Kizuna Dance to Perform at Gerald W. Lynch Theater in May 2026

The CUNY Dance Initiative (CDI), an expansive program providing New York City choreographers and dance companies with creative residencies on CUNY college campuses, has announced a performance from Kizuna Dance, set for May 2, 2026 at 7PM at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College (524 West 59th Street, New York, NY).

Kizuna Dance, led by Artistic Director Cameron McKinney, is an innovative ensemble blending streetdance styles with contemporary floorwork. The company presents a repertory concert featuring works from across the company's 12-year history, all inspired by different aspects of the Japanese language and culture.

The performance will include BREAD AND CIRCUS, a surreal dream sequence inspired by Oscar Oiwa's visual installation DREAMS OF A SLEEPING WORLD; E.X.P.L.O.D.E, a dramatic solo created in response to the 30th anniversary of the classic animated film AKIRA; and the NYC premiere of SAFE HARBOR, a new collaboration between McKinney and Japanese choreographer Toru Shimazaki.

Performers include Emily Aslin, Eric Blovits, Jennifer Burlage, Rachel Calabrese, Juan Ospina, Isabele Rosso, Lesar Stepputat, and other guest performers. Lighting Design by Michael Abbatiello and costumes by Zhenya Dolgova.

SAFE HARBOR (2024) was created as part of a United States - Japan Friendship Commission Creative Artist Fellowship in collaboration with Japanese choreographer Toru Shimazaki. Through a two-week residency in Japan, the work was created by exchanging movement and ideas with Japanese artists.

BREAD AND CIRCUS (2025) is a hyperphysical exploration of the paradox of boundless imagination constrained by individual perspective. When we find ourselves lost at sea, our dreams become a lens for self-discovery. Inspired by the surreal progression of dreams and the fantastical works of Japanese artist Oscar Oiwa and Tomokazu Matsuyama - which can veer from familiar yet uncanny beginnings to vibrant, chaotic depths - the work asks: will we remain victims of our imagination? Or trust in those trying to guide us back to shore?

E.X.P.L.O.D.E (2019), a solo by Artistic Director Cameron McKinney, is inspired by the seminal 1988 Japanese animated film AKIRA, explores how themes of construction/destruction, death/rebirth, and a fear of the unknown can lead to dissent, madness, and loneliness.

Founded in 2014, Kizuna Dance is an international repertory ensemble that blends streetdance with contemporary floorwork, using dance as a medium to connect American and Japanese cultures. The company has performed nationally and internationally at prestigious institutions and festivals such as The Japan Society, Performatica, the Let's Dance International Frontiers Festival, Gibney Dance, and Middlebury College's Japanese Language School, among many others. Artistic Director Cameron McKinney has received fellowships from the U.S.-Japan Friendship Commission, The School at Jacob's Pillow, Princeton University, the Alvin Ailey New Directions Lab, and the Asian Cultural Council. In 2020, McKinney performed company repertory alongside a new collaborative work with Japanese choreographer Toru Shimazaki at the U.S. Ambassador's Residence in Tokyo, Japan. In July 2019, the company had its French premiere at the International Choreographic Festival of Blois on the National Stage. In 2024, Kizuna Dance celebrated its 10th anniversary season with the world premiere of the evening-length work FATHER ABSENCE | MOTHER MA, presented by CUNY Dance Initiative at John Jay College. That same year, the company also traveled to Japan to create SAFE HARBOR, a performance collaboration between five American dancers, Japanese choreographer Toru Shimazaki, and five Japanese dancers from Kobe College in Japan.