ONSITE: Amara Tabor-Smith

He Moved Swiftly But Gently Down the Not Too Crowded Street: Ed Mock and Other True Tales in a City That Once Was…

June 15, 21, 22 & 23, 2013
3:30-8:30pm

Click here to download a PDF of the full performance program which archives production details, schedule and map.

He Moved Swiftly was a site-specific performance by Amara Tabor-Smith about the life and work of choreographer Ed Mock. Traveling through multiple locations in San Francisco, Tabor-Smith conjured the spirit of Ed: a black, gay artist whose untimely death from AIDS in the 1980’s left a lasting impression on her and many of the region’s most important artists. Together with composer Anthony Brown, poet Marvin K White, dramaturg Ellen Sebastian Chang and video artist David Szlasa, as well as other special guest artists, Tabor-Smith sought to tackle questions of legacy in this free performance series presented by Dancers’ Group/ONSITE.

Conceived by Amara Tabor-Smith
in collaboration with
Co-Director: Ellen Sebastian Chang
Musical Director: Dr. Anthony Brown
Poet: Marvin K. White
Video Artist: David Szlasa

Read about the artists who participated in He Moved Swiftly: Artist Bios

Special Guest Artist: Cecilia M. Marta was a guest performer in the June 21, 22, 23 performances of “He Moved Swiftly” Ms. Marta is the Founder and Artistic Director/Choreographer of Cecilia Marta Dance Co. based in NYC and is, a Casting Partner to Cirque du Soleil and an esteemed dance educator. A native Panamanian, she has performed, taught, choreographed and directed her original style of “World Jazz” internationally across five continents. Ed Mock was her mentor and dear friend. Ms. Marta performed with Ed Mock and taught dance at The Ed Mock Dance Studio on 32 Page St. until it closed in 1982.

The commissioning and production of this world premiere was made possible by the Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation and The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation 2011 Choreographer Commissioning Awards Initiative.

This project and Dancers’ Group are funded by: California Arts Council, Clorox Company Foundation, Columbia Foundation, Delta Dental of California, Wallace Alexander Gerbode Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation 2011 Choreographer Commissioning Awards Initiative, Grants for the Arts, James Irvine Foundation, Bernard Osher Foundation, Kenneth Rainin Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, Rainbow Grocery Cooperative, San Francisco Arts Commission Cultural Equity Grants Program through an Organizational Project Grant, San Francisco Foundation, Walter & Elise Haas Foundation, Hewlett Foundation, Zellerbach Foundation and the generous individual donors: Chika Ando, Nina & Michael Berg, Michele Brock, Theresa E. Cahill, Julie B. Castelero, Paulette Cauthorn, Yuko Fruth, Mary Gee, Margaret Hart, Colleen M. Irwin, Roslyn k. Kirby, Katherine Hisako Kodama & Michael Ward, Lori Lack, Lily Liang, Shih-Chi Liang, Mark A. Lipman & Helen S. Cohen, Sheila Mahoney, Beverly Patterson, Susan Patton-Fox, Betty E. Pazmino, Ariel Poler & Cindy Weitzman, Jodi Reid & Bruce Livingston, Carolyn Samiere, Michael Shapiro & Joanne Cohen, Debra Skaggs, Elizabeth Soberanes, Carolyn Sumrall, Karen Topakian, Meredith J. Trimble, Lisa Avila Vieira and Rosa Williams.

Additional public events that were a part of He Moved Swiftly…

Carried in the Body: Dance Legacies Lost and Found
Friday, May 3, 6pm
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Forum
Free

An informal dialogue with Bay Area dance-makers and educators on dance lineage and legacies, with discussions about how these artists imagine that their work will be remembered or continued beyond the creative life. Moderated by Marc Bamuthi Joseph.

Getting Crazy Looks: Moving Around Race
Saturday, May 4, 2pm
Yerba Buena Center for the Arts Forum
Free

A movement workshop and dialogue exploring the issues of queer identity, art and race. Participants will be guided through a process of unpacking questions: What is queer? What is queer art? How does queer interact, move and inhabit race? Can race be queered? Facilitated by Comedian/Educator, Micia Mosely. Presented with support from CounterPULSE.