For over 30 years, renowned choreographer, Bill T. Jones, has built a prolific repertoire of dance works. Throughout his career he has received a number of accolades, including a MacArthur Genius Award, the Kennedy Center Honors, and two Tony Awards for Best Choreography. Jones has tackled difficult topics in his work, including the AIDS epidemic …
For over two decades, Attack Theatre has transformed otherwise unknown Pittsburgh sites into ultra-creative performance spaces. In their latest work, Laws of Attraction, they took on an old auto body repair shop located in Uptown. The two-act show was inspired by the study of science. About a year ago, the company taught creative movement classes …
Attack Theatre spent eighteen months working on their latest piece, Remainder Northside. For that year and a half, they taught creative movement at various Northside schools, after-school, and summer programs. In getting to know the youth of the neighborhood, they created an hour-long group dance that loosely shared the kids’ thoughts and experiences. Before the …
A little known fact in the Pittsburgh dance community is that Michele de la Reza, co-director of Attack Theatre, performed mime as her first stage experience. She eventually went on to receive a degree in dance from the renowned Juilliard School, but her original training never left her. Her partner, Peter Kope, also has dramatic …
A few years ago, local artists, David Bernabo and Taylor Knight, created the LightLab Performance Series in an effort to give voice to the experimental movement. Bernabo’s background is largely in music and visual art, while Knight received a degree in dance from Point Park University. Their styles and interests mesh, though. Bernabo developed his …
Friday evening kicked off a weekend of events that honored African music and dance, and African diaspora. Presented by The Legacy Arts Project and the Kelly Strayhorn Theater, Dance Africa returned to Pittsburgh for its fourth year. Founder of Dance Africa, Dr. “Baba” Chuck Davis, started the show with a tribute to the “elders” in …
Many professional dancers studied their craft in a college or university setting where students are often expected to create their own work in choreography and composition classes. The environment is supportive and helpful, with feedback from professors and peers. But as in all art forms, we improve with practice. Some choreographic skill is honed in …
Few cities have the audience for an entire festival of contemporary dance, yet Pittsburgh has arrived on the national scene as a place for this lesser known performing art to grow. Now, in its sixth year, newMoves is thriving with local and national dancers, and viewers from various artistic and non-artistic backgrounds. Program C of …