Archive

Floorwork: April 6, 12:00-2:00pm
Center for the Performing Arts
RSVP by Friday, April 5

This April Floorwork will be a gathering to continue conversation and take action with regard to the closing of the Goodale Theater, incorporating what we have learned thus far. City Officials to be present.

Conversation will be held over a communal meal – bring your own dish to share in our potluck! ARENA DANCES will supply beverages, plates, napkins, and utensils. Floorwork was developed to hold conversations, knowledge-sharing, and a supportive space for dance artists and people who like to move.

Can’t attend, but would like to join in the conversation?
Join us via Zoom.
Meeting ID: 811 5083 8698
Passcode: 738155

Focus of Conversation:
1) The dance community requests a seat at the table and a voice in the selection of a new operator for the Cowles Center. We request that any new operator be required to include in its mission and charter that the Goodale Theater remain committed (in part or in full) to presenting local dance and performing arts

2) While the Goodale Theater is dark, request a bridge fund supporting dance artists to perform in other Downtown Minneapolis venues. Statistics show dance artists and audiences bring foot traffic and economic activity into Downtown. Request that the City incorporate this initiative into – and commit funds from – its Downtown revitalization, economic development, and public safety budgets.

3) Longer term, request that the Mayor’s Office and City Council move to create a permanent, sustainable revenue stream for local dance and performing artists – written into the City Charter and distributed by the Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs via a transparent, competitive application process, to be modeled after successful programs in other cities.

MOVO is experimenting with a biennial sharing structure! Using an open call format to all who participate and are in community at MOVO, artists are invited to share work at any creative stage.

In our inaugural offering, artists Rachel Lieberman, Anat Shinar, Marcela Michelle, Judith H Shuǐ Xiān, and Megan Mayer take focus in a shared evening of performance work at Red Eye Theater on April 13 at 7:00pm, while Morgan Thorson extends her choreographic inquiry with Alex Beaumont, Dienae (D) Hunter, and Sam Johnson, and offers an open rehearsal on April 10 from 2:00-3:30pm.

Tickets for April 13 are by donation; cash or Venmo at the door.

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

Join us for an informal in-studio showing featuring THREAT, a TU Dance project with Yusha-Marie Sorzano! In anticipation of our live performances at The O’Shaughnessy at St. Catherine University on April 26 and 27 at 7:30pm, we invite you to attend this event and get an up-close and personal look into the creation of this work and have the opportunity to meet many of the artists involved.

April 11
5:30-6:30pm
In-person only at TU Dance Center.
Registration is required. Space is limited. First come, first served.
This event is free.

For more information, directions, and parking, click here.

A blossoming initiative to recognize and elevate Asian creatives working in ballet, this program of Asian and Asian American choreography—co-curated by Final Bow for Yellowface’s Phil Chan—features The Washington Ballet, BalletMet, and Oakland Ballet Company. These performances celebrate the 75th anniversary of Singaporean choreographer Choo San Goh (1948-1987) who brought The Washington Ballet international acclaim, plus works by BalletMet’s Edwaard Liang—the first Asian Artistic Director for a major American ballet company, Phil Chan and Caili Quan for Oakland Ballet Company, and the Minnesota debut of choreographer Brett Ishida. 

Friday, April 12 at 7:30pm
Saturday, April 13 at 2:00pm

Program includes
Fives by Choo San Goh, The Washington Ballet
when shall we three meet again by Brett Ishida, The Washington Ballet
Ballet des Porcelaines by Phil Chan, Oakland Ballet Company
Layer Upon Layer by Caili Quan, Oakland Ballet Company
Finding Light pas de deux by Edwaard Liang, BalletMet

Friday, April 12 at 6:30pm: Pre-show artistic exhibit celebrating Asian and Asian American arts and culture. Live music from the University of Minnesota’s Oriental Music Club, campus student association leaders, and installations exploring art as a way to connect to home and heritage from some of the Twin Cities’ leading Asian arts and culture organizations, including Hmong Museum, The SEAD Project, and Theater Mu.

Sensory Friendly Lounge
A Sensory Friendly Lounge equipped with sensory supports and staffed by trained volunteers will be available to all guests who are seeking a safe and soothing atmosphere during this and other select performances. Learn more.

Pointed Humor features the highly-anticipated choreographies of two guest choreographers and old friends of the company. Shohei Iwahama (former James Sewell Ballet dancer and current member of Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo) brings an expansive group work that emanates curiosity, play, and kinship. Michael Walters returns with his fourth choreographic commission for James Sewell Ballet with a passionate duet, at moments both gritty and gentle.

This remarkable evening includes two Sewell works: a new sextet that blends classical and contemporary ballet within Bach’s Concerto for Violin & Oboe; and a remount of Doo-Be-Doo, which combines high-energy playful antics with stunning technical feats.

Saturday, April 13 at 7:30pm
Sunday, April 14 at 2:00pm