da:ns festival - esplanade

da:ns festival 2017 is made possible with the generous support of

Supporting Sponsors

LianBee-Jeco Pte Ltd UFC Refresh(Lam Soon Singapore)

In our 12th edition, da:ns festival invites you to discover some of the most exciting and significant dancemakers of the next generation. Their works boldly reflect the world we live in. In so doing, they inspire and expand our imagination, and reinvigorate and chart the future of dance and choreography. The works of three diverse female choreographers at the festival – Dada Masilo, Rocío Molina, and Eisa Jocson – show how dance can resiliently challenge conventions of society, push the boundaries of forms and explore representations of the female body.

In response to the limited body types allowed in ballet, Masilo founded her unique style of dance, which fuses ballet, contemporary and African movements. Her version of Swan Lake breathes new life into the classical story by injecting it with a spirited reflection on prejudice and freedom. Another restless rule breaker, Molina defies classical flamenco codes by melding contemporary movement and conceptual risk, while examining the tensions of power and seduction between men and women. This questioning of duality is reflected in Bosque Ardora, where reality and dreams blur, and her body shape shifts between animal and mythological goddess. Jocson too confronts perceptions of gender in Macho Dancer, where she embodies the seductive language of male dancers objectified in the adult entertainment industry.

Bringing people together through dance, Frenchman Benjamin Millepied gathers the best dancers in America to perform a selection of intricate and virtuosic dance pieces on the beauty and fragility of love and loss in relationships. Singaporean artists Choy Ka Fai and Daniel Kok further invite dancemakers from around the world to examine the state of dance today and into the future. The festival co-commission Dance Clinic by Choy turns dance on its head by proposing a new way of understanding dancemakers, with the help of neuroscience and an artificial intelligence dance system. Through a series of experiments conducted on stage, Choy analyses the minds of dancers, Austrian-Dutch Florentina Holzinger and West Papuan Darlane Litaay. Elsewhere in a seminar and workshop curated by Kok, contemporary artists Jeremy Wade and Karol Tyminski join a group of local and Asian dance practitioners to examine the role of dance within the current global political environment.

For all dance lovers and the simply curious you can let loose and dance in the many free dance parties around Esplanade. Pick up easy steps under the stars, jump around with your friends in a private dance ball pit, or watch the latest street moves! Whether you are watching dance or dancing yourself, this festival is a chance to try something new, express yourself through movement, and experience the powerful energy dance has to offer.

FESTIVAL MESSAGE

On behalf of the Esplanade’s da:ns festival team

Faith Tan

Head, Dance and Theatre

CONTENTS

Stunning productions from around the world take CENTRESTAGE

SHIFT your notions of dance

THE NEXT GENERATION of dance

Dada Masilo’s

SWAN LAKE

DANCE CLINICby Choy Ka Fai

THE NEXT GENERATIONLASALLE College of the Arts & Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts

CONDANCED HISTORIESby Neopost Foofwa

MACHO DANCER AND CORPONOMYby Eisa Jocson

Benjamin Millepied’s

L.A. DANCE PROJECT

Rocío Molina’s

BOSQUE ARDORA

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18

16

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8 10

4

Others

COFFEE CHATS ...............................22

da:ns lab .......................................24

CINEda:ns ......................................25

RASASTraditional Dances from Asia .....................26

WHAT’S YOUR MOVE? ...................28

SIXTEEN da:nsCHALLENGE ...................................30

MASTERCLASSESAND WORKSHOPS .........................31

MORE FREEPROGRAMMES ..............................33

TICKETING & PROMOTIONS ...............................34

da:ns kaki ......................................36

VENUE INFORMATION ...................39

MACHO DANCER AND CORPONOMYby Eisa Jocson

Rocío Molina’s

BOSQUE ARDORA

FREE

FREE

FREE

FREE

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it’s an entertainment that is full of heart and art, a poetic experience that seems to cleanse and cure us...” – artsfuse.org

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Dada Masilo’s

SWAN LAKE/ South Africa

:“…this Swan Queen is barefoot and bald; and as Tchaikovsky’s plaintive violin melody begins, her movements incorporate balletic sweep and the grounded, hip-shaking, stamping notes of African dance.” – The New York Times

Noisy, humorous, earthy – this is Swan Lake as you have never seen before. The best-known work of South African dancer-choreographer Dada Masilo, Swan Lake overturns the traditional love story and hijacks the codes of classical ballet. Here, African dance styles rub shoulders with ballet and contemporary moves, and both men and women are swans. In between arabesques there are stomping bare feet, swaying hips and energetic hoots against a score by Tchaikovsky, Steve Reich and Arvo Pärt. Masilo herself plays a fiery and kinetic version of Odette.

Masilo breathes new life into this classic story with a powerful reflection on prejudice and freedom. Against their wishes, Odette and Siegfried are forced into an arranged marriage. But Siegfried struggles to speak the truth that he longs for the male swan Odile. Trapped within the conventions their society has enforced, the trio search to reconcile their hopeless situation expressed through poetic choreography.

Performed with spirited dancing, by turns generously funny and poignant, Swan Lake will evoke laughter and tears.

(1hr, no intermission)

Advisory 16: Recommended for age 16 yrs and above. Contains female upper body nudity and mature themes.

Born in 1985, Masilo grew up in the impoverished township of Soweto, South Africa. She studied classical and contemporary dance in South Africa, followed by two years in Brussels at the renowned school, Performing Arts Research and Training Studios (P.A.R.T.S), where she was one of 30 candidates chosen from 250 applicants.

Working in South Africa late 2006, she began to create full-length works based on her love of great stories from ballet such as Carmen and Romeo & Juliet. Swan Lake was the first ballet she had seen as a child. Today, Masilo’s Swan Lake has toured South Africa and Europe extensively to standing ovations.

