heart, reflecting the global identity of our London home. Dance Umbrella Festival 2023 takes place 6-31 October, across London and online. Danceumbrella.co.uk CHANGE TEMPO Su PinWen Su PinWen (He/him/They) is an artist and Artistic Director of Kua Bo Dance Theatre. He holds an MFA in Choreography at Taipei National University of the Arts and a bachelor’s in philosophy at Nan-hua University. His work challenges the heteronormative stereotypes revolving around notions of gender, feminism and nudity. Since 2013, Su has researched and practiced tactile culture. They take dance into conceptual art beyond the aesthetic genre. Girl’s Notes is presented by Dance Umbrella in partnership with The Place. Supported by Ministry of Culture, Taiwan. Alexandre Fandard Fandard is a French visual artist and choreographer. After training at the International Dance Academy of Paris, he started performing works directed by Brett Bailey while working as a painter. He has performed with La Cie de Soi, in Heroes (Prélude) by Redouhanne El Meddeb, and in work by Olivier de Sagazan. He made his first solo, Some remains so, in 2017 while he was resident choreographer at Centquatre-Paris and was selected as laureate 2018 at FORT (Ile de France). In 2020, he created the duo Très loin, à l’horizon. Fandard is laureate of the European dance network Aerowaves with his new solo Comme un symbole. Comme un symbole is presented by Dance Umbrella in partnership with The Place. LONDON BATTLE Jade Hackett Jade Hackett is an experienced choreographer, dancer and actor who has appeared in productions including The Pied Piper, Boy Blue Entertainment, Stratford Theatre Royal; Blaze, international tour; Into the Hoodz, The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party and Some Like it Hip Hop for ZooNation Dance Company. Her theatre work has included Hex, National Theatre; Get Up Stand Up, The Bob Marley Musical; Sylvia, The Old Vic; Nine Night, Trafalgar Studios; Black Boys at Apollo Theatre. Jade has also appeared in several commercial projects including StreetDance 3D The Movie; campaigns for Adidas and ASOS; London Olympics and Baku European Games ceremonies. London Battle is a Dance Umbrella and Somerset House co-production MOS Ioanna Paraskevopoulou Ioanna Paraskevopoulou is an Athens-based dancer/choreographer, Greek National School of Dance graduate and student of AudioVisual Arts (Ionian University). Her practice focuses on the relationship between audio-visual media and movement,and her past collaborators include Iris Karayan, Christos Papadopoulos, Dimitris Papaioannou and Alexandra Waierstall. She won Best Sound Design at FIVideodanza Festival, Mexico and Best Video Art at MIFVIF, Venezuela for ALSIPBW. She was awarded the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Artist Fellowship by ARTWORKS. Her film Coconut Effect won the Young Jury Prize at Dance Elargie and MOS was selected for Aerowaves 23. It is produced by Onassis STEGI and first presented as part of Onassis New Choreographers Festival 9. The presentation of MOS at Dance Umbrella is made possible with the support of Onassis STEGI Athens – "Outward Turn” Program. VIA INJABULO Via Katlehong Via Katlehong was formed in 1992 as a community troupe, composed of youths from the township of Katlehong in the notorious East Rand war zone of the 1980s South African uprising. During Apartheid, many of the country’s black population were relocated to urban townships where unemployment and illegal activity became a catalyst for a new culture: Pantsula. Via Katlehong have reinvented the art form by combining it with tap and Gumboot. Their community dance school and 18 professional dancers are led by Steven Faleni and Buru Mohlabane. Their awards include FNB Vita Dance, Dance Umbrella awards, Gauteng Dance Showcase, KTV Most Brilliant Achievement and Gauteng MEC Development Award. Marco Da Silva Ferreira is a choreographer whose work revolves around dance in urban contexts. His unique abstract expressionism and self-biographical style has earned him recognition in the international dance community. HU(R)MANO, premiered in 2013 and performed at various international festivals, was highlighted by Aerowaves Priority Companies in 2015. His latest work, Bisonte, premiered in 2019 at the Teatro Municipal do Porto and has been performed in Lisbon, Brussels, and Montemor-o-novo. Marco was an associated artist at the Teatro Municipal do Porto in 2018/19 and is currently an associated artist at the Centre chorégraphique National de Caen in Normandie. Amala Dianor Renowned hip hop dancer and choreographer, Amala Dianor, continues to push boundaries with his distinctive dance style and poetic approach to ‘otherness’. After a decade of performing with renowned choreographers in various dance forms, Dianor founded his own company in 2012. He collaborates with electro soul composer Awir Léon and other choreographers, composers, writers and visual artists. Dianor is a Big Pulse Dance Artist whose latest works include a nine-dancer piece called The Falling Stardust, and two short pieces, Point Zéro and Wo-Man. He also created CinéDanse with visual artist Grégoire Korganow, which was selected for the Villa Albertine dance film catalogue in the USA. Via Injabulo is presented by Dance Umbrella and Sadler’s Wells with the support of Big Pulse Dance Alliance. Co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union. Production: Via Katlehong Dance, Damien Valette Prod Coproduction : Chaillot Théâtre National de la Danse, Théâtre de la Ville - Paris, Maison de la Danse - Lyon, Festival DDD - Teatro Municipal do Porto, Le Grand T – Théâtre de Loire Atlantique, Créteil - Maison des Arts, Festival d’Avignon, Espace 1789 – Scène conventionnée danse de Saint-Ouen Thanks to the City of Ekurhuleni: Sport, Recreation, Arts and Culture Department SKYDIVER Xenia Aidonopoulou Xenia Aidonopoulou is a dance artist with a background in dance dramaturgy and performance. She makes visually compelling dance-theatre works and collaborates with multidisciplinary artists with stories to share. She has worked extensively in dance, for the National Theatre of Greece, the Athens and Epidaurus Festival, the Thessaloniki Concert Hall, Onasis Stagi and smaller art institutions. Between 2005 and 2017, she has worked as a dramaturg and creative consultant with Oktana Dancetheatre and choreographer/director Konstantinos Rigos, current Director of the Greek National Opera Ballet. She has also worked with various choreographers and directors, including Sivan Rubinstein, Georgia Tegou, Michalis Theophanous, Susan Kempster, Kate Flatt, Krishna Zivraj-Nair, Alexandros Efklidis, Simos Kakalas, Konstantinos Arvanitakis, Lenio Kaklea, Victor Arditti. Her work has been presented in venues including Greek National Opera, Sadler’s Wells, The Lowry, Polka Theatre, South Bank Centre and Royal Opera House. She is a member of the Dramaturgs’ Network, UK and a member of the Artist Development Troop at Cambridge Junction. Presented by Little Big Dance. Co-commissioned by Dance Umbrella and Strike a Light Festival. Skydiver is a Little Big Dance commission, led by South East Dance, in