NEWSLETTER: step on the one

A BEAUTIFUL evening to you! This weekend in Los Angeles is sopping wet with ... sweat! Dance sweat that is. You must plot your trajectory so that you can catch a bit of it all. yes, that is a lot of money to drop in one weekend, but everyone gets a tax refund, right? Okay. I happen to be one of those people that almost always gets a tax refund (except when I am living in NY), but I am always incensed by the marketing that occurs trying to pry my dollars out of my hand to consume random stuff, just cause I got some dollars! This year, it was a wee different with creditors trying to dump me, even though I pay regularly, cause I am not a big money borrower. I got pay off offers that were almost as panicked as I was when I clicked "submit" the other night at the end of my TurboTax session. During review, I had questions tossed at me for my Schedule C that I had never ever heard...It should not be this complicated to have your own business, especially if your business is dance-related. Of all the arts, dance is the most difficult to monetize and likely has the highest amount of hidden costs. You have your home office but you drive to a studio where you pay rent to give a class where you "earn" money (I can hear all the dance teachers laughing right now). You can write off your mileage, part of your car value, car service etc, etc. How many of you do that? You are flown out to dance with someone, but you are doing "work for hire." You incur costs beyond the per diem (if one is offered) which you might not be able to write off since you were being told explicitly what to do and needed supervision and and andARGGGHHHH! Meltdown. Tax code needs some work. It especially needs to get a true distinction between high concert dance companies and dance laborers. Americans for the Arts are meeting soon, and I bet they will spend their time trying to get money out of the government, rather than investigate ways that money is extracted from performance-based artists at rates that are unfair given the amount of ongoing investment required to run "the business." And while everyone likes to complain about their tax rate, witness the tea parties today, our rate of taxation is the lowest it's ever been in history. What gives? Why do we all feel cheated? because we are in large part not investing that money in each other, but rather into systems to manage us. We gotta change this! Could you imagine being able to select what you want your tax owed to go to? The same way we are up in arms about the bailouts, we should just as actively be about identifying and initiating a shift in how taxes are assessed, collected then distributed. I KNOW we'd all feel a lot better and have more cash to go out to enjoy each other. Vibe on that. Focus. Now step on the good foot and Manifest it.

Afrolicious. Afrologia. Afrodelic. Afropoesia. Afrologica. How big is your 'fro?
Fractal, improvisational, polemical, but always moving with spirit and in service to lifting us all up!
That's the Logic of the Afro--sign up, read up, be up--you can move mountains, now make it beautiful

BLOWIN' BACK THE FRO this week is dance programming on almost every stage in town, with two major shows (or as they have called them "queer dance week) that look like NYC imports but are actually local. I'm also astounded and grateful to find myself curating three dance events, one of them, I am seeding to our collective unconsciousness to go viral in time for Int'l Dance Day. Now let's figure out how to get from the west side to downtown then to Hollywood and maybe to mid city for class.


HIGHWAYS
MEG WOLFE /SHOW BOX presents TENDER / Sharon Sherman's DEMOLITION BOY
April 17 - 19
Fri + Sat 8:30pm
Sun 7:00pm $20/$15
OPENS TONIGHT!
I will see you there in just a bit! My pick. (This was an extraordinary night of gritty, intelligent and surprising performances. Here is where queer releases the self-referential and turns its body-intelligence on the brutality of the everyday in overdeveloped society, with tongue firmly in cheek , or against cheek, or between cheeks. Ahem. This show was not only enjoyable to watch--even its more grotesque exchanges-- it was scathing social commentary that was well placed and designed. I really liked how focused each piece was: Sherman's on the rating, valuing and judging of art and bodies and Wolfe's+Barnett's on the physicality of relationships. The dancing was full-on dancing when necessary with only the occasional nod to a postmodern pedestrian palette. And that is as it should be. These dancers do not live in a walkable village and what is an everyday movement now seems like science fiction when compared to "high" Judson Church antics. I hope that the show can find its way on tour.)



REDCAT, map
April 15-17, 2009 The Sharon Disney Lund Dance Series
Dance by Neil Greenberg presents Really Queer Dance with Harps
Thurs 4.16.09 8:30 pm $25 $20 $12 Fri 4.17.09 8:30 pm $25 $20 $12
SOLD OUT! I went and saw it last night. I loved the Coda, but was kinda sad that the men and women did not dance together more: they were truly inspired when they did. As it turns out, that section was a bit of an inside joke between Greenberg and his dancers to finally give the audience what they wanted. Oh well. I thought that section was lush and still smart. The harpists would make Sun Ra proud. I had no idea that a harp could make all those sounds! Flavorpill's pick.


UNKNOWN THEATRE, map & parking
1110 Seward Street, Los Angeles
Mongrels by Samantha Giron Dance Project
Thursday April 16th, 2009 - Sunday April 26th, 2009; Th - Sat @ 8 PM & Sundays @ 6 PM; $18 advance on-line sale, $25 at the door
OPENS TONIGHT
A stripped-down and tripped out investigation of LA's electronica club scene, Mongrels seeks to get the rabid beasts off the street and onto the stage, but don't be surprised if they have filled all the seats in this small house. Lucky for you, it's a two-weekend run. Grover Dale's pick.


UCLA’s Glorya Kaufman Dance Theater, map
120 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA
Saturday Apr 18, 8 PM; Sunday, April 19, 2pm. $10/ $8 call (310) 825-2101 or online
CUP of JAVA
I am so over the title of this show, but the dancing will be without parallel. If you are looking for solid dance drama performed with the music and not in spite of it, this is your type of show. Seven of the most highly regarded performers of Java will take the stage with Gamelan, puppetry and dance; giving a level of enticement to "spectacle."


Next week is gonna be BUSY! If you know of a special Dance Week event, hit me up on Face Book so I can list it.



BPS at the BREWERY
618B Moulton, Los Angeles, CA 90031
Los Angeles Contemporary Dance Company presents Value System
Thursday April 23 - Friday 24th @ 8 PM, Saturday April 26 @ 5 PM; $20/$25
Okay, so just off the title of the piece, I am so THERE. Plus, PLUS, have you checked them out?! It is likely you have seen a number of these work-horse dancers laboring in the pieces of choreographers all over town. If anybody was gonna make a piece about the economy, this would be the crew; they know it intimately. When they come together, they tend to go for it. So Imma finally get my butt to one of their shows. You should, too, if you have not. MUST GO.


