ODC’s Walking Distance Dance Festival June 4, 2016

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ODC’s 2016 Walking Distance Dance Festival explored the meaning of “place” and how it creates and shapes who we are, how we live, and what we create. Clarion Alley Mural Project provided Dance Brigade with the space for their performance Hemorrhage. Written and directed by Krissy Keefer, the work captures the current crisis of world affairs by focusing on the connection between gentrification, global warming, racism and the continued attack on the rights of women. The all-female cast uses explosive text, drumming, dance and theater to examine the dismantling of the Mission District through forced displacement.

“Drawing on the analysis of Rebecca Solnit, Guillermo Gómez-Peña and those who have been recently evicted, Keefer explores the efforts to transform San Francisco into a bedroom community 2 for Silicon Valley, an action that has a farther reach than just the real estate involved. What does this mean for San Francisco, she asks, a city that has long been a beacon for discourse and action around social and environmental justice and global solidarity movements? And what does this mean for the world?

Dance Brigade is known for the way it uses modern dance, storytelling, and Taiko drumming to create a compelling narrative. Honed over the company’s 37-year history, the all-female cast uses strong theatrics, humor and compelling original text to explore today’s political and social situation, while also employing contemporary dance forms such as hip hop, house and Reggaeton.”

Hemorrhage was performed in collaboration with CAMP’s oldest mural by Chuy Campusano, painted in 1994. Dance Brigade performers for the Walking Distance Dance Festival 2016 included: Sarah Bush, Richelle Donigan, Karen Elliot, Lena Gatchalian, Fredrika Keefer, and Kim Valmore.

Check out ODC Writer In Residence Marie Tollon’s conversation with CAMP organizer Megan Wilson on Triple Dog Dare HERE.

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