About Dada Masilo:

20 & 21 Oct, Fri & Sat, 8pmEsplanade Theatre

$20, $40*, $70**^, $100^ (excludes SISTIC fee)

Limited concessions: $25* and $45**

^Esplanade&Me Specials Available

School Special: $10 and Tote Board Arts Grant available.Turn to page 34 for booking details.

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the work offers a glowing display of Mr. Millepied’s craftsmanship… everything is unexpected, everything feels serendipitously right.” – NYTIMES

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Benjamin Millepied’s

L.A. DANCE PROJECT:Experience the power and grace of dance in an evening of four diverse works performed by L.A. Dance Project, featuring some of the best dancers from America led by renowned artist Benjamin Millepied. A former artistic director of the Paris Opera Ballet and principal dancer of New York City Ballet, Millepied has created works for leading ballet companies around the world, and his accolades include choreographing and starring in the Oscar-winning film Black Swan.

The evening begins with a tribute to the American icon of modern dance, Martha Graham, in three rarely seen duets – White, Star and Moon – which draw from her 1957 film A Dancer’s World.

Upping the pace is Murder Ballades by Justin Peck, resident choreographer at the New York City Ballet, a vivacious work “loosely inspired by the tradition of American murder ballads, which infuses its athletic, often cheery movement with a sinister undercurrent”, according to The New York Times.

Two works by Millepied, both set to music by Philip Glass, will display his complex craftsmanship at its best. Closer, an exquisite duet of crystalline beauty and delicacy set to Glass’s rhapsodic piano score Mad Rush.

The second piece is Hearts & Arrows, commissioned by Van Cleef & Arpels (a long-standing supporter of Millepied) and set to Glass’s sublime String Quartet No. 3 (Mishima). “Tiny narratives, emotion, histories, memories are evoked in the way the dancers coalesce and part, the surprise of formations and their dissolution.” (The New York Times)

(Approx. 1hr 20mins, including 20min intermission)

Formed in 2012, L.A. Dance Project aims to create new work and to revive seminal collaborations by influential dance makers. Its programmes have a cross-disciplinary focus, and can range from evenings in traditional venues to site-specific performances in unconventional environments. They often work with visual artists, musicians, designers, film directors and composers. The company also creates various innovative platforms to expand the experience of dance and dance education to audiences of all ages.

The dance company was founded by Benjamin Millepied, a Bordeaux-born dancer-choreographer now based in Los Angeles. A principal dancer for New York City Ballet for 10 years, he left in 2011 and was appointed Director of Dance at Paris Opera Ballet in 2014. He also worked on the Darren Aronofsky film Black Swan (2010), for which he created choreography and starred as a dancer.

About L.A. Dance Project and Benjamin Millepied:

24 & 25 Oct, Tue & Wed, 8pmEsplanade Theatre

$20, $40*, $70**^, $100^

(excludes SISTIC fee)



School Special: $10 and Tote Board Arts Grant available. Turn to page 34 for booking details.

/ USA

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taking over the body and moving it, spasm by spasm, filling it of rage and beauty.” – La Vanguardia

Rocío Molina with Eduardo Guerrero and Fernando Jiménez (Spain)10

Rocío Molina’s

BOSQUE ARDORA / Spain

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“She’s the nuclear force at the centre of an atom.” – The Evening Standard

Created by one of the most fearless artists in dance today, Rocío Molina’s Bosque Ardora (Forest Worship) transports you into a forested glade where dangerous games of seduction and survival unfold amongst the light and shadows of rustling live trees; a setting that would not look out of place in a Pina Bausch production.

The laws of nature and desire decree hunt or be hunted. From forest dawn to dusk, Molina shape-shifts gorgeously between Artemis, a Greek goddess of the hunt, a mythological vixen in a fox mask, and a sex kitten in a boyfriend’s shirt and stilettos, all the while rhythmically sparring with two male dancers and a band of musicians. The production unfolds like a dream where the past intermingles with the present, and reality and fantasy become blurred.

Spanish choreographer-dancer Molina has no time for rules. Her works transcend her classical flamenco roots and combine technical virtuosity, contemporary research and conceptual risk. Unafraid to forge alliances with other disciplines and artists, her choreographies are unique scenic events drawn from cinema, literature, philosophy and painting.

Her power as a choreographer is matched by her skills as a performer. Winning countless awards and dubbed as “a performer capable of handling the most diverse registers with freedom and courage” by the Ministry of Culture in Spain, come watch the artist who brought the legendary ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov to his knees in homage.

(1hr 30 mins, no intermission)

$20, $40*, $70**^, $100^ (excludes SISTIC fee)



School Special: $10 and Tote Board Arts Grant available.Turn to page 34 for booking details.

27 & 28 Oct, Fri & Sat, 8pmEsplanade Theatre

Born in Malaga in 1984, Molina is a restless dancer who started choreographing as early as the age of seven. After graduating with honours from the Royal Dance Conservatory in Madrid at the age of 17, she began her professional career with well-known Spanish dance companies. At age 22, Molina broke out as a solo artist where she created experimental works which transcended beyond the language of her classical flamenco roots. In 2010, she was awarded the National Dance Prize by the Ministry of Culture. Since then, she has toured internationally and performed in renowned venues such as National Theatre de Chaillot in Paris, Sadler’s Wells in London and the Lincoln Centre in New York.

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by Choy Ka Fai

Festival Co-commission

DANCE CLINIC :How does the brain synthesise data to generate movement? Can we examine a dancer’s consciousness as they create dance? Can neuroscience and technology fix their problems? These are the questions that homegrown artist Choy Ka Fai explores in this research-based performance Dance Clinic. A da:ns festival co-commission, this new work imagines a future where dance meets technology, where choreography can be hypothesised with artificial intelligence, and where dance clinics improve your act of choreography and eliminate undesirable symptoms of dance.