partnership with Dance East, Yorkshire Dance and Take Art. Little Big Dance is funded by Paul Hamlyn Foundation and Arts Council England. Presented as part of the Orbital Touring Network in partnership with Unicorn Theatre and Team London Bridge, Stanley Arts, The Place, Studio 3 Arts and Watermans Arts Centre. FAMILY (DYS)FUNCTION BirdGang Ltd BirdGang Ltd is an award-winning collective of hip hop movement architects with a global reputation. Resident at Stanley Arts, the company delivers striking performance projects, teaching and artist development initiatives. BirdGang’s work has been performed at the Royal Opera House, Sadler’s Wells, Luxembourg Grand Theatre and Harlem Apollo. Their partnership with Croydon Council and Stanley Arts allows dance to thrive; with 15,000 pupils and followers, the company generates performances and teaching opportunities, mentorship and skills development. BirdGang’s Directors work globally, in Hollywood, on Broadway and the West End, in television and film, with artists including Dynamo, Mariah Carey, Kylie Minogue, Cheryl Cole and JLS. Produced and presented Dance Umbrella with support from Stanley Arts. Part of This is Croydon, The Mayor of London’s, London Borough of Culture. ONE DROP Sonya Lindfors Sonya Lindfors is an award-winning Cameroonian-Finnish choreographer, artistic director, facilitator and educator with an MA in choreography from the University of Arts Helsinki. She is the Artistic Director and founder of UrbanApa, an interdisciplinary and counter hegemonic arts community that offers a platform for new ideas and feminist practices. Lindfors’ performance works have been shown and supported throughout Europe and she is a member of Miracle Workers Collective which represented Finland at the 58th Venice Biennale. In all her positions she pursues creating and facilitating anti-racist and feminist platforms, using festivals, performances, publications or workshops to facilitate empowerment and radical collective dreaming. Coproduction: Zodiak - center for new dance, Goethe-Institut (International Coproduction Fund), Big Pulse Dance Alliance (a project co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union), Dance Umbrella, Julidans, Finnish Cultural Institute for the Benelux, Apap – FEMINIST FUTURES (a project co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the EuropeanUnion). Presented in partnership with BAC. Supported by the Finnish Institute in the UK and Ireland. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted July 12, 2023 Author Share Posted July 12, 2023 Reminder: Dance Umbrella 2023 is London’s annual flagship international contemporary dance festival taking place between 6-31 October. This year the programme of live and hybrid performances showcases the very best of hip hop culture, performance art, audio-visual experiences and operetta from artists originating from Cameroon, Greece, South Africa, Taiwan and Croydon. Live programme includes: Change Tempo returns for 2023 to introduce London to two international artists whose transformational works blur the line between dance and visual art, challenging cultural biases. The double bill features SU PinWen’s performance art piece Girl’s Notes and Alexandre Fandard’s Comme un symbole at The Place (6 - 7 October) London Battle curated by Jade Hackett will take over Somerset House’s iconic open-air courtyard for a day packed with showcases, workshops, cyphers, live DJs and a big outdoor party. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of hip hop culture and with Breaking set to be the highlight of the 2024 Paris Olympics, Dance Umbrella and Somerset House are bringing together some of the most exciting talent from the four corners of London to go head-to-head across a diverse range of styles (7 October) Athens-based Ioanna Paraskevopoulou brings MOS to the Barbican. Witness the stage transform into a cinematic soundscape, as two performers create a captivating audio-visual experience. Using everyday objects: umbrellas, plungers, and of course, coconut shells, MOS evokes the movie sounds made by expert foley artists for film and TV (11 - 14 October) Award-winning Cameroonian-Finnish choreographer and artistic director Sonya Lindfors presents ONE DROP at Battersea Arts Centre, a speculative summoning, a decolonial dream, an autopsy of the Western stage, and an operetta (19-20 October) For children aged 3-5 years, Skydiver by Xenia Aidonopoulou will tour venues around London on the Orbital Touring Network, which celebrates its 10th year. Prepare to soar through the fluffy clouds where flocks of birds and butterflies flutter. Explore the dream-like world that waits above us, in this multi-sensory dance experience for families (21 - 29 October) Get ready to experience a collision of analogue and digital worlds as hip hop movement architects BirdGang Ltd bring together an intergenerational cast from the communities of Croydon for Family (dys)Function at Stanley Arts (21 October) Intoxicating expression and pulsating rhythms combine as the award-winning South African dance company Via Katlehong returns to Dance Umbrella, to debut on the Sadler’s Wells stage with Via Injabulo (27 - 28 October) Digital programme includes: Dance films from Ioanna Paraskevopoulou, Trajal Harrell, Vincenzo Lamagna & Danilo Moroni, and SU PinWen Choreographer's Cut with Trajal Harrell: Now in its fourth year, this edition of Choreographer’s Cut sees Harrell selecting his 2019 work Dancer of the Year to discuss exclusively for Dance Umbrella audiences Stopgap Dance Company’s Dance Tapes: a series of choreographies of speech and sound created by Disabled artists from the UK, Japan, and Zimbabwe. These artists are Kazuyo Morita, who presents On The Way To My Body and Shyne Phiri with Within My Own Bones Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted July 27, 2023 Author Share Posted July 27, 2023 PRESS RELEASE27 July 2023 Twitter/ Facebook / Instagram / Website XENIA AIDONOPOULOU TO PRESENT WORLD PREMIERE OF FAMILY SHOW SKYDIVER AT THIS YEAR’S DANCE UMBRELLA FESTIVAL Image: Nikolas Louka Dance Umbrella, London’s annual international contemporary dance festival returns this October, featuring fun for all the family with the World Premiere of Xenia Aidonopoulou’s Skydiver, touring across the city from 21 - 29 October. For children aged 3-5 years, Skydiver will tour venues around London on the Orbital Touring Network, which celebrates its 10th year. Prepare to soar through the fluffy clouds where flocks of birds and butterflies flutter. Explore the dream-like world that waits above us, in this multi-sensory dance experience for families. Take your little ones on a magical journey with Skydiver and experience how movement, sound and stunning visuals bring whimsical characters to life in an enchanting encounter in the skies. Greek dance artist, dramaturg and director Xenia Aidonopoulou makes visually compelling dance-theatre works filled with wonder and imagination that will captivate even the youngest audience members. The show will be touring London throughout October visiting Unicorn Theatre in partnership with Team London Bridge (21 October), Stanley Arts (22 October), The Place (24 October), Studio 3 Arts (25 October), Watermans Arts Centre (29 October). Skydiver is a Little Big Dance commission, led by South East Dance, in partnership with Dance East, Yorkshire Dance and Take Art, and co-commissioned by Dance Umbrella and Strike a Light Festival. Little Big Dance is funded by Paul Hamlyn Foundation and Arts Council England. Presented as part of the Orbital Touring Network in partnership with Unicorn Theatre & Team London Bridge, Stanley Arts, The Place, Studio 3 Arts and Watermans Arts Centre. The full Dance Umbrella 2023 programme can be found online at danceumbrella.co.uk LISTINGS & BOOKING INFORMATION Xenia AidonopoulouSkydiver Greece / UKOrbital Touring NetworkUnicorn Theatre in partnership with Team London Bridge | Saturday 21 OctoberStanley Arts | Sunday 22 OctoberThe Place | Tuesday 24 OctoberStudio 3 Arts | Wednesday 25 OctoberWatermans Arts Centre | Sunday 29 OctoberTickets: check venue websites for details DANCE UMBRELLA FESTIVAL 2023 AT A GLANCELIVE PROGRAMME SU PinWen and Alexandre Fandard: Change Tempo Taiwan / France The Place | Friday 6 & Saturday 7 October, 7.30pm Tickets: £18/£14 concessions Jade Hackett: London Battle UK Somerset House | Saturday 7 October from 1pm Tickets: Free Ioanna Paraskevopoulou: MOS Greece The Pit, Barbican | Wednesday 11 October - Saturday 14 October, 7pm Post Show Talk | Thursday 12 October, 7.45pm (BSL interpreted) Tickets: £18 Sonya Lindfors: ONE DROP Cameroon / Finland Battersea Arts Centre | Thursday 19 October & Friday 20 October, 7pm Tickets: Thursday 19 October: Pay What You Can (recommended £18) Friday 20 October: £18/£15 concessions Birdgang Ltd: Family (dys)Function UK Stanley Arts | Saturday 21 October, 2.30pm & 7pm Tickets: £10/£8 concessions Via Katlehong / Marco da Silva Ferreira / Amala Dianor: Via Injabulo South Africa / Portugal / Senegal / France Sadler’s Wells | Friday 27 October & Saturday 28 October Post Show Talk | Friday 27 October (BSL interpreted) Tickets from £22 All booking links can be found at danceumbrella.co.uk/festival/ Please note, additional fees and levies may apply, please see venue websites for details. DIGITAL PROGRAMME The digital programme is available online to global and national audiences from 6 - 31 October 2023. FILMS Ioanna Paraskevopoulou: All She Likes is Popping Bubble Wrap Greece Trajal Harrell: O Medea USA / Switzerland / Greece Vincenzo Lamagna & Danilo Moroni: KINGDOM Italy / UK / Spain SU PinWen: Girl’s Notes Film Work Taiwan Stopgap Dance Company | Dance Tapes UK Kazuyo Morita: On The Way To My Body Japan Shyne Phiri:Within My Own Bones UK / Zimbabwe Artist Encounters: guest artist to be announced Choreographers Cut | Trajal Harrell USA/Switzerland / Greece The Digital Pass is Pay What You Can and will give you access to the entire digital programme within this year’s festival, available online to global and national audiences from 6—31 October 2023. £5 / £10 / £15 / £30 / £50 (recommended price £15) NOTES TO EDITORS About Xenia Aidonopoulou Xenia Aidonopoulou is a dance artist with a background in dance dramaturgy and performance. She makes visually compelling dance-theatre works and collaborates with multidisciplinary artists with stories to share. She has worked extensively in dance, for the National Theatre of Greece, the Athens and Epidaurus Festival, the Thessaloniki Concert Hall, Onasis Stagi and smaller art institutions. Between 2005 and 2017, she has worked as a dramaturg and creative consultant with Oktana Dancetheatre and choreographer/director Konstantinos Rigos, current Director of the Greek National Opera Ballet. She has also worked with various choreographers and directors, including Sivan Rubinstein, Georgia Tegou, Michalis Theophanous, Susan Kempster, Kate Flatt, Krishna Zivraj-Nair, Alexandros Efklidis, Simos Kakalas, Konstantinos Arvanitakis, Lenio Kaklea, Victor Arditti. Her work has been presented in venues including Greek National Opera, Sadler’s Wells, The Lowry, Polka Theatre, South Bank Centre and Royal Opera House. She is a member of the Dramaturgs’ Network, UK and a member of the Artist Development Troop at Cambridge Junction. xeniaaidonopoulou.com About Dance Umbrella Dance Umbrella is a London festival 45 years in the making and moving with the times. Every year our festival ignites London and online with the next generation of trailblazing artists. Since 1978, we have been an international home for dance across a global city, presenting more than 1000 artists from 45 countries to over one million people. We have brought outstanding dance to more than 145 venues throughout London and online; from the high-profile stages of Sadler’s Wells, Southbank Centre and Barbican to local arts centres – and taking in the more unexpected locations of canal boats, ice rinks and car park rooftops in between. Since 2020, we have also given online audiences the chance to experience the festival through a curated programme including dance films and artist encounters. Dance Umbrella is also a commissioner of new work, co-producing with partners based in the UK and abroad, to invest in the next wave of international choreographic talent. Alongside this, we create year-round creative learning initiatives for all ages and nurture the development of arts professionals. Appointed in 2021, Dance Umbrella’s new Artistic Director/CEO Freddie Opoku-Addaie's vision for the festival builds on its 45-year track record of commissioning and producing excellent work. This new chapter introduces a programme that puts emerging and diverse talent at its heart, reflecting the global identity of our London home. Dance Umbrella Festival 2023 takes place 6-31 October, across London and online. danceumbrella.co.uk About Little Big Dance Launched in 2019 by South East Dance, in partnership with DanceEast, Take Art and Yorkshire Dance, Little Big Dance empowers dance artists to develop the specialist skills and experience needed to make captivating and diverse dance work for and with under five-year-old children and their families. Little Big Dance is changing the face of dance work for younger audiences: bringing dance artists together with children under five, early years specialists and dramaturgs to develop new skills and create new work. Over two cycles, Little Big Dance is supporting up to 16 dance artists to receive robust specialist training and development in creating work for young audiences; and commissioning three new pieces of dance work, created by and with under five-year olds for national touring. Little Big Dance is funded by Paul Hamlyn Foundation and Arts Council England and is supported by Dance Umbrella, Strike a Light Festival and Imaginate/Edinburgh International Children’s Festival. Find out more here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted September 10, 2023 Author Share Posted September 10, 2023 PRESS RELEASE 7 September Twitter/ Facebook / Instagram / Website DANCE UMBRELLA ANNOUNCES FULL DIGITAL PROGRAMME FOR 2023 HYBRID FESTIVAL ARTISTS IN THE DIGITAL PROGRAMME ARE TRAJAL HARRELL, GRAEME MILLER, JADE HACKETT, ABBY ZBIKOWSKI AND STOPGAP DANCE COMPANY Following the announcement of live