Dance Source Houston expands its scope
Dance Source Houston is expanding its support for local choreographers. For the 2015-16 season, the nonprofit organization will offer five residencies at the Barn, its studio and performance space east of downtown, two more than the past season.
Its scope has expanded, too: Most of this year’s artists already have impressive résumés and graduated with honors from highly respected dance programs; several also have advanced degrees.
Last year’s residencies were awarded to emerging artists who did not have much experience with producing their own works, executive director Stephanie Todd Wong said. “But this year, based on the applicant pool and the struggles we know artists at all levels are facing, we invited artists at all stages of their careers to apply. We couldn’t be happier with the group that was selected.”
Jacquelyne Boe, Amy Elizabeth, Laura Gutierrez, Jasmine Hearn and Autumn Knight will receive free rehearsal space from September through June, also gaining access to professional development workshops, grant-writing help and a shared performance opportunity at the Barn next June.
Boe has performed internationally with Hartel Dance Group and the National Ballet of Paraguay. She also worked with Erick Hawkins Dance at Jacobs Pillow and the 92nd Y New York City, N.Y. Her “What Lies in Wonder” was named the Best Original Dance of a recent Houston Fringe Festival. Locally, she also performs with Frame Dance Productions and Hopestone Projects.
Elizabeth, the artistic director of Aimed Dance, has a repertoire of more than 30 works created through her work with local colleges, her previous company (Rednerrus Feil) and other residencies. A Sam Houston State University alum, she also begins a teaching job this fall at San Jacinto College South. Gutierrez, who has performed since 2012 with the internationally known avant-garde choreographer Jonah Bokaer, has created numerous works of her own and recently found a niche making dances for art galleries. She also has performed at the Menil Collection, Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, Philadelphia’s Fabric Workshop Museum and the Savannah College of Art and Design’s Museum of Art. She was named one of Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch” in 2014.
Hearn collaborates and performs with Houston choreographer jhon r. stronks, Philadelphia’s Kate Watson Wallace and New York’s Marjani Forte. She also facilitates improvisational gatherings and restorative movement workshops.
Knight is stepping in from the visual arts community. She’s well-known for per- formance and installation works that have been shown at DiverseWorks Artspace, Art League Houston, Project Row Houses, Blaffer Art Museum, the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Arkansas, San Antonio’s Artpace and New York’s the New Museum. Previous residencies have taken her to the United Kingdom and Japan. Knight and her partner, Robert Pruitt, also have a social-practice collective, MF Problem.