Choy takes on the role of a self-proclaimed Doctor to diagnose and “rehabilitate” two distinctly different dance artists in a series of live consultations, case studies and dance experiments with the assistance from an artificial intelligent dance system Ember Jello. “Patient Z” is Florentina Holzinger, who has been labelled an enfant terrible in Europe for her highly physical and provocative performances in which she flirts with camp and kitsch. While “Patient X” is West Papuan Darlane Litaay who draws from Papuan folk traditions, contemporary dance concepts and the magical phenomena of life.

An ironic reference to the world’s current obsession with technology as the solution to all our problems, Dance Clinic is at once fascinating, humorous and disturbing!

(1hr, no intermission)

R18: Restricted to age 18 yrs and above. Contains nudity and mature themes.

Co-commissioned by tanzhaus nrw and Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay.

For tanzhaus nrw, this commission is part of MOCCA – Motion Capturing Creative Area, a project by Hochschule Düsseldorf, Fachbereich Medien, LAVAlabs, Velamed GmbH and tanzhaus nrw, supported by EFRE.

Further support through the Residency Programme by NTU Centre for Contemporary Art Singapore.

Based in Berlin, Choy Ka Fai is a Singaporean artist who crosses disciplines freely, having worked in theatre, dance, visual art and new media. His conceptually rigorous research explores the conditioning of the human body, often focusing on the intersection between technology, memory, and movement.

Conferred the Young Artist Award by the National Arts Council (Singapore) in 2010, he graduated from the Royal College of Art, London, with MA in Design Interaction a year later. He is currently a resident artist (Factory Artist) at tanzhaus nrw, Düsseldorf (2017 – 2019). His projects have been presented in major festivals worldwide, including Sadler’s Wells, London (2016), ImPulsTanz Festival, Vienna (2015) and Tanz Im August, Berlin (2013 and 2015). Choy’s SoftMachine was commissioned in 2015 by Esplanade and successfully travelled to more than 25 festivals around the world.

About Choy Ka Fai:

20 & 21 Oct, Fri & Sat, 8pmEsplanade Theatre Studio

$30*^ (excludes SISTIC fee)

*Concessions: $20


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by Eisa Jocson

MACHO DANCER AND CORPONOMY:One of Philippines’ most provocative dance artists, Eisa Jocson explores gender, politics and power relations as seen through the unique socio-economic lens of her native country. In this double bill, audiences can experience one of her most iconic works, a transgressive gender-bending performance called Macho Dancer, followed by a performance lecture titled Corponomy, which reflects on Jocson’s conceptual and socially-informed practice.

Macho Dancer is inspired by a seductive dance form performed by young men in Manila nightclubs. In this internationally toured piece, Jocson embodies the exaggeratedly masculine and sexual vocabulary – slow gyrations, body undulations, bicep flexing – set to the tenor of power ballads. Here, she enacts what she calls a “gender loop”, where notions of desire and objectification play out back and forth between gender roles without easy resolution. Her strikingly androgynous dance was featured in electronic musician Peaches’ iconic music video for How Do You Like My Cut? (2016).

Corponomy, a new commission by the da:ns festival, is a performance lecture that reflects on all her works produced from 2009 to 2017, which are concerned with the representations of the dancing body and the production of fantasy in the service industry. Drawn from Jocson’s personal archive of research material, they include investigations into the politics of pole dancing, macho dancing, Filipino hostess culture in Japan, and Filipino entertainers working in Disneyland.

(Approx. 2hrs 15mins, including a 30min intermission)

Advisory 16: Recommended for age 16 yrs and above. Contains upper body female nudity and mature themes.

Corponomy is commissioned by Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay for da:ns festival

Eisa Jocson is a contemporary choreographer and dancer from the Philippines. Trained as a visual artist, with a background in ballet, she won her first pole dancing competition in Manila in 2010. Her solo triptych of Death of the Pole Dancer (2011), Macho Dancer (2013) and Host (2015) have toured extensively to contemporary dance festivals in Europe, Asia, North America and Australia.

From pole to macho dancing to hostess work, Eisa investigates the labour and representations of the dancing body in the service industry, and exposes identity and gender formation, seduction politics, and Filipino social mobility. Her latest creations Princess (2015) and Your Highness (2017) under the HAPPYLAND series is a continuation of her investigation into the performance of happiness and the production of fantasy of Filipino entertainers within the happiness empire.

About Eisa Jocson:

27 & 28 Oct, Fri & Sat, 8pmEsplanade Theatre Studio


*Concessions: $20


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by Neopost Foofwa

CONDANCED HISTORIES :Experience the history of 20th century Western dance in this condensed and humorous one-man performance lecture by Swiss dance artist Foofwa d’Imobilité. Within two hours, this self-described “respectful desecration” will cycle through the iconic styles of legends ranging from Rudolf Laban, Martha Graham, Merce Cunningham, Pina Bausch and more.

Armed with just a suitcase of costumes, Foofwa will introduce and perform the key techniques and philosophies of these famous choreographers. Besides providing an engaging crash course in modern and contemporary dance, he will also share backstage stories of choreographers in rehearsals, as well as anecdotes of their idiosyncrasies and successes.

As evidenced from the word play in his name, humour is a big part of Foofwa’s work. (His name plays on the French words “fou” – meaning crazy – and “immobilité” – meaning immobility –). But he also happens to be one of the most technically accomplished dancers in Switzerland, having danced in Stuttgart Ballet and the Merce Cunningham Dance Company. With a superb command of different dance languages from ballet to contemporary forms, Foofwa provides a light hearted but expert look at the various currents and practices that will delight anyone interested in dance and its heritage.

(26 Oct: 2hrs, no intermission, 27 Oct: 1hr 30mins, no intermission)

Condanced Histories is supported by the Corodis, and the Loterie Romande.