events for 2023, Dance Umbrella, London’s annual international dance festival has today announced the full programme of digital explorations and the on sale of its digital pass. Available to a global and national audience from 6 - 31 October, the digital programme consists of a curated selection of dance films, panels and workshops from Graeme Miller, Jade Hackett and Abby Zbikowsi. Previously announced artists in the digital programme are Ioanna Paraskevopoulou, Trajal Harrell, Stopgap Dance Company, Vincenzo Lamagna & Danilo Moroni, and SU PinWen. London-based choreographer, performer and curator Jade Hackett explores her personal definition of home in a new film, Let’s Dance in the City, London created in partnership with Serendipity Institute for Black Arts and Heritage in collaboration with regional partners. Gazing out of the window onto the grey concrete jungle of her dwelling in the capital, Jade begins to long for her mother’s back garden. An oasis of calm where family BBQs fill the air with the smell of jerk, neighbours pass Jamaican breadfruit over the garden fence and 80s vinyl records pulse with the vibrations of the African diaspora. This is the first place that Jade and her friends began to create dance and movement together, a safe space in which they could truly express themselves. “As London’s high rises are continuously growing higher and higher, this little patch of land, tucked away in England’s capital, will always be home.” For Let’s Dance in the City 2023, Dancers respond to the energy of Leeds, Leicester, Newcastle and London. Working alongside filmmaker, Cayla Mae Simpson who has collaborated closely with each artist to creatively help draw out the dance heritage of each place. Internationally renowned choreographer Trajal Harrell creates narratives that examine the lives of women beyond their sensational moments of infamy. O Medea begins where Euripides’ tragic Greek masterpiece ends and seeks to explore the wild grief that our lives can sometimes produce. Channelling the histories of how they have loved, been loved, and been betrayed through the ecstatic rituals of mourning, O Medeaconsiders what it is like to be a woman among other women, expressing the weight of their lives performatively. Using elements from contemporary culture, Trajal Harrell’s captivating work of expressive gestural forms sits uniquely at the intersection of postmodern movement, voguing – a style developed in 1980s Harlem, early modern dance, and butoh – a form of Japanese theatre which emerged after the second world war. KINGDOM is a visionary art film, co-created and directed by musician and composer Vincenzo Lamagna and fine art photographer Danilo Moroni. This cinematic experience is the embodiment of Lamagna’s album of the same name, and lives at the intersection of images, dance, and music. An exploration of the dualities inherent in human existence, KINGDOM confronts viewers with a dance of flesh and spirit. It portrays a compellingly raw tableau where the corporeal crosses paths with the ethereal, unearthing the tension between the raw physicality of life and the immaterial spirituality of existence. Deeply rooted in the creators’ profound ties with the contemporary dance and ballet world, KINGDOM unveils Lamagna and Moroni’s multidisciplinary vision, brought to life by some of Europe’s most exciting dance artists. In artist and composer Graeme Miller’s 2013 film, End of the Day (knowing it doesn’t but making it matter), the camera travels across a football pitch from touchline to touchline capturing the rain-filled imprints of recent action on the internationally iconic Hackney Marshes, reminiscent of a WW1 battlefield. This meditation on loss and gain features the final broadcasts of the legendary radio presenter James Alexander Gordon, known as ‘JAG’, who read the classified football results every Saturday until his death in 2013. The words evoke an eternity of goal-less draws that contrast with the vocal urgency of the crowds on the touchline and the graphic imprints of the body in the mud. Freddie Opoku-Addaie, Artistic Director/Chief Executive of Dance Umbrella said: “Through an evocative soundscape and symbolic imagery, Miller’s End of the Day creates a choreographic score that transports audiences to the heart of the match; conjuring up the memories of what took place and depicting the intricate movement language of the beautiful game.” Join Greek dancer and choreographer Ioanna Paraskevopoulou for a unique audio-visual performance for the digital stage. In All She Likes is Popping Bubble Wrap, the screen is split in two, one side showing a montage of archival film footage (three girls fishing in a lake, a zombie chase scene, a woman in the bath); whilst the other shows a performer in dialogue with the images. Using various resources including her own body, to devise, create and produce a new soundtrack, Paraskevopoulou creatively brings these filmed images to life. All She Likes is Popping Bubble Wrap is a playful and captivating experiment for the screen from an artist at the forefront of experimental dance and film. Paraskevopoulou will also perform MOS in the live programme at the Barbican SU PinWen’s fascination with touch, sensitivity and tactile culture is explored in the short film, Girl’s Notes Film Work, which offers a dynamic angle which contrasts with the theatre view, aiming to avoid the narrow gaze on the female body from a single perspective. Created during the pandemic, Girl’s Notes Film Work gave audiences of SU’s progressive work a way of experiencing their unique visual language. While balancing a copy of the ‘History of Beauty’ on their head, a vibrator triggers expressive hand movements, symbolising the power dynamics of women’s sexuality within relationships. Taiwanese artist SU PinWen’s work challenges heteronormative notions of gender, feminism and nudity, taking dance into conceptual realms beyond the purely aesthetic. SuPin Wen’s will also perform Girl’s Notes in the live programme at The Place. Stopgap Dance Company presents Dance Tapes. Dance Tapes is a series of choreographies that combines speech and sound, amplifying the voices of Disabled dance artists. Devised by the renowned Stopgap Dance Company, this project offers audiences an intimate and immersive experience, delving into the rich lived experiences of these remarkable artists. One of these choreographies is On the Way to My Body, featuring Japanese artist, Kazuyo Morita. In this captivating piece, Kazuyo gracefully traverses between English and her native tongue, exploring the fluid nature of identity, embodiment, space, and perception. Taking the form of a wide-ranging and personal journey through her anatomic landscape, Kazuyo reconceives the internal layers of the body as places of exchange. Through the delicate dance of unique sensory signals, she skillfully reshapes the exterior surfaces, employing language and metaphor to find her own path towards self-realisation. Another Dance Tapes project is Within My Own Bones, a sound work created by Zimbabwean choreographer and dance maker Shyne Phiri, who is now based in London. In this profound work, Shyne