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I am thrilled once again to be performing with Contradiction Dance this spring for my third consecutive season, and to be contributing as choreographer for our upcoming show, "#DanceAboutDC: The Joe's Experience" happening April 26-27 at Joe's Movement Emporium, right outside D.C. proper in Mt. Ranier. Besides performing in multiple pieces including a modified solo Getting from Here to There from Contradiction Dance's March 2014 show "Walk a Mile", I am also presenting the next version of my site-specific work in progress entitled Lay(her). Inspired by a cathartic year in my life and family's - namely my sister's battle with cancer - I craved to create a piece that is, in a nutshell, about kindness. Through movement that accents angles, contrast and complexity, I want to remind that humans are just humans who are all fighting a battle underneath our public personas, and why a little ounce of anonymous compassion can go a long way to coexist with other humans in shared spaces. This piece was first performed at Meridian Hill Park in NW D.C. in September 2013, and I'm proud to have its Joe's debut. As a little sneak peek, here's some rehearsal footage of Lay(her) we spontaneously videoed on a phone last week (hence the not so great quality, apologies).  "#DanceAboutDC: The Joe's Experience"
#DanceAboutDC is an ongoing series by Contradiction Dance of site-specific pieces taking place all over the DC metro area. This is our third installment, following outdoor showings in the summer and fall of 2013. This next iteration of #DanceAboutDC is a unique site-specific treat. With original choreography by company members and artistic director Kelly King, site-specific pieces will take you (the audience) through the nooks and crannies of Joe's Movement Emporium (an educational space for all things movement from aerial to hip hop in Mt. Ranier, MD). You'll be mobile and in the middle of it all with your choice to experience the dances the way you choose. The pieces will then lead you into Joe's black box theatre for a final trip through our imagination(s) and the choreography, with the company presenting more work on the stage. Plus, after each show, we're throwing an after-party for all audience members in the Joe's spacious lobby with food, drink, music and art presented by local artisans and partners of Contradiction Dance. FUN! Intrigued? Come see the full piece in motion and the other wonderful things we've made for you to see! Contradiction Dance & Joe's Movement Emporium present: #DanceAboutDC: The Joe's Experience April 26 at 8pm + April 27 at 7pm Joe's Movement Emporium 3309 Bunker Hill Road Mt. Ranier, MD 20712 *$20 General Admission/$15 students, seniors, artists/$10 youth *BONUS! Buy tickets online here & get a $20 Lyft credit!  Photo: Michael J. Avilez It's that time again: I'm on stage! I'm thrilled to be performing with the DC-based Contradiction Dance in Walk a Mile, a show about, among other things, shoes. We're halfway through our run, having performed three successful shows last weekend, and gearing up for our closing at the Anacostia Arts Center this weekend.
We've been working on this show since the start of 2014, and it is near and dear to my heart for many reasons. Besides talking through the show's concept over glasses of wine and watching gurgling children with artistic director Kelly King (she's two toddlers deep), I'm also performing my first professional, public solo in this show. It is a personal milestone for me that is a joy to dance, and I'm looking forward to sharing with DC-area audiences. I've also designed all of our promotional materials and show programs. I'm considering this show my trampoline into my new career as full-time artist. I've happily been dancing with Contradiction for three years and I couldn't ask for a better family of people to share the stage with -- they are full of joy and talent (from fire spinning to painting and entrepreneurship) and I am proud and humbled to join them in this work. So, come Walk a Mile with us! And, read a lovely review of the show from DC arts advocate Erin Mitchell. BONUS: If you get your tickets online ahead of time, you get a discount PLUS a code for a $20 Lyft credit, aka DC's newest cab service that I'm a big fan of. So, essentially, you get paid $5 for letting us entertain you! Not a bad deal.  Photo: Michael J. Avilez NEWS: Walk a Mile reviewed by DC-based arts advocate and writer Erin Mitchell
We're thrilled about this lovely review of Walk a Mile, the show I'm currently performing with Contradiction Dance. "Walk a Mile is feel-good, witty dialogue, paired with smooth and energized choreography ... the smiles are infectious ... (the piece) illuminates you and keeps you bright through the rest of your day. It encourages a frank dialogue between artist and audience not ordinarily experienced in dance or theatre; others should sit up and take notice." Read the whole review >> It's great to have internal confidence and joy for a show, but it's a whole other game when someone else articulates it, too. And there are 3 more chances to see it this weekend, starting Friday 3/21!  WASHINGTON, D.C. - I'm excited to be joining my third consecutive season with Contradiction Dance for two unique performances this spring. The first: In Walk a Mile, premiering at the brand-new Anacostia Arts Center in SE Washington, D.C., the company will take you through a dance-based theatre experience about shoes and the creatures -- a.k.a. us humans, in all our variations -- who wear them. Artistic director and choreographer Kelly King and director of theater Melissa Bustamante are working in the company's standard collaborative style to create solos, duets and quartets exploring how and why we wear those things on our feet and the different relationships we have with shoes depending on our gender, occupation, lifestyle and many other factors of our realities. I will be performing a solo, a quartet and ensemble pieces with the company. I hope to see you in the audience in my first performance of 2014! You can buy tickets here. Contradiction Dance and the Anacostia Arts Center present: Walk a Mile March 14 $5 open dress, 8pm March 15 & 21-22, 8pm March 16 & 23, 3pm Tickets: $15 in advance/$20 day of
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