114 W. 5th Street (b/w Spring & Main), map
IT’S (A)LIVE: BRAVE LIVE ARTS FROM LOS ANGELES
Friday April 24 7pm – 10pm; no tix info but i do beleive that donations are welcomed at the door, plan for $15
Stakes a very big claim in their press release: "is an amalgamation of artists who claim, write and redefine the real, constructed and imagined territories of Los Angeles. The body, gender, race, sex(ualities), history and play are examined and celebrated through dance, movement, literature, storytelling and music." Curated by Dino Dico, what I most like about the promise of this group show is that it is situated in the history of Downtown LA performance scene. So this is uber alternative, kiddies. Go check out part of the luminous darkside. Artists include: RICARDO A. BRACHO : BUTCHLALIS DE PANOCHTITLAN : HEATHER CASSILS : SIR HEFFINGTON & THE FINGERED DANCERS : ICY LYTES : BIANCA OBLIVION : DORIAN WOOD


BEATROCK STORE & GALLERY, map
4158 Norse Way, Long Beach, CA
Because Your Mama Said So: Group ArtShow dedicated to Mr. T
Sat Apr 25 2pm – 11pm, Opening reception, exhibit through
Alfie Numeric can throwdown y'all and this will be quite the jam. Yes, "Mr. T, dammit!" If you are in your 30's, okay, maybe 40s, you know you were lovin you some Mr. T on the A-Team. Come on now, don't try and front! I had to drop it 80s style just then, sorry. Ahem. Mr. T., crazy lookin character that he was, would always tell us kids "Don't be a fool, stay in school!" And so, I did. Cause if that's what lookin foolish was like, I was definitely staying in me some school! Alfie Numeric and massive crew celebrate this giant icon with a day long series of events, and of course, a commerative t-shirt. For more information, please contact Dave Araquel at dave@beatrock.com or Alfie Ebojo at alfie@alfienumeric.com

REDCAT
Marc Bamuthi Joseph/The Living Word Project
the break/s: a mixtape for stage
Wednesday, April 22 - Saturday April 25 @ 8:30 PM, Sunday April 26 @ 3 PM; W - F $25/12; Sat & Sun $30/16.
Now last week I lost my mind about this, and I will once again: THIS IS THE BIG BLOWOUT COMB. Taking HIP Hop theatre to a whole 'nother plane, Bamuthi imagines the stage as masterblaster boom box. MUST GO. I will be there. Connect with me on Twitter to figure out the day.

So I got a lovely call from the Dance Ninja which got me in to see this show on Wednesday. OMG! Fantastic craftsmanship, excellent use of projection and lighting, inspired use of live and canned sound, and the turntabelist? Forget about it! Now, having said all that, after I stood to give bruh his standing ovation, I did start to wonder at all the rferences in the piece that reminded me of other pieces I had seen before...Alright, well, that's hip hop right? Everything is in the mix, sampled, segued, otherwise shapeshifted and repurposed; no big whoop. But I liked the way thet Rennie Harris used Prince's lyrics in Rome & Jewels better than Bamuthi's remix. Then I realized that he never quite answered his own questions, which is all fine and good, but why were they asked, since they were rather polemical most of them? And women...dude's still working on his thang with women. So why did we never hear from his mother? Were his questions now ringing as the eternal quesitons of Hip Hop? The irriducible prime numbers at its core? And that was a long time to watch somebody work through their fantastic, yet personaly troubling life, even though it was wonderfully directed. But dammit if it was not BEAUTIFUL! SO yeah, he was pullin on them white liberal heartstrings to tug the dollars right out of their pockets with some of the most negroidal stereotypes around while playin at the edge of antiracist thought, but he did it with the utmost skill. It was mesmerizing. You should go, but maybe if you do, could you please ask him what the hell is "post hip hop any damn way"? Thanks.



WHEW!! Loving U!
Liked to lost my mind and kinda sat on this one! Actually, weird weird things happened in my Twitter account as I discovered just how little imagination remians among a good swath of people when it comes to the possibilities of the internet. When did we become Ferangiis? You know, that Star Trek "race of aliens" that only live to profit and profit to live? Yuck. Oh yeah, the thrice weekly 140 mile commute (that's 420 for those counting) is taking its toll; seven more weeks to go. I am throwin this newsletter up on the blog and even shipping it out. Yes I have some nerve! But then I am posting a fresh one TODAY, albeit with some of the same stuff, but with a special dance week section. I am feeling a big shift, change, push, lurch into a vision of collaboration. As the picture becomes clearer, I'll share it with you. Intersectional, ambition, collaborative, expansive, loving...yeah yeah yeah. All of that and a bag of dehydrated collard chips (yes, those really are good).

in love,
-Anna

NEWSLETTER: re-le-vitate

Peace & Time!
These last two weeks have been a phenomenon: challenging, invigorating, exhausting, frustrating, and illuminating. I've missed you guys so much! I just want to thank you all for the comments on the last entry and for the vibrations that you send my way as you await the newsletter in your in box. I FEEL YOU! I have been writing, stopping and starting, trying to get better information, hoping to get out of blog-syndrome, then ultimately not posting. I stumbled across two massive dance projects that required research of the type that I used to dread. I've had a dear mentor make his transition unexpectedly and find myself making up new teaching strategies as I go along for a group of 65 frosh. The plate is full, the cup runneth over, yet I have had no appetite. But I am back y'all, on the upswing, or the lift off as it were. This close to 40, with my big daddy gone, it is clear that I have to fashion myself as a warrior, and advocate; become a change maker, a DOER. And I'll be hot damn if I wasn't already doing it with Afrologica! So I want to thank you all for enduring me initially in this experiment, then supporting me with all your loving notes, and finally asking me to be there for you with the steady stream of invites and requests for postings. I get it. I'm here, and we're gonna turn this mutha out.


