New season to feature critical dialogue events
Dancers’ Studio West (DSW) unveiled its 2014-2015 lineup this past week and while there certainly are familiar events for local dance enthusiasts to look forward to, such as the 33rd Alberta Dance Festival, there are a few new features for the upcoming season as well.
Davida Monk, DSW’s artistic director, says one of the new events to look forward to is the organization’s new six-part discussion series called Undressing the Dance Dialogues. These discussions — with the first happening Sept. 28 — will see members of DSW’s Dance Action Group (DAG) moderate a discussion between choreographers, performers and the public on topics such as reviewing Calgary dance events, dance aesthetics and the creative process of dance itself.
Monk would like this event to achieve two goals.
“We hope through this kind of effort to stimulate some greater awareness and appreciation of dance in general, but also to get more people involved in the dance community,” she says.
While some companies have held discussions with audience members immediately after performances, Monk says letting some days pass by could allow the discussion to be more wide-ranging, and thus more enriching.
The events featured as part of the 2014-2015 Dancers’ Studio West season take place between September to June. The first event is the Alberta Dance Festival, which begins on Sept.11.
Photo courtesy of Dancers’ Studio West.
While Undressing the Dance Dialogues will offer choreographers (along with audience members and performers) an opportunity to engage in a thoughtful discussion after a performance, they are also being afforded an opportunity this season to engage in a critical dialogue prior to a performance as well.
DSW is offering an Outside Eye Service for choreographers in both Calgary and Edmonton. This service gives choreographers an opportunity have their work examined by another choreographer (or another artist) prior to a show.
“The outside eye might act as an ideal audience,” says Monk. “They come in and see sections of the work and provide feedback on the spot as to what they received from the work, what kind of images were speaking to them or what impressions the work gave them.”
Critical discussion about the creative process will be a part of DSW’s Dance Action Lab, which is being held from April to June. This event unites choreographers, performers and DAG members for classes, mentored creations and performances leading up to the studio’s final productions of the year from June 25 to June 27.
Here is DSW’s complete schedule of events for the 2014-2015 season:
• DWS’s 33rd Alberta Dance Festival-Dance & the Image: Sept. 11-13 and Sept. 18-20
• Undressing the Dance Dialogues: Sept. 28, Oct. 26, Nov. 23, Jan. 25, Feb. 22 and March 29
• Cross Fertilization (with Pulse Studios): Feb. 22
• Dance Action Lab: April 20-June 27
• DSW’s final productions: June 25-27
For more information on prices, event location, registration details or other information visit www.dswlive.ca