Tag Archives: performance

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago performs

Hubbard Street Dance isn’t just about putting on a good contemporary dance show that combines jazz, ballet, and modern dance. It’s also the place where over 300 students come to learn how to move. But if moving to the beat isn’t quite your thing but watching is, then take in a Hubbard Street Dance Chicago company show. Seventeen dancers will take the stage and show off their versatility in a fun performance. Every season brings in a new performance with new moves and stunning choreography, and occasionally the troupe will put on a special festival show.

Paramount Theatre: Downtown Denver’s Performance Palace

Denver’s a wonder of early to mid-twentieth century architecture, and the Paramount Theatre is no exception, boasting as it does a sweeping Art Deco interior complete with a 1600-pipe Wurlitzer organ—a feature it shares with only one other venue in the nation, namely Radio City Music Hall. But this inductee into the National Register of Historic Places is also a vibrant showcase for performers of all kinds, from alternative songsters like Sufjan Stevens and star comedians like Louis CK and Margaret Cho to TV celebrities like Buddy Valastro, aka The Cake Boss. The Paramount screens films, hosts lectures—think talks by famed Egyptologist Zahi Hawass—and of course stages holiday classics like The Nutcracker. In short, it’s a glitzy, posh one-stop entertainment shop.

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Opera Company of Philadelphia Is Toast of “Opera Town”

Picture 27The Opera Company of Philadelphia, or OCP, knows Philly has always been a town dedicated to the arts, and even more so an Opera Town. Gearing up for its 35th Anniversary next season, OCP is continuing to do exciting full-length operas of traditional and new repertoire along Philadelphia’s Avenue of the Arts.

OCP performs at the beautiful Academy of Music and in the Kimmel Center’s smaller Perelman Theater, letting patrons see large-scale productions as well as more intimate shows. With a focus on developing talent, the performers in OCP’s productions are all top notch. For example, in 1980 OCP began a long-standing relationship with Luciano Pavarotti, establishing a competition that seeks out the best young voice talent.

In addition to the performances, OCP features pre-concert lectures and Opera-enrichment programs in hopes that the love of opera will carry on through the generations. The Opera also puts on a full-length opera every year with the students at Philadelphia’s renowned music school The Curtis Institute of Music.

No Boundaries in Miami Light Project’s Contemporary World

Picture 20There are no boundaries or limits when it comes to exploring the contemporary performance world, at least not for the Miami Light Project, who has spent the last two decades perfecting their craft and becoming Miami’s premier contemporary art forum. Searching for the most innovative form of expression in live performance, MLP is a place to discover groundbreaking local and global artists in music, dance and theatre.

The Miami Light Project taps into the beat of the city by offering hip hop acts and world music groups. The annual Here & Now Festival is a great place to see up and coming fresh acts, but don’t sweat it, there are special events year-round. Performances are at venues around the city, but mainly on South Beach and Downtown Miami.

2. SoBay Festival of the Arts Feb. 1-14

Created in 2006, the SoBPicture 2ay Festival of Arts is an annual celebration of the literary, performing and visual arts of the South Miami-Dade community, including a wide-range of events that appeal to different tastes.

Events will include the Greater Miami Youth Symphony Performance, an Eco-Art Project, and the Miami-Dade College Theatre Department presenting an evening of Vignette’s on the Estate, to name a few. Along with the Festival, Ancestral Journeys by Xavier Cortada, an installation exhibit that uses DNA to trace the ancestral journeys of the people living in Miami, will be on view the entire month of February. Pianist Johnny Rodgers will bring the festival to a close on February 14th at the Annual Moonlight and Music Jazz Concert.

Harris Theater is Like a Good DJ- Hot New Numbers Every Time

Chicagoans take theater seriously. Not that they’re obsessed with dramas, no, but the art of theater-going, yes. Here theaters range from the classics like the Goodman, Ford Center (Oriental Theater), and (of course) Chicago Theater to the king of comedy, Second City. In the middle of these two genres is the Harris Theater, whiPicture 7ch masterfully presents options worthy of the classics and funny enough for the kids at Second City. The reason the Harris Theater’s so successful in diversity is that it partners with some of the best performing arts companies, allowing the theater to be on the forefront of all things dance, musical, comedy and drama.

Just take a look at some 2010 highlights to come:

Mikhail Baryshnikov in a solo dance performance, an evening of insight with the “Master of the Musical,” Stephen Sondheim, the Harris Theater debut of Lang Lang under the baton of his mentor Christoph Eschenbach, the Chicago premiere of Orquestra de Sao Paulo with virtuoso percussionist Dame Evelyn Glennie.

The theater’s calendar is jam packed with performances making its repertoire new and fresh, especially compared to the big-boy theaters whose stage productions last for months at a time. And for those who still can’t enough of Harris Theater, there are plenty of classes and volunteering opportunities to keep everyone entertained.