Afrolicious. Afrologia. Afrodelic. Afropoesia. Afrologica. How big is your 'fro?
Fractal, improvisational, polemical, but always moving with spirit and in service to lifting us all up!
That's the Logic of the Afro--sign up, read up, be up--you can move mountains, now make it beautiful


With all the transitions and change-ups, my 'fro has been on permanent wrap down, but David Rousseve got me to take that rag offa my head and shake it, shake to the lovely absurdity that is life. BLOWIN BACK DA 'FRO this week is a PLETHORA of dance-based art, international Dance Week taking shape LA-stylee, and grants to make you holla.


UNKNOWN THEATRE
1110 Seward Street Los Angeles, CA 90038
Hysterica Dance Co. presents Crust
April 2 - 12, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm Sundays at 6pm; $18 online, $25 @ the door
I could not get in to see this piece last weekend, so I sure hope there are some tickets left! An investigation of dress, getting dressed, redressing, uncovering, this piece situates bodies in the stratum that is life in society. MUST GO.


ROYAL/T CAFE
8910 Washington Blvd, Los Angeles CA 90332; 310-559-6300
Cirque de So Lame
Friday, April 10, 8 PM; $5 , ONE NIGHT ONLY
OK. Pat Payne called me up frantic that we had to go see this. SO the shit has to be good. No real details to be found, Scratch that! I just found their website. I'm good like that! From a review I located from last year, this sounds like awesome lameness all around. MUST GO! Bob Baker Marionettes, David Lieb Hart ventriloquist and circus attire requested?!? $5?! GO. Brought to you by Zippercut. They's sho nuff crazeee.


REDCAT, map
Caden Manson/Big Art Group presents, SOS
Wednesday April 8 - Sunday 12, 2009 West Coast premiere; W-Th $25/20/12; Sat - Sun $30/24/16
REDCAT Has been ON FIRE! Go George! Tonight, a bit of lovely mayhem is planned for you in the form of a multimediated stage full of performers with live musicians. Caden takes a journey through the live feed to explore themes of rebirth, sacrifice, and ritual. The description sounds absolutely delectable, so I also have this on my MUST GO list. I need a clone! Look further down for TWO more must go events from this power presenter.


UCR PRESENTS, map
Neil Greenberg Dances presents, Really Queer Dances with Harps and Quartet With Three Gay Men
Friday, April 10, 8 PM; $34/17 + parking $8
This highly acclaimed show comes to Southern California in a mini-tour. My colleague is bringing a bit of the NYC Downtown scene to you over two weeks. Look for special programming at the SHOW Box with his entourage.


Missing something? Wanna see those posts that I never sent to you? They are all in the archive. You can search to by key word!



HIGHWAYS
1651 18th Street, Santa Monica, CA 90404
Meg Wolfe presents, Tender + ShowBox guest Karen Sherman presents Demolition Boy Friday April 17 & Saturday April 18 @ 8:30 PM Sunday April 19 @ 7:00pm $20/$15
This will be a profound evening of work by the dance ninja herself, Meg Wolfe. She is joined by Gregory Barnett of Dance Good Dammit! in a searing exploration of those parts that hurt from the pressure of missing gestures and overabundant touches. They are recommending you reserve tickets RIGHT NOW. Just got mine. MUST GO.


REDCAT
Neil Greenberg Dances presents, Really Queer Dances with Harps
Wednesday, April 15 - Friday April 17 @ 8:30 PM; $25/20/12
Neil hits LA with a short run downtown. Unbelievably, these tickets are cheaper than Riverside. Get your tix if you don't have them, car pool, get there early and have some drinks in the fabulous Lounge. All they need are some hot salty snacks. This is Neil's "debut" as newly minted member of the LA experimental dance scene, so come on out and welcome him!
Next @ REDCAT, You gotta get TIX NOW for
Marc Bamuthi Joseph/The Living Word Project, The break/s: a mixtape for stage
Wednesday April 22- Sunday, April 26, 2009 @ 8:30 PM, but Sunday @ 3:00; W-F $25/20/12; Sat-Sun $30/24/16
OMG, you cannot miss this, and all the hip hop heads in town that know anything about the science will be trying to get in da door, so get your tix right now!


UNKNOWN THEATRE
1110 Seward Street Los Angeles, CA 90038
Samantha Giron Dance Project Presents: Mongrels
April 16th, 2009 - April 26th, 2009
Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 8pm
Sundays at 6 PM; $18 online $25 @ the door
Back to back dance programming, WOOOO! About the things that come out at night no less! Something must be in the air, cause my girl Meida McNeil is doing a show at Brown University called Urban Folk Dance about the House Music scene. Here in LA, Samantha Giron brings us an investigation of the the moves of the LA Underground Club scene. I got to see a bit of this and costume mock ups, if she kept all that hair swingin', the piece should really evoke its name quite well. You miss her here, I do believe you'll get to see her at the NEXT Festival.




ONGOING CLASSES & WORKSHOPS
It's Dance Week soon! I mentioned a month back that we need to do something with $2 bills and this special week of programming. I will almost spam your inbox if I can get sites involved with the idea. At the minimum, I am asking that if you make it to any special Dance Week events, you pay in $2 bills. If you are a class provider and are paid in $2 bills, when you go to your dance/yoga/pilates class, pay in your $2 bills! The pay scale I had hoped for likely will not happen, but if you can spend that week taking classes, attending events with $2 bills, let me know!

Initially, Dance Week was one day, initiated by The International Council of Dance at UNESCO back in 1982. I've scrounged out the official Dance Day Message from 2008 from UNESCO for you to check out. It has great ideas for promoting the day, most of which are not focused on dance studios at all!! So, I challenge those of you with companies, or freelancers/stylers to do an intervention (you know I am making this up as I go, right, lol!) OK. Susan Rose showed me a film of a piece she did in Westwood a while back that I think bears repeating, especially right now: find an empty meter on a street, put in the amount of time you need and proceed to dance there. I do recommend having a possee. In the film, teams of less than 3 had a hard time holding down the spot. Don't forget to videotape. I will send blog links for these, ahem, initiatives.

