Hubbard Street Dance Chicago is getting ready to take the stage at Chicago's Harris Theater for Music and Dance with two world premiere works by Rena Butler and Kyle Abraham. Here's what HSDC dancer Craig D. Black told us about creating these two new works:
Hubbard Street Dance Chicago dancer Rena Butler's career has a full circle moment at this year's Dance for Life as the company performs an excerpt of Ohad Naharin's "DECADANCE." Here's what she told us about taking the Dance for Life stage with her fellow HSDC artists:
One of the last things you would expect to experience during a contemporary dance concert at a prestigious theater is Lil Wayne's hottest new single, bass bumping over the speakers, as some of the world's finest dance artists take the stage. Well, that is only part of what you are in for if you can make it to the Harris Theater for Music and Dance December 6, 8, or 9 in Chicago for the world premiere of Rena Butler's latest choreographic work for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, "III.Third." Rena and the dancers of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago use "III.Third" to examine identity through culture and customs, using references to popular urban culture. DancerMusic's Kristi Licera caught up with Rena during the final week of rehearsal for III.Third to learn more. Here's what Rena told us:
Darryl Joseph is an independent producer with an intricately careful sense of how to put beats together. Originally from New York and now living in Chicago, his solo tracks are often sparse and electronic, and always elegantly designed. He's found himself more and more in demand as more and more people have heard his work, not only as a sought-after collaborator for vocalists, but also for choreographers. His gift for enthusiastic collaboration as much as for composition has led to recent projects with Stephanie Martinez, Christopher Huggins, Nick Pupillo, and now with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago Choreographic Fellow Rena Butler. We asked Darryl about a lot of different things --- composing for dance, working with Rena Butler, what's up next for him, and more -- and here's what he told us.
People often speak of 'the language of dance', perhaps because dance is capable of expressing thoughts and ideas in a way that is very different from the linear logic of spoken words. Manuel Vignoulle's work is emblematic of this, partly because his willingness to invest in careful thought and reflection is extraordinary, and partly because his ability to express that thought as movement design is so remarkable. Vignoulle's latest work is a trio entitle EARTH which he will be performing at The Dance Gallery Festival NYC on November 3rd and 4th, and then at The McCallum Theatre Choreography Festival on November 10th. In it, Vignoulle creates a unique and special language in dance, inspired by some exceptionally careful reflection on a complex subject -- the interaction and connection and mutual involvement each of us experiences with others. We asked Manuel to give us some more insight into his thoughts, and to the beautiful way he expresses them in EARTH. Here's what he told us:
The McCallum Theatre's influential annual dance program, The Choreography Festival, will return for its twentieth edition this weekend. One of the performances on Saturday's program is an intensely thoughtful duet choreographed by French choreographer Manuel Vignoulle. The work is entitled Black & White, and Vignoulle performs in the work alongside Rena Butler. Here, Vignoulle shares with DancerMusic a whole range of thought provoking and often inspiring perspectives on the work. **** PHOTO DISCLAIMER: Please note that this article has images that contain nudity. Dancers featured in these photographs appear topless, as it is integral to the presentation of the work's choreographic vision. ***
