The performing arts are always in want of good news, and the return of Bay Area Dance Week after a three-year hiatus brings welcome, joyful tidings of rare magnitude.
Running April 21-30 in studios, theaters, parks and classrooms around the region, the vast open-door celebration encompasses hundreds of events, including workshops, performances, classes, open rehearsals, and more.
Did we mention that everything is free?
Presented by Dancers’ Group, an indispensable force supporting the Northern California dance scene, Bay Area Dance Week captures the dizzying diversity of traditions and styles that can be found here, from burlesque, Bollywood and Bolivian folkloric dance, to ballet, hula, Congolese dance, tango, jazz, modern, and hip-hop.
After four years of tribulations and pent up energy, “We are beyond ecstatic to open the doors to studios and venues and spotlight individual artists and companies,” said Andréa Spearman, artist resource manager for Dancers’ Group. “This is an event that so many people in the community look to. People come from out of state and plan their year to participate in the kickoff.”
Sticking with long-running tradition, Bay Area Dance Week roars to a start at Yerba Buena Gardens with a high-energy array of activities collectively known One Dance on April 22. The event is presented by Dancers’ Group, Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, and Rhythm & Motion, which leads classes for dancers of all skill levels from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dancers’ Group is also partnering with Yerba Buena Center for the Arts to host mini-classes and pop-up performances throughout the day.
In a new development that seems like a no-brainer, the kickoff features live music for the first time, with Susana Arenas’ Afro-Cuban Arenas Dance Company and the Brazilian samba percussion ensemble Fogo Na Roupa, “a carnival ensemble with big drums,” Spearman said. “They’ll be rocking Yerba Buena gardens. We’ve also added many classes, and they’ll be ambassadors teaching mini-classes to really showcase what’s available in the Bay Area.” The performance is set for 11:15 a.m. April 22 at Yerba Buena Gardens.
All the excitement at being able to gather together can’t fully disperse the pandemic’s shadow, which continues to challenge the performing arts. Since Dance Week’s inception in 1999 it has grown to include more than 200 dance organizations, involving some 2,500 artists and 20,000 attendees.
Spearman said that there are fewer companies participating this year than in the past, though people are still registering classes and events. A recent web portal titled Bopsidy allows anyone to create and promote an event at no cost. And for the first time, Dance Week includes online events.
“It’s the hub for Bay Area Dance Week,” Spearman said of Bopsidy. “It’s where you can find the full calendar. It’s still a new website created as an online platform for the dance community, designed for dancers and instructors.”
Among the organizations offering multiple events are Biodanza, SMUIN Contemporary Ballet, Dholrhythms Dance Company, Manpreet Komal, Berkeley Folk Dancers, LINES Ballet, Deborah Slater Dance Theater, PUSH Dance Company, Kathy Mata Ballet, Kellita Maloof, Sausan Belly Dance Academy, and Miriam Jacobs’s Tarot in Motion.
“Compared to 2019 there are less participants, but the spirit is still there,” Spearman said. “People have been asking about it for months, sending e-mails; ‘When’s it coming back?’ ‘Did I miss it?’ We’re allowing online events for first time, probably about 10 percent of the program. So many Bay area artists have moved out of the region, and this allows them to teach or take classes.”
The folk dance community seems to be particularly energized. (“They’re like, how many events can we register?” Spearman said). With events from Santa Rosa to San Jose, Dance Week brings the entire region opportunities to revel in movement.
If nothing jumps out at you, Spearman says to check back on Bopsidy because “there’s still time for people to add new events and register, up until the last day. We’re pushing out email and social media every day. This definitely marks a return after all the struggle to get through these past few years.”
Contact Andrew Gilbert at jazzscribe@aol.com.
When: April 21-30
Where: Studios, theaters other venues around the Bay Area
Tickets: All events are free; ww.bopsidy.com, dancersgroup.org/badw