SHOWBOX
Here is one place that will gladly take your $2 bills! With special programming the Week of April 13 - 21, SHOWBOX is bringing special classes via DANCEBank, a movie night, an itch launch, master classes with Neil Greenberg's dancers who will be in town for their Redcat gig. Now, some of these things are listed a low to no cost, but please, drop two $2 dollar bills in the box at the door! Bartering is also in effect.
April 11th - guest artist, Paige Martin*
April 18 - guest artist: Christine Elmo*
April 27th: Monday Movie - it's a socialist musical documentary!, East Side Story, brought to you by my favorite German former-squatter, Ari Hoffmann (at Show Box http://showboxla.blogspot.com/) free ! (okay, right there? disregard and take that woman something: green cleaning supplies, TP, industrial mop, something!)

LULA WASHINGTON DANCE STUDIO, April 24 - 26
There is a whole day of events planned at this fantastic studio. If you have never been, time to fix that! With discipline, respect, and determination, Lula's students are a joy to watch, and actually to take classes with, so get ready for some intergenerational fun. More details next week.

I kinda thought that Dance South LA Project would have something going, but nothing turned up. It is likely that they are working with Lula Washington. If they are not, can somebody ask them what they have planned next?



EARTH DAY FESTIVALS
Earth Day is sooon upon us on April 22, the Wilshire Center will host it's second Car-Free Day from 11-2PM, but mysteriously...there will be no street closures! What? Here's the link for you to go down and recycle your e-waste for free. But f you want to help me out, hold on to your e-waste: I will need it for props and sets for a big show I have coming up. More details to follow. LA's big festival is not until June 27 (?) and will be in Venice. I won't put another question mark ^^ just raise my eyebrows.

Santa Monica
Arguably the largest one in the area, this Earth Day event had vendors, exhibits and hands on workshops up and down the Promenade in downtown Santa Monica. ¡BUT research is showing that it has been folded into the Venice Eco-Fest!

Everywhere
If you want to find out other things happening for Earth Day, here is a network with a search engine. Maybe you can find one that is actually a festival on the 22nd!




GRANTS & ART OPPORTUNITIES
AMI Productions
One of my spiritual communities, Agape, is lighting up the world in a grand way: with their communication wing, Agape Media International, they are announcing AMI Productions, a Film, Television & Theatrical production company. They are not playing around and production values will be HIGH. Click here for the open call for screenplays, television pilots and/or plays. Your work should be transformative, promoting unconditional love from a deep knowing place. Wanna hear something from Agape? Go to their site and find podcasts, video clips, songs and of course, the schedule for meetings. http://www.agapemedia-film.com/submissions.html

DanceUSA Audience Development Grant
Engaging Dance Audiences is a big effort, but the dollars are worth it: $25K - $150K grant size. This one is intricate, with three different categories, a built in data collection system, but it is open to organizations and individuals. Must be a member in good standing. http://www.danceusa.org/fundingguidelines




LOVELY!
Alrighty! I am not gonna rail too much about the pirates off the coast of Somalia while we do nothing about the pirates in our banking and financial system. My heart sinks every time I see a WaMu become a Chase Bank. But less I despair too deeply, it is important to keep in mind that this system of owning value separate from labor and attempting to define it as a tangible thing in a piece of paper, is coming to a close. Even Dance Week in the US is a complete fabrication to support an industry and not an activity. That link above will take you to a central website that is running under a .org denomination, meaning it is not-for-profit, however, it does appear that it is "owned" by The United Dance Merchants of America. Does this change the love, fervor and grace people have invested in this week? No, at least I hope not, but there is a very real way that the types of dance promoted on the site directly increase the demand for their products. The good ole American Way; but hey, it's efficient. My parking meter challenge up there is a way to bring the attention back to the dance and the bodies channeling it. If you take public transportation, you should make sure to dance a few phrases on the bus or train! Now don't have no shame: put your hat or bucket out and collect those tips! Let's support and promote people and their precious bodies. There are lots of ways to do it. I am happy to announce that Echo Park has set up an Time Bank! They launched in the summer of 2008 and have really taken off since the collapse of December 2008. If you are in the area, check them out! More importantly, they host workshops and are ready to help you set up your own system to barter/trade time for goods and services. I just missed their last workshop, but I will go to the next and report back! So keep up with me on Twitter @doctoradancer for breaking news types of things. You can also find my digital hat/bucket/basket/flower pot set out there! I'm signed up on tipjoy.com. If you're feeling me, drop me some change: it will be invested to bring you more performance analysis, video, podcasts and webcasts! Look for announcements about my consulting venture, Vita Vibrare, where I am Thinking at a Higher Frequency to lift you to your greatest good. DO YOU FEEL IT?! YES!, Alright now, I"ll see you around town.

in love,
-Anna

NEWSLETTER: rise and fall

Hello there,

Up and down, around the mulberry bush and down the talking point check list we go! I don't know about you, but I have been distracted by the Sant'Ana winds and the smell of burning wood. Yet, the fire season takes on an added urgency when I think about the 3 billion dollar hole in the California budget that was just passed, and the 7 billion the Governator is hoping to get from...where I don't know (as a loan of all things). If we can't pay for elder care programs in this state, then how do we fight fires with the "new world water" (as Mos Def prophetically called our precious dwindling resource a few years back)? So I wind up thinking about the markets again, which reminds me of the bailout "plan" (use the term loosely), which reminds me of regulations meant to embezzle legally, which takes me to the presidential talking point debates, which makes me wonder if they haven't noticed that our collective house is not only on the auction block, but it is on fire. But one of them knows that we are angry. The other is ready already to get to work and tired of talking about it, but is expecting us all to sacrifice. As makers and consumers of art, are we willing to be sacrificed? Have we given much thought to how we can shift the discourse around change and sacrifice so that we find opportunity and invention? We kinda need to get ahead of that curve. As Sartre said, "You don't talk philosophy to a starving man." But you can cause us to think and act with a well-placed performance piece.

Afrologic. Afrological. Afrologica. How big is you 'fro?
Multiple, fractal, improvisational, polemical, but always moving with spirit and in the service of lifting it/us all up.
That's the Logic of the Afro--sign up, get your community on.

