#geochoreography for DECEMBER!

Here are our #geochoreography posts for December!  You can find a new prompt every Friday on our Facebook page!  Post your adventures using #geochoreography or in the comments and we will feature as many as we can!

#geochoreography for NOVEMBER!

Here are our #geochoreography posts for November!  You can find a new prompt every Friday on our Facebook page!  Post your adventures using #geochoreography or in the comments and we will feature as many as we can!

#geochoreography for OCTOBER!

Here are our #geochoreography posts for October!  You can find a new prompt every Friday on our Facebook page!  Post your adventures using #geochoreography or in the comments and we will feature as many as we can!

#geochoreography for SEPTEMBER!

Here are our #geochoreography posts for September!  You can find a new prompt every Friday on our Facebook page!  Post your adventures using #geochoreography or in the comments and we will feature as many as we can!

#geochoreography for AUGUST!

Here are our #geochoreography posts for August!  You can find a new prompt every Friday on our Facebook page!  Post your adventures using #geochoreography or in the comments and we will feature as many as we can!

#geochoreography for JULY!

Here are our #geochoreography posts for July!  You can find a new prompt every Friday on our Facebook page!  Post your adventures using #geochoreography or in the comments and we will feature as many as we can!

Happy June Birthdays!

Happy June Birthdays! 

Pat Krolak, Rita Krolak, Hjordis Blanford, Laila Fatimi, Arie Steiner Hockman, Fred Kelly, Lucie Baker, Xander Weinman, Jim Peerless, Henry LeTang, Terri Beaton, Harold Cromer, Sean Cummings, Rosie Steinberg, Nikki Felix, Shari Kaplan, Tom Christian, Bob Fosse, Elizabeth Krolak, Caleb Howe, Micheline Heal, Patrick Flynn, Melissa Dollman, Tyler Cantanella, Mary Sousa, Paula Abdul, and Martha Clarke  

ChoreoFest Revisited - Ryan P. Casey

With Luminarium Dance's ChoreoFest applications due next week, we thought we'd take a moment to check in with last year's choreographers and do a quick follow-up on what the last year has had in store for them.  Here's our dear friend Ryan P. Casey!

Photo Credit: Cynthia Griffith Clayton

N: Have you used the piece you created during ChoreoFest? In what way?

RPC: No; it was just for fun. But it was a chance to continue exploring our use of characters and incorporating different styles of dance.

N: What advice do you have for this year's participants?

RPC: Perhaps more so than usual, be willing to run with whatever ideas come to mind right away and be happy with them, whether you love them or not. There's not a lot of time to second guess and change things, of course, so give yourself permission to just roll with whatever your group is developing. "First thought, best thought," as Brenda Bufalino taught me!

N: What is your favorite memory from last year's festival?

RPC: I'm sure I'll never forget editing "Yakety Sax" at some ungodly hour of the night! Only at ChoreoFest!

N: What have you been up to in the last year?

RPC: We've been busy developing a new show, "Unbound," that we'll be touring beginning in October! It's a rhythmic romp through some of our favorite literature.

N: Where can people see you/your work these days? Any upcoming performances?

RPC: I'm hosting (and performing in) DanceNOW Boston at The Dance Complex on June 10; the next day, we're dancing in Harvard Square for Dance for World Community. Later this summer, on July 24, we're performing in Provincetown as part of Cape Dance Festival!

Check out Ryan's interview from last year here!  And don't forget to put ChoreoFest on your calendar for September 10th!

#geochoreography for JUNE!

Here are June's #geochoreography prompts!  Don't forget that you can find a new prompt each Friday on Monkeyhouse's Facebook!  Post your adventures using #geochoreography and we will feature as many as we can!

Happy May Birthdays!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ALL THE MAY BIRTHDAYS!

Alvin Ailey, Andy Jacobs, Anna Pavlovna Pavlova, Archibald Edwards, Clayton Raithel, Debbie Allen, Etta James, Eve Agush, George Balanchine, Gwen Verdon, Heather Pagella Gant, Jonathan Lee, José Limón, Kelsey Griffith, Kristin Sudeikis, Leonard Reed, Lester Horton, Lynn Schwab, Maria Tallchief, Megan Bartula, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Penelope Wendtlandt, Risher Reddick, Sabrina Schwartz, Sarah Style, Shannon Sullivan, Shelley Neill, Taye Diggs, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Samantha Mullen!        

