Festival of Brazilian Dance Set for The Joyce Theater, 2/24-3/1

The Joyce Theater Foundation, Inc. will present a three week showcase of Brazilian dance from February 26 - March 16. Three Brazilian-based companies will be making their Joyce Theater debuts during the festival: Mimulus Companhia de Dança (Belo Horizonte) from February 24-March 1; Companhia Urbana de Dança (Rio de Janeiro) from March 3-6, a co-presentation with 651 ARTS; and Focus Cia de Dança (Rio de Janeiro) from March 8-10. These acclaimed companies will be joined by audience favorite DanceBrazil, closing out the festival from March 12-16. Tickets for all companies range in price from $10 to $49 ($26 to $37 for Joyce Members) and can be purchased through JoyceCharge at www.Joyce.org, or by calling 212-242-0800. Please note: ticket prices are subject to change. The Joyce Theater is located at 175 Eighth Avenue at 19th Street, in Chelsea.

Mimulus Companhia de Dança (February 26-March 1) makes its Joyce Theater debut with Dolores, an evening-length work by artistic director Jomar Mesquita and other members of the company, who also perform in the piece. This daring work, set to music from movies by the acclaimed Spanish filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar, explores some of the same themes seen in the renowned films: the improbable, the unusual, the tragic, the comic, and, of course, the playful. The piece does not recreate any specific works by the award-winning filmmaker; instead it is inspired by the ideas and emotions Almodóvar explores so clearly and effectively within them.

From Rio de Janeiro, Companhia Urbana de Dança in a co-presentation with 651 ARTS, makes its Joyce debut with four performances from March 3-6 in a program of two works, including a U.S. premiere. Under the artistic direction of Sonia Destrie Lie, the company will perform ID:ENTIDADES, a contemporary work by Lie featuring a blend of her most favorite dance genres, including hip-hop, b-boying and contemporary dance. The company will also present the U.S. premiere of Na Pista, a work inspired by the dancers' daily lives growing up in the "flavelas" (small urban towns) of Rio de Janeiro.

Also from Rio, Focus Cia de Dança, under the artistic direction of Alex Neoral, will make its debut Joyce engagement from March 8-10. The company will perform As canções que você dançou pra mim (The Songs You Danced For Me), a romantic romp set to the music of Grammy Award-winning Brazilian singer-songwriter Roberto Carlos, whose fifty-year career, starting with his Elvis Presley-influenced songs, has made him a true Brazilian legend. Spanning the years from the 60's to the 90's, the songs create the perfect backdrop for the four pairs of dancers who act out an enthralling narrative in this musical scene.

This year, Dance Brazil's annual season at The Joyce will anchor the Brazil Festival from March 12-16. With its trademark pulsating physicality, live music, and subtle evocations of Brazilian culture, Artistic Director Jelon Vieira's company presents two New York premieres: Búzios, by former company member Guilherme Duarte, and Vieira's Gueto. Búzios, exploring the role that the jogo de búzios, an enigmatic and mystical game of divination, plays in the daily life of Brazil, is set to a score by Brazilian composer Leo Jesus. Gueto, scored by award-winning Brazilian composer Marquinhos Carvalho, is Vieira's testimony to the abiding vitality and humanity that sustain the people living in the many marginalized, disenfranchised communities in Brazil and around the world. Concluding the program is last year's hit, Fé do Sertão, Vieira's depiction of the culture of Sertão, a dry, rural area of Northeastern Brazil dependent on seasonal rains. For this work, Vieira again collaborates with composer Marquinhos Carvalho.

Brazil Festival, a three week celebration of Brazilian dance presented by The Joyce Theater, will take place from February 24-March 16 and feature the following companies:

Mimulus Companhia de Dança*: February 26-March 1

Companhia Urbana de Dança*: March 3-6

Focus Cia de Dança*: March 8-10

DanceBrazil: March 12-16

*Denotes Joyce Theater Debut

Tickets for all companies range in price from $10 to $49 ($26 to $37 for Joyce Members) and can be purchased through JoyceCharge at www.Joyce.org, or by calling 212-242-0800. Please note: ticket prices are subject to change. The Joyce Theater is located at 175 Eighth Avenue at 19th Street, in Chelsea. For more information, please visit www.joyce.org.