UTOPIA: freedom
DEC 12-15, 2019
Velocity Dance Center | Seattle, WA
Four dancers follow an algorithmic movement score that guides them through moments of connection in the face of droning tedium of repetition.
The first performance in this project, UTOPIA: freedom was presented as a durational component of NextFest 2019: Ritual and Rebellion at Velocity Dance Center.
The piece was accompanied by a modular cinderblock sculpture, slideshow of Yugoslav World War II monuments, books on brutalism in the Balkans and internationally, and supplies to draw, write, and leave a message for the artists.
“I found myself wondering about the violence that is possible when ritual becomes divorced from human spirit or when rebellion is extinguished by the constant drone of bureaucracy.”
— West Liberty, SeattleDances
CREDITS
Performers: Kara Beadle, Erin McCarthy, Tayler Tucker, Fox Whitney
Research Support / Projection Design: Benjamin Kinney Harris
Music: Kyema (Intermediate States) by Éliane Radigue
Project Manager: Leah Crosby
Showrunners: Vladimir Kremenović, Jordan Macintosh-Hougham
Special Thanks to KT Niehoff and 10 degrees, Vanessa DeWolf and Gallery 1412, Ben Goosman, Erin Johnson, Heather Kravas, Alice Gosti, Danielle Doell, Sophia Arnall, and everyone else who helped create this work.
ABOUT NEXTFEST
An annual performance series celebrating new dance and movement-based work in the Northwest!
NextFest is Velocity Dance Center’s annual performance series celebrating what’s happening in contemporary dance, movement-based performance and dance cinema in the Pacific Northwest. It was established to support new work and investigate different approaches to dance and to foster a robust community where artists have access to facilities, support, and creative exchange.