Tag: Urban Bush Women

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REMEMBER ME, MORPHOSES, URBAN BUSH WOMEN, ET. AL.

 

If you’re in New York, don’t forget that David Parsons-choreographed rock opera, Remember Me, airs tonight at 7:30 on channel 21

 

Also upcoming in NYC, Morphoses takes Central Park’s SummerStage (photo above from that site) this Friday and Saturday nights at 8pm. Wheeldon’s company is performing a world premiere set to Martha Wainwright music (which I understand is to be performed by the songstress live) so this is a definite not-miss. The company also performs on Sunday at 4 pm at East River Park, where Wheeldon, according to New York magazine, is to give dance instruction to the audience.

Next Tuesday (8/18) begins the Broadway debuts of my friends (and So You Think You Can Dancers) Pasha Kovalev and Anya Garnis in Burn the Floor (!&*%^&@#$%!!!) — sorry for outburst, just a little excited for that one…

 

Next Thursday (8/20) Urban Bush Women  perform at Damrosch Park as part of the Lincoln Center Out of Doors Festival.

And all of next week (8/17-23) is the Downtown Dance Festival in the Financial District, which showcases a variety of  small companies from both the U.S. and abroad every weekday during lunchtime in front of Chase Manhattan Plaza and all day Saturday and Sunday in Battery Park.

All events except for Burn the Floor are free.

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AFRICA AND CATALONIA IN NEW YORK

 

Today begins the New York African Film Festival, at the Walter Reade Theater at Lincoln Center. I love New York for things like this — particularly the Walter Reade, which most often hosts the foreign film festivals here. There are loads of intriguing-looking films showing as part of the NYAFF — comedies, tragedies, tragicomedies, political, historical, documentary — you name it. One, in particular, caught my dancing eye: Nora, about Nora Chipaumire of Urban Bush Women. I’d seen her dance at Jacob’s Pillow two years ago and she really blew me away. The film is about her return to her native Zimbabwe, where she remembers her youth. According to the description, the film “brings her history to life through performance, dance, sound, and image” and “includes a multitude of local performers and dancers of all ages.” Famed Zimbabwean musician Thomas Mapfumo composed the music. It’s showing together with another film, Coming of Age, about Kenya’s road to democracy as seen through the eyes of a young girl. There are so many films. The festival runs at the Walter Reade through the 14th, then travels to Columbia University and then Brooklyn Academy of Music. Visit their website for the full schedule.

Then, April 15th begins the Catalan Days Festival, a NYC-wide celebration of all things from Catalonia and the Balearic Islands. This festival includes free food samplings, plays, film, music, literature, and of course dance. The Baryshnikov Arts Center is the main host of the dance events. Visit BAC for a dance schedule, and the Catalan Days website for the full lineup. Happily, this festival runs all the way through mid-May.