Above photo: Dougla, April 4, 2018. Great news from Dance Theatre of Harlem as the company announced a digital season of wonderful works. The season comes just in time as the entertaining New York City Ballet Digital Spring Season came to an end Friday. New York ballet fans now have another two months of high-quality works. I previously reviewed many of these performances and particularly enjoyed Robert Garland’s Nyman Spring Quartet #2 and Geoffrey Holder’s Dougla. Works by Anabelle Lopez Ochoa, Darell Grand Moultrie, and Nacho Duato are also on the bill. Check out the DTH website for more details. Below is the DTH On Demand Virtual Ballet Series lineup. All Saturdays at 8 pm EST on the DTH Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook channels. The performances are from various years and venues such as New York City Center and other theaters on tour.
June 6: Creole Giselle hosted by DTH Artistic Director Virginia Johnson
June 13: Vessels choreographed by Darell Grand Moultrie
June 20: Return choreographed by Robert Garland
June 27: Balamouk choreographed by Anabelle Lopez Ochoa
July 11: Guggenheim performance of Tones II choreographed by Arthur Mitchell and Nyman String Quartet #2 choreographed by Robert Garland
July 18: Coming Together choreographed by Nacho Duato
July 25: Dougla choreographed by Geoffrey Holder
The idea for a digital season arose during the bleak days of March when DTH was set to perform at the Detroit Opera House. After a lecture demonstration with several more performances remaining in Detroit, DTH canceled the tour due to COVID concerns and the company took an unexpected flight back to New York. “It was a big letdown as Detroit is a special place for DTH, and we were settled in for several performances,” DTH dancer Christopher-Charles McDaniel says. “The April New York City Center cancellation was devastating and heartbreaking. We don’t perform much in New York and always look forward to the season.”
Out of heartbreak came the idea of a digital season. Over the weeks after the season cancellation, Christopher and a team of dancers, a marketing team, Anna Glass, stage manager Heather Olcott, and DTH Artistic Director Virginia Johnson brainstormed about the best ways to move into the troupe’s digital existence. The team assembled an impressive series of works. Check it out.
Yinet Fernandez and Da’Von Doane, Tones II. Click for more photos.