#geochoreography for MAY - Get Caught Reading Month!

We are incredibly excited to kick off our #geochoreography adventure!  It all started when the Connecting Point Dance Company, one of the youth companies from Impulse Dance Center in Natick where Karen and Nicole work, took a trip to NYC in April.  Karen and Nicole put together "travel adventure" books for them filled with challenges, projects and ideas to keep them busy while on the road and once they got to New York, got them looking at the city in a new and creative way.  When they returned with their findings the rest of the Rep Modern class wanted to participate, too.  So, two more books were born.  One for the pair of students traveling overseas over April break and one for the gang staying in Natick.  The more books we made the more we realized that this could be a great way to get EVERYONE looking at the world like a giant arts residency!

For our first month we are partnering with the Clary and Cimermanis Little Library and their Get Caught Reading Month campaign!  All of our #geochoreography prompts (posted to our social media each Friday) are book related.  We also challenge you to take a photo or video of you reading!  (Bonus points if you are dancing while reading!)

Just in case you aren't on social media, you can find all of May's prompts here!  Post your responses in the comments or on any social media using #geochoreography!  We will feature as many responses as we can!

Thanks in advance for being part of this exciting adventure!

April Events!!

by Aisha Cruse

In an unusual turn of events there's really nothing happening dance-wise in Boston during April. I'm taking the opportunity to watch (or re-watch) some awesome dance films and documentaries like Pina, Singing in the Rain, and Billy Elliot.

Yes I am kidding. Here is my selective sampling of the the thousand and one dance events happening in Boston this month, please let me know if you make it to all of them because I would be extremely impressed.

Fri, April 1 & Sat, April 2 @ 8 pm 

Sun, April 3 @ 7 pm

Student/Faculty Showcase

Presented by Adrienne Hawkins and students and faculty of The Dance Complex

The Dance Complex in Cambridge

$15-$20

This might be the Boston Dance community at its most community oriented. The people that take class at the Dance Complex are novices and professionals, people with many careers and whole other lives who take a couple hours a week to throw themselves into something they love. If you want to go see an incredible variety of dance styles and dancers perform with joy and enthusiasm, go see this show. 

Fri, April 8 & Sat, April 9, @ 7pm

We Create! Celebrating Women in the Arts 

Presented by Marsha Parrilla and Danza Organica

At Hibernian Hall in Roxbury

$20/ $15 BDA/ $10 student/senior

Monkeyhouse favorite Paradise Lost is performing in this incredible show along with a ton of other dancers, performers, and artists. There are raffles, talk-backs, receptions and classes depending on which day you go, so definitely check the site to pick your preferred activity roster. From the event page: "We Create is a community-based and process-oriented festival in Boston that features the works of a selected group of the most talented women artists in Massachusetts. Works are created around an annual theme. 2016 Theme: Acculturation"

Fri, April 8 & Sat, April 9 @ 8pm
Pentacle Presents: The Gallery and Guests: Boston

At The Dance Complex in Central Square, Cambridge

$15-$20

Monkeyhouse is all about building the dance community, so I'm pretty excited for this Boston/ New York collaboration show: "Pentacle, the artist services agency based in New York City, returns for the second year with a program of performances by artists from its Gallery Roster including LCTC (Lorraine Chapman The Company) based in Boston, The Moving Architects - formerly from Chicago now based in metropolitan New York, and BARKIN/SELISSEN PROJECT and Dante Brown/Warehouse Dance, both based in New York City. Included on the program will be guest artists with Boston connections: Angie Moon Dance Theatre and Doppelganger Dance Collective.
Activities will include the performances and an artist symposium Saturday afternoon (free) hosted by Peter DiMuro, Executive Director of The Dance Complex, as well as other activities." Sat, April 9 @ 7:30 pm

Bach Reinvented

A collaboration with Urbanity Dance

at Emmanuel Church on Newbury Street, Boston
$30-$150, $10 student
Y'ALL I am so excited for and interested by this event it sounds ambitious and intelligent and awesome and to my chagrin it is on the SAME DAY as the equally awesome dance event listed below and I am already going to that one. Please go see this show in my place and tell me of it's glory. It has moving stages and a 35 piece orchestra and an incredibly talented, athletic dance company, what more could you want?

