A look ahead at Pittsburgh dance
So far, 2021 doesn’t look much different from 2020: Things are still closed, we’re still camped out at home in sweats and theaters are still empty. Nevertheless, Pittsburgh’s dance community is staying on its feet by coming up with innovative programming until we can all safely come together again in person.
Mark your calendars: Here are five things (so far) to look forward to in Pittsburgh dance in 2021.
Pittsburgh Dance Council spring shows: After no fall performances and cutting three events so far for spring, two engagements are still on the calendar for early 2021. Le Patin Libre, a troupe of contemporary ice skaters from Montreal, Canada, is expected to share its blend of dance, skating and theatrics March 5-6 at the MassMutual Pittsburgh ice rink at PPG Place, Downtown. Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, which was canceled in the 2019-20 season because of COVID-19, has been rescheduled for April 22 at Benedum Center in Downtown.
Open-air performances with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre: In lieu of indoor performances, an open air series of shows is in the works for the spring for subscribers and the public. It will include excerpts from “The Sleeping Beauty,” “La Bayadère,” “Le Corsaire” and “Don Quixote,” along with choreography by Helen Pickett, Gina Patterson, Annabelle Ochoa Lopez, Sasha Janes and artistic director Ms. Jaffe. Stay tuned for details at pbt.org.
Something new (and something rescheduled) from Corningworks: One of the first shows to be postponed due to COVID-19 was Beth Corning’s “The Tipping Point,” one of the largest, most complex undertakings in her 40-year career. Hopefully, 2021 will be the year we get to see it. For now, it’s slated to run Aug. 18-29 at Carrick 25 in Carrick, with make-up dates in January 2022. It brings together 12 professional dancers and actors with a group of refugees who’ve migrated to Pittsburgh. Another collaborator is the international humanitarian medical organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières. “The Tipping Point” incorporates visuals from the photo exhibition “Forced from Home.” Beyond this project, Ms. Corning has a new, full-evening duet with New York actor, director and playwright Kay Cummings for Oct. 20-24 at the New Hazlett Theater. A work she was commissioned to create for the international NOSTOS Festival in Athens, Greece, has been rescheduled from last year to June 23, with alternative dates in December if the pandemic delays the festival again. Learn more at corningworks.org.
A dance film by Attack Theatre: The troupe has been working long distance with Swedish-American choreographer Janessa Clark on a dance-for-film project. Another star in the film will be its new headquarters at 212 45th St. in Lawrenceville. Filming began in December, and the finished product will premiere Jan. 22-23; visit attacktheatre.com for updates.
A new home for dance: Maria Caruso announced last year her plans to create a new performance facility on the North Shore. She’s partnered with Dave Colaizzi, of Five Star Development, which owns the warehouse space, to transform it into the future home of Maria Caruso’s Movement Factory. It will house a theater space, classrooms, offices and more. The Movement Factory will give her Bodiography dancers more room beyond the company’s current studio on Forbes Avenue in Squirrel Hill. It also will be utilized by dance students at La Roche University, where Ms. Caruso chairs the arts department and directs the dance program. It’s slated to open in 2021.