Neopost Foofwa (2015 – 2017) receives also joint support from the City of Geneva, the Republic and Canton of Geneva and Pro Helvetia – the Swiss Arts Council.

Born Frédéric Gafner in 1969, Foofwa d’Imobilité trained at the Ecole de Danse de Genève. From 1987 to 1990, he danced with the Stuttgart Ballet in Germany, and then with the Merce Cunningham Dance Company in New York from 1991 to 1998, where Cunningham called him a “risk-taker”. His work crosses international, artistic, and pedagogic borders.

Since 1998 he’s embarked on a solo career, and along the way has won several awards, including a 1998 New York Bessie and a 2006 Swiss Prize for Dance and Choreography. Foofwa has performed as a dancer around the world, notably at the Paris Opera, the Fenice Theater in Venice, Italy, and at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York.

About Foofwa d’Imobilité:

26 Oct, Thu, 7.30pm27 Oct, Fri, 3pm & 7.30pm (For school bookings only)

Esplanade Recital Studio

Public show(26 Oct, 7.30pm):


*Concessions: $20


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“I feel a great respect and admirations for all these flagship artists but I do not want to mystify them. They are normal people like us. Yes, we can mime them, we can even mock them. We need to undo their sacredness for those of us who are still alive. I am for a respectful desecration.” – Artist interview in Edelweiss,

May 2012

School shows(27 Oct, 3pm & 7.30pm):

$23 (excludes SISTIC fee)

Tote Board Arts Grant available.

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LASALLE College of the Arts

Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts18

LASALLE College of the Arts & Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts

THE NEXTGENERATION

Meet the next generation of dance talents in Singapore from LASALLE College of the Arts and Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (NAFA), as they present an array of short dance pieces by local and international choreographers.

LASALLE presents three vastly different choreographic voices – a moving excerpt of Silences We Are Familiar With (da:ns festival 2012 commission) by Kuik Swee Boon, a stark and intense choreography by Lee Jae-young (Korea), as well as a commissioned work-in-progress showcase by choreographer Martin Schick (Switzerland/Germany) after a 2-week residency with the students. This programme reflects LASALLE’s cosmopolitan and cutting-edge approach to art that produces performers who expand and challenge the boundaries of dance both physically and conceptually.

NAFA presents two new premieres by its very own Ezekiel Oliveira (adjunct lecturer), Jereh Leong (alumnus) and a reprise by Lee Wan Yu (2017 graduate). Their works showcase the edge and versatility of NAFA’s Diploma dancers produced through the distinctive conservatory-style training and contemporary outlook that NAFA is known for.

(1hr 10mins, no intermission)

There will be post-show dialogue on 20 Oct, Fri, 7.30pm & 21 Oct, Sat, 6pm.

: 20 Oct, Fri, 7.30pm21 Oct, Sat, 2pm & 6pm22 Oct, Sun, 2pmEsplanade Recital Studio

$18* (excludes SISTIC fee)

*Concessions: $12

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COFFEE CHATS

21 Oct, Sat

22 Oct, Sun

Want to know how choreographers think when creating a dance piece? What challenges do these artists have? How do you run a dance company? What is dance all about? Why dance?Taking on a new format, Coffee Chats is a rare opportunity to have an intimate conversation with a dance artist or practitioner over tea/coffee and a sumptuous dessert spread prepared by Suzette.

Come prepared to fill your mind, soul and body at Coffee Chats.

2.30 – 3.30pm Pichet Klunchun (Thailand) – The Contemporary Body in Traditional Dance

Dancer and choreographer Pichet Klunchun shares his experiences in contemporising khon and how traditional dance forms can remain relevant today.

3.30 – 4.30pm Nidya Shanthini Manokara – Dramaturgy in Dance

What is a dramaturg and how can dramaturgy shape the creative process of a work? Join Shanthini as she shares her perspectives as a dramaturg and dancer!

4.30 – 5.30pm Shining Goh – From Dancer to Production-Stage Manager

Although Shining has a dance background, her long illustrious career in dance is as a production and stage manager for dance companies. What does the stage look like from the technical side?

3 – 4pm Ricky Sim – Interdisciplinary: Inter-dialogue

As Artistic Director of RAW Moves, Ricky Sim’s mission is to redefine movement through inquiry and experimentation with different artistic disciplines. Join Ricky as he talks about his journey as an artist pushing and exploring the boundaries of dance!

4 – 5pm Germaine Cheng – Writing for Dance: Nailing Jell-O to the Wall

Freelance dance artist and writer Germaine Cheng shares her experience reviewing local and international dance productions to shed some light on the importance of critical writing.

5 – 6pm Martin Schick (Switzerland/Germany) – The Unexpected

Expect the unexpected as Martin Schick shares why the element of surprise is important in a performance and for the audience.

21, 22, 28 & 29 Oct, Sat & Sun

Various timings

Esplanade Tribute Corner

Pichet Klunchun

Shining GohNidya Shanthini Manokara

Ricky Sim

Martin Schick

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(1hr)

$12 per session per pax (excludes SISTIC fee)

Includes tea/coffee and dessert

28 Oct, Sat

29 Oct, Sun

2.30 – 3.30pm Hoo Kuan Cien – Presenting Local Works to the World

“All the world’s a stage,” as the saying goes. Singapore dance artists have much to offer the international audience, but how can they get their work out there? What are the considerations when transporting a local work to the global stage? Join Kuan Cien as he talks about his journey bringing creations by Singapore artists to the world.

3.30 – 4.30pm Dr. Irving Chan Johnson – Dance as Ritual in Bali

In Bali, dance, music and drama go beyond the entertainment value of performance; their main purpose is to please the deities and ancestral spirits. Dance, therefore, is not just a part of ritual, but rather a ritual in and of itself. Professor of Southeast Asian studies at NUS, Irving Johnson discusses the ritual significance of dance in Bali, as well as the various dance forms that are performed at temple ceremonies.

