Instead of looking just at bringing varied programming to the community, Neos Dance Theatre is focusing on bringing diverse community members into its creative process with dance.r.evolution. The project brings graffiti artists, hip-hop dancers, urban musicians and classical dancers together to intersect in new ways in the rehearsal studio and on stage.
The two-year initiative, a Knight Arts Challenge-winning program, will kick off with the premiere of dance.r.evolution at 7:30 p.m. April 22 in the newly renovated Goodyear Theater in Akron. Resident choreographer Mary-Elizabeth Fenn has created a multimedia event that integrates eclectic live performances with mini documentaries of hip-hop dancers from Oberlin as well as an art curator in Akron.
For the performance, videographer Andrew Trowbridge also continues this synergy of urban art by capturing downtown graffiti murals created by Akron’s Art Bomb Brigade, another Knight Arts Challenge project.
The visual art-making doesn’t stop there: Next week a graffiti artist from Columbus will create graffiti with latex paint on a faux wall at the back of the stage, designing a mural based on what he sees in the live dance on stage.
At a dance.r.evolution rehearsal Tuesday at the University of Akron’s Guzzetta Hall, Fenn’s own solo dance got more colorful as set designer/technical director Kix painted her arms and back in fluorescent colors as she moved, a moment that promises to be vivid under black light on stage.
As the dance unfolds, the classically trained Neos dancers will dance in a fusion of contemporary styles as DJ MisterBradleyP, otherwise known as Brad Petty of Cleveland, is on stage for the entire dance, mixing continuous tracks of Ethiopian jazz, electronic and hip-hop music.
Interspersed throughout dance.r.evolution are solos by hip-hop YouTube sensation Ryan Rosinski of Streetsboro, and more hip-hop dancing by Oberlin dancers Eydon Thomashow and Kalei Tooman.
Fenn also explores relationships between classical and urban artists by integrating art curator Courtney Cable into the dance. The arts administrator is program coordinator for the Akron Art Museum’s Inside Out project, which places art reproductions around town in public spaces, and also runs Curated Storefront, a Knight Arts Challenge project that installs artwork in vacant or under utilized storefronts in downtown Akron.
For dance.r.evolution, videographer Trowbridge has captured Cable organizing the Storefront. She also interacts live with Neos dancers Matt Roberts, Kassie Lee and Katherine Tackett, “curating” their dance by handing them each numbers that represent different music phrases. At each rehearsal, the dancers execute the phrases in different sequences each time she gives them different numbers.
“Every time we do a rehearsal, it’s different,” Cable said. “We all need to be flexible with one another and listen.”
Balcony seating only will be available for this unique performance. All-female choreographers will be highlighted, including works Tarry the Night by guest choreographer Holly Handman-Lopez and Flight by Penny Saunders. (Cost is $20, or $35 for VIP front-row seating. Tickets also may be purchased at the door, including $10 seats for students and senior citizens. Doors will open at 6:45 p.m. More info: goodyeartheater.com.)
The purpose of the dance.r.evolution project, said Neos Artistic Director Bobby Wesner, is to inspire and engage local youth by bringing classical and urban artists together to create something new. The piece also features young grade-school dancers from ArtSparks, who are ushered on stage by the three hip-hop dancers.
The goal was for both the classical and urban artists to learn from each other and inspire each other in the creative process.
“It’s got to be this honest conversation that [Fenn] develops with these urban artists so we’re building a relationship with these guys” long term, Wesner said. “She’s been playing with all these different elements that are certainly not our language.”
Fenn said her approach was to put all of the elements together, shake them up and see what came out.
“I call it like a creative zoo,” she said.
Arts writer Kerry Clawson may be reached at 330-996-3527 or kclawson@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow her at @KerryClawsonABJ or www.facebook.com/kclawsonabj.