Dallas, Texas – Dallas Black Dance Theatre (DBDT) launches its 42nd season with six world premieres, including a new work by Princess Grace award-winning choreographer Darrell Grand Moultrie. Other works reflect historic eras of Nina Simone, Odetta Holmes, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The season features internationally renowned Ballet Hispánico from New York City, as well as Step Afrika! of Washington, D.C., which celebrates the historic connection between South African dance and stepping.
The season kicks off with the 13th Annual DanceAfrica series October 5-6, 2018, at the Moody Performance Hall. Friday and Saturday evening performances feature guest artist Step Afrika! The international touring company jubilantly links the historic tradition between South African dance and stepping, a ritual for African American fraternities and sororities across America. The day-long FREE DanceAfrica Marketplace will be held Saturday, October 6, 2018, from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. at Annette Strauss Square with mainstage performances, fun, food, vendors, fashion show by Trendy Africa and games for the entire family.
Bruce Wood Dance Rehearsal Director Joy Bollinger takes DBDT dancers on a jaunt from a duel to a power struggle in choreographing a new work. The dance makes its world premiere during the Director’s Choice series, November 2-4, 2018. The Dallas premiere of Bodies as Site of Faith and Protest by choreographer Tommie-Waheed Evans draws on fierce physical language through dance set to iconic speech excerpts by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The strength and stamina of DBDT dancers are showcased as they push through the layers of Lily Cabatu Weiss’ Thrown for a Loop.
The Cultural Awareness series, February 15-17, 2019, salutes the “Queen of American Folk Music” and the “High Priestess of Soul.” Two women of courage influenced the world and used their musical voices for change. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Rehearsal Director and Guest Artist Matthew Rushing exemplifies Odetta Holmes’ magical voice by blending soul-stirring movements to folk, gospel, and blues music in the Dallas premiere of ODETTA. Iconic choreographer Dianne McIntyre’s Nina Simone Project epitomizes her regal presence with choreography set to Simone’s signature classical, jazz, and soul fusion.
Ballet Hispánico is the special guest artist of the season during the Spring Celebration series, May 17-19, 2019. The nation’s premier Latino dance company shares Latin culture through the lens of contemporary modern dance. Princess Grace award-winning choreographer Darrell Grand Moultrie creates a new work for DBDT that weaves together multiple genres. DBDT nine-year veteran dancer Claude Alexander III examines the influence of social media and pop culture using classical vocabulary as the foundation for choreographing his new contemporary modern dance.
DBDT: Encore! takes center stage in its 19th annual Rising Excellence series, April 12-13, 2019, at the Moody Performance Hall. Dr. Lorenzo “Rennie” Harris choreographs a new work fusing Shakespearean narrative with hip-hop vocabulary while mixing hip-hop music with rock, modern, and classical sounds. The Nancy A. Nasher and David J. Haemisegger Family SOLUNA International Music & Arts Festival commissions a new work for DBDT: Encore! by emerging choreographer My’kal J. Stromile. The Juilliard School 2018 graduate danced with Encore! while attending Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. DBDT: Encore! Artistic Director Nycole Ray, known for creating exquisite dance art, is developing a new company work.
Dancing Beyond Borders is the perfect setting to indulge in the best of Dallas Black Dance Theatre as DBDT and DBDT: Encore! join together for their annual performance. Both companies perform crowd-pleasing season highlights with meticulous technique and artistry. The Fort Worth performance is March 16, 2019, in the W.E. Scott Theatre. The Richardson performance is March 22, 2019, in the Eisemann Center for Performing Arts.
As part of the national expansion for the dance company, DBDT presents its sixth New York City season at the Ailey Citigroup Theatre, May 2-3, 2019.
DISCOUNTED PARKING OFFERED WITH SEASON SUBSCRIPTION!
Tickets go on sale August 16, 2018. Season subscribers now have the option of purchasing discounted parking for $10 per performance when they buy season tickets through September 30, 2018. Season subscribers can save up to 15% off ticket prices that range from $22-58. For details on subscription and parking packages, visit the AT&T Performing Arts Center at www.attpac.org or call 214-871-2376 ext. 413.
Group subscriptions can save 30% off ticket prices when booking multiple performances. This option is great for organizations that want the convenience of a single process to purchase multiple seats at three or more performances. For group ticket information call 214-871-2376 ext. 413 or email [email protected].
For single tickets, visit www.attpac.org.
For more performance details, visit www.DBDT.com.
2018-2019 | DBDT Season Sponsors
Legacy Sponsor: Simmons Sisters Fund of The Dallas Foundation
Season Sponsors: Office of Cultural Affairs – City of Dallas, Texas Instruments, International Association of Blacks in Dance, NBC 5, I Messenger, The Downtown Business News, TACA, PaperCity, American Airlines, The Dallas Weekly, and DART.
2018 – 2019 | DBDT Season Supporters
Season Supporters: Texas Commission on the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, Lexus, OverseeMyIT, The Dallas Examiner, The Dallas Post Tribune, Elite News, AT&T Performing Arts Center, Trendy Africa, and Arts+Culture.
About Dallas Black Dance Theatre
Dallas Black Dance Theatre is an internationally recognized professional dance company that engages the cross-cultural community through contemporary modern dance presented from the African-American experience. Founded by Ann Williams in 1976, the company has been designated as an American Masterpiece Touring Artist by the National Endowment for the Arts in 2008 and received the Texas Medal of Arts Award for Arts Education in 2017.
The mission of Dallas Black Dance Theatre is to create and produce contemporary modern dance at its highest level of artistic excellence through performances and educational programs that bridge cultures and reach diverse communities. The company is the 10th largest minority arts organization in America and the fourth largest black dance company in the nation. The virtuosic dancers of Dallas Black Dance Theatre have mesmerized 4.2 million arts patrons across 15 countries, including two Olympic Cultural events.
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