4.30 – 5.30pm Edith Podesta (Australia/Singapore) – Alternate approaches to choreography, movement, and improvisation: Instructional performance pieces, physical tasks, movement scores, and dance notation

Edith Podesta’s work in both theatre and dance performance explores powerful ideas, concepts and stories through movement. Join her as she talks about her various approaches to creating a work, and in translating these ideas to performance.

3 – 4pm Elaine Heng – A Ballerina in Singapore

On an island full of pragmatists, Elaine Heng successfully turned her passion into a career. Join her as she shares her journey as a ballerina practising ballet in Singapore.

4 – 5pm Bernie Ng – Dance from Behind the Lens

How does one capture an ephemeral moment? Join dance photographer Bernie Ng as she shares about capturing movement in stillness.

5 – 6pm Jenny Neo – Creation: In Search of my Chinese Roots

Learn about Chinese history as Jenny talks about going back to her roots and applying Chinese dance elements to her choreography.

Dr. Irving Chan Johnson

Hoo Kuan Cien

Jenny NeoBernie Ng

Elaine Heng

Edith Podesta

Interested applicants must be 18 years old and above, and can attend the entire duration of the programme. Application for this workshop is through the da:ns festival website.

For enquiries email: [email protected]

Free, by selection only

WORKSHOP & SEMINAR

da:ns lab –Dancing in a Landscape of Crisis

Choreographers and dancers are invited to apply for this three-day workshop and seminar da:ns lab – an annual platform for dance practitioners to reflect upon key issues surrounding their creative practice.

This year da:ns lab examines the role of dance and the dancemaker within the current unstable global political environment. Artistic disciplines like dance that emphasise the complexity of human relations, collaboration and communality, and as such practise performance as lived politics, are compelled to take on a mantle of urgency in landscape of crisis. If choreography is the artistic practice on relational politics par excellence, it is hence imperative to now critically rethink strategies for dance.

How should one move now? Why keep moving? In the present moment, such why and how-to questions have become explicitly political questions: How does a body navigate a landscape in crisis? Is dance, whose ontology is based on movement, able to take action as opposed to merely ask (oftentimes vaguely formulated) questions? Is there still time, resources, or the need for dance?

Curated by Singaporean dancemaker Daniel Kok, Kok has invited three guest artists Jeremy Wade (USA/Germany), Karol Tyminski (Poland/Germany), and Eisa Jocson (Philippines) to lead the workshops and seminars on this theme. Over three-days they will share their methodologies and conduct workshops, as well as give studio performances.

25 – 27 Oct, 10am – 9pm (with breaks)

Esplanade Annexe Studio

10am – 1pm Lecture & seminar presentation by guest artists

2 – 6pm Workshop

7.30 – 9pm Guest artist’s studio performance & Q&A

R18: Restricted to age 18 yrs and above. Content may contain nudity and mature themes.

With the Support of

Programme

Curated by Daniel Kok (Singapore), featuring Jeremy Wade (USA/Germany), Karol Tyminski (Poland/Germany), & Eisa Jocson (Philippines)

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Of Miracles and Superheroes – 55 Years Stuttgart BalletDirector: Harold Woetzel (Germany)

1 Oct, Sun, 5pm

The Projector (Golden Mile Tower)Level 5

Relève (Reset)Directors: Thierry Demaizière & Alban Teurlai

(France)

30 Sep, Sat, 8pm8 Oct, Sun, 5pm

Polina (Polina, Danser Sa Vie)Directors: Angelin Preljoçaj & Valérie Müller

(France)

7 Oct, Sat, 8pm

$13.50* (Tickets from The Projector)*Concessions: $11.50

Ticket holders for Benjamin Millepied’s L.A. Dance Project and Stuttgart Ballet’s Romeo and Juliet will get to purchase tickets for the film screenings at $12.50. Terms and conditions apply. For online purchase, visit http://theprojector.sg/cinedans/ or purchase in-person at The Projector’s Box Office.

CINEda:ns 2017 is made possible withthe kind support of Embassy of France in Singapore and Institut Français for Relève (Reset) and Goethe-Institut Singapore for Of Miracles & Superheroes – 55 Years Stuttgart Ballet.

da:ns festival x The Projector

CINEda:nsCINEda:ns is a collaboration between Esplanade’s da:ns festival and da:ns series, and independent cinema The Projector. The series allows audiences to experience the immediacy of dance combined with the intimacy of film, offering up-close access to significant dance artists, their choreographies and personal lives, told through the cinematic artistry of filmmakers.

In 2017, CINEda:ns turns the focus to French-born dancer and choreographer, Benjamin Millepied, and Stuttgart Ballet, with 3 intriguing and varied films. Millepied’s L.A. Dance Project is featured in da:ns festival and Stuttgart Ballet performs John Cranko’s Romeo & Juliet in da:ns series, both in October 2017.

Film Programme

A dance drama whose roots date back to the 11th century, Calonarang performances depict the endless struggle between good and evil, told through two of the most iconic characters in Balinese-Hindu mythology: the playful, lion-like Barong is one of the most sacred creatures in Bali and is the protector of villages; his counterpart is the witch Rangda, a long-haired, long tongued creature whose frightening appearance is both feared and revered by the Balinese.

Calonarang

by Satria Lalena and Gamelan Pinda Sari / Indonesia

27 – 29 Oct, Fri – Sun7pm & 8.45pm (Fri & Sat) • 6.15pm & 8pm (Sun)

RASASTraditional Dances from AsiaJourney to royal courts, ancient temples, mythical realms and be enthralled by the stories, myths and legends that are inseparably linked to dance in Asia at RASAS.

