Intrepid Theatre

Rough Cuts • Metro Studio Theatre
January 31 + February 1, 2020.
Details below. RSVP required.

PLEASE NOTE: WE ARE PLEASED TO OFFER THESE PERFORMANCES FOR FREE, BUT WE ALSO ENCOURAGE DONATIONS TO CONTINUE TO FEED THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW WORK. LIMITED SEATING. RSVP TO RESERVE YOUR SEAT.

Rough Cut: John (Excerpt)

Friday, January 31 • 3:30 – 4:30 pm
Metro Studio Theatre

Choreographer: Helen Walkley
Performers: Josh Martin, Billy Marchenski
Composer: James Maxwell

John is a memoir of Helen Walkley’s oldest brother John who disappeared from Vancouver in May 1969, never to be heard from again. Walkley sourced from family letters dating from 1959 to 2010, which document the years leading up to his disappearance, his medical history, and the subsequent tracking her parents did of his disappearance. He was 23 at the time and Walkley was 13.

Helen Walkley is a contemporary dance artist in Vancouver who has also lived and worked in the Netherlands, Germany and the U.S. She is a certified Laban Movement Analyst and has an MFA in Interdisciplinary Studies from SFU. Numerous Artist in Residences have supported her work and most recently at Vancouver’s Dance Centre. She has an ongoing collaboration with composer James Maxwell and has performed with improvisation artists Peter Bingham, Lin Snelling and Marc Boivin.

Want to attend? RSVP to rsvp@dancevictoria.com with “John” in the subject line.

Rough Cut: A + A

Friday, January 31 • 5:30 – 6:30 pm
Metro Studio Theatre

Choreographers & Performers: Alexis Fletcher, Andrew Bartee

Having spent years practising their craft with high-level company settings, Alexis and Andrew are compelled by duet work as both creators and viewers of dance. Their relationship is the primary starting place for this work, and they are interested in how structure and relationship inform one another. They spent a month in residency at Dance Victoria Studios in September creating this work and exploring its thematic principles and physical vocabulary. They are interested in the ways their conceptual ideas can be distilled and grounded in their bodies and are dedicated to a durational process to create a rich choreographic landscape. The first incarnation of the piece premiered at the Chutzpah! Festival Vancouver in November 2019.

Alexis Fletcher is a dance artist, independent choreographer and producer, and has danced with Ballet BC for the past 14 years. Since its inception in 2015, she has also co-produced and curated a multidisciplinary, grassroots performance series at her home with her husband Sylvain Senez, entitled The Dance Deck. They present original multi-disciplinary works by established professional artists. Andrew Bartee is a dance artist, maker and educator based in Vancouver and Seattle. He has danced, created and toured nationally and internationally with Ballet BC, Pacific Northwest Ballet, Whim W’him, and Kate Wallich + The YC.

Want to attend? RSVP to rsvp@dancevictoria.com with “A + A” in the subject line.

Rough Cut: Red on Red (formerly #MMIW)

Saturday, February 1 • 2:00 pm
Metro Studio Theatre  

Choreographer: Visible Bodies Collective
Director & Dramaturge: Jo Leslie
Performers: Lindsay Delaronde, Cheryl Henhawke, Nicole Mandaryk, Elowynn Rose

What happens when four Indigenous women come together in a dance studio? Curiosity brought us to explore Indigenous stories of injustice in the realm of movement. Exploring social justice through arts practice, we co-create a shared vision healing violence through dance, performance and storytelling. We stand together to hold space between the murdered and missing and to the invisible women. We embody the in-between space of life and death and advocate for the ones gone and lost.

Lindsay Delaronde was born and raised on the Kahnawake reservation and has lived on Canada’s west coast for 13 years. She is a multidisciplinary artist and facilitator of traditional workshops and holds a Masters in Fine Arts and in Indigenous Communities Counseling Psychology from the University of Victoria. Indigenous Women’s Performing Arts Collective is a group of Indigenous women that come together to explore dance, movement, and storytelling. Their collective practice is centered in Indigenous worldview, social justice art, land-based and place-based knowledge. The collaborative practice is held by a council of Indigenous women gathering story, igniting the fire of truths and knowledge to be embodied. They gather to heal intergenerational and historical trauma from the impacts of colonization. Through their bodies they liberate, restore, reclaim and resist.

Visible Bodies Movement Collective is an inclusive, transient group of Indigenous women who come from many nations and places across Turtle Island. Our collective practice is centered in Indigenous worldview, social justice, land-based and cultural knowledge. Our collaborative practice is held by a council of Indigenous women gathering stories and igniting the fire of truths to be embodied. We gather to heal our intergenerational and historical trauma from the impacts of colonization. Confronting injustices of violence and social issues is at the heart of the work. Mending past, present and future, weaving story, rhythm and our natural abilities to orate our experiences. We unite to explore dance, movement, and story-telling through our bodies. Our intention is to create a space of resurgence and gain our rightful power and positions in our societies by embracing dance and movement as the medium. Grounding in ancient knowledge, earth sound and sacred movement we embark on a journey of rediscovery. Through our bodies we can liberate, restore, reclaim and resist.

Want to attend? RSVP to rsvp@dancevictoria.com with “#MMIW” or “Red on Red“ in the subject line.

Rough Cut: OFF CENTRE (Excerpt) 

Saturday, February 1 • 4:00 – 5:00 pm
Metro Studio Theatre 

Choreographer: Sujit Vaidya
Performer: Curtis Andrews, Arun Mathai and Sujit Vaidya

OFF CENTRE reflects upon multiplicities of existence and negotiations to find connections within oneself. Reflecting on the disorientation of immersing himself in the ideas of an ancient art form while living in today’s world as a gay man, Sujit Vaidya creates this work from a deeply personal space.

Sujit Vaidya is an independent Bharatanatyam (Indian classical dance) artist in Vancouver and has performed in Canada, U.S., Europe and India. He uses Bharatanatyam as a language to reimagine traditional texts and contextualize them in ways that are relevant to him as a gay man living in today’s times. He finds it important and urgent to question the narrative and relevance of non-inclusive traditional texts. Vaidya was the first South Asian artist to receive the Vancouver City’s Mayor’s Award for Best Emerging Dance Artist in 2010.

Want to attend? RSVP to rsvp@dancevictoria.com with “OFF CENTRE” in the subject line.