The state of African American dance in the Bay Area has always been in flux, constantly shifting, though some consistent voices have risen above the sea of lackluster funding and fragile infrastructures. In recent years we have seen some pretty spectacular work coming from this community — Alonzo King and Robert Moses immediately spring to mind — but it's a bit disheartening that Oakland Ballet would announce its closure during Black History Month. Ironic? Or was Artistic Director Karen Brown making a statement? Though not exclusively an African American dance company, Oakland Ballet frequently featured prominent African American choreographers and dancers. But even against this depressing backdrop, we have recently seen an influx of African American modern dance in the Bay Area, including performances by visiting artists Bill T. Jones, Ron Brown and the Alvin Ailey Company.
The Bay Area is fortunate also to have a wealth of local African American dance artists performing this month in the Black Choreographers Festival, Here and Now. The festival, Feb. 10-12 and 17-19, will feature programs in both San Francisco and the East Bay, a mentorship program, and a full season by veteran choreographer Robert Moses, featuring the return of last year's work The President's Daughter and a new work, Speaking Ill of the Dead.
Last year marked the return of a major Bay Area festival featuring black dance, and this year the Black Choreographers Festival is beginning to hit its stride, with a wide range of progressive programming including the San Francisco program at Project Artaud Theater (Feb. 10-12), the East Bay program at Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts in Oakland (Feb. 17-19), as well as master classes, film showings, exhibits and symposia.
The San Francisco performances will include Joanna Haigood, Robert Moses, Chloe Arnold (from Los Angeles), Dimensions Dance Theater, Culture Shock and emerging artists Paco Gomes and Susan Voyticky. The Oakland performances will include choreographer Donald McKayle and Stephanie Powell (from Southern California), Jason Samuels Smith (from New York), Dimensions Dance Theater, Savage Jazz Dance Theater, Mahea Uchiyama, as well as Gomes and Voyticky. Both programs have family matinees, and there is an additional choreography showcase featuring more emerging Bay Area artists (Feb. 18).
'Kin' folk
Robert Moses' Kin is celebrating their 11th season, and the company has honed a distinctively athletic style that is both urban and uniquely classical. This year's season will feature the return of The President's Daughter (Feb. 16-19). It's listed as being a "completely revised version," and has a newly reworked jazz score by Darren Johnston, to be played live. The piece, about Sally Hemmings' relationship with Thomas Jefferson, was originally received with mixed reviews, but Moses has an excellent track record, and this new version might be great. The new work, Speaking Ill of the Dead, will premiere in the second program (Feb. 23-26) and is described as a "probing look at how once a person dies, myths about who they were and who they weren't, what their relationships were and weren't, sometimes replace the true person that they were when alive." This piece will feature music by David Worm, a composer from SoVoSo and Bobby McFerrin's Voicestra. This year, Moses has invited some pretty stellar guest choreographers to share his season, including Amy Seiwert and Alex Ketley (Feb. 16-19), and Joanna Haigood (Feb. 23-26), so expect some excellent dancing and some provocative choreography.
Black Choreographers Festival runs Feb. 10-12 at Project Artaud Theater, 450 Florida St., SF; Feb. 17-19 at Malonga Casquelourd Center, 1428 Alice St., Oakland. Go to www.bcfhereandnow.com for programs and times. Tickets $10-$20 at www.ticketweb.com. You can also purchase tickets at (415) 863-9834.
Robert Moses' Kin plays Feb. 16-26 at Jewish Community Center, 3200 California St., SF. See website for programs & times. Tickets $15-$26 at (415) 292-1233 or www.jccsf.org/arts.