FREE

Khon

by Pichet Klunchun Dance Company / Thailand

20 – 22 Oct, Fri – Sun7pm & 8.45pm (Fri & Sat) • 6.15pm & 8pm (Sun)

Khon is a Thai classical court masked dance that is best known for bringing to life the Ramakien, the Thai version of the Hindu epic, the Ramayana, that permeates much of the traditional performing arts of Southeast Asia.

Evolved from nang yai, a form of shadow puppetry, Khon’s highly stylised movements can be traced back to the movements of the puppets against a lit screen. There are four different types of performers in a Khon performance: a male, a female, a demon and a monkey. The characters are distinguished by the type and colour of the masks that they wear on stage.

This Rasas, catch a selection of episodes from the Ramakien, as well as other court dance pieces that are also drawn from Hindu epics.

Esplanade Outdoor Theatre

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Khon Unmasked

by Pichet Klunchun Dance Company / Thailand

23 & 24 Oct, Mon & Tue6.45pm & 7.45pm

Catch the Pichet Klunchun Dance Company in special performance-demonstrations of excerpts from the Ramakien, and get a chance to experience classical Thai Khon up-close.

The East Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak flanking the northern and western portions of the island of Borneo are home to diverse dance traditions that reflect the multi-ethnic composition of the regions’ population. Ngajat Iban, a 16th century dance first performed by Iban warriors on their return from battles is now a welcome dance to celebrate the most important harvest festival, Gawai Dayak. Other dances that will be performed include, alu-alu, one of the earliest traditional dance forms of the Melanau tribe in Sarawak. Influenced by folk games played during the Kaul, or the Sea Spirit Worship Feast, this dance displays the great physical skills of the male dancers.

20 – 22 Oct, Fri – Sun6.15pm (Sat only) • 7.15pm & 8.15pm

Odissiby CHOWK Productions / Singapore

27 – 29 Oct, Fri – Sun6.15pm (Sat only), 7.15pm & 8.15pm

Odissi is one of the pre-eminent classical dance forms of India which originated in the Hindu temples of the eastern coastal state of Odisha in India. Like most of the other classical dance forms of India, odissi traces its roots back to the ancient Sanskrit dramatic treatise, the Natyashastra. The themes in odissi are almost exclusively religious in nature and most commonly revolve around the Hindu god Krishna. A performance begins with a mangalacharan, an invocatory offering, followed by pieces that showcase both the technical virtuosity (nritta) as well as the expressive qualities (abhinaya) of the dancer.

Balinese Wayang Wongby Satria Lalena / Indonesia

25 & 26 Oct 2017, Wed & Thu6.45pm & 7.45pm

The dance-theatre form of wayang wong is a rarely performed sacred art form in Bali, most notable for the use of elaborate masks that are different from those used in other forms of Balinese masked dance.

The stories in wayang wong performances are taken from the Ramayana. Unlike wayang kulit (shadow puppetry), in which the storyline is paramount, movement takes precedence in wayang wong, with elaborate fight sequences between the monkeys and demons, and long drawn-out dialogues performed by the actors.

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Esplanade Concourse

Dances of Sabah and Sarawakby ASK Dance Company / Malaysia

FREE

What’s Your Move? is back for another season!

Start your weekend morning right with a healthy dose of dance fitness by the bay, or bask in the moonlight as you pick up some nifty moves from our professional instructors on stage and catch dance studios present their own takes on classic styles. Either way, there’s something for everyone!

If you love street dance, don’t miss this sizzling edition of Sixteen da:ns Challenge, a massive dance showcase on 21 Oct, where aspiring dancers team up with acclaimed international choreographers to perform heart-pounding routines!

WHAT’S YOUR MOVE?

The Edge (Esplanade Waterfront)

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20 Oct, Fri

22 Oct, Sun

21 Oct, Sat

7.45pm Salsa (ACTFA)

9.30pm Zouk (ACTFA)

7pm Lindy Hop (Jazz Inc)

8.45pm Street Dance (Jazz Inc)

9am Get Up and Move! KPOP-X (Eleanor Fong)

7.45pm Hip Hop (Danz People)

9.30pm K-pop (CJ School of Performing Arts)

10.45pm Sixteen da:ns Challenge

27 Oct, Fri

28 Oct, Sat

7.45pm Flamenco (RBSDC)

9.30pm Pasodoble (RBSDC)

29 Oct, Sun

7pm Jive (The DanceSport Academy)

8.45pm Waltz (The DanceSport Academy)

9am Get Up and Move! Bhangra X (SherePunjab Bhangra)

7.45pm Disco (The DanceSport Academy)

9.30pm Mambo (Jazz Inc)

FREE

SIXTEEN da:ns CHALLENGE Showcase

If you love street dance, come and be wowed by the sleek choreography and thrilling dance moves of our Sixteen dance crews.

Formerly part of Yfest (Esplanade’s festival for youth), Sixteen da:ns Challenge has found a new home in da:ns festival. The platform provides young street dancers the opportunity to learn from established international artists, develop fresh ideas and form new friendships through a series of workshops and rehearsals which culminate in a high energy showcase at da:ns festival.

Joining this year’s group of guest choreographers and dancers are popping extraordinaires, Poppin J and Popkun (Korea), O.G lockers Khan and Moon (Korea), and Vio and Dorocy of award-winning Korean dance crew Team Magnolia, who bring to the table their unique style of hip hop. Each pair will select dancers to form three crews to work with them over the course of the programme.

Don’t miss this special night of street dance creativity at its best!

Auditions and RehearsalsCalling all street dancers! If you would like to participate in Sixteen da:ns Challenge, visit www.esplanade.com/sixteen to submit your video for a chance to audition for the choreographers and be selected!

