Winter Events!

by Aisha Cruse

The Holiday season is nearly upon us, and the new year is right around the corner. Take in some great dance shows that are Nutcracker alternatives, and look ahead to the new year of dance in Boston!

Thu, December 10 @ 6:30pm & 7:30pm
Sat, December 12 @ 2 pm
Through Sun, January 24
Silas Renier in Merce Cunningham's Changeling
Presented by ICA Boston
At the ICA Boston, MA
FREE with admission to the museum
The Black Mountain College exhibition at the ICA is bringing Merce Cunningham's early works to life. December is the kickoff for two months of performances by the Boston Conservatory students under the direction of former Cunningham dancer Silas Riener. From the ICA website: "Boston Conservatory students perform excerpts from early Cunningham dances including Dime A Dance, Springweather and People, Septet, Nocturnes, and Minutiae, accompanied by pianist Stephen Drury. For the December and January performances, the students will be joined by Riener, who will perform the recently reconstructed Cunningham solo Changeling, and joined by Drury performing music by Christian Wolff and John Cage."

Thurs, December 17 @ 7:30PM
FILAMENT : Luminarium 5-Year Retrospective
Presented by Luminarium Dance
At Oberon, Harvard Square, Cambridge
$15-$20
Luminarium turns 5 this year, and Monkeyhouse could not be more excited about it. Make sure you come out to see their one-night-only retrospective show, featuring 11 favorites selected by fans. If you missed out on past Luminarium shows and want to see the best of the best, go buy your tickets now! This is at Oberon, so audience must be 18+.

Fri & Sat, December 18 & 19 @ 8:00 pm
12 Dancers Dancing
Presented by Honey Blonder
At Dance Complex, Cambridge, MA
$20 Adults/ $15 Children and Senior
Thirteen Boston based dance companies celebrate the season! Featuring performances from Rainbow Tribe, Bside, Sydni Lockeby, Boston Community Dance Project, Embrace, Cambridge Dance Company, Brookline Academy of Dance, Contemporarily Out of Order, Alive Dance Collective, CreationDance, Forty Steps Dance, Steffani Bennett, and Monkeyhouse friends Ryan P. Casey and Dance'n Feet! This is also a charity event, so if you bring a new toy for the toy drive you'll get a dollar off your ticket!

Sat, January 23 @ 7:30pm
An evening of Jazz and Tap
Featuring The Tall Tribe and the Paul Arslanian Trio
The Dance Hall in Kittery, ME
$20 advance /$25 at the door
Monkeyhouse loves Ryan P Casey! Take the opportunity to get out of the city for a night and head up to Kittery Maine (full disclosure, I really like jazz music, and I think live music and tap is one of the best ways dancers can experiment with interactive accompaniment): "Join The Tall Tribe (tap dancers Gay Nardone, Ryan Casey, and Drika Overton) and The Paul Arslanian Trio with special guests for an evening jazz and tap, from classic repertory to ground-breaking original work. Infectious fun and positive energy!"

January
NACHMO!
Presented by Intimations Dance
At the Dance Complex in Cambridge MA
It's almost time for that kick in the choreographic pants, National Choreography Month Boston! All January long choreographers selected by Intimations Dance will be creating new work. Last year the final performance was in the first week of February, and there were classes, workshops, and events all month long in January. We don't have exact dates yet, but keep checking back at the link above. I can't wait!

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."