March Newsletter

 

 

 

 

 

By Sid Smith

Many of us remember the annual spring dance festival here, a bonanza that typically made April the busiest month of the year.

It played a major role in the dance renaissance sweeping our city for decades now, and remnants of it remain--spring endures as a bustling time.

But this year the center seems to have shifted a bit into March, which is about as jampacked as any in memory--there are days in the month boasting as many as 10--yes, count them, 10--competing performances.

The month arrives with a few holdovers from late February. Mordine & Company Dance Theater continues "All at Once," teaming that troupe with Clinard Dance Theatre (March 1) and Deeply Rooted Dance Theatre (March 2 and 3) at Stage 773. Also from February, the Space Movement's "Out of Step in the Same Direction," in collaboration with installation artist Shawn Decker, continues March 2 and 3 at the Chicago Cultural Center.

Then, Occupy Dance 2013, centered on the theme of the economics of the body, features work by Billy Siegenfeld, Lizzie Leopold, Annie Beserra, David Lakein, Susan Lee and Stephanie Paul in concerts March 1-10 at Northwestern University's Josephine Louis Theatre, 20 Arts Circle Dr. in Evanston. Theatre Un-Speak-Able's "Murder on the Midwest Express" plays latenight March 1 at the Den Theatre, 1333 N. Milwaukee Av.

In a major event, the new work from Melissa Thodos and Ann Reinking, "A Light in the Dark," inspired by the life of Helen Keller, arrives downtown March 2 and 3 at the Harris Theater, following its February premiere in Skokie. The Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre fuses dance, live music and onstage visual art March 2 at Roosevelt University's 4th-floor Katten Landau Studio at 425 S. Wabash Av.

In a chance to check out the next generation, Northwestern University is offering "The Golden Year," a program of work by five graduating seniors majoring in dance, all of them also teaming up to perform in a work by Stephanie Martinez, March 3 at the Marjorie Ward Marshall Ballroom Theatre, 10 Arts Circle Dr.

With a similar eye to the future, some 125 young and aspiring community dancers perform works by Randy Duncan, Jeff Hancock, Lizzie Mackenzie, Ricky Ruiz and others in the Dance for Life Next Generation concert March 3 at Wheeling High School, 900 S. Elmhurst Rd.

But the month is just beginning. The great Stephen Petronio, one of the giants of contemporary dance, returns with his troupe March 7-9 to the Dance Center of Columbia College. Inaside Chicago Dance presents new commissioned works of jazz choreography, featuring a different dance maker each night, March 7-9 at the Athenaeum Theatre.

In one of its longest visits here in years, the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater sets up residence March 8-17 at the Auditorium Theatre, boasting a new work by Kyle Abraham, a revival of an early piece by artistic director Robert Battle, the company's performance of Jiri Kylian's "Petit Mort" and, of course, Ailey's "Revelations" among its plentiful offerings.

Piel Morena Contemporary Dance guests with Mexico City's A Poc a Poc March 8 and 9 at Links Hall. Luna Negra Dance Theatre's "Made in Spain," boasting new works by Fernando Hernando Magadan (featuring the live Turtle Island Quartet) and Monica Cervantes, plays March 9 at the Harris. The Chicago Danztheatre Ensemble presents "A Night of Love: Poetry, Performance & Art Inspired by Rumi" March 9 at the Fulton Street Collective, 2000 W. Fulton St.

Oak Park's MOMENTA performs its spring outing March 9, 10, 16 and 17 at 605 W. Lake St. in that near west suburb. Cerqua Rivera returns with its spring concert series March 9 and 16 at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts. The Joffrey Ballet presents its third annual outing of works by winners of its Choreographers of Color Award at 4 p.m. March 10 at the Harris.

Years in planning, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago's spring outing shows off the troupe's collaboration with Alonzo King and his LINES troupe: Each company performs separately and then both share the stage in King's work created expressly for this combined ensemble March 14-17 at the Harris.

Striding Lion Performance Group teams with enidsmithdance March 15-17 at Links. The Evanston Dance Ensemble presents a "best of" series March 15-17 at Evanston's Josephine Louis. And, in this month marked by its plethora of collaborations, Megan Adams Dance and Through the Body perform March 15-17 at the Fasseas Whitebox Theatre of the Drucker Center at 1535 N. Dayton St.

Dance Chicago presents former Giordano wunderkind and talented choreographer in his own right, Jon Lehrer, and his Lehrer Dance March 16 at the Athenaeum Theatre.

River North Dance Chicago visits the North Shore March 16 to perform various works at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie.

Up next, as the heated schedule continues, the Chicago Moving Company impressively marks its 40th anniversary with performance March 21-23 at the Dance Center. Giordano Dance Chicago offers its spring line-up March 21-23 at the Harris, while Montreal's Compagnie Marie Chouinard brings its namesake's take on "The Rite of Spring," 100 years after Nijinsky's original, March 21-23 at the Museum of Contemporary Art.

The Kalapriya Dance Company, joined by Lyon Leifer on flute, Sara Ranagathan on veena and Ravi Iyer on mridandam, perform at 3 p.m. March 24 at 425 S. Wabash. That same day, and same venue, at 4:30 p.m., the Full Effect Entertainment Theatrical Dance Company joins Michael Green and Randy Baker, while at 6 p.m., Kuumba Lynx and Urban Aspirations take the stage there.

As if to sum up the busy month and its cornucopia of genres, Innervation Dance Cooperative ends March and welcomes April with concerts combining modern, jazz, Broadway, tap and Asian stylistics March 28-April 6 at the Prop Thtr, 3502 N. Elston Av.