BLOWIN BACK DA 'FRO THIS WEEK are dances about the times, opportunities to step across a portal to another dimension, and up close studies of the "who" in "who dat?".

OPENING TONIGHT
CARPENTER PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
Martha B. Knoebel Dance Theater, 6200 Atherton Street, Long Beach, CA
October 16 -17, 8 PM; $25/20
Not About Iraq, choreography by Vic Marks
How timely is this? After the debate last night, clearly, it's all becoming about Iraq, our national money trap monument. Vic Marks dives into the subject, looking for a way to understand what is honor and where is it found in a place and idea like "Iraq?"

DIAVOLO DANCE SPACE
616 Moulton St., L.A., CA 90031
October 17th -26th, Fridays & Saturdays at 8 PM; Sundays at 5 pm; $25 reserved/$20/$15
Peep hole| People, LA Contemporary Dance
Opens to the public today. Are we really that paranoid? Have we all begun to think of ourselves as characters in a film? Some of the unsettling questions handled by this evening of work. Leave your ego at the door but plan to have a good time laughing at that other person, not yourself. (right)!


REDCAT
631 W. 2nd St., Los Angeles, CA directions
Sunday October 19 & Monday October 20 @ 8:30 PM; $15 gen, $12 alum, & $8 studs
Studio
It's studio time! The line up is pretty interesting this time around. PLUS, Laclau was hanging out around the bar this afternoon, sounding all smart and what not. LACLAU! That was the geek in me. He's on stage right now bending minds for $10. But the Studio line up for this weekend:
The Fall 2008 edition of Studio was curated by Leilani Chan and Leslie Tamaribuchi, and includes the following six original works:
KAREN ANZOATEGUI: SER; MARSIAN & COMPANY: GROWING UP LINDA -- FUDGIE'S DEATH; DYS-: TAPE MUSIC; KELLY & DAVID with BETTINA HUBBY: UNTITLED FEATHER CHORALE #1; SHEETAL GANDHI: BAHU-BETI-BIWI (DAUGHTER-IN-LAW, DAUGHTER, WIFE);CHRISTINE MARIE: GROUND TO CLOUD
I am going to see Sheetal. I've seen an earlier version of her piece and it was masterful. I do have to say, that the other pieces sound very edgy and inventive in their genre explorations of objects, but rather heady. Kinda my style, but not a light night out.

THE RED MERMADE
2814 Abbot Kinney Blvd @ Washington, Venice, CA 90291
Saturday October 18th, 8 PM - Midnight
Asphalt Sea
Wow. I'm about to explode with excitement, anticipation and a big case of the nerves--the boats just got moved around!! We are all repositioning ourselves accordingly. Come out to see Pat Payne, Meg Wolfe, Gregory Barnett, d. Sabela Grimes, Michael Sakamoto, Anna B Scott, Cari Ann Shim Sham*, and Maia negotiate the newly dry-docked boats, an alley and some stairs. Bring your flotation device for seating. The Techno Hillbillies advise that you should also come prepared to splash around on the asphalt like one funky amphibian during their set to close the night with VJ Tiffy G. This will be a great night. I promise. I rarely do that.


Looking for something mentioned last week? Check the archives.



THE LUCKMAN FINE ARTS
Paseo Rancho Castila, but follow their directions
Saturday October 18th, 8 PM; $45/40
The Limón Dance Company presents: Anna Sokolow's "Rooms" (Major Revival Premiere) and Clay Taliaferro's "Into My Heart's House" (World Premiere)
One of the founding sensibilities of what has evolved into "Dança Afro" in Bahia, Limón technique has profoundly influenced local dance practices around the world with its ability to allow for social as well as personal idiosynscracies. The company is celebrating José Limón's 100 birthday with a world tour, starting here at home. If you can't afford or make this event because you are, er, occupied, you can see...

THE NEW LOS ANGELES THEATRE CENTER
514 S Spring Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013
Saturday October 25th & 26th, 3 & 8 PM on both days; $35, though discounted tickets may be had
The Limón Dance Company presents: Lament for Ignacio Santos Meijas and The Moors Pavane
Truly, this tour is a dance history course unto itself.


Things to look for soon:
Urban Bushwomen & Compagnie Jant Bi present The Scales of Memory at UCR November 14th. Get tickets NOW!

Caseboldt & Smith present California Touring Project @ Diavolo Dance Space, November 21-23, tickets are on sale.

N'Ap Kenbe/We're Holding on: Hope in the Eye of the Hurricane, Performance and Workshops to benefit Haitians affected by hurricanes Fay, Gustav, Hanna and Ike" With Special Guests: Troupe Jaka, straight from Haiti! Saturday, November 8, 8pm Herrick Interfaith Chapel, Occidental College, 1600 Campus Road, Los Angeles, CA 90041


UPCOMING WORKSHOPS AND ONGOING CLASSES
The Caribbean is coming!!! First, Cuba.
Sunday, October 26 JUAN CARLOS BLANCO, former soloist with CUBA's esteemed folkloric company, RAÍCES PROFUNDAS, returns to L.A. to teach two classes:
*1:30-3 PM: BEMBE, & CONGO TRADITIONS ;
*3-4:30 PM: RUMBA: GUAGUANCÓ.
LIVE DRUMMING @ 'DANCE STUDIO NO. 1' (in Studio A) 2037 Granville, WLA 90025--between Barrington & Bundy, 1 blk. no.of Olympic Blvd., brick building). $20 per class; or $35 for both. BLANCO presently directs the AFRO CUBAN folkloric company OMO ACHÉ, based in San Diego. Women, bring full or circle skirts.

And now, Haiti:
Marshall Dance Company and the Occidental College Department of Critical Theory and Social Justice Present: N'Ap Kenbe/We're Holding on: Hope in the Eye of the Hurricane Performance and Workshops to benefit Haitians affected by hurricanes Fay, Gustav, Hanna and Ike With Special Guests: Troupe Jaka, straight from Haiti!
(all workshops in the Occidental College Alumni Gym Dance Studio) Nov, 8
9:00-10:30 am -- Music and Song
10:30-12:00 -- Dance
2:00-3:30--Dance and music
3:30-5:00-- Dance and music
All workshops $10

Are your classes still going on? Have you had to move? Hit me up so that the dance map is current. I have added my Th - Sat morning offering, Olojo Oni, to the dance map. This weekend is special due to the show, but check in, I may be out there getting my head screwed on properly.


