Choreographer Dana Tai Soon Burgess to Discuss Memoir at Oxford Community Center in Maryland

The Oxford Community Center will welcome internationally acclaimed choreographer, author, and cultural ambassador Dana Tai Soon Burgess and members of the Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company, Washington, D.C.'s preeminent contemporary modern dance company, for a unique evening combining conversation, storytelling, literature, and live dance on Friday, October 9 at 5:30 p.m. The event offers audiences an intimate look inside the life and creative work of one of the nation's most distinguished choreographers. The Washington Post hails Burgess and his eponymous Company - 'not only a Washington prize, but a national dance treasure.'

Burgess will discuss his award-winning memoir, Chino and the Dance of the Butterfly, in an onstage conversation with Margaret Andersen. Their discussion will explore Burgess's remarkable personal and artistic journey, his multicultural heritage, the development of his career, and the experiences that have shaped his choreography. Members of the Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company will bring the conversation to life through live dance excerpts of the Company's signature work, giving the audience an opportunity to see how memory, identity, history, and personal experience are translated into movement. This special OCC presentation offers audiences something rarely experienced in a traditional performance setting: the opportunity to hear the story behind the dance and then see those ideas expressed through movement onstage.

Burgess founded the Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company in 1992 and has become a leading figure in American modern dance. Known internationally as the 'Diplomat of Dance,' Burgess has served as a U.S. State Department Cultural Ambassador for more than two decades. His work explores the joy, sorrow, beauty, and complexity of the human experience, frequently drawing upon questions of cultural identity and belonging. His company has performed throughout the United States and internationally, bringing modern dance to audiences around the world. In 2016, he was named the Smithsonian Institution's first-ever Choreographer-in-Residence, establishing a groundbreaking relationship between contemporary modern dance and the visual arts at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery.

His memoir, Chino and the Dance of the Butterfly, traces the experiences and relationships that helped shape him as an artist and choreographer. The award-winning book provides a deeply personal window into the cultural influences, mentors, family history, and artistic discoveries behind his work. A fourth-generation Korean American, Burgess's ancestors arrived in Hawaii aboard the Gaelic in 1903. They were among the very first groups of Korean immigrants who settled in America, working on sugarcane and Del Monte pineapple plantations. His mixed-race heritage (Korean and Scottish-Irish ancestry) serves as a primary thematic anchor for his career. Copies of his book will be available on site for purchase.

Thanks to exclusive partnership between the Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company with the Asian Wine Association of America, the evening also features a viticultural experience. Guests will be treated to a premier wine tasting featuring selections from RD Winery, Napa Valley's first Vietnamese owned winery. The winery's ethos is driven by founder Dong Van Nguyen's inspiring legacy and the traditions of altruism and community in Vietnamese culture. This ethos shines through in its acclaimed vintages, pairs exceptionally well for an evening of arts and community.