ODC/Dance Premieres Its First Full-Length Film UP FOR AIR/DECAMERON, August 19

ODC/Dance, San Francisco's internationally acclaimed contemporary dance company, has announce its first full-length film, Up for Air/Decameron. The film will be directed by ODC Founder and Artistic Director Brenda Way, and will premiere to the public on August 19, 2021.

In 2020, ODC/Dance was poised to present Up for Air/Decameron on stage. Just weeks before opening, the city's shelter in place order shut down the season. This spring, ODC has taken on a breakaway project: transforming the stage piece into ODC/Dance's first full-length film. The work itself is a collaboration woven from all four ODC choreographic voices: Brenda Way, KT Nelson, Kimi Okada, and Resident Choreographer Kate Weare and is performed by dancers from both ODC/Dance and New York-based Kate Weare Company.

The work is inspired by Bocaccio's framing novel about the retreat of ten young Florentines seeking to avoid the plague of 1385. They pass the time telling stories to each other.

The stories the dancers "tell" in Up for Air/Decameron touch on the combustible nature of love, the pleasures of connection and those values that help us survive catastrophic times: humor, resilience, and grace. Up for Air/Decameron features a range of contemporary music and live vocal and instrumental music by Emily Mann of the celebrated Old Time Band, The Crooked Jades.

"With its multiple narrators, the Decameron provided an inviting framework for weaving together four choreographic voices, KT, Kimi, Kate and me, and our two companies," said Way. "The setting for this tale is an imaginary garden outside of Florence where the players pass their days by telling each other erotic, touching, and raucous tales of love. What better subject matter for this time of endless days and fleeting weeks?"

This film offers the viewer a rare opportunity to see the work through the eye of a choreographer--giving the audience a unique perspective into each dancer and the dance itself. Filmed with state of the art equipment, by a professional crew of both LA and SF based individuals, the stylized camera work and edits give the viewer glimpses of both dancers' and choreographer's perspective of the work--immersing the audience in images at once intimate and full of creative energy.

The production crew consists of an impressive cache of award-winning feature film veterans, including Jonathan Hall as Director of Photography whose credits include Cirque du Soleil 3D, The Walking Dead, Triple Threat, and the dance film Breaking Through.

The public premiere on August 19, 2021 will be presented as part of ODC/Dance's ongoing digital series, Drinks & a Dance. More details and event time TBD. Tickets go on sale July 20. In addition to the virtual event, tickets will be available for a live screening at ODC Theater.

A series of preview screenings for the film's producers and donors will be held at ODC Theater, July 30-August 1, 2021.