ACTION
If you are out Pomona way, or feel moved to get up and get out there, right now there is a gathering of LGBT folks in a local bar, The Press Restaurant, where a professor from the Claremont Colleges was verbally accosted by a drunken patron. Apparently, this is type of behavior is par for the course, so the lovely Shakina Nayfeck has organized this night of Guerilla Gayness, "because there is more than one thing you can do with a fist!" 129 Harvard Ave, Claremont 8 PM until 1:30 AM get your best queer chant out and support the right to be who you are, wherever you are.




LOVELY!
There was a lot to think about in the debate last night. Sorry, but I can't wrap this one up quickly. I've had the sense that I live in a bubble, that all of the "calamity" is taking place somewhere else. The language of those invested with our trust to lead tells a different story. I'm not quite buying it. If we got out of Iraq and Afghanistan and reduced the Pentagon's budget, we would be back in the black with a quickness (not to mention the NEA and NEH and even that awful No child Left behind could be fully funded)! And what about that money pit called "Dept. of Homeland Security?" Hatchet and scalpel! Yet, "we will need to make sacrifices"...Are we willing to take care of our elder performers, many of whom had marginal healthcare to begin with, but most of whom probably lost retirement funds in the money markets? Are we willing to hold rent parties, share our homes, help fix roofs, car pool, split dinner duties and expenses? Though these will all lead to a better social network, stronger sense of community, I kinda feel like I do when I'm in the grocery store and its 68 degrees, all the freezer sections are open and lights are on and the state has announced a power emergency. The up note here? We the people can bring about the change we want as long as we make sure we still have the laws we depend on to allow us to express ourselves. So rather than try to soothe you, I urge you to learn something you did not know about either the tax code, laws of public assembly, or immigration. When you find out something you don't like, write to your representative immediately. Make a piece about it if you are an artist. Tell your neighbor and co-worker. Change will come no matter what. Whether or not you help guide it to benefit you and your community without doing harm to others is another story.

in deep love and gratitude,
-Anna

NEWSLETTER: contract & release

ALAFIA!!!!

Gosh darnnit (wink*)! Okay, I had to do that. This morning I went for a power walk, ended up at the ocean and discovered some clarity in my calling. Given that nothing fiscal much matters any more (where is your 403b or 401k and do you know who its with?), we have been set free to start our society anew, in tiny pockets that will soon meet each other and become something else. Think, rain drops. They look completely whole, impenetrable, but if they meet each other, they become a bigger drop and bigger and bigger until a stream, and well, you get the metaphor. Like the Cook County Sheriff's Office in Chicago refusing to evict people anymore! So, starting anew, afresh, working to keep my ability to walk and doing dance as a civic duty, you are welcomed to join me on Thursday, Friday and Saturday's at 8:30 AM on the beach for Orisha moving and West African grooving. It's not a class per se, rather, an offering. Be prepared to get wet, but wear layers! Donations based @ Venice City Beach, by the rocks on the knoll where you can watch crab and sea anemone. E-mail me for further details. Possibility to do mini offerings on M & W at 6:30 AM.


Afrologic. Afrological. Afrologica. How big is you 'fro?
Multiple, fractal, improvisational, polemical, but always moving with spirit and in the service of lifting it/us all up.
That's the Logic of the Afro--sign up, get your community on.



BLOWIN BACK DA 'FRO is a mega video festival that we all need to go see! Makes me wish I had my t-shirts together; "I read Afrologica." Field trip! The fall keeps comin at us in this month where we pretend that Columbus did something first and that it was all good (don't get me started on my son's homework assignment), and the dance and performance art is looking swanky!


OPENING TONIGHT
Hollywood Blvd between Wilcox Ave and Orange Dr
Freewaves presents "Hollywould" 11th Media Arts Festival
This festival is so smart, I could just go back to grad school. Part of Hollywood BLVD will be closed for portions of the festival, but more importantly, video works and installations will happen in local businesses like laundry mats, restaurants, dollar stores and the like. There are projections on sidewalks and building sides. Basically, you will need to down load the program from Freewaves, the organizers, because there is so much that I would recommend. Did I mention that a great deal of it is free? GO SEE!


THE ELECTRIC LODGE
1416 Electric Ave. at California Ave., Venice 90291
The Other Venice Film Festival
Thursday, October 9th, 6:30 PM - Sunday, October 12th
A must see night is October 12th for the film "The Rising Tide," by Robert Adanto about the burgeoning Chinese po-mo Art scene. Right now, the cocktail and kick off party is happening! Food by Primitivo, Music by Black Cat and an desert arrangement by Edible. Wear your best art black.


POMONA COLLEGE
Seaver Theatre Complex/Allen Studio Theatre, 300 E. Bonita Ave. Claremont, CA 91711
October 10th Friday 4 PM, $10/$5
For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow is Enuf
Box Office Phone: (909) 621- 8525 or 607-4375
Ntozake Shange's memorable play still brings down the house, production after production. This one sold out its 3 night run an added a matinee because director Shakina Jared Nayfeck heard that you didn't have a ticket. So you best call and go see these girls WORK IT!


THE ACTOR'S WORKOUT STUDIO
4735 Lankershim Blvd, North Hollywood 91602
Sunday October 12, sign 3:15 $8; reservations @ 818.506.3903
Cornucopia
Mad as hell and wanna get up and tell somebody why? Show up early to get in the grab bag of this well-established afternoon of poetry.


HIGHWAYS PERFORMANCE SPACE
4th Annual Latino new Works festival, Dance night
Saturday, October 11th, 8:30 PM (however, Jose Reynoso is on LGBT night, the 10th) $20/$15
It appears to be one piece, investigating Afro-Cuban dance, salsa, capoeira and HIp Hop. Why am I pumping it if I don't know what it is? Gustavo Caldas and Emeka. Need I say more? Get some tickets and get your drool I mean groove on.