Online Video Submission by 10 Oct, Tue

Closed-door Audition at Esplanade: 15 Oct, Sun

Rehearsals with Choreographers: 16 – 19 Oct, Mon – Thu

Performance at Esplanade: 21 Oct, Sat

21 Oct, Sat, 10.45pm

The Edge (Esplanade Waterfront)

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MasterclassesPush your boundaries and turn your dance routines up a notch, by joining in these masterclasses with the choreographers of Sixteen da:ns Challenge!

Vio and Dorocy (Team Magnolia) / Korea

21 Oct, Sat, 10am

Poppin J and Popkun / Korea

21 Oct, Sat, 12pm

Constantly pushing the boundaries of popping, Poppin J and Popkun are veterans of the Korean dance scene. Part of the newly-formed popping super crew, World Fame Us, both have many international competition titles under their belt.

Follow them at www.instagram.com/world.fame.us

Part of the renowned Team Magnolia which took the dance world by storm, Vio and Dorocy bring to the table a unique musicality and technical proficiency. Growing from strength to strength, the award-winning crew recently won the championship titles of Feedback Korea 2016 and Arena 2017 (China).

Follow Vio at www.instagram.com/vio_kim_ Follow Dorocy at www.instagram.com/dorocyyyyyy Follow Team Magnolia at www.instagram.com/teammagnolia

No stranger to our shores, Locking Khan teams up with Moon to form the dance duo, Originality, one of the most formidable and established locking partnerships to come out of Korea. The runners-up in Season 2 of Korea’s Got Talent, they have been featured in commercials for Jill Stuart New York and SK Telecom (Korea), and have travelled the world as competitors, judges and performers.

Follow Locking Khan at www.instagram.com/lockingkhan Follow Moon at www.instagram.com/lockingmoon

(2hr, with short breaks)

$25 (excludes SISTIC fee)

Package of 4: 10% savings (Applicable for purchase of 4 tickets to any Sixteen da:ns Masterclass)

Khan and Moon / Korea

20 Oct, Fri, 8.30pm

Esplanade Rehearsal Studio



Dada Masilo leads a masterclass in which she will teach her unique choreography, seamlessly fusing ballet, contemporary and African dance. Recommended for intermediate to advanced dancers with training in ballet and/or contemporary dance.

(1hr 30mins)

$25This workshop is suitable for intermediate to advanced dancers.

This workshop is an introduction to the basic techniques of macho dancing. These techniques have been distilled and codified by Eisa Jocson through her research and by touring Macho Dancer. Eisa will lead participants through the sensual yet physically demanding vocabulary, including macho posture and stance, undulations, macho walk, knee swivels, poses, mannerisms and use of the gaze. The physical principles of macho dancing will be explored, beginning with the illusion of weight and volume, as well as viscosity in time and space.

(2hrs)

$15 Recommended for ages 18 and above. This workshop is suitable for beginners with little or no experience in dance. For safety and comfort, participants are required to dress comfortably, preferably in long pants/tights, jeans or shorts, and must wear knee pads and boots or rubber shoes.

Participants will learn modern dance technique and excerpts from L.A. Dance Project’s choreography, as taught by a dancer from the Company. Recommended for intermediate and advanced dancers.

(1hr 30mins)

$25This workshop is suitable for intermediate to advanced dancers.

29 Oct, Sun, 1.30pm

Dancers of Rocío Molina’s Bosque Ardora will be teaching this flamenco masterclass for intermediate to advanced dancers. Praised for his magnificent pirouettes and technical precision, Eduardo

Flamenco Masterclass by Eduardo Guerrero and Fernando Jiménez /Spain


28 Oct, Sat, 1pm

Macho Dance Workshop with Eisa Jocson /Philippines

Masterclass with L.A. Dance Project /USA


Tickets for Masterclass with Dada Masilo and Masterclass with L.A. Dance Project are available through selection when you register at www.esplanade.com/dansfestival. Terms & conditions apply.

Guerrero has been receiving international recognition, performing in major festivals worldwide. A former dancer of Andalucía Ballet of Flamenco and regular collaborator with Eva Yerbabuena, Fernando Jiménez is known for his classical style of flamenco which is linked to ballet. Each artist will teach a 90-min workshop, inclusive of a 15-min break. Capacity is limited, so book now to avoid disappointment.

(3hrs 15mins with 15mins break)

$40 This workshop is suitable for intermediate to advanced dancers. Participants should dress comfortably and bring flamenco dance shoes.

Masterclasses

25 Oct, Wed, 10am


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21 Oct, Sat, 3pm


Masterclass with Dada Masilo /South Africa

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29 Oct, Sun, 10am


Fusing dance, drama, pantomime and music, Thai khon is the classical dance-drama form of Thailand, best known for bringing to life the Ramakien, the Thai version of the Hindu epic the Ramayana. In this workshop led by renowned dancer and choreographer Pichet Klunchun, learn more about this refined art form and try out some of its basic postures and gestures.

(1hr 15mins with short breaks)

$10 Recommended for ages 13 and above

Rarely performed even in Bali, wayang wong is a traditional dance-theatre form that is most notable for the elaborate masks and highly stylised movements that it uses to tell the stories of the Hindu epic, the Ramayana. In this workshop, learn more about this elusive art form and try out some of the basic movements that distinguish it from the other dance forms of Bali.

(1hr 15mins with short breaks)

$10 Recommended for ages 13 and above

Rasas – Introduction to Balinese Wayang Wong

22 Oct, Sun, 10am


Rasas – Introduction to Thai Khonby Pichet Klunchun Dance Company /Thailand

by Satria Lalena /Indonesia

FREE

Your very own 5-minute dance lesson! Get into the spirit of the festival and pick up some nifty dance moves from our roving team of professional dancers from Jazz Inc. Choose from a selection of dance genres, and you’ll be on your way to a fun and simple dance lesson. Once you start, you won’t want to stop!