takes us into the heart of his home, where the tensions within his body harmonise with the immediate surroundings. With a heightened awareness of his sensations, Shyne’s words and movements gradually evolve into a stirring celebration of freedom. As he explores various manifestations of nature, he tunes into his body, seeking solace and a place to rest. Shyne’s work as a freelance choreographer epitomises his commitment to crafting choreography deeply rooted in everyday life. As a disabled dance artist, he continually pushes boundaries, constantly exploring new avenues of movement. ReWorking Rhythms is a panel discussion presented in collaboration with Independent Dance and Team London Bridge. Chaired by Tarik Elmoutawakil, the panel will discuss access and inclusion when making, performing, or producing performance. Drawing on their own experiences as artists, the panellists will examine what is given time in the creative process and how those decisions affect or limit what is made, seen and valued. This discussion will take place in-person and online. Full details and booking information to be announced soon. Dive into some of the most exciting minds in contemporary choreography. Now in its fourth year, the 2023 edition of Choreographer’s Cutfeatures Trajal Harrell. When Tanz Magazine selected Trajal Harrell to be their Dancer of the Year in 2018, the honour prompted the artist to create a solo reflecting on (self) worth, confronting what he means to dance, what dance means to him and the legacy he hopes to leave behind both as a choreographer and as a dancer. Harrell now selects his 2019 work Dancer of the Year to discuss exclusively for Dance Umbrella audiences. Finally, Artist Encounters is an online professional development workshop with a guest artist focusing on cultivating practical skills, sharing knowledge, and asking questions that resonate. For DU23, we will be joined by critically acclaimed international choreographer Abby Zbikowski (Abby Z), who will focus on how to create rehearsal spaces that reclaim the brutal rigor that goes into the practice of hyperphysical movement. Through the subversion of outdated hierarchies, Abby will demonstrate how practice can be used as a vehicle for individual and collective growth. In this interactive session, Abby will offer insight on how to build and sustain relationships with dancers when asking them to repeatedly do the impossible. She will share how her experience with athletics, punk and African Diasporic dance have mentally, physically and politically informed her approach. And she will divulge her most successful and unsuccessful coaching moments, revealing what they have taught her about her responsibility as a dance maker. Participants will be led through exercises to discover the ways in which, through a system of interconnected relationships between dancers, choreographers, physical movement and a greater purpose that emerges throughout a process, layers of meaning are made. Dance Umbrella’s Digital Pass is Pay What You Can and will give audiences access to the entire digital programme within this year’s festival, available online to global and national audiences from 6 - 31 October 2023. The pass is available to purchase now via danceumbrella.co.uk. For the live programme, a Discursive Dinner has now been added to the line-up which will be held at Battersea Arts Centre. Join Dance Umbrella and Fest en Fest - LAB for a dinner conversation between artists and curators Sonya Lindfors (FI) and SERAFINE1369 (UK). Over dinner, Sonya and SERAFINE1369 will talk about their curatorial approach and how they see their artistic practice intertwined with the curatorial. A vegetarian or vegan meal plus a glass of wine is included with the booking. Bookings will open soon. LISTINGS & BOOKING INFORMATION DANCE UMBRELLA FESTIVAL 2023 | LIVE PROGRAMME SU PinWen and Alexandre Fandard: Change Tempo Taiwan / France The Place | Friday 6 & Saturday 7 October, 7.30pm Tickets: £18/£14 concessions Jade Hackett: London Battle UK Somerset House | Saturday 7 October from 1pm Tickets: Free Ioanna Paraskevopoulou: MOS Greece The Pit, Barbican | Wednesday 11 October - Saturday 14 October, 7pm Post Show Talk | Thursday 12 October, 7.45pm (BSL interpreted) Tickets: £18 Sonya Lindfors: ONE DROP Cameroon / Finland Battersea Arts Centre | Thursday 19 October & Friday 20 October, 7pm Tickets: Thursday 19 October: Pay What You Can (recommended £18) Friday 20 October: £18/£15 concessions Birdgang Ltd: Family (dys)Function UK Stanley Arts | Saturday 21 October, 2.30pm & 7pm Tickets: £10/£8 concessions Via Katlehong / Marco da Silva Ferreira / Amala Dianor: Via Injabulo South Africa / Portugal / Senegal / France Sadler’s Wells | Friday 27 October & Saturday 28 October Post Show Talk | Friday 27 October (BSL interpreted) Tickets from £22 Xenia Aidonopoulou: Skydiver Greece / UK Orbital Touring Network Unicorn Theatre in partnership with Team London Bridge | Saturday 21 October Stanley Arts | Sunday 22 October The Place | Tuesday 24 October Studio 3 Arts | Wednesday 25 October Watermans Arts Centre | Sunday 29 October Tickets: check venue websites for details All booking links can be found at danceumbrella.co.uk/festival Please note, additional fees and levies may apply, please see venue websites for details. DANCE UMBRELLA FESTIVAL 2023 | LIVE & DIGITAL PROGRAMME Panel Discussion: ReWorking Rhythms | Friday 13 October, 3 - 4.15pm Free, but booking is required. On sale Wednesday 13th September. DANCE UMBRELLA FESTIVAL 2023 | DIGITAL PROGRAMME The digital programme is available online to global and national audiences from 6 - 31 October 2023. FILMS Ioanna Paraskevopoulou: All She Likes is Popping Bubble Wrap Greece Trajal Harrell: O Medea USA / Switzerland / Greece Vincenzo Lamagna & Danilo Moreli: KINGDOM Italy / UK / Spain SU PinWen: Girl’s Notes Film Work Taiwan Jade Hackett: Let’s Dance in the City - London UK Graeme Miller: End of the Day (knowing it doesn’t but making it matter) UK Stopgap Dance Company | Dance Tapes UK Kazuyo Morita: On The Way To My Body Japan Shyne Phiri: Within My Own Bones UK / Zimbabwe Artist Encounters: Abby Zbikowski Choreographers Cut | Trajal Harrell USA/Switzerland / Greece The Digital Pass is Pay What You Can and will give you access to the entire digital programme within this year’s festival, available online to global and national audiences from 6—31 October 2023. £5 / £10 / £15 / £30 / £50 (recommended price £15) NOTES TO EDITORS About Dance Umbrella Dance Umbrella is a London festival 45 years in the making and moving with the times. Every year our festival ignites London and online with the next generation of trailblazing artists. Since 1978, we have been an international home for dance across a global city, presenting more than 1000 artists from 45 countries to over one million people. We have brought outstanding dance to more than 145 venues throughout London and online; from the high-profile stages of Sadler’s Wells, Southbank Centre and Barbican to local arts centres – and taking in the more unexpected locations of canal boats, ice rinks and car park rooftops in between. Since 2020, we have