Looking for something mentioned last week? Check the archives.


THE OPEN SPACE
Monday, October 13th, 8 PM
Anatomy Riot #27, guest curated by Samantha Giron
A hearty number of sacred fools have been let loose in this one! Come out to see this always satisfying night of daring. On the bill: Dance Good Damnit!, Samantha Giron dance project, Ryan Heffington, Marcus Kuiland-Nazario, Nina McNeely, Alexandria Yalj, Serene Zloof / Datgirl



CARPENTER PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
Martha B. Knoebel Dance Theater
October 16 -17, 8 PM; $25/$20
Victoria Marks presents, "Not About Iraq"
Talk about dance as a civic duty...Launched here in LA last year, the piece is circling back to the general vicinity. If you missed it last time, here is your chance.


DIAVOLO DANCE SPACE
Peep Hole|People
October 17th -26th, Fridays & Saturdays at 8 PM; Sundays at 5 pm; $25 reserved/$20/$15
LA Contemporary Dance presents the choreography of Kate Hutter and Kevin Williamson, usually collaborators, but for this bill they each put in a piece to burrow deep into the alienated mind of, well people. Sounds like The Office meets Arrested Development but with dance and Michael Gondry filmmaking.


THE RED MERMADE
VISCERA hosts "Asphalt Sea"
Saturday, October 18th, 8 PM, $10
Come experience art out of the box, the building actually, and get your party on, too. The line up: Pat Payne (co-host aka La Negrita Maldita aka Spunky), d. Sabela Grimes, Michael Sakamoto, Maia, Anna B Scott, Cari Ann Shim Sham, Gregory Barnett and a bevy of special guests whom we can't announce cause we don't want to spoil the surprise! Juice, Beer, Wine, art, food all for sale, and maybe the DJ will save your life. Look for more info on Face Book.



ONGOING CLASSES AND SPECIAL WORKSHOPS
Field: A workshop with Rae S. Blum focuses on heightening your awareness of space from the inside out. The first four Saturdays in November, 2- 4:30 @ The Electric Lodge with a sliding scale of $75-$150 for the entire series or $20-$40 per class. Sign up now and pay by check. Contact orchidmoves@earthlink.net. Check the dance map for exact directions.

A living treasure is among us! Well, when we wake up face our greatness, we are each living treasures, but there are those of us who have already accepted that fact with grace and determination. One such individual is Dona Cici, who is the guest of Viver Brasil. She is giving instruction in the choreostories associated with all those exquisite dances in the Tuesday night class at Dance Arts Academy, the Friday gathering in the Dance Garden, and visiting Swing Brasil on Sundays at 10 AM at the Electric Lodge. At least once...you have to go at least once to take class from a woman in her 80s with a seized hip who is simply elegant when she moves...



LOVELY!
I'm moving to the new rhythm of the days and wishing you an upbeat tempo. The shifting economic terrain is really exhausting, but our focus must be squarely on each other. Got a yard? Turn it over to a neighborhood garden effort. Each yard devoted to something else. Plant fruit bearing trees. Car pool, ride your bike. Pitch in with the neighbors kids. Whatever you can do to be the value that we had collectively misplaced in a piece of paper, go ahead and do it. Up tempo, smile on face, dance as civic duty.

in love,
-Anna

NEWSLETTER: twists, spirals, & pivots oh my!

ALAFAIA!

Sending you all calming love and light as we weather some serious storms! Goodness! I just want to know: where did "they" get 86 BILLION dollars and the arts can't even get a serious national fund from which to beg money? And how will the clean up of Ike be covered with that money floating off into bankrupt financial companies? What agency will fund dispossessed homeowners who now likely will not even be able to vote in November? Yes, we make and consume art in this economic reality. It is the material condition within which we work. It determines so much, that we often miss it. Like, for example, the rise of hour long dance classes and 3 hour long anti-classes. In one hour, a consumer can feel like they have done something without getting bogged down in the complicated details of how the class will probably not bail them out of their fat bodies, but rather a systematic approach to shifting eating, sleeping and working habits in addition to that precious one hour (multiplying it by 3 times) would do the trick; in effect they need to regulate. On the other end of the spectrum, classes that can best be described as "Gatherings" endure for 2, sometimes 3 hours without so much as one correction on alignment, one tasty tidbit about finding your center (although often the metaphorical center will be invoked). "Students" roam free, dance with abandonment and likely hurt in unimaginable places once the ecstacy, I mean joy, has drained from their system. Hmmm. Me thinks that this financial market thing is not unusual or out of the blue. It seems like we have been living this moment for some time, completely denying and accepting our predicament simultaneously: we desire the stability that an inhumane work ethic brings but want to live in the moment, at specific times. Yikes. Last week I felt the need to tell you to hold to the credits, this week I feel compelled to say the wheel of history has rolled back around, but this time, it is not a repeat. However, it will likely be by the seat of our pants.

Afrologic. Afrological. Afrologica. How big is you 'fro?
Multiple, fractal, improvisational, polemical, but always moving with spirit and in the service of lifting it/us all up.
That's the Logic of the Afro--sign up, get your community on.

BLOWIN BACK DA FRO this week are the facts: everybody is trying to get their house in order, cleaned up, cleared out and ready to go for the soul-stix, I mean equinox. Y'all missed a lovely end/beginning with itch on Tuesday--get your subscription--and dancer types gathered last Sunday to chart a course. Other facts that actually got my ears a wee singed is the collapse of goodwill in the name of international cooperation. As you know, I work with Viver Brasil on their board and they just had a horrific time trying to get a visa application read, just read, even after expedition, to bring the lovely Dona Cici here for the Festival of Sacred Music. Yes, sacred. The facts are, that art and politics have long ago collided, but now you REALLY know, and will ACT accordingly. SO get out there and bring the big bag of love with ya (yeah, i'm preachin)


Lots of openings and one time gigs tomorrow/today! Start it off with a trip to the park.
PARK(ING) DAYLA
Friday, Sept. 19th
Yes! It is here! I plan to go and have tea in a number of these sites. Likely, I will make it after school gets out to downtown, but I will start in the AM in Santa Monica. Join me, e-mail afrologic@gmail.com if you plan to go to either of those spots or text WATA to 41411 for updates on my location. Check Park(ing) DayLA's live map for possible impromptu parks near you!


