Past Events: Dance

Shen Wei Dance Arts
May 23 - 25, 2013
2012-2013 Season
Blending a traditional Chinese aesthetic with Western dance to extraordinary results, Shen Wei Dance Arts presents Undivided Divided, a site-specific piece where the dancers interact with multimedia, including video and sculpture.
Monica Bill Barnes & Company
May 8 - 9, 2013
2012-2013 Season
"One of the wittiest young choreographers around" (The Village Voice), Monica Bill Barnes debuts at the Kennedy Center with dances imbued with not only grace and theatricality but relatable humor.
Malavika Sarukkai
Mar. 29 - 30, 2013
2012-2013 Season
A significant player in the Indian classical dance style bharatanatyam, dancer and choreographer Malavika Sarukkai returns with Ganga: Nitya Vaahini (The Eternal River), continuing to push the style's boundaries.
Nordic Cool 2013: GöteborgsOperans Danskompani
Mar. 15 - 16, 2013
2012-2013 Season
Having transitioned from solely classical ballet to an additional focus on contemporary dance, Sweden's GöteborgsOperans Danskompani brings three contemporary works created on the company.
Nordic Cool 2013: Tero Saarinen Company (Finland)
Tue., Mar. 12, 2013, 8:00 PM
2012-2013 Season
Finland's Tero Saarinen Company, which aims to promote a humane worldview and basic human values through the language of dance, makes its Kennedy Center debut with a triple bill of works choreographed by Saarinen.
Nordic Cool 2013: Carte Blanche (Norway)
Mar. 6 - 7, 2013
2012-2013 Season
The Norwegian National Company of Contemporary Dance, Carte Blanche brings Sharon Eyal and Gai Bachar's Corps de Walk, a work about a static condition of unique moments and tiny, subtle changes in body posture.
Nordic Cool 2013: Danish Dance Theatre
Mar. 1 - 2, 2013
2012-2013 Season
One of the foremost contemporary dance companies in Scandinavia, Copenhagen's Danish Dance Theatre makes its Kennedy Center debut with the U.S. premiere of Love Songs, which revolves around a cinema noir universe.
Nordic Cool 2013: Iceland Dance Company
Wed., Feb. 27, 2013, 7:30 PM
2012-2013 Season
A world-class contemporary dance company, Iceland Dance Company brings a mixed repertory program that includes Jo Strömgren's Großstadtsafari, Lára Stefánsdóttir's The Swan, and Frank Fannar Pedersen's Til.
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
Feb. 5 - 10, 2013
2012-2013 Season
America's cultural ambassador to the world, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater returns to the Kennedy Center for its annual engagement with its winning combination of captivating new work and enduring classics.
Lar Lubovitch Dance Company
Nov. 29 - 30, 2012
2012-2013 Season
Internationally renowned Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, based in New York, debuts at the Kennedy Center with choreography that is "soothing and reviving, like water passing softly over body and soul" (Dance Magazine).
Voices of Strength: Two Programs of Contemporary Dance & Theater by Women from Africa
Oct. 4 - 5, 2012
2012-2013 Season
Celebrating the diversity and talent of contemporary African choreographers, Voices of Strength is a moving mixed repertory program that covers a range of dance genres.
Jo Kanamori/Dance Company Noism
Apr. 26 - 27, 2012
2011-2012 Season
Japan's imaginative leading contemporary dance company, last seen at the Kennedy Center's JAPAN: culture + hyperculture festival, returns for the 100th anniversary of Japan's gift of cherry trees to the People of the United States.
Ballet Preljocaj
Mar. 30 - Apr. 1, 2012
2011-2012 Season
Angelin Preljocaj's French dance company performs Snow White ("Blanche Neige"), a contemporary romantic ballet based on the popular Grimm Brothers tale with costumes by Jean-Paul Gaultier set to a selection of Mahler's symphonies.
Kabuki Dance by Bando Kotoji
Fri., Mar. 23, 2012, 7:30 PM
2011-2012 Season
KEIGWIN + COMPANY
Mar. 2 - 3, 2012
2011-2012 Season
Known for provocative, witty, and engaging dances, KEIGWIN + COMPANY returns with a program that includes Megalopolis, a fun and serious blend of formalism and pop performed to a mash-up of music by Steve Reich and M.I.A.
Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater
Feb. 7 - 12, 2012
2011-2012 Season
America's cultural ambassador to the world, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater returns for its annual engagement with electrifying new works and a compilation of classics, including the iconic Revelations on every program.
Mark Morris Dance Group: L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato
Jan. 26 - 28, 2012
2011-2012 Season
The innovative Mark Morris Dance Group performs L'Allegro, il Penseroso ed il Moderato to music by Handel accompanied by the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra, The Washington Bach Consort, and four vocalists.
Merce Cunningham Dance Company
Dec. 2 - 3, 2011
2011-2012 Season
The late Kennedy Center Honoree and legendary choreographer Merce Cunningham's namesake company returns for the final time on its Legacy Tour with a program presented to live music, including Antic Meet, Squaregame, and Sounddance.
Beijing Dance Theater
Oct. 26 - 27, 2011
2011-2012 Season
China's contemporary troupe fuses ballet and modern dance with traditional dance in its Kennedy Center debut with Haze, performed on a modified stage where the dancers fight to stay afoot, a metaphor linking pollution with spiritual confusion.
Paul Taylor Dance Company
Mar. 22 - 24, 2011
2010-2011 Season
The quintessentially American Paul Taylor Dance Company returns with Three Dubious Memories, Brief Encounters, and Also Playing by its founder, "the most inventive and versatile choreographer alive today" (The New York Post).
Shantala Shivalingappa: Swayambhu
Sat., Mar. 12, 2011, 7:30 PM
2010-2011 Season
Treasured in both India and Europe, Shantala Shivalingappa is an acclaimed dancer and choreographer of kuchipudi, a 2,000-year-old classical style based on the Natya Shastra, an ancient codification of dance, music, and theater.
Malavika Sarukkai: Sakthi Sakthimaan – Energies Auspicious and Fearsome
Thu., Mar. 10, 2011, 7:30 PM
2010-2011 Season
A firm believer in the continuity of Indian classical tradition, Chennai choreographer and dancer Malavika Sarukkai preserves key elements of bharatanatyam style dance while providing a personal interpretation of its cultural significance.
Ragamala Dance & Dakshina/Daniel Phoenix Singh Dance Company
Wed., Mar. 9, 2011, 7:30 PM
2010-2011 Season
Drawing from Pandanallur bharatanatyam, Ragamala Dance's work provides a bridge between cultures both ancient and modern. Dakshina is an emerging, DC-based dance company.
The Daksha Sheth Dance Company: Sarpagati: The Way of the Serpent
Tue., Mar. 8, 2011, 7:30 PM
2010-2011 Season
The first Indian woman soloist in chhau, Daksha Sheth brings a powerful dance-theater work that features aerial technique and has become a landmark in contemporary Indian dance.
Priyadarsini Govind and Nrityagram Dance Ensemble
Sun., Mar. 6, 2011, 7:30 PM
2010-2011 Season
Specializing in abhinaya, Priyadarsini Govind has been performing the bharatanatyam dance around the world since age 16. The stunning Nrityagram Dance Ensemble eats, sleeps, and breathes classical dance.