As the Dallas Black Dance Theatre celebrates its 45th anniversary, dancers are preparing for their first live Dallas performance since the pandemic.
"We're just really happy and excited to be presenting to a live audience," DBDT: Encore! Artistic Director Nycole Ray said. "But I'm also grateful that we're still here. There are a lot of companies that did not survive the pandemic."
DBDT's Director's Choice series performance features works from 5 choreographers. The dances include a performance Ray collaborated on with the late Bruce Wood called 'The Edge of My Life...So Far.'
"It's just about this woman who has to do all of these things, and how does she do everything," Ray asked. "We all have these moments in our heads when it's absolutely crazy, right, and cloudy, and how do I not fall over the edge?"
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The dance takes place on and around the 'table where everything happens'; meals, bills, studying, love. It was first choreographed and performed a decade ago. Ray said social justice issues and the pandemic add another layer to this performance.
"The isolation people had to go through...how do we see our way through," Ray asked. "Because I've always thought tomorrow is not really promised to any of us, but I REALLY know tomorrow is not promised to us, and to take full advantage of the day."
Ray said dance is a universal language that brings people together.
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"It's not really necessarily about the steps," Ray said "It is about how we connect with each other emotionally that draws people in."
Director's Choice is Nov. 5 and 6 at 7:30 p.m. at the Dee & Charles Wyly Theatre. Tickets are available for live, socially distanced audiences, live streaming, and on-demand. For performance and ticket details, click here.
NBC 5 is a sponsor of the Dallas Black Dance Theatre.
