Forget classical
music.
When the Brownsvillle-based, women’s contemporary dance company,
Movement for the Urban Village (MUV), performs Shalewa Mackall’s
original choreography at the BRIC Studio in Fort Greene, June
2-4, they’ll be stamping their feet and leaping to the music
of Mos Def, Parliament-Funkadelic, The Clash and Sting.
"The movement is rooted in African Diaspora tradition, but
performed in a contemporary text," says Mackall, who founded
the company in 2003. "The audience can expect to see a company
of women with diverse movement experiences as well as life experiences."
In addition to the reprising of "Thembi," "Canon
for 4 Dancers," and "Sista Goddess" from previous
seasons, two major works were developed for these performances.
The world premieres include "Bearers," which concerns
the issues of women and the struggle against oppression, set
to a blues, rock and funk beat, and "Ghetto Rock,"
which brings traditional African dance into the modern world
through a hip-hop, punk and house score.
Each night, a different artist will join Mackall and the MUVers
on stage. On June 2, Lenelle Moise, a Haitian-American poet will
read her own works on politics, sexuality and race; poet, journalist
and Mid-Westerner Celeste Doaks will speak on June 3; and Yaya,
a group of musicians devoted to preserving and promoting African-based
musical traditions, will play on June 4.
"I started MUV because as an artist, I wanted to create
work that reflected my life as a woman living in Brooklyn, and
I wanted to honor the African dance traditions I was trained
in," Mackall said. "I use the movement to speak about
issues and concerns that are facing me and other people."
Movement for the Urban Village Dance Company performs June 2-3
at 8 pm, and on June 4 at 5 pm at BRIC Studio (57 Rockwell Pl.
at Fulton Street in Fort Greene). Tickets are $20, $12 for students
and senior citizens. For more information, call (718) 855-7882
or visit the Web site, www.briconline.org.
THEY’LL MUV YOU
