BAAD!/JACK
With Niall Noel Jones, Milteri Tucker, Filip A. Condeescu, and Isabella Diaz
November 3 - 4, 2016 at JACK | November 5, 2016 at BAAD!
The Bronx and Brooklyn collide in this evening co-curated by Bronx Academy of Arts & Dance (BAAD!) and JACK, with Niall Noell Jones and Isabella Diaz representing Brooklyn and Milteri Tucker Concepcion and Filip A. Condeescu repping The Bronx. After two performances at JACK, the bill moves to BAAD! for a final blow-out.
PROGRAM (in no particular order):
Filip A. Condeescu: Take #Two
A duet looking at the romance and companionship between two men. Their long-term relationship carries within the seeds to evolve beyond the fire of Eros of the younger days – blossoming into deeper, mature, complex connections. Featuring Reginald Webber, Jr.
Milteri Tucker Concepcion: Ashe!
Ashe!, whose title grows from the Yoruban and Santerian word for "blessings," is a fusion of contemporary/modern styles with Caribbean folk movement. The piece connects audiences to the unity of three Caribbean Islands: Puerto Rico (Bomba), Guadalupe (Gwoka) and Cuba (Orishas).
Isabella Diaz + (Alphonso Conway): S/he Jumped, S/he Was Pushed: The Cars' Seat
As a current work in progress, Diaz took this on as an idea stemming from the endless capabilities of our bodies. From a combination of interviews and personal accounts, this work is a narrative about challenging and evolving our physical limitations; specifically speaking out to persons or communities struggling with disabilities. With special thanks to a dear friend, Tony Mitchel, Diaz challenges you to focus not on the make and model of your car, but on the seat.
Niall Noel Jones: SPLNDR, #54
SPLNDR, #54 is an extraction, a sublimation, an interruption, an operation, an installation, a fantasy, a manipulation, an imposition, a demonstration, an illumination, an obstruction, a demarcation, an impossibility; a minor architecture.
BIOS
Filip A. Condeescu (The Bronx), a native of Bucharest, Romania, makes work that reflects a collage of geographical, historical and cultural influences of his life experiences. He started dance at the age of 21 at Connecticut College, where he obtained his BA in both Dance and Sociology. In 2002, he was presented the joint Dance Magazine/American College Dance Festival Outstanding Choreography award for his piece Perpetuum, performed at The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Filip completed his MFA in Performance and Choreography at California State University, Long Beach, and started a new chapter by continuing his exploration of human expression, spirituality & social justice in the New York City arts scene. Filip’s work has been presented at Dance Theatre Workshop, BAAD! and Baerum Kulturhus (Oslo, Norway). Most recently he was the 2015-2016 BAAD! The Bronx Academy of Arts and Dance Artist in Residence and presented his first full evening of work, …the blockage WILL be killerized…, in June 2016.
Milteri Tucker Concepcion (The Bronx) is an award-winning Puerto Rican Bronx artist and the Artistic Director of Bronx's very own Bombazo Dance Co, Inc., a drum and dance company focusing on Afro Puerto Rican Bomba, dance and drumming from the Diaspora. She holds degrees from Hunter College (Dance, Biology and Chemistry), masters from NYU. As a professional Bomba dancer, educator and choreographer her expertise in Afro Puerto Rican and Caribbean music and dance have placed her as one of the top performers in this genre from both Puerto Rico and the Diaspora.
Isabella Diaz (Brooklyn), native of Chicago, IL, is a dancer trained in modern, ballet, and contemporary forms. She began exploring movement at a very young age with gymnastics and tap training. She studied at Western Michigan University where she had the opportunity to perform works by Peter Chu, Ohad Naharin, and David Curwen. She moved to New York this past year, to pursue performing in dance theatre and concert work as a freelance artist. Since, she's worked with choreographers Isabel Lewis, Manuel Vignoulle, and Kimberly Prosa. She continues to create her own work under Isabella Diaz + (Alphonso Conway) and is a current member of Humans Collective.
Niall Noel Jones (Brooklyn) is a dance artist working in New York City and Philadelphia. Niall’s work lingers in the folds of various art practices as an engagement with disorientation, pleasure, materiality, impermanence, and persistence. Niall is a visiting professor in the Performance + Performance Studies graduate program at Pratt Institute and is Assistant Director for the School of Dance at the University of the Arts.
Photo by Corey Melton