The Vancouver International Dance Festival (VIDF) proudly presents its breathtaking 2019 festival season, showcasing a month-long program replete with exhilarating performances by both internationally revered artists and lauded Vancouver performers, engaging workshops, and a plethora of interactive dance activities, March 4 to 30, 2019, at various venues throughout Vancouver. The 2019 VIDF will showcase Canadian premieres from Japan’s sensational Dairakudakan — a VIDF audience favourite — as well as Taiwan’s Tjimur Dance Theatre, appearing in Vancouver for the very first time; three world premieres from Vancouver’s own Vision Impure, Olivia C. Davies, and Lesley Telford; and three West Coast premieres from East Coast artists Daina Ashbee (Montreal), Manuel Roque (Montreal), and 10 Gates Dancing (Ottawa), among many others.
2019 VIDF – VANCOUVER PLAYHOUSE SHOWS:
Dairakudakan (Japan)
Pseudo human Super human
Vancouver Playhouse, March 8 & 9, 8pm
VIDF welcomes the highly provocative Japan-based butoh ensemble Dairakudakan, who return with the explosive Canadian premiere of Pseudo human Super human. Choreographer and director Akaji Maro shares his emotionally charged meditation on the dissonance between the fruitless pursuit of technology and the resulting crushing absence of humanity.
Tjimur Dance Theatre (Taiwan)
Varhung – Heart to Heart
Vancouver Playhouse, March 29 & 30, 8pm
Taiwan’s esteemed indigenous dance-theatre company, Tjimur Dance, performs the Canadian premiere of Varhung – Heart to Heart — a lyrical and vulnerable exploration of the complexities of the human heart.
2019 VIDF – ROUNDHOUSE SHOWS:
Manuel Roque (Montreal)
bang bang
Roundhouse Performance Centre, March 13-16, 8pm
A celebrated dance virtuoso, soloist Manuel Roque presents the West Coast premiere of his highly acclaimed bang bang — an electrifying, visceral ode to the physical demands of the body.
Olivia C. Davies / O.Dela Arts (Vancouver)
Gidaashi
Roundhouse Exhibition Hall, March 14-16, 7pm
The highly anticipated world premiere of Gidaashi, choreographed and performed by Olivia C. Davies, gracefully weaves narrative through a hauntingly expressive performance, exploring the transience and fragility of life.
Jeanette Kotowich (Vancouver)
Eloise
Roundhouse Exhibition Hall, March 20-23, 7pm
Celebrated Métis choreographer and performer, Jeanette Kotowich, blends contemporary and Indigenous practices in her latest work, Eloise. This intimately provocative work brings insight to the practice of honouring traditional territory through sincerity, hilarity, and gratitude.
Vision Impure (Vancouver)
Pathways
Roundhouse Performance Centre, March 20-23, 8pm
Choreographed by Noam Gagnon, Vision Impure presents the world premiere of their latest work, Pathways — an illumination of the stories we share in relationship to one another, complicated and intensified by urban living.
Lesley Telford (Vancouver)
New Creation
Roundhouse Exhibition Hall, March 27-30, 7pm
VIDF is excited to unveil the world premiere of Lesley Telford’s new work, New Creation, performed by Stephanie Cyr and Eden Solomon. After a career in Europe spanning 20 years, Telford has refined a choreographic approach that combines impulse-based physicality and technical rigour with sensitivity to the minute relationships between performers themselves and between performers and their environment.
10 Gates Dancing (Ottawa)
Trust
Roundhouse Performance Centre, March 27-30, 8pm
The West Coast premiere of Trust is a thought-provoking duet created and performed by choreographer Tedd Robinson and composer Charles Quevillon. This curious new contemporary work creatively examines the dynamic interchange of building, maintaining, and testing trust between partners.
2019 VIDF – KW PRODUCTION STUDIO SHOWS:
Raven Spirit Dance (Vancouver)
Gathering Light
KW Production Studio, March 13-16, 5pm
An intimate journey from seed to flower, Gathering Light is an evocative meditation on the deeply seated impulses within ourselves to seek and embark upon transformation, helping us to find the light and reveal the barriers to our full blooming, choreographed by Michelle Olson of Raven Spirit Dance.
Kelly McInnes (Vancouver)
SHINY
KW Production Studio, March 20-23, 5pm
A confronting and compelling multidisciplinary performance, SHINY explores and challenges the impossible beauty standards that women are measured against through mass media.
Daina Ashbee (Montreal)
Serpentine
KW Production Studio, March 27-30, 5pm
A powerful installation performance, Serpentine is a bold exploration of the impact of repetitive movement to evoke a strong reaction from its audiences, allowing the performer to fully occupy not only the physical space, but also the time and attention of her viewers.
2019 VIDF – FREE PERFORMANCES:
V'ni Dansi - March 10 & 17, 2019 @ 2pm; March 24, 2019 @ 2pm & 3pm
Harbour Dance ITP & Platform - March 10 & 17, 2019 @ 3pm
All free performances are held at Woodward's Atrium
2019 Vancouver International Dance Festival
Dates: March 4 to 30, 2019
Tickets: Vancouver Playhouse: Adults $70, Seniors/Students $60, Groups of 10 or more $50 (please call VIDF box office at 604-662-4966 for group sales).
Roundhouse Performance Centre: Adults $35, Seniors/Students $30, and Groups of 10 or more $25. On Wednesday nights, every patron that buys two ADULT tickets will get one of these for free.
KW Production Studio: Adults $20, Seniors/Students $15, and $10 for groups of 10 or more. On Wednesday nights, every patron that buys two ADULT tickets will get one of these for free.
Roundhouse Exhibition Hall: Free with VIDF Membership ($5); Woodwards Atrium: Free
Box Office: vidf.ca/tickets or call 604-662-4966
Website: vidf.ca
Image by Hiroyuki Kawashima
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