Each year hundreds of dance organizations, companies, schools and artists open up their doors and invite the public—you!—to attend an event, completely free of charge, during Bay area dance Week (BADW). dancers’ group presents BadW as part of the nationwide festival national dance Week, and we are proud that the Bay area’s edition is the nation’s largest celebration. Every year, BADW draws more than 20,000 student movers, professional practitioners, life-long supporters and soon-to-be dance-lovers of all ages and experiences to participate in events taking place across all corners of the Bay area.
Bay Area Dance Week’s offerings have always been extraordinarily diverse, with free events representing all genres of dance: Argentine tango, classical Indian, jazz, hip hop, ballet, traditional hula, fi re dance, Samba, modern, Chinese classical, belly dance, queer focused, Greek folk, capoeira, aerial dance, West African, contact improvisation and many more. Activities will once again include classes, lecture demonstrations, open rehearsals, works in progress showings, performances and workshops held in studios, theaters, galleries, community centers, museums and outdoor spaces.
This year’s festival runs April 25-May 4 and kicks off on Friday, April 25 at 12noon with One Dance led by the Rhythm & Motion Dance Workout Program, at Union Square. This year’s edition is all about “iconic dance moves” from pop culture and will feature dance companies and students performing choreography that includes Tina Turner’s “Rolling Down the River,” PSY’s “Gangam Style,” Madonna’s “Vogue,” the Village People’s “Y.M.C.A,” Michael Jackson’s “Beat it,” The Bangles’ “Walk Like an Egyptian” and many other classic hits. In the Dancers’ Group office and the studios of ODC/Rhythm & Motion, we are having a great time strolling down memory lane with this dance, and can’t wait to share this year’s One Dance. You can learn the choreography at BayAreaDance.org or just show up and dance the iconic moves on the fly.
Also at the Kick-Off Event, Dancers’ Group will acknowledge the recipients of two special awards. The seventh annual Dancers Choice Award will be presented to Master Flamenco and Spanish dance teacher/choreographer/performer, Danica Sena. The 2nd annual Della Davidson Prize, honoring the life and work of choreographer and teacher Della Davidson, will be awarded to Debby Kajiyama, a Bay Area native focusing on cultural studies and social change in performance. Both artists writing are featured on pages 11 & 12.
Many events taking place during the festival are part of year-round programming for the hundreds of artists, teachers and organizations that present. Take City College of San Francisco, for example, who are offering more than 15 free classes throughout BADW, a taste of the educational opportunities available throughout the year. Dancers’ Group’s own Rotunda Dance Series is yet another example of a regular event that will be taking place during Bay Area Dance Week. On Friday, May 2 at 12noon you can enjoy a performance by La Tania Baile Flamenco Company set amidst the grandeur of San Francisco City Hall.
Look for the Bay Area Dance Week event guide—which you’ll find in studios and cafes across the region—and find hundreds of other events and details for signing up at BayAreaDance.org. To give you a taste of the range of free dance activity taking place during BADW, we’ve identified six “samplers,” and have included a couple of events for each below.
You can see the full list of sampler events in the Bay Area Dance Week event guide and find hundreds of other events online at BayAreaDance.org.