Twirls, Tutus and Tights at the Miami City Ballet

Dancing couple 2Master ballet choreographer George Balanchine had a protege once, his name was Edward Villella and he is now the artistic director of the Miami City Ballet. Even though Villella has made a name on his own, with an induction into the Dancer’s Hall of Fame in 2004, it’s no wonder a major chunk of the troupe’s repertoire — which numbers 88 ballets — are Balanchine-choreographed pieces.

The troupe’s international blend of dancers have performed with the Paris Opera Ballet, the American Ballet Theatre, The National Ballet of China and the San Francisco Ballet, to name a few. This season, on top of the Balanchine pieces, there are nine world premieres in the mix. Check them out this season as they leap, twirl and float across the stage at the Adrienne Arsht Center in Downtown Miami.

Apache Cafe: Safe Haven for the Outspoken

CAFEArt Mondays. Wednesday Jam Session. Weekly Open Mics. All of these are the norm for Atlanta’s Apache Cafe. Guests can come in mostly any day of the week and express themselves in many forms of art: spoken, writing or by song. Located in the heart of downtown, Apache Cafe opens its doors to those that walk to a different beat, music.

If you prefer to sit back and enjoy the talents of others instead of taking the mainstage, be sure to try the menu specials: Bermuda Tacos and Salmon Cakes paired with the Ultimate Apple Martini. Who knows, after a few martinis you may become more daring!

Apache Cafe features unique nightly performances as well as seasonal events to get you in the mood for any upcoming holiday. Whether your passion is poetry, song or performing, the Apache Cafe has something to entice all of the above.

Momentum Dance: One of Miami’s Best Troupes

The hypnotic moves of Miami’s stellar dance troupe Momentum Dance Company, who have been gPicture 26racing stages around the city for more than two decades, makes for a mesmerizing experience. A show by Momentum always holds some kind of surprise with their ingenious creativity. The repertoire of numbers conceived by artistic director Delma Iles are so popular that dance fans have come to expect them, like “Sand Dance,” a solo effort by Iles that incorporates a single spotlight and sand into the performance.

Performing all over the city, this contemporary group is known for inventive and innovative moves and haunting performances that captivate the audience and leave them wanting more. Make a point of catching Momentum while in Miami or risk missing an unforgettable experience. Check out their website to find out when the next performance is taking place.

Tony Award-Winning Alliance Theatre

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Now in its 39th season, Atlanta’s nationally acclaimed Alliance Theatre, recipient of the 2007 Regional Theatre Tony Award®, is the leading professional resident theatre of the Southeast.

Under the leadership of Artistic Director Susan V. Booth and Managing Director Thomas Pechar, the Alliance Theatre is a national theatre with a local address, reachiPicture 54ng out annually to almost 200,000 patrons and members of the community. Known for its high artistic standards and national role in creating significant theatrical works, the Alliance launched three Tony Award-winning hits to Broadway: Alice Walker’s The Color Purple, Elton John and Tim Rice’s Aida and Alfred Uhry’s The Last Night of Ballyhoo. And in a rare event for a regional theatre, it originated the national tour of the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.

The theatre has premiered more than 50 works including adaptations of Carson McCullers’ The Heart is a Lonely Hunter and Pearl Cleage’s Blues for an Alabama Sky. Further evidence of the Alliance’s commitment to new work is found in its nationally recognized Kendeda Graduate Playwriting Competition, a cutting-edge program introducing student playwrights to professional networks while producing the world premiere of the winning student’s work. The Alliance Theatre also offers extensive education and outreach programs such as the Institute for Educators and the Collision Project for high school students. The Alliance continuously brings Atlanta the finest talent and finest art—proving once again that the Alliance is where great theatre lives.

The Alliance Theatre is a division of the Woodruff Arts Center in Atlanta, Georgia, which also includes the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, High Museum of Art, Young Audiences and the 14th Street Playhouse.

Cirque du Soleil’s Wintuk Begins

cyr_ringMove over Rockettes, a new holiday show is in town. The legendary performance group Cirque du Soleil brings their winter-inspired performance to Madison Square Garden just in time for the winter season. The show is about a boy’s quest for snow, but is definitely all show with incredible acrobatics, theatrical effects, and melodic songs.

The DC Arts Center Where Talented Artists Get Their Start

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When the phrase up and coming artists is used, it is usually meant Picture 6for musicians, but the DC Arts Center, or DCAC, is dedicated to upcoming artists in all forms of art. One part theater, one part art gallery, the DCAC was built as an alternative center for local artists and has turned into a stepping stone for young talent to get noticed in the naton’s capital.

Over 100 visual art exhibitions and 500 performances have taken place at the DC Arts Center.The center has been reviewed on the local, national, and international level, making this an important venue for both the art world and the artists showcasing their work.