FORD AMPHITHEATRE
Backhausdance
Friday Sept 19th, 8:30 PM; $25/$5
I did not mention this group last week...but they will dance on grass! What a perfect way to end a day of strolling through park(ing)s. Tickets almost gone, allegedly.


MUSIC CENTER
Dance Downtown
September 19th, 7 PM FREE
Now if you end up downtown for the tea party, likely we will go dance disco at 7 PM, for FREE. Kiddies welcomed, so this might be where I end up. DISCO! Last one of the season, first come first served.

MILES MEMORIAL PLAYHOUSE
1130 Lincoln Blvd, Santa Monica, CA 90403
Wong Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
September 19-October 5, 2008
Fri-Sat at 8:30pm / Sun at 3pm; $30 for opening night/ $20 general, discount for groups of 5+

Finally, I have ticket info! Good grief, good thing I delayed sending this as ticket info has changed. Well, the show is about craziness, so this is the pre-quel. She got a "go see" from Flava PIll, so watch out now! It opens tonight to sparkling cider fanfare! I am waiting for their Obama Fundraiser on the 21st--all proceeds to the O.


DIAVOLO LAB
6188 Moulton, Los Angeles
LA Contemporary Dance presents an Open Rehearsal
Friday, Sept 19th, 8 - 11 PM
It's a showing, wait it's a cocktail party. Don't you love that word? Cocktail, hmm, goes good with dance. Not sure, but a $20 donation is requested and you can do your best LA chic/slouch fashion statement, or bust out a vintage cocktail gown or smoking jacket. That'll teach them! Show up and help them get the Fall season off to a solid financial start.
Take a sneak peek at a rehearsal for our upcoming October repertory concert with original choreography by Kate Hutter and Kevin Williamson, while of course while enjoying an open bar courtesy of LACDC!

$20 suggested donation, reservations required, 323-883-1948. Free parking!



Looking for something mentioned last week? Check over in the archives.



PHYLLIS STEIN GALLERY
207 W. 5th Avenue @ Spring ST
Saturday, Sept 20th, 7 - 10 PM, FREE?
Artist in Residence Performance/Happy Hour
Come meet Mecca Vazzie Andrews and Sara Paul Occampo as thy host with Phyllis Movement Movement, VUM and Big Swell. Music, performance, drinks, art, a fine evening.

18th STREET ARTS COMPLEX
SOMA FEST is just about over. Classes are a wee pricey, but with anywhere from 3 -5 years for certification in these intricate techniques, we understand the price schedule. Tonight, check out...
HIGHWAYS PERFORMANCE SPACE
1651 18th Street, Santa MOnica, CA
Friday, Sept. 19th - Sunday 21st, $20 gen/$15 student DRC discount
"conscious embodiment in performance" (um, i hope you don't phone it in when on stage, but maybe they mean, nothing repetitive without thinking), a show featuring: Christie Svane, Kirk Andrews, Lionel Popkin (go Lionel, cause he uses his name), Jamie McHugh, Stefanie Cohen, Craig Ng, and Teri Carter, the hostess with the mostess. Show repeats with different cast on Saturday night, both at 8 PM; then Sunday at 3 pm.

THE OPEN SPACE
209 S. Garey ST, Los Angeles, 90012
One Step Ahead Fundraiser
Saturday, doors at 7:30, show at 9 PM,; $15 suggested donation
Marissa Labog wants you to come out and shake it! She just launched One Step Ahead, a hip hop nation exploration and has invited Rodney Mason of Rome & Jewels fame to come and share the space as the raise the roof and the company. Check it out.


ELECTRIC LODGE
1416 Electric Avenue, Venice
MAX 10, featuring Simone Forti and Rae Shaolan Blum performing "icebergs"
September 28th, Saturday, $20 at the door as this is a fundraiser for the full season

If you've ever been to an Anatomy Riot and wondered, "whose grandma is that?" you should go see her dance! Simone Forti is grandma to all of us; and the coolest type: the one who knows just how foolish and crazy you really are so she eggs you on, knowing you will stumble across something wonderful that she can't wait to see. Forget candy in a purse! Every time I see her, I am just filled with gratitude. This past Tuesday at the itch launch party, she blew us away with her writing as well. There are so few true Elders willing to walk among us, don't miss the opportunity to see one do her thang. And Rae can D A N C E, so you don't want to miss the young thang work it! bonus: there are two slots which will be raffled off to audience members to perform...


ONGOING CLASSES/WORKSHOPS
A new stripper-inspired class has just joined the Tuesday line up at The Open Space. Gregory Barnett presents dancing with your pole, I mean pole dancing as you likely often have seen it and thought , "i love to swing!" Just kidding. Check out the dance map for directions. Class begins October. Follow this link to the Open Space for more info.

Please, don't forget Viver Brasil's sponsored workshop for the Festival of Sacred Music at the 18th Street Arts Complex, Sat Sept 20th at 1 PM. $10 gets you choreography, song instruction and a SHOW. If you feel so moved, please leave double after the event. This one will be awesome.


LOVELY!
So this is sooo bloody late, that I have to apologize. Mil desculpas! I've had quite the week--likely I should've danced more! But the writing task that got in the way our/my weekly love offering to you is almost complete, and hopefully, I'll see you soon in a new studio space. I do have a show coming up that I am curating with Pat Payne in October; part of our VISCERA thang. So if you are not on Face Book, get on there and join our group! While you're at it, look around for groups that strike your fancy. Hot ones I recommend: Viver Brasil, Lula Washington, itch, LA Contemporary Dance, The Open Space, R.A.I.D. (Random Acts of Irreverent Dance), House of Wong and Phyllis Stein Art. SInce you are already in the business of donating your money to industry(86 billion from where?!), why don't you actually do it on purpose and "tithe" to your favorite group? $19.99/mo, every month. Just do it. At least you know you'll get a good return on your money.


in love and wishing you an abundant and expansive Autumn Equinox,
-Anna