also given online audiences the chance to experience the festival through a curated programme including dance films and artist encounters. Dance Umbrella is also a commissioner of new work, co-producing with partners based in the UK and abroad, to invest in the next wave of international choreographic talent. Alongside this, we create year-round creative learning initiatives for all ages and nurture the development of arts professionals. Appointed in 2021, Dance Umbrella’s new Artistic Director/CEO Freddie Opoku-Addaie's vision for the festival builds on its 45-year track record of commissioning and producing excellent work. This new chapter introduces a programme that puts emerging and diverse talent at its heart, reflecting the global identity of our London home. Dance Umbrella Festival 2023 takes place 6-31 October, across London and online. Danceumbrella.co.uk ALL SHE LIKES IS POPPING BUBBLE WRAP Ioanna Paraskevopoulou Ioanna Paraskevopoulou is a dancer and choreographer based in Athens. She graduated from the Greek National School of Dance and is currently studying at the Department of AudioVisual Arts (Ionian University). Her artistic practice focuses on the relationship between audio-visual media and movement, reconfiguring the expansion of the choreographic field. She has collaborated, among others, with Iris Karayan, Christos Papadopoulos, Dimitris Papaioannou and Alexandra Waierstall. She was awarded the Best Performance prize for the dance film Sans Attente by Konstantinos Rizos at InShadow International Festival and second prize for her performance in mneme [action] 21 by Maria Koliopoulou at International Dance Festival, Algiers. She was awarded the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Artist Fellowship by ARTWORKS in 2019-2020. Her choreographic video project All She Likes Is Popping Bubble Wrap was created as part of Onassis New Choreographers Festival 8. ALSIPBW was selected by several video art festivals and awarded Best Sound Design at FIVideodanza Festival, Mexico and Best Video Art at MIFVIF, Venezuela. MOS premiered at Onassis New Choreographers Festival 9 and had its European premiere at Julidans Next. She presented Coconut Effect at the 7th Danse élargie competition and won the Young Jury award. She was selected to present MOS at Aerowaves Twenty23. Special Thanks Christina Sougioultzi, Alexandros Tomaras, Maria Chalkou, Christina Mitsani, Panagiotis Vouros, Athina Vourou, Matoula Koutsari, Danai Giannakopoulou, Panos Giannikopoulos, Marina Markellou and to all contributors GIRL’S NOTES FILM WORK Su PinWen Su PinWen (He/him/They) is an artist and Artistic Director of Kua Bo Dance Theatre. He holds an MFA in Choreography at Taipei National University of the Arts and a bachelor’s in philosophy at Nan-hua University. His work challenges the heteronormative stereotypes revolving around notions of gender, feminism and nudity. Since 2013, Su has researched and practiced tactile culture. They take dance into conceptual art beyond the aesthetic genre. END OF THE DAY (knowing it doesn’t but making it matter) Graeme Miller is an artist and composer whose work emerges from performance. He co-founded the influential Impact Theatre Co-operative in 1978 and his world-renowned work, A Girl Skipping won the Dance Umbrella prize in 1990. His installation works, Beheld (2006), Bassline (2004, 2009) and Track (2010-14) have been widely seen internationally. He has recently composed music for Forced Entertainment’s Under Bright Light (2022) and Tim Etchell’s L’Addition (2023) for Avignon Festival. His fully restored radio installation, LINKED will re-open this autumn in East London to coincide with the launch of Tate’s Radical Landscapes exhibition in London Borough of Waltham Forest. Let’s Dance in the City, London Jade Hackett Jade Hackett is an experienced choreographer, dancer and actor whose dance theatre productions have included: The Pied Piper, Boy Blue Entertainment, Theatre Royal Stratford East 2006 (playing Da Brat); Blaze, the international tour, Berlin and Dubai tour; Into the Hoodz, ZooNation Dance Company, London and UK tour in 2016 (playing Zapunzel); The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party, ZooNation Dance Company, Roundhouse 2016-2017 (playing Queen of Hearts and Cheshire Cat); Some Like it Hip Hop, ZooNation Dance Company, The Peacock Theatre 2019 (playing Kerry). Her theatre work has included: Hex, National Theatre; associate choreographer for Get Up Stand Up: The Bob Marley West End Musical; Sylvia: The Old Vic; Nine Night, written by Natasha Gordon, Trafalgar Studios, 2019 (playing Aunty Maggie and Lorraine); Black Boys at Apollo Theatre. Jade has also appeared in several commercial projects including: StreetDance 3D: The Movie, opposing crew; 2010 Adidas advertising campaigns; ASOS collaboration clothing line; London Olympics and Baku European Games Opening and Closing Ceremonies in 2012 and 2015. Let’s Dance in the City Let’s Dance in the City is an initiative that encourages artists to take ownership of public spaces, whether they are structures of power, places to gather or historic landmarks to create a series of innovative dance films. The initiative forms part of the Black Dance Digital Revolution, led by Serendipity Institute for Black Arts and Heritage in collaboration with regional partners Northern School of Contemporary Dance, Dance City and Dance Umbrella. The project seeks to push the boundaries of how dance is created, documented and shared. The project will culminate in Digital BlackCentric Week, 6-12 November 2023, an online sharing of cutting-edge development, conversation and new work that utilises technology as a creative tool. Black Digital Dance Revolution Digital BlackCentric week is part of the Black Digital Dance Revolution. Black Dance Digital Revolution is a nationally significant project working with regional partners; Serendipity (Leicester), Northern School of Contemporary Dance (Leeds), Dance City (Newcastle), Dance Umbrella (London) and beyond. It draws on the dance heritage of these four cities to develop a programme of digital and physical work including dance films, workshops and artist led residencies. Black Digital Dance Revolution explores how digital technologies can be integrated to push the boundaries of how artistic work is created, documented and shared, building stronger relationships and networks across organisations in the UK dance sector and establishing a living legacy for Black dance. O MEDEA Trajel Harrell gained international recognition for creating a series of works that bring together the tradition of voguing - a modern dance style developed in the late 1980s from the Harlem ballroom scene - with early postmodern dance. In his latest work, the artist combines theoretical ideas from voguing with gestures and formal ideas that derived from Butoh dance, which was conceived in Japan during the late 50’s and early 60’s. Weaving the links between two seemingly distant dance cultures, the artist puts the body at the centre of his research exploring the ways in which it becomes a receptacle of memory, the past and historical characters who have inspired this work. Intertwining notions of time, history and transcultural references, it reveals the multitude of layers that make up the richness of history of contemporary dance. Harrell has had his work presented at Avignon (2023); Impulstanz Vienna (2023); Berliner Festspiele (2023); Milano Triennale (2023); Ludwig Forum (2023); Aichi Triennial (2022); MUDAM (2022); Holland Festival (2022): Kunsthalle Zurich (2022); Fondation Cartier, Paris (2021); São Paulo Bienal (2021); Lafayette Anticipations (2021), Gwangju Biennale (2021); Impulstanz Festival, Vienna (2021); Manchester International Festival (2019); Ludwig Museum- Cologne (2019); Kanal Pompidou -Brussels (2019); Festival d’Automne, Paris (2019); MUDAM (2018); The Kitchen, New York (2018); The Barbican Centre London (2017); Hammer Museum, Los Angeles (2017); Tanz im August, Berlin (2017); Documenta- Parliament of Bodies (2017); MoMA, New York (2016); Festival d’Avignon (2016); Palais de Tokyo, Paris (2016); Centre Pompidou, Paris (2015); Stedelijk Museum and Holland Festival (2014); Centre Pompidou-Metz (2014); MoMA PS1 (2013); Performa Biennial (2011); and The New Museum – New York (2009), among others. Currently, Harrell is one of the house directors at The Schauspielhaus Zurich and the founding director of The Schauspielhaus Zurich Dance Ensemble. Footage recorded during Friend of a Friend, a project by Trajal Harrell, imagined for and presented as part of the exhibition Sarah Sze, Night into Day, produced by the Nomadic Nights of the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain, March 2021 O Medea forms one part of a trilogy, Porca Miseria, produced by Manchester International Festival and commissioned by Manchester International Festival, Schauspielhaus Zürich, ONASSIS STEGI, Kampnagel (Hamburg), Holland Festival, the Barbican and Dance Umbrella, NYU Skirball, Berliner Festspiele and The Arts Centre at NYU Abu Dhabi. KINGDOM Vincenzo Lamagna Vincenzo is an Italian musician, composer and producer based in London. His music is known for its visceral, emotive and edgy language that utilises an unconventional hybrid of electro-orchestral sounds. As well as his solo work, Vincenzo has carved a niche in the alternative contemporary dance world, where he has established himself as a major collaborator with some of the most acclaimed choreographers of this generation, Hofesh Shechter and Akram Khan. His most recent collaborations include Akram Khan’s award winning 21st-century adaptation of Giselle for English National Ballet and Khan’s Until the Lions, which premiered at the Roundhouse, London in 2016. His scores are a mercurial combination of acoustic and electronic music, recognised for their ferocious industrial undertones, haunting melodies and cinematic soundscapes. Danilo Moroni Danilo is a photographer and creative director based in Madrid, working between advertising and fine art. His work is characterised by a classic yet contemporary aesthetic, often with the use of black and white images which create a timeless feeling. Danilo is currently working on a new photography project called Ilumina Tu Sombra, where is he merging his interest and studies in human kind, astrology and anthropology to create an experience of consciousness toward transformation and empowerment. Alongside the fine art work, Danilo co-founded audio-visual production company Beyond Films, specialising in corporate and commercial films. Special thanks to Sasha Milavic Davies, Marco Mignone, Katie Lusby, Victoria Hoyland, Jorge Crecis, Norman Jankowski, James Adams, Domenico Angarano, Yaron Engler, Paul Mosley. ARTIST ENCOUNTERS Abby Zbikowski is a choreographer creating contemporary dance works that pay homage to the effort of living, tactics of survival, and the aesthetics produced as a result, utilising the physical aspects and psyche-emotional experience of her rigorous training in African and Afro-diasporic forms, playing sports, and performing manual labour. She founded Abby Z and the New Utility in 2012 and received the 2017 Juried Bessie Award for her “unique and utterly authentic movement vocabulary in complex and demanding structures to create works of great energy, intensity, surprise, and danger.” In 2018 she received a Choreographer of the Future commission from Dance Umbrella and in 2020 a United States Artists Fellowship. She is an inaugural Caroline Hearst Choreographer-In-Residence at the Lewis Center for the Arts at Princeton University, currently artist-in-residence at New York LiveArts, and formerly at Bates Dance Festival, American Dance Festival, and the STREB Lab for Action Mechanics. She is currently an Associate Professor of Dance at The Ohio State University, formerly at the University of Illinois and on faculty at the American Dance Festival. She has taught at the Academy of Culture in Riga, Latvia; at Festival Un Pas Vers L’Avant in Abidjan, Ivory Coast; and studied at Germaine Acogny’s L’École de Sables in Senegal. Abby has created commissioned work for the Dayton Contemporary Dance Company and numerous universities. STOPGAP DANCE COMPANY | DANCE TAPES On The Way To My Body Kazuyo Morita is a freelance disabled dance artist and actor, using standing with prosthetic leg movement modalities. She has 15 years of experience with different projects and participated in the Tokyo Paralympics opening ceremony as a dancer in 2021. Kazuyo is a researcher and has a master’s degree in disability dance. Kazuyo is especially interested in Disability Aesthetic and Disability culture. Within My Own Bones Shyne Phiri is a freelance dance artist and a founder member of Zimbabwe’s first contemporary dance company, Tumbuka with whom he danced for 15 years before sustaining a spinal injury in 2004. Since then, he has been exploring different ways to move as a disabled dance artist and has choreographed and performed in short films for Stopgap and Dash Dot Dance. He is interested in choreography on subjects connected to everyday Life. Commissioned by Pavilion Dance South West through Cultural Recovery Fund Supported by International Collaboration Grant, British Council and through public funding from Arts Council England Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan McNulty Posted September 17, 2023 Author Share Posted September 17, 2023 PRESS RELEASE 15 September 2023 Twitter/ Facebook / Instagram / Website DANCE UMBRELLA AND SOMERSET HOUSE ANNOUNCE THE FULL SCHEDULE FOR LONDON BATTLE, SATURDAY 7 OCTOBER Dance Umbrella and Somerset House are excited to announce more details for London Battle which takes place at Dance Umbrella’s home, Somerset House, on the opening weekend of the festival, Saturday 7 October. London Battle will take in the iconic open-air courtyard for a day packed with showcases, workshops, cyphers, live DJs and a big outdoor party. In celebration of the 50th anniversary of hip hop culture and with Breaking set to be the highlight of the 2024 Paris Olympics, Dance Umbrella and Somerset House are bringing together some of the most exciting talent from the four corners of London to go head-to-head across a diverse range of styles. Curated by choreographer Jade Hackett, the audience will