Dallas  Black Dance Theatre Dancers Transfer Stage to Dallas Outdoor Locations

a??Dallasa?? Black Dance Theatre (DBDT) is completing its 44tha??season with all virtual performances. In January 2021, the company will continue to capture the dance and choreography on video in natural outdoor environments across Dallas in many instances. Additionally,a??the dance company has decided to make virtual performances a part of its offering, evena??after it goes backa??toa??performing live in venues.a??Through its virtual performances,a??Dallas Black Dance Theatre has reached new audiences across the country and worldwide,a??including Australia, England, and Norway.

"During the summer of 2020, Dallas Black Dance Theatre became the first professional dance company nationally and internationally to consistently present paid virtual performances as a new business model after the closing of live performances due to the COVID-19 pandemic," said DBDT Executive Director Zenetta S. Drew. "This new model has resulted in extending the organization's reach beyond the theatre, allowing audiences in areas the company has never traveled to physically to enjoy performances."

The DBDT Spring Season launches in January 2021 with Legacy performances of audience favorites. The artistic team has adapted the choreography of some dances from the stage, bringing the dances to life at locations across the Dallas landscape.

DBDT: Encore! | The Choreographer Experience: Established & Emerging

Saturday, January 9, 2021, 7:00 pm CST/8:00 EST Virtual Performance

Unsettled Thoughts by Richard A. Freeman, Jr., features an excerpt of the work that explores the roles of the heart and mind. Some Moan for Love, by the late Darryl B. Sneed, is a solo that expresses the sentiment of love in hopes of reciprocation. COLD, a duet choreographed by Floyd McLean, Jr., is filled with searing strength and colossal control. Weighted by Shauna Davis is a thought-provoking work that explores pushing past physical boundaries.

DBDT | LEGACY PERFORMANCE SERIES + DANCEMAKER'S DISCUSSION

Saturday, January 23, 2021, 7:00 pm CST/8:00 pm EST Virtual Performance

If you just want a good laugh, you don't want to miss Monologues choreographed by DBDT veteran dancer Sean J. Smith. The work showcases a series of satirical sketches featuring characters dealing with anxieties, like Ken and Barbie, nerdy spelling-bee contestants, the wife of an alcoholic, and a lottery winner. The audience can talk to the choreographer and dancers in a Dancemaker's Discussion that follows the performance.

DBDT: Encore! Reminisce

Saturday, February 6, 2021, 7:00 CST/8:00 EST Virtual Performance

The DBDT: Encore! February 6th performance of Reminisce reflects on the Civil Rights Era, paying tribute through the music of Andra Day, Aretha Franklin, and Gladys Knight & The Pips with the empowering words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.a?? This work was a collaborative effort by DBDT: Encore! Artistic Director Nycole Ray, DBDT: Encore! Artistic Assistant Richard A. Freeman, Jr., Encore! dancer Terrell Rogers and the entire Encore! Company.

CULTURAL AWARENESS

Saturday, February 20, 2021, 7:00 pm CST/8:00 EST Virtual Performance

Dallas Black Dance Theatre produces a dramatic perspective on Civil Rights activism through movement, set to the musical genius of Odetta Holmes in ODETTA. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Associate Artistic Director Matthew Rushing choreographed this work to pay tribute to Odetta's musical range of folk, gospel, and blues music. The Mourner's Bench exemplifies the choreographic brilliance of Talley Beatty. He created the solo in 1947, which portrays an emotional, spiritual struggle with social inequity in the rural South during the Civil War.

DBDT: Encore! DANCING BEYOND BORDERS

Saturday, March 13, 2021, 7:00 pm CST/8:00 EST Virtual Performance

Dr. Lorenzo "Rennie" Harris' choreographic genius shines in Hate 2 Luv U, an intriguing blend of street-dance styles with house music based on current social themes. Tidal Intersections is a high-powered contemporary modern work for the full company by Polish-born choreographer Katarzyna Skarpetowska. Nycole Ray choreographed Opaque, a full company work that embodies movements that manifest a mysterious and majestic atmosphere.

DBDT: Encore! RISING EXCELLENCE

Saturday, April 17, 2021, 7:00 pm CST/8:00 pm EST Virtual Performance

A first for Dallas Black Dance Theatre, a dance/choreographic duo consisting of Derion Loman and Madison Olandt based in Los Angeles. Together they have created The Long Wait for DBDT: Encore! The dance takes the audience on a desert experience of the human spirit, refusing to give up even when it can't see the finish line. Nineteenth vividly captures the triumphant struggle waged by women for equality in the suffrage movement. Choreographer Nycole Ray creates a unique new work that explores the personal struggles of women as they balance families, work, and other commitments with their pursuit of equality.

SPRING CELEBRATION

Saturday, May 22, 2021, 7:00 pm CST/8:00 pm EST Virtual Performance

Dallas Black Dance Theatre takes you on an emotional journey through the process of forgiveness and unconditional love in A Tender Pardon. DBDT veteran dancer Claude Alexander III choreographed the work.

For virtual ticket prices and more details about the performances, visit www.DBDT.com.

 

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