Sat, April 9 @ 11 am, events all day

Boston Blend 2016

Presented by Boston Blend

At Cambridge Masonic Temple in Porter Square, Cambridge

$15-$75

There is a thriving social dance scene in Boston, and a lot of the people who participate in one community cross pollinate with others. Some intrepid members of the Blues Dance community and the Chicago Step community started going to each others events and decided that we should all hang out together, and thus, Boston Blend was born! This is the inaugural event, and it is a day absolutely packed with workshops and performances in Blues and Step, and a SOUL FOOD BUFFET DINNER which would be worth the price of admission all by itself. It is also smack in the middle of my neighborhood, so if you decide to go, you will see me there!

Thurs, April 14 - Fri, April 16 @ 8pm

Sun, April 17 @ 3pm

What Moves You?

Presented by Harvard Dance Project
At Farkas Hall in Harvard Square, Cambridge

$10/ $5 students

If the title of this show looks like a Monkeyhouse FAQ I am here to let you know that I feel the same way. I'm interested to see what a completely separate group of humans did with one of our favorite questions. From the website: "WHAT MOVES YOU? is a unique collaboration between three distinct choreographic voices: Francesca Harper, Jill Johnson, and Mario Zambrano. Together, they have collaborated with The Harvard Dance Project (HDP) dancers and associate HDP student artists, composed of singers, poets, musicians, and writers, to create a work that is both responding to and asking the governing question: “What moves you?” This question was posed to the cast to create movement phrases and choreographic structure, and resulted in a series of personal stories adapted through motion."Thurs, April 14 - Sat, April 16 @ 8 pm

Sat & Sun, April 16 & 17 @ 2 pm

Limitless

Presented by the Boston Conservatory

Boston Conservatory Theater

$15-$30

I will now quote directly from the website about why this got my attention:

"*On Friday, April 15 at 11 a.m., there will be a special autism-friendly performance for individuals on the autism spectrum and their families. To learn more, contact our Audience Services Manager at (617) 912-9142." If you have someone in your life for whom his may be relevant, share it with them. Accessibility for the neuro-diverse is MASSIVELY under served in the arts community, and it should be celebrated and taken advantage of when it is offered. This show features incredible young dancers and internationally acclaimed choreographers: Doug Varone, Keith A. Thompson, Adam Hougland and Dwight Rhoden; I would see this show and support these people for their inclusiveness alone.

Sat, April 30 @ 8pm

Evolution: Celebrating Our 5th Anniversary

Presented by Jo-Mé Dance Theatre
At Boston University Dance Theater in Allston

$25 general/ $20 BDA/ $15 student and senior

I haven't seen Jo--Mé Dance Theatre before, so this event struck me as a great way to get to know the company. They will be showing works from their 5 years as a company and 2 new works by Joe Gonzalez and Diaman Wood, which has the advantage of allowing the audience to see work they may otherwise have missed and also allowing us to see how the company has grown over time. If you're looking to get to know a new dance company, this is the one I'd pick.

If Not You, Who? Program

Thank you to everyone who came out to support the Multicultural Arts Center for tonight's performance!

Ain't Got Far to Go (2016)
TAProject
Choreographed by Ryan P. Casey
Performed by Lauren Faberman, Samantha Farina, Lauren McIver, Kayla Michaud, Marisa Uluski
Music by Jess Glynne
Special thanks to LuAnn Pagella

Drouken (1999)
Monkeyhouse
Choreography by Karen Krolak
Performed by Nicole Harris
Music by Tricolor

If Else (2015)
Calamity Co Dance
Choreographed by Meghan Riling
Performed by Meghan Riling and Amy Mastrangelo
Music by Alpine

"Kettles" and "Scud Books" from Haven (2016)
Paradise Lost
Choreographed by Tyler Catanella
Performed by Cassandre Charles, Shannon Sweeny, Matt Kyle, Holly Bourdon, Krystyna Resavy, Connor Abeles, Tyler Catanella, Sarah Horwitz, Devon Maddux, Cassie Samuels, Mark Wolf Roberts
Music by Hudson Mohawke
Original Costume Design by Jez Insalaco
Special Thanks to the Multicultural Arts Center for housing us a second year and making this piece possible with your beautiful performance space!