play their part in judging and deciding which part of our global city brings the best dance flavour – north, south, east or west. Jade Hackett said: 'London Battle is an explosive new festival festuring some of London’s finest within the hiphop and street dance communities. With dancers representing all the four corners of this city, it will be brimming with powerful and gravity-defying movement from its battlers and is certainly not a show to be missed. Spectators can also participate in family fun classes and be entertained with incredible performances, including new work by award winning dance company, Boy Blue Ent. Finishing off with THE party of all parties as our Dj's help us to skank the evening away. Come and enjoy an amazing day with us at 'London Battle' and truly celebrate our wonderful city, in style.' Starting at 1pm this completely free event offers audiences plenty of opportunities to get involved beginning with a stellar line-up of workshops to get everyone moving with Turbo teaching house style, Olu on Afrobeats, Kloe Dean doing Hip Hop and Tiago will be Waacking. All abilities welcome! Between 3.30 and 4.30pm there will be a series of showcase performances from some of London’s most exciting talent including krump collective Gully South Block (GSB); the UK’s most celebrated hip-hop dance theatre company Boy Blue, street dance expert Lauren Scott and Britain’s Got Talent 2023 contestants The Queens. DJs featured across the day include: Midnight Train Collective and Josh Constanzo, and our MC for the day is actor and presenter Ashley J. The London Battle finale commences at around 4.30pm with four teams hailing from the four corners of London, North, South, East and West meeting in the middle to slog it out for the London crown. Who will be the best? You decide! Leading the team from the north is Troy Banton aka Dat Boi Troy from the Indahouse family. A house dance specialist, Troy also trained in classical ballet with the Russian ballet school, and in African Caribbean dance forms with Irie Dance Company. He’ll be joined by 19 year-old Rory Clarke, an exciting newcomer who regularly performs with ZooNation and Far From the Norm alongside the talented Anna Ponomarenko aka b-girl Stefani who this year took the silver medal at the European Breaking Championships. The team from the south will be led by Nicholas Marvel (aka Marvel) who is a representative of Monsterz Crew UK. He is known for his signature animatronic popping style and inventive isolations. He’ll be accompanied by Team GB member and Red Bull BC One champion Roxanne Milliner (b-girl Roxy), as well as Chaldon Williams (aka Sev Raven), a choreographer, artist mentor and creator of the Tribe Wayz collective. Representing east London is Jordan ‘JFunk’ Franklin, who has been performing as a member of one of the UK’s most celebrated hip hop dance theatre companies, Boy Blue, for over 10 years. He’ll be joined by dynamic dance artist and international champion Evion Hackett and creative performer Toby “Shush” Jackman. Battling for the title from west London is breaking expert Lee Crowley, also known as Reckless-Lee, who is a member of the award-winning BirdGang Dance Company. He’ll be joined by fellow BirdGang crew member and multi-skilled performer, dancer and teacher Elise Antonia, and Benjamin Banishahi aka Shahi. Once the winners are crowned there will be a celebration of Hip Hop bringing all the elements of the day together in one big party. Listings Information Dance Umbrella & Somerset House present LONDON BATTLE Curated by Jade Hackett Saturday 7 October 1 - 6.30pm Somerset House’s Edmond J. Safra Fountain Court Timetable 1 - 3.30 - Workshops 3.30 - 4.30 - Showcases 4.30 - 5.30 - Battle 5.30 - 6.30 - Party Timings are subject to change with further artists to be announced. Notes to editors: Biogs London Battle Curator: Jade Hackett Jade Hackett is an experienced choreographer, dancer and actor who has appeared in productions including The Pied Piper, Boy Blue Entertainment, Stratford Theatre Royal; Blaze, international tour; Into the Hoodz, The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party and Some Like it Hip Hop for ZooNation Dance Company. Her theatre work has included Hex, National Theatre; Get Up Stand Up, The Bob Marley Musical; Sylvia, The Old Vic; Nine Night, Trafalgar Studios; Black Boys at Apollo Theatre. Jade has also appeared in several commercial projects including StreetDance 3D The Movie; campaigns for Adidas and ASOS; London Olympics and Baku European Games ceremonies. London Battle is a Dance Umbrella and Somerset House co-production About Dance Umbrella Dance Umbrella is a London festival 45 years in the making and moving with the times. Every year our festival ignites London and online with the next generation of trailblazing artists. Since 1978, we have been an international home for dance across a global city, presenting more than 1000 artists from 45 countries to over one million people. We have brought outstanding dance to more than 145 venues throughout London and online; from the high-profile stages of Sadler’s Wells, Southbank Centre and Barbican to local arts centres – and taking in the more unexpected locations of canal boats, ice rinks and car park rooftops in between. Since 2020, we have also given online audiences the chance to experience the festival through a curated programme including dance films and artist encounters. Dance Umbrella is also a commissioner of new work, co-producing with partners based in the UK and abroad, to invest in the next wave of international choreographic talent. Alongside this, we create year-round creative learning initiatives for all ages and nurture the development of arts professionals. Appointed in 2021, Dance Umbrella’s new Artistic Director/CEO Freddie Opoku-Addaie's vision for the festival builds on its 45-year track record of commissioning and producing excellent work. This new chapter introduces a programme that puts emerging and diverse talent at its heart, reflecting the global identity of our London home. Dance Umbrella Festival 2023 takes place 6-31 October, across London and online. Danceumbrella.co.uk About Somerset House Step Inside, Think Outside As the home of cultural innovators, Somerset House is a site of origination, with a cultural programme offering alternative perspectives on the biggest issues of our time. We are a place of joy and discovery, where everyone is invited to Step Inside and Think Outside. From our historic site in the heart of London, we work globally across art, creativity, business, and non-profit, nurturing new talent, methods and technologies. Our resident community of creative enterprises, arts organisations, artists and makers, makes us a centre of ideas, with most of our programme home-grown. We sit at the meeting point of artistic and social innovation, bringing worlds and minds together to create surprising and often magical results. Our spirit of constant curiosity and counter perspective is integral to our history and key to our future. somersethouse.org.uk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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