Tapestry Dance Company Presents PRECIOUS PRESENT- THE JAZZ ELEMENT

Austin's acclaimed dance company Tapestry will bring a jazz version of the The Precious Present to the Austin Ventures Studio Theatre, Dec. 17 and 18, at 2 and 8 p.m. Saturday and at 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets start at $35 and are available www.tapestry.org

The Precious Present - The Jazz Element will celebrate Austin dance, vocal and music artists including Anuradha Naimpally, China Smith, Kelly Bach, Sharon Marroquin, Nagavalli, Olivia Chacon, Jun "Sunny" Shen, Jesse Berry and Denisha Nicholas as well as director Acia Gray. Visual artist Ami Plasse will also be onstage creating a new work throughout this moving jazz atmosphere with an original and unique finished product complete for the finale. The Precious Present will be accompanied by jazz musicians Austin Kimble on piano, Dylan Jones on bass and Masumi Jones on drums.

The Precious Present weaves together the indigenous American musical foundations and culture of jazz with a palette of diverse dance techniques from tap dance to flamenco and from modern dance to visual art. A performance that truly celebrates Austin's incredible and mutually supportive artistic community.

"It is in the dance of our individual lives and the spontaneity of the jazz element that we collaborate to create a beautiful symphony of community," said Tapestry Director Acia Gray. "All unique yet traveling together and not alone - an artistic human tapestry that holds itself together as one. Rhythm is life and life is rhythm in this magic of movement and sound. "

ABOUT TAPESTRY DANCE COMPANY: As a Long Center Resident Company, Tapestry is a professional, non-profit dance organization founded in 1989 by Acia Gray and Deirdre Strand for the purpose of developing a foundation in multi-form dance performance and education. Over 32 years, the critically acclaimed events and programs of Tapestry Dance have included more than 65 full length world premiere concerts in Austin, TX, the Annual International Soul to Sole Tap Festival bringing the leaders and legends of tap dance to Central Texas for over 25 years, community outreach programs such as Rhythm, Dance, Music & You! serving thousands of at-risk and Title One children since 1990 and numerous master classes and workshops as well as touring performance residencies throughout the world. Awarded best ensemble, best dancer, best choreographer and other honors by The Austin Critic's Table Awards, Tapestry is also listed on the TCA Touring Roster and the company's NEA Masterpiece production of The Souls of Our Feet -­ A Celebration of American Tap Dance toured globally including The People's Republic of China for 5 weeks and director Acia Gray was asked to set a national syllabus for Chinese tap dance curriculum.

ABOUT ARTISTIC DIRECTOR ACIA GRAY: As soloist, choreographer and master teacher, Ms. Gray has toured extensively across the U.S. and abroad to include England, Ireland, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, China, Spain, Brazil, Canada and Austria and has shared the stage with such tap greats as Gregory Hines, Savion Glover and Donald O'Connor to name a few. In June of 2002, Ms. Gray was inducted as a premiere member of the Austin Arts Hall of Fame and was nominated for a prestigious Alpert Award in the Arts as well as being a choreographer chosen for the NEA National College Choreography Initiative. Her critically acclaimed book and Amazon.com category bestseller The Souls of Your Feet - A Tap Dance Guide for Rhythm Explorers is available at all major bookstores and has been translated in the Czech Republic and China. Ms. Gray also served on the NEA funded Steering Committee for the National Tap Plan and was recognized as a leader in the field in Lynn Dally's UCLA event Women in Tap. Ms. Gray has appeared in numerous documentaries including Passing It Forward / NPR and A Class Act - The Magic of Honi Coles. Her awards include the Third Coast Rhythm Project's Legacy Award, the 2008 Texas Tap Legend by the Dallas Dance Council and the 2010 Hoofer Award by Tap City - The New York City Tap Festival, among others. Ms. Gray is a 2019 Austin Creative Alliance Honoree.

Tapestry Dance is funded and supported in part this season by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division, the Texas Commission on the Arts, awards from the National Endowment for the Arts as well as The American Rescue Plan.

To post a comment, you must register and login.