Searching (2016)
Dream Project
Choreography and costume design by Chun Jou Tsai (Dream)
Performed by Jessica Chang
Music by Cirque du Soleil

Solo Sax
Jeff Robinson
Special Thanks to the Multicultural Arts Center

Please Enjoy a Brief Intermission

Getting There is Half the Battle (2015)
Luminarium Dance
Choreographed by Kimberleigh A. Holman
Performed by Merli V. Guerra, Kimberleigh A Holman, Amy Mastrangelo
Music by Bach
We are so thrilled to be performing at this fundraiser, as the Multicultural Arts Center is one of our favorite venues in the Greater Boston area. Many thanks to Nicole Harris for organizing. Please visit LuminariumDance.org for more information about the company.

Love, Decision, Affect (2016)
Connecting Point Dance Company
Choreographed by Ricardo Foster, Jr
Performed by company members Julianna DiBona, Gina Grenga, Lauren McIver, Michaela McTague, Jennifer Powers and Marisa Uluski and company apprentices Gillian McTague, Kayla Marie Michaud and Cole Sirafos
Special Thanks to LuAnn Pagella

Connexa (2013)
Monkeyhouse
Choreographed by Nikki Sao Pedro-Welch and Sarah Feinberg
Performed by Nicole Harris and Aisha Cruse
Special thanks to Karen Krolak

Coming Out of Our Shel (2016)
Ryan P. Casey & Dancers
Choregraphed and Performed by Ryan P. Casey and Nicole Chaput
Based on poems by Shel Silverstein

March Events!!

by Aisha Cruse

Going a little stir crazy? Getting that spring fever? Get out and about and see some awesome dance!

Sunday, March 6, 7:30 pm
FARRUQUITO
Presented by CrashArts/ World Music 

At the Berklee Performance Center in Boston
$79, $65, $52, $40
The Flamenco Festival has returned to Boston for its 15 season, it has brought an incredible performer. "From the legendary Farruco dynasty, the first family of Gypsy flamenco dance, Farruquito is regarded as one of the most faithful representatives of flamenco puro." He regards his new show Improvisao as a "return to his roots", so if you're interested in seeing one of the best Flamenco dancers in the world, 
definitely go see this show.

Fri & Sat, March 11 &12 @ 8 pm
COMPAGNIE HERVÉ KOUBI

At The Institute of Contemporary Art / Boston
$40 / $36 World Music/CRASHarts members

The description for this show makes me think of the incredible Fleur d'Orange, which is more than enough to make me want to go: "Twelve French-Algerian and African male dancers, mostly coming from street dance and hip-hop backgrounds, perform the Boston premiere of Ce que le jour doit à la nuit (What the Day Owes the Night), a highly physical, stunningly fluid work that combines capoeira, martial arts, and urban and contemporary dance with powerful Sufi imagery."

Fri & Sat, March 11 & 12 @ 8 pm
The Body Becomes the Messenger
Presented by Kelley Donovan and Dancers
At the Dance Complex in Central Square, Cambridge
$12-$20
This new show from Kelley Donovan and Dancers explores how health and well being informs the creative process, a theme near and dear to Monkeyhouse and it's dancers. I'm interested to see their take on what is often a deeply personal subject. Thurs, March 17@ 7:30 pm 
Fri, March 18 @ 8 pm 
Sat, March 19 @ 2 pm & 8 pm
Alvin Ailey Dance Theater
At the Citi Wang Theatre in Boston
$35 and up
If you are going to see a very established touring company in peak performance, see Alvin Ailey. The performance schedule is slightly different each night, featuring at least one classic repertory piece alongside new choreography. I think this is a perfect excuse to see it every night, but that's just me.

Fri & Sat, March 18 & 19 @ 8 pm
Paradise Lost Presents REPLAY
At the Multicultural Arts Center in Lechemere, Cambridge
$23 / $18 students/seniors/BDA members
I am so incredibly excited about this show (partly because I'm stage managing, so I might be biased)! Monkeyhouse favorites, Paradise Lost is thrilled to premier 4 new pieces from choreographers Shannon Sweeny, Cassie Samuels, Gabriel Nesser and Artistic Director Tyler Catanella. These new pieces "explore cycles and repetition within human nature and relationships. Whether told through the story of a silent family at a dinner table, two couples waking up at sunset on a grassy hill, or three ghosts stuck in a purgatory, Paradise Lost asks: How do we escape from the cycles that trap us? Where can we find the strength to break free from those that tie us down? What does it take for us to let go and move forward? Let's get lost!"