Ever wanted your own private dance party? Grab a couple of friends and make your way to the Festival Corner! Inspired by the bright colours and MTV aesthetic from the 1990s, we’ve created everybody da:ns now – the most instagrammable da:ns space of the festival, where installation art meets dance party! Step in, wait for the music to start, and let the beat take over. And for a few precious minutes, let your hair down, go crazy, and dance like there’s no tomorrow. Everybody, da:ns now – boom!Minimum admission age is 6 years old. All children below the age of 12 must be accompanied by an adult.

At this dance video talk, the audience will be able to hear more on the concept from its artistic director Aravinth Kumarasamy and catch a sneak preview of Javanese and Indian dance sequences.

Anjaneyam – Hanuman’s Ramayana is co-produced by Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay as part of Kalaa Utsavam – Indian Festival of Arts 2017.

Shall We Dance?

Talk: Behind the Scenes of Apsaras Arts’ Anjaneyam – Hanuman’s Ramayana

by Jazz Inc

by Aravinth Kumarasamy

20 – 22 Oct & 27– 29 Oct, Fri – Sun

21 Oct, Sat, 4 – 5pm

6.15 – 7pm & 7.15 – 8pm

library@esplanade

Various locations around Esplanade

everybody da:ns now

20 – 29 Oct, Fri – Sun, 4pm onwards

Esplanade Festival Corner

Workshops

White Card: 10% savings

Black Card: 15% savings

For selected programmes. Terms & conditions apply.

Esplanade&Me is your pass to experience the arts, go behind the scenes and a way for you to support the arts. Enjoy savings for tickets to da:ns festival, da:ns series, Ninagawa Macbeth and much more! Visit www.esplanade.com/e-and-me to sign up!

For school bookings of 10 or more student tickets. Limited tickets available. Applicable to all schools including international schools and private institutions.

Available for the following shows:

Government schools may use the Tote Board Arts Grant to subsidise up to 50% of the ticket price for the following programmes. Applicable for Secondary Schools, Junior Colleges, Centralised Institute and Institute of Technical Education (ITE) levels.

For more details, please contact Esplanade Box Office at 6828 8389 or email: [email protected].

Tickets from Esplanade Box Office and SISTIC authorised agents. SISTIC hotline: 6348 5555. Group bookings of 20 or more: 6828 8389. A SISTIC booking fee applies for each ticket. Latecomers will only be admitted during intermission/suitable breaks, if any. No admission for infants-in-arm and children below six years old, unless otherwise stated. Tickets are required for all patrons. Please note that photographs and videos of patrons may be taken at these events for use in our archival and publicity material.

TICKETING & PROMOTIONS

BOOK NOW!

www.esplanade.com/dansfestival

Norlina Aljunied

Esplanade&Me Specials

School Special: $10 (selected shows)

Tote Board Arts Grant

Dada Masilo’s Swan Lake

Benjamin Millepied’s L.A. Dance Project

Rocío Molina’s Bosque Ardora

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da:ns festival isn’t what it is without the support of our passionate and committed volunteers. Spot these da:ns kakis around the centre during the festival and say hello!

Catch ourda:ns kakisin action!

What’s Your Move?

Shall We Dance?

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Your access to the arts begins with Esplanade.

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• Exclusive invites to events, workshops and tours

• Discounts and privileges at selected merchants

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White card: $50, Black card: $500

Theatre

Rehearsal Studio

Outdoor Theatre

Theatre Studio

Annexe Studio

Concourse

Recital Studio

The Edge (Waterfront)

Tribute Corner

The 1,950-seat theatre is modelled on traditional horseshoe-shaped performance arenas, creating an intimate setting for all inside.

Designed for dance rehearsals, pre-performance warm-up sessions, masterclasses and workshops.

Enjoy free traditional dance performances under a starlit sky.

An intimate setting for artist residencies, rehearsals, experimental theatre and dance presentations.

A raw and flexible space ideal for experimentation, artist residencies and workshops, its informal setting aims to offer both artist and audience new experiences.

Enjoy free dance performances daily at this centrally located performance and visual arts space.

A fan-shaped space that is an ideal setting for intimate performances.

A stage and public dance area located next to Makansutra along the picturesque waterfront.

Strike up a conversation with dance artists at this intimate and informal space.

VENUE INFORMATION

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“This Romeo and Juliet is a gripping and impressive piece of stagecraft”

– The Daily Telegraph

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EsplanadePresents

da:ns series

UEN: 199205206G Information correct at time of print.

Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay is operated by The Esplanade Co Ltd (TECL), which is a not-for-pro�t organisation, a registered Charity and an Institution of a Public Character.

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EsplanadeSGdansfestivalwww.esplanade.com

Exclusive Sponsors

Tickets from Esplanade Box Office and SISTIC authorised agents. SISTIC hotline: 6348 5555. A SISTIC booking fee applies for each patron. Terms and conditions apply.

www.esplanade.com/romeojulietBOOK NOW FOR THE BEST SEATS!Tickets from $60*

*Esplanade&Me savings and concessions available. Terms and conditions apply

Set to Sergei Prokofiev’s dramatic score accompanied by the Singapore Lyric Opera Orchestra, this version introduces the world not only to Cranko’s gift for storytelling, but also signature breathtaking “Stuttgart lifts” and one of the most famous Balcony pas de deuxs in the ballet canon for which the company is celebrated. Today, it is regarded as a timeless masterpiece of unsurpassed beauty.

(2hrs 40mins, including two 20min intermissions)

12 – 14 2017, – , 8

www.esplanade.com/dansfestivalPhotography by Tuckys PhotographyDancers: Alvin, Boby, Ernest, Ezekiel, Joni, Saiful, Shaw En, Xenres and Xin Yen

da:ns festival - esplanade

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