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Dancing Under the Summer Stars
Dayton Contemporary Dance Company and Nathantrice/RITUALS dance theater share a program at SummerStage
Nathantrice/RITUALS
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When you think of Central Park, you think of trees, joggers, picnics and summer concerts (among other contributions, I’m sure). A respite from the everyday hustle and bustle of the New York City streets, the park is a haven for both relaxation and entertainment. This may be why Central Park SummerStage draws in crowds year after year to soak in the free dance, music, comedy, film and word performances.
Central Park SummerStage ’09 started with a benefit concert on June 30 and will continue through mid-August. Sprinkled throughout are a number of wonderful dance performances by world-renowned companies.
Included on the list of scheduled dance is Dayton Contemporary Dance Company and nathantrice/RITUALS dance theater on August 7. The Dayton Contemporary Dance Company (DCDC) is the oldest modern company in Ohio (the company’s home base) and one of the largest and well-received contemporary dance companies. During their SummerStage performance, nathantrice/RITUALS dance theater will perform a new work described as “loosely inspired by the cross culture movement of ‘Abstract Expressionism and Film-Noir’ to ultimately create a sort of neo-noir dance theater piece that takes a witty, messy, sexy look at courtship.”
DCDC has celebrated over 40 years as a nationally and internationally respected company and has the largest repertoire of African-American choreographed works. The company was founded by Jeraldyne Blunden and is now under the artistic direction of her daughter, Debbie Blunden-Diggs. Their DCDC 2 company is a troupe involved in outreach and arts education programs, expanding the scope of dance appreciation to schools and surrounding communities.
Nathantrice/RITUALS’ multi-disciplinary repertoire includes dance, theater, sound, voice and video to create dynamic works by a range of performers from different artistic backgrounds. The company was founded in 1998 by Nathan Trice and has performed internationally. The company also has an extensive teaching history; they were invited to be resident guest artists at the LaGuardia High School for the Performing Arts in 2004. In addition, the company is holding its third annual Summer Dance Intensive, where students are encouraged to explore dance movement through a curriculum of contemporary dance classes, improvisation, Gyrokinesis and critical thinking courses.
The program should prove to be a diverse evening from contemporary to dance theater. With a few programs of exceptional dance (four to be exact), SummerStage ’09 delivers on its promise of renowned artists and dancing under the summer stars.
For the complete calendar of concerts and performances at Central Park SummerStage go to summerstage.org. Performances are at Rumsey Playfield. Also for a list of CityParks Dance performances taking place in parks throughout the boroughs see cityparksfoundation.org.