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Mixed-ability
dance, which includes artists with and without disabilities
in the same company or performance, has many faces,
and moves to many rhythms. This year Miami's danceAble
program features Sidiki Conde & Tokounou,
a mixed-ability African drumming and dance ensemble.
Started in 2000, danceAble is an important gathering
place for those who want to challenge society's stereotypes
and explore the expanding genre of dance for those
with and without disabilities. The full program runs
from Monday, June 25 through Friday, June 29, and
includes performances, workshops, a
public forum and
other events. danceAble is held within the Florida
Dance Festival and is jointly produced by Florida Dance
Association and Tigertail Productions. Aimed
at gathering dance artists, professionals from health
and service agencies and individuals just learning
about this innovative dance form, danceAble's workshops,
seminars and other activities confront traditional
dance ideologies and challenge the notion of who can
create
and perform this ever-evolving art form.
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danceAble’s guest artists Sidiki Conde & Tokounou,
will perform at the Colony Theatre, 1040 Lincoln Road
on Miami Beach, on Friday, June 29 at 8 pm. Conde,
his legs paralyzed since his early teens, overcame
the disability prejudices of his native Guinea and
trained in traditional music and dance of West Africa. He
went on to form a number of companies that have made
both artistic excellence and the inclusion of those
with disabilities a focus.
Sidiki Conde founded Tokounou in 1999,
naming his company after his ancestral village in Africa,
although the company is now based in New York City. The
choreography derives from the traditional songs and
dances of Guinea, some with lyrics celebrating the
strengths of those with disabilities. Tickets
are $25 general admission, $18 student/senior and $15
FDA members, and are available in advance from Florida
Dance Association by phone at 305 547 1117 or on the
web at www.floridadanceassociation.org, from Ticketmaster
at 305 358 5885 and at the Colony Theatre box office.
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Another
key component of this year's danceAble program
is
a half-day public forum, di(verse)ability:
Disablity and Diversity in the Arts. It
takes place on Friday, June 29 from
9 am
to 1 pm at Miami Dade College's downtown
Wolfson Campus, ETCOTA Auditorium, Room 7128,
Building 7, 500 NE 2nd Avenue,
Miami. The forum is designed for dancers, other
artists, arts presenters, educators, and those
who live with disabilities or work with the disabled
community. This year's special focus is on drawing
in those from other "minority" communities
and the way that disability intersects, as a
challenge and as a creative source, with other
identities of
race, ethnicity, gender and sexual
orientation.
Returning
this year will be John Killacky, who is a program
officer at the San Francisco Foundation as well
as a filmmaker and disability advocate, to give
a key note speech and moderate the forum. In
addition, di(verse)ability includes a panel
discussion with leaders in the arts and disability
fields on issues of diversity, including
Sidiki Conde; a speak-out time for diverse
artists with disabilities; and a reception
with complimentary drinks and light lunch
fare.
The di(verse)ability forum is presented in conjunction
with Miami Dade College and VSA arts of Florida.
While admission to the forum is free and open
to the general public, advance registration is
encouraged to reserve a space, receive a free
on-site parking pass and special discounts to
other danceAble events. To register contact Tigertail
Productions at 305 324 4337, by email at email@tigertail.org or on the web at www.tigertail.org.
MIXED ABILITY AFRICAN DANCE AND DRUMMING
Mixed
Ability African Dance and Drumming, held Monday
- Wednesday, June 25 - 27, from
5:15 to 6:45 pm at New World School of the Arts
in downtown Miami, is designed to reconnect
participants with their bodies through movement
and rhythms grounded in West African traditions,
based originally in life-cycle rituals and ceremonies
that celebrate the individual as part of his
or her community. This workshop is ideal for
dancers of all abilities, with or without professional
dance training.
Classes are $20 each or sign up for all 3 classes
for $55.
For workshop registration contact Florida Dance
Association at
305 547 1117, billd@floridadanceassociation.org. |
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