Artword Theatre presents a dance double-bill at Artword Artbar, Sunday, September 25, 2016, 8 pm.
1. The premiere of a new work, The Parrot of Paradise, is a Caribbean tale told in dance and spoken word, written and performed by Learie Mc Nicolls. It tells a story of a individual chosen to tell a short tale of a particular incident on a particular island. The story draws on Learie’s own experience growing up in the Caribbean, and is partly autobiographical, partly historical. Duration 20 mins.
2. A 30-minute excerpt of our Fringe hit Once I Lived in the Box, choreographed by Learie Mc Nicolls, performed by dancers Angela Del Franco, Sharon Harvey, Tanis Macarthur and Learie Mc Nicolls. “Once I lived in the box/ hated the box/ loved the box/ respected the box/ got angry at the box… ” The piece is a sequence of trios, duets and solos, that reveal different aspects of isolation and connection, vulnerability and trust. The full length version of this stunning work premiered at the Hamilton Fringe Festival 2016, to rave reviews.
Sunday, September 25, 2016, 8 pm, $20 (advance reserve 905-543-8512), $25 door, at Artword Artbar 15 Colbourne Street, Hamilton. The evening is part of the 2016 Roots en Route Festival of World Music, Dance, Spoken Word presented by Matapa, in multiple venues in September 2016.
Learie Mc Nicolls (choreographer, dancer) has been a key figure in contemporary dance in Toronto since the 1980s, with Toronto Dance Theatre, Desrosiers Dance Theatre, Dancemakers, National Ballet of Cuba, and his own company, Mythmakers. As a solo dancer, he has been exploring the combination of dance with spoken word, to create a powerful new form of theatrical presentation. Since moving to Hamilton, his dance projects include: at The Pearl Company Resurrection 2014, and at Artword Transformation 2015, Once I Lived in the Box 2016 and an ongoing series Big Dance Little Stage. In 2015 Learie received the City of Hamilton Arts Award for Performance.