Fri, March 25th @ 10 pm
Acoustica Electronica
Presented by toUch Performances
At Club Oberon in Harvard Square, Cambridge
$15 -$90 (VIP)
Acoustica Electronica has returned to Boston, and March 25 is your last night to see the show! An electric mix of aerialists, dancers, theater and live opera music, this show has been described as "Cirque du Soleil meets a rave" which is my personal ideal night out. Once the show is over, the party continues on into the small hours, so prepare to dance the night away!

February Events!!

by Aisha Cruse

If the bleak Boston winter has got you down, never fear! February is full of vibrant dance! And if you're looking for something to do Valentine's Day weekend, you have no shortage of options!

Sun, February 7 @ 6 pm & 8 pm
NACHMO Boston
Presented by NACHMO Boston and Intimations Dance
At the Dance Complex in Central Square, Cambridge

$10

I hope everyone out there enjoyed January's choreographic kick in the pants! NACHMO Boston culminates at the end of this week with an evening jam-packed with all-new dance! Featuring 20 choreographers (including perennial Monkeyhouse favorites Ryan P. Casey and Nikki Sao Pedro- Welch) spread out over two performance times, your only problem is which time slot to see. Personal suggestion: see both! Admission is only $10!

Sat & Sun, February 12 & 13 @ 8 pm

The Glorious Mediocre with Kat Nasti
Presented by Boston Center for the Arts
At the Calderwood Pavilion in Back Bay, Boston
$20/ $18 BDA members

The Choreographers Residency program at the BCA continues enabling artists to produce really stellar work. Choreographer Kat Nasti describes The Glorious Mediocre as a "memoir of the mundane". Through a mash-up of Broadway and modern dance, she reflects on her own childhood in a rather unspectacular town and explores the fruitless pursuits of mortals with song, dance, and a healthy amount of sarcasm.

Fri & Sat, February 12 & 13 @ 8 pm
DANCE! DANCE! DANCE! DANCE!
Featuring Daniel McCusker Dance Projects : Navarasa Dance Theater : Jean Appolon Expressions : Wendy Jehlen and Lacina Coulibaly
Presented by the ICA Boston
At the Institute for Contemporary Art Boston, MA
$15 ICA members + students / $30 nonmembers
Want to see 4 incredible local dance companies perform on the same evening? The ICA is fulfilling your wishes. Given Monkeyhouse's commitment to building and growing the Boston dance community I am unreasonably excited by this event and by the event description: "An exciting evening highlighting the diversity of dance in the Boston region ... featuring Daniel McCusker Dance Projects, Navarasa Dance Theater, Jean Appolon Expressions, and a duet by Wendy Jehlen and Lacina Coulibaly. Including a 15-minute performance by each company, DANCE! DANCE! DANCE! DANCE! will conclude with a discussion among the four choreographers in which they will discuss how different forms of dance of informed their own work."

February 12 thru March 6
Fri & Sat @ 8 pm, Sun @ 4 pm
The Cuba Files
Presented by Jose Mateo Ballet Theatre
At The Sanctuary Theater in Harvard Square, Cambridge

$42
Set entirely to music by Cuban composers, The Cuba Files goes back to Jose Mateo's Cuban roots, featuring two ballets choreographed in 2004, Escape and Arroz con Mango, and the premier of a new ballet. There is also a special discounted price if you buy tickets for all three spring performances, so go check out the website!

Sat & Sun, February 19 & 20 @ 7:30 pm

Avalanche
Presented by MoveWorks
At the Dance Complex in Central Square, Cambridge

$25/ $20 student & BDA members
I love it when out-of-town companies come to Boston to premier their work. MoveWorks evening-length show features three pieces; The Job, The Contaminant, and the world premier of Avalanche, a celebration of cold, ice and snow. In the depths of the Bostonian winter, it might be nice to be reminded that sometimes the cold is beautiful. Also featuring a special guest performance by Gabrielle Orcha and performance art by a local Boston cast!

Sat, February 27 @ 8 pm
Urban Bush Women: WALKING WITH ‘TRANE
Presented by FirstWorks
Veterans Memorial Auditorium in Providence, RI
$18-75 includes $3 restoration fee
I had the good fortune to take a semester long class with a former Urban Bush Woman in college, and it remains one of the best learning experiences I've had as a dancer.If you have the opportunity to make it down to Providence for the performance, DO IT. These women are incredible dancers, and this show features live music composed by the Grammy Award-winning George Caldwell in tribute to John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme".