Peggy Baker Dance Projects presents the sound and feel of it

Peggy Baker Dance Projects presents the sound and feel of it, a stunning evening of audio and physical contrasts in three pieces created by legendary dancer and choreographer Peggy Baker.

Running January 20-22 and January 25-29 at the Betty Oliphant Theatre, this multi-dimensional, contemporary Canadian dance performance is distinguished by its combination of live, onstage contemporary music with vibrant performances by a superlative group of dancers and features the world premiere of a major new work in celebration of the centenary of John Cage's birth.

the sound and feel of it is a showcase of master artists, and a collaboration that transcends generation and discipline. Unique in its field, this presentation is as much about music as dance: Peggy Baker Dance Projects creates a dancer's world for the audience to experience - through music, movement and stunning visuals - by embracing the sound and feel of it.
In the Fire of Conflict
danced by the hyper-kinetic Benjamin Kamino
featuring marimba virtuoso Beverley Johnston
and original music for voice, cello and marimba by acclaimed Canadian composer Christos Hatzis

In the Fire of Conflict first appeared at the 2008 Toronto Summer Music Festival danced by choreographer Peggy Baker, and is now reinvented as a startling, virtuosic vehicle for the fearless dancer Benjamin Kamino. His body is thrown into action by Christos Hatzis' powerful score, the driving performance of percussionist Beverley Johnston, and the raw, blunted text we hear delivered by its author, Steve Henry (rapper Bugsy H).
Portal
Peggy Baker dances her double Dora Award-winning solo from 2008

Portal strips the act of dancing to the bone. In this stark and enigmatic solo, Peggy Baker shares a silent theatre with the audience, dancing brief passages in tiny shards of light; a solitary figure stranded at the brink of eternity. Portal was honoured with the 2008 Dora Mavor Moore Awards for Outstanding New Choreography and Outstanding Performance.
Piano/Quartet
a major new work in celebration of the centenary of John Cage's birth for outstanding Toronto dancers
Ric Brown, Sean Ling, Sahara Morimoto and Andrea Nann
danced to John Cage's Sonatas and Interludes for prepared piano
performed live by celebrated pianist Andrew Burashko
For Piano/Quartet, Baker sets four superb dancers in motion, translating - as choreography - a series of beautiful and complex poems by John Cage, based on quotations by the painter Jasper Johns. We do not hear the poems, we see them danced. What we do hear is a selection of Cage's Sonatas and Interludes for prepared piano played by the stellar Canadian pianist Andrew Burashko. A man writes poems composed of another man's words. A choreographer uses the poems as the score for a dance. The dance is performed to the music of the poet. A celebration of the centenary of John Cage's birth.

Peggy Baker is one of Canada's most outstanding and influential dance artists. A founding member of Dancemakers (Toronto/1974), she toured internationally with Lar Lubovitch, Mikhail Baryshnikov and Mark Morris before debuting as a soloist in 1990. Appointed Artist-in-Residence at Canada's National Ballet School in 1992, Baker is the recipient of the 2006 Premier's Award for Excellence in the Arts, an honorary doctorate from the University of Calgary, three Dora Mavor Moore Awards for Outstanding Performance and two for Outstanding Choreography. She is a member of the Order of Ontario and the Order of Canada, and is the recipient of the 2009 Governor General's Performing Arts Award for lifetime achievement in dance. In 2010, she was awarded the Walter Carsen Prize for Excellence in the Performing Arts.
Peggy Baker Dance Projects presents the sound and feel of it
A stunning evening of audio and physical contrasts
Choreography by Peggy Baker
January 20-22 & January 25-29, 2012
Wed - Sat at 8:30pm, Sun matinees at 4pm at the Betty Oliphant Theatre, 404 Jarvis Street, Toronto
Tickets: Adults $28 ($22 Students/Seniors/CADA) plus applicable taxes & services charges
Box Office: 1-888-222-6608 OR online at www.peggybakerdance.com