Hard to believe it's been a year since I started posting mine and your thoughts about dance in Atlanta on this blog! So over the last year, what's happened? Well, we're calling ourselves DanceATL now, and we have members! We need to solidify everything for the incorporation and nonprofit status (workshop about that with GA Lawyers for the Arts coming up.) We're *THAT* close to having the actual website ready to go, and we've enjoyed connecting with everyone who joined us at the meetings in Feb., Apr. and June-performers, speakers and guests.We also had the dance table set up at 28 events (counting all nights of a run as 1 event) from Sept. 2009 to April 2010!
A HUGE thank you to everyone who has been involved in making all this work!! We're all working on this as volunteers in addition to everything else we've got going on (and we all know how busy we stay with classes, rehearsals etc etc on top of other jobs usually.)
So now that we've got things this much underway, what do you think is our next direction? How can we serve the dance community for the next year and beyond?
(Oh, and I was curious about the new blogger templates so I switched to something new and a cleaner design. The blue is also close to the one in our logo!)
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Lots of great video
ADF has a video blog "May we have this CyberDance?" that includes interviews with the artists who're performing at the festival this summer (including Pilobolus this week) and other snippets from behind the scenes. Certainly makes me wish I could be up there at least to see some of the performances if not to take the classes! I have some friends who live up that way still but I don't know that I've convinced any of them to go see things so I can live vicariously. :P I guess this video blog is some of that at least! And on the subject of video online taking the place of live performance (or augmenting it) here's a link to the NEA's report about the subject of audiences and their online vs. live viewing behaviors.
Getting up to date
So I've missed posting a few things because of a trip out of town, etc. We didn't have a big turnout for the DanceATL meeting, as expected, there were too many other things going on. Including brooks & company dance's beltline performance (preview posted belatedly here from ArtsCriticATL.com) and Beacon Dance at Eyedrum. But we had a good discussion, some of it on topic about the idea of a dance pass through DanceATL. One suggestion was more of a cupon book that folks could buy for a small price that would offer discounts to shows (and possibly other things that go along with it like restaurants close to venues etc.) This version is of course much less complicated that creating some sort of centralized ticketing. (Not to mention AtlanTIX is around for those companies that are members of ACPA.)
Another question that arose was whether we needed to discount things at all or merely bundle them together somehow. Everyone likes discounts from an audience perspective, but on the other hand we don't want to devalue our art, especially just the local productions, which tend to be less expensive than larger venues' productions who have to pay to bring companies from out of town. We don't want to encourage the idea that the local dance is less "worthy" than the imported-- but without the discount what's the incentive to buy a dance pass?
Also, on the calendar issue, we decided that it seems that the first weekend of many months is much less crowded event-wise than later ones, so we'll be holding the DanceATL bi-monthly meetings on the 1st Sunday of every other month, starting Aug. 1. We're looking for a space and a short performance--anyone like to host the meeting and perform? There was also the suggestion of having a community class taught by the performing group/choreographer some other time during that same month. Just to let people experience each other's work from the inside, and hopefully to help build community as we move together as well.
Also another article from ArtsCriticATL.com about this past weekend's happenings. This time about Zoetic's Choreography showcase and specifically about CORE Concert Dance Company's (led by Bala Sarasvati, from Athens) work in it.
Another question that arose was whether we needed to discount things at all or merely bundle them together somehow. Everyone likes discounts from an audience perspective, but on the other hand we don't want to devalue our art, especially just the local productions, which tend to be less expensive than larger venues' productions who have to pay to bring companies from out of town. We don't want to encourage the idea that the local dance is less "worthy" than the imported-- but without the discount what's the incentive to buy a dance pass?
Also, on the calendar issue, we decided that it seems that the first weekend of many months is much less crowded event-wise than later ones, so we'll be holding the DanceATL bi-monthly meetings on the 1st Sunday of every other month, starting Aug. 1. We're looking for a space and a short performance--anyone like to host the meeting and perform? There was also the suggestion of having a community class taught by the performing group/choreographer some other time during that same month. Just to let people experience each other's work from the inside, and hopefully to help build community as we move together as well.
Also another article from ArtsCriticATL.com about this past weekend's happenings. This time about Zoetic's Choreography showcase and specifically about CORE Concert Dance Company's (led by Bala Sarasvati, from Athens) work in it.
Friday, June 18, 2010
Next meeting, June 27
So the next DanceATL meeting will be Sunday, June 27 at 7 pm at CORE Studios in Decatur. Gathering Wild will be performing. I've already sent out an email and I hope some folks can make it, but as people responded, I've found out it wasn't really the best weekend because there's a lot going on. I'm glad there is, I just should've paid more attention before choosing to have the meeting then! The discussion for the meeting with be just that same issue--I want to get all the event info for next season that you guys have already so we can put it all on a big calendar and see what's up. Maybe we can plan the next few DanceATL meetings so they don't conflict with as many things? And then of course I'll also have all the events (that are confirmed dates at least) to put on the google calendar too. And we can also discuss the possibility of DanceATL creating a Dance Pass for all or part of the season. Sound good?
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
gloATL NY performance reviews
From ArtsCriticATL and Cynthia Perry a review of gloATL's work "Halo" at New York's DUO Multicultural Arts Center.
And from the NY Times, another look at the piece by Roslyn Sulcas.
And from the NY Times, another look at the piece by Roslyn Sulcas.
From DanceUSA, passing of Jonathan Wolken
It is with great sadness that we share the news about the passing of Jonathan Wolken, co-founder of Pilobolus Dance Theatre. He died Sunday night in New York after being ill for many years with myelofibrosis, a disorder of the bone marrow.
Pilobolus originated when Wolken, a Dartmouth philosophy major, and fellow student Moses Pendleton met at a dance class taught by Alison Chase. The men began performing after graduation in 1971 and were later joined by fellow students Robby Barnett and Michael Tracy and dance teachers Martha Clark and Chase in 1973. They would form an unusual artistic collaborative from which works emerged from a free-spirited group dynamic.
The company relocated to Western Connecticut in the mid-'70s. First Clark in 1978 and then Pendleton in 1983 would move on to create their own dance companies, but the quartet would remain for many years creating works that became known for their athleticism, sensuality and theatricality.
A brief obituary is available from the Hartford Courant.
Wolken was an inspiring artist and great pioneer of the dance field. He will be truly missed.
Pilobolus originated when Wolken, a Dartmouth philosophy major, and fellow student Moses Pendleton met at a dance class taught by Alison Chase. The men began performing after graduation in 1971 and were later joined by fellow students Robby Barnett and Michael Tracy and dance teachers Martha Clark and Chase in 1973. They would form an unusual artistic collaborative from which works emerged from a free-spirited group dynamic.
The company relocated to Western Connecticut in the mid-'70s. First Clark in 1978 and then Pendleton in 1983 would move on to create their own dance companies, but the quartet would remain for many years creating works that became known for their athleticism, sensuality and theatricality.
A brief obituary is available from the Hartford Courant.
Wolken was an inspiring artist and great pioneer of the dance field. He will be truly missed.
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
gloATL work in NYC
Cynthia Perry's ArtsCriticATL.com article about gloATL's upcoming work, premiering in NYC but created in ATL.
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