Holiday picks: Joffrey ‘Nutcracker’ & Lula Washington ‘Kwanzaa’
Nov
29
2011
Dance critics — that bad bunch of bah-hambugg’ers — roll their eyes at the words, “The Nutcracker.” But when the houselights dim, and the Tchaikovsky pours forth, just catch a glimpse of their faces. You know — when the Sugar Plum Whatzz’its dance before their eyes? They love it. You’d have to be a Certified ...
Bad boys of Lula’s China tour: Marcus Miller & Freedom Jazz Movement
Marcus Miller – Drums Kamasi Washington – Tenor Sax Ardom Belton – Upright Bass Mahesh Balasooriya – Piano Last June, I had the unspeakable joy of being the writer on the bus of Lula Washington Dance Theater’s three-week tour of China, primarily in Henan Province. It was a spectacular, gargantuan life experience. What added art ...
You want audience? China has audience! 2
Jul
6
2011
Back now for several weeks from the tour of central China with Lula Washington Dance Theatre, our friend Keith forwards us photos. Perusing, I’m reminded of the outdoor amphitheater at Zhengzhou’s SIAS University in Henan where we had two shows. The first night a mere 2,000 people were in the house; the second, ostensibly enjoying ...
REVIEW: Rennie Harris’s “REIGN” rains on China
A woman stands at stage center, her knee-length black dress draping loosely over trousers. She’s trembling. Flashing lights — a disco? faux lightening? — cut the stage’s darkness. The sound of thunder, then rain, pours from the speakers. It’s loud, overpowering. The woman suffers, she’s convulsing; her corn-rowed hair flies in the syncopated rhythm. A ...
What to feed a U.S. dance company overseas 1
Jun
29
2011
You’re on an international dance tour, and it’s a pretty small life. I know this because I just had the great good fortune to accompany Lula Washington Dance Theatre in China last month. Life boils down to: What time in the morning do you have to put your luggage in hotel lobby? Hey, what’s on ...
Washingtonians wrap up China tour in Hangzhou 1
Tonight in Hangzhou, the historic resort city on the West Lake, now a bastion of high-tech industry: the final performance of the three-week tour of Central China by Lula Washington Dance Theatre. Mid-way through the itinerary, in the dusty back stairwell of a Henan province (Xinyang) theater, Keith Lommel, cultural attache at the U.S. Embassy ...
Lula Washington kicks it in Xinyang City with Rennie Harris’s fabulous REIGN
Jun
11
2011
Hip-hop and house dance hit Henan Province hard last week. Lula Washington Dance Theatre kills in this blistering piece created for them by choreographer Rennie Harris. If you live in China where the government blocks youtube.com, view it here. video courtesy u.s. embassy in beijing, keith lommel, videographer, translator, china hand, sound mixer
Jiaxing party animals. Yes, *that* Party.
Arriving in Jiaxing, we remember our Chinese Communist Party (CCP) history. The party was founded under the guiding eye of Comintern agent, Grigori Voitinsky, in Shanghai’s French concession. It was July, 1921 — China’s summer of love. The first party congress had 53 attendees. Immediately feeling the heat from the Kuomintang authorities, the group transferred ...