TORONTO, September 21, 2005—Harbourfront Centre Dance 2005-2006 expands to present two bold and diverse series, The Premiere Dance Theatre (PDT) and The Harbourfront Centre Theatre (HCT) Series taking place in their respective on-site venues October 2005-May 2006. Building on our annual Parallel Ports event , this season sees the addition of two companies performing as part of the new HCT Series.  Opening the season this year is critically acclaimed South African choreographer /dancer Vincent Sekwati Mantsoe.  A co-production with DanceWorks, Mantsoe is the first of three offerings in the season that constitutes the new HCT Series.

“Harbourfront Centre Dance 2005-2006 is a season steeped in nostalgia and memories. We see through the eyes of the international and local artists coming to our stages a world of longing and melancholy, of joy and hope and the endless possibilities for the future,” says Harbourfront Centre Dance Programmer, Jeanne Holmes.

The season’s first half continues to delight audiences in November with the Latin sensuality of Venezuela’s Danzahoy followed by Toronto Dance Theatre which teams up once again with The Hidden Cameras, presenting the world premiere of their latest creation. This is followed in December with the highly creative and powerful BJM Danse (formerly, Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal) showcasing an evening of work by internationally acclaimed choreographer Crystal Pite. Tickets for HCT and PDT Series range between $16 and $38 and are available through the Harbourfront Centre Box Office at 416-973-4000.

NOTE: Full season lineup follows this release. Public Information is available at www.harbourfrontcentre.com or at 416-973-4000.
 
The (new) Harbourfront Centre Theatre (HCT) Series launches October 20 – October 22 with Parallel Ports: Vincent Sekwati Mantsoe (Johannesburg)– A co-presentation with DanceWorks. One of the voices of the new South Africa, Mantsoe merges ancestral rituals with the street dances of Johannesburg in a style that transcends influence. A magnificent performer who moves with contained grace and nobility, he invites his audience to travel with him on a joyful, spiritual journey. His two works NDAA (Awakening of the Self) and the Toronto debut of his latest,  Ntu, celebrate the physicality of life with uplifting freedom and a brooding reverence.

The Premiere Dance Theatre (PDT) Series, the continuing original Harbourfront Centre dance season, embarks on an international exploration of contemporary dance Tuesday, November 8 – Saturday, November 12 with Venezuela’s Danzahoy featuring their new work Exodo. Created for the twentieth anniversary of Danzahoy, Exodo brings to life the universe of hidden emotions that cohabit in the heart of the violence and chaos of urban life in today’s Latin America.   Venezuela’s premier dance company visits Toronto with this vibrant work that flirts—intentionally—with the tango.

Exodo is underscored by the haunting sound of the bandoneon and the continuous music of Mederos, Gardel, Piazzola and Fedel. The music provides score to the fourteen, shadow-like dancers moving to the spirit of the tango.  Since 1980, artistic director Adriana Urdaneta has become a beacon of contemporary dance in modern Venezuela—creating a poetic mixture of humour, drama, lyricism, abstraction and fantasy.

“A torrent of red carnations falls across the stage and the black costumes of the dancers. A few glimpses of Exodo were enough to set the audience at the Lyon Biennale alight.” — Lyon Figaro, France

Founded in 1980 by two sisters, Luz and Adriana Urdaneta, and Frenchman Jacques Broque, Danzahoy was born in a spirit of freedom, audacity and openess.  Grupo Corpo, who perform this spring as part of Harbourfront Centre’s PDT Series, and Danzahoy are two trailblazers of contemporary mestizo dance on the Latin American continent. Both share the same dynamism, creative drive and technical mastery.

The Premiere Dance Theatre (PDT) Series continues as Toronto Dance Theatre delivers another stunning world premiere Tuesday, November 22 – Saturday, November 26, with one of Canada’s musical sensations, The Hidden Cameras.  Building on last year’s incredibly successful sold-out show You are the Same – “a match made in heaven” according to music critic Carl Wilson of The Globe and Mail – TDT’s twelve dancers and The Hidden Cameras’ musicians will come together again to create an extraordinary community of performing artists.  

The physicality of The Hidden Cameras’ lyrics will be interpreted and extended by TDT’s dancers through choreographed vignettes to each song, and the ‘full-fledged pop army’ of musicians will create a rough-and-ready atmosphere for the often-controlled world of modern dance. TDT will present an eighty-minute dance and music concert directed and choreographed by Artistic Director Christopher House to music written by The Hidden Cameras’ frontman Joel Gibb. Performances are at 8 p.m.. Tickets are $17-$38.

BJM Danse (Montreal) presents The Stolen Show – the title of both the trilogy and the final piece of that trilogy – by internationally acclaimed Canadian choreographer Crystal Pite debuts in Toronto, Tuesday, December 6 – Saturday, December 10. With BJM’s new name, artistic orientation and its wealth of skills and experience, this renowned contemporary dance company has splendidly followed the path set out by Louis Robitaille, the troupe’s artistic director since 1998.

Shortworks 24, Xspectacle and The Stolen Show are a veritable study of movement as well as a parody of art and entertainment.  Interwoven into this ironic choreography are masterful improvisations by the fourteen talented dancers of the Quebecois company. Powered by BJM Danse’s astonishingly versatile and courageous performers, Crystal Pite’s creation is an unflinching exploration of spectacle and expectation.

Crystal Pite’s The Stolen Show is a remarkable gem of spirit and originality evoked by the mind of a learned master committed to eliminating the rivalry between conventional and contemporary and embracing the pure pleasure of dance.” – Dalhousie Gazette Feb. 2005

The second half (2006) of the PDT Series unveils the works of eight companies beginning with Danny Grossman Dance ,Wednesday, January 25 – Saturday, January 28, 2006 followed by the world premiere of The Betrayal Project by Julia Sasso dances (Toronto) Tuesday, January 31 – Saturday, February 4.  February sees the Toronto debut of Pappa Tarahumara (Japan), performing its evocative work Ship in a View Tuesday, February 14 – Saturday, February 18.  In March the Canadian premiere of Finland’s Tero Saarinen Company takes place Tuesday, March 14 – Saturday, March 18 followed by the return of the ever-popular Grupo Corpo hailing from Belo Horizonte in Brazil and featuring two new works Tuesday, March 21 – Saturday, March 25.
 
Toronto Dance Theatre returns Tuesday, April 4 – Saturday, April 8 with the much-anticipated remount of Sly Verb, followed by the return of New York’s Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE performing Tuesday, April 18 – Sunday, April 22. Dancemakers concludes the PDT Series with its