B. DUNN
MOVEMENT
ADD WATER & STIR
"POWERFUL, COMPELLING & CLEAR."
– LA Dance Chronicle
ADD WATER & STIR
2017
PERFORMANCES | Blaktinx Festival Reprise 2020, Western Arts Alliance Conference 2019,
Santee Education Complex 2018, Bootleg Theater 2017
CONCEPT and DIRECTION | Brigette Dunn-Korpela
CHOREOGRAPHY | Brigette Dunn-Korpela in collaboration with Dancers
COSTUME DESIGN | Athena Lawton
MUSIC DIRECTOR/COMPOSER | Pete Korpela
DRAMATURGE and VOCAL COACH | Kestrel Leah
ANIMATION | Nak Choi
FILM DIRECTOR | Giuliana Folks
PHOTOGRAPHY | Clarence Alford
CAST | Cynn Anderson, Whitney Jackson, Kestrel Leah, Dominique McDougal, Robyn O'Dell
Joan Padeo, Dion Pratt, Brance Souza, Ashlee Williams, Aaron Wilson (apprentice)
Add Water & Stir, is an interdisciplinary dance theatre performance that abstractly explores core values of American idealism “Dream” and its relationship to human apathy and racism. The hypernormalisation of sanitized police brutality and human indifference is researched through contemporary modern dance techniques, improvisation, music, text, animation, set design and original costume design. These collective forms express insight into the existence of a society mired in complex racial, cultural and gender politics. The hostile and lethal environment that has been unapologetically unleashed since the Trump election is traversed through abstract references by historical and contemporary killings of Eric Garner, Tamir Rice, and Emmett Till. The nightmare of their savage killings are juxtaposed against a backdrop of 1940-50’s soundscape, costume design, vintage media, animation and pop culture. Additional aesthetic influences are informed by Brutalist and Constructivist architecture and motifs. Add Water & Stir is a response to the current social and political climate of increased human indifference, deafening silence of human compassion and political lunacy largely affecting communities and persons of color.
WESTERN ARTS ALLIANCE CONFERENCE 2019
Nate Holden Performing Arts Center presents
Black Dance in LA – Curated by Gaylen Hooks and Pat Taylor
The legacy and contributions of Black choreographers and dancers in Los
Angeles is historic and significant, and it is now a hotbed of some of the
most creative and urgent works being created in the US and that celebrate
the African diaspora. Curated by two esteemed voices in the LA dance
community, Black Dance in LA @ WAA showcased established and emerging choreographic voices that showcase the breadth of the LA dance scene.
OVERVIEW
The Western Arts Alliance (WAA) Booking Conference was held in Los Angeles from August 26 to 29, 2019, with pre-conference activities on the 25th. The conference convenes presenters, artists and agents around the shared goal of programming live performances. The four-day schedule was filled with exhibits, performances, networking, speakers, classes and workshops. WAA’s strategic plan for 2018-2020 includes a key component to “nurture a more inclusive and equitable community…” and this year’s conference has a special focus on the performing arts of
the Black Diaspora.
In alignment with the 2019 WAA Conference, and in support of the Black dance community in Los Angeles, Ebony Repertory Theatre, Dance at the Holden, and the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs presented a dance performance showcase on Monday, August
26, at 8:00pm at the Nate Holden Performing Arts Center. There was a pre-performance reception at 6:30pm co-sponsored by International Association of Blacks in Dance, West Moves, LA Presenters, LA-based choreographers/dancers, and Dance Resource Center.
Black Dance @ WAA will showcase the touring work of under recognized/under-championed Los Angeles-based Black choreographers and ensembles, and companies that celebrate dance of the Diaspora. Artist participation is by invitation. Six to seven companies/projects were featured.
BLAKTINX FESTIVAL 2020
Bootleg Theater presents
BlakTinx Dance Festival - DANCING ON THE EDGE
An online video performance featuring the work of Black & Latinx choreographers, created in response to quarantine and social unrest.
This is the first program in a four part video series. Written programs are available at www.blaktinxdance.com
Choreographers on the bill:
Keilah Glover-Lomotey, Brigette Dunn-Korpela, Andrea Ordaz, Yarrow Perea, Vannia Ibargüen, Alán Perez, Kassy Francis.
Bootleg Theater presents Dancing on the Edge a curated video collage of dance pieces created by LA BlakTinx alumni choreographers. During what began as a project dealing with the Covid crisis, we witnessed the horrific death of George Floyd and the protests that ensued against police brutality, social inequality and the Black Lives Matter movement. We needed to take a pause and postponed to honor our Black choreographers in BlakTinx. We are now presenting 4 online segments that are powerful, soulful and personal expressions of life in a double crisis of Covid and BLM. We are presenting new work and archival pieces that were presented at the Bootleg in the past that dealt with social injustice. Come witness these important pieces as these local choreographers share their personal spaces and feelings via the video platform!
This project was made possible by the LA Department of Cultural Affairs. B Dunn Movement's excerpt is available for your viewing pleasure HERE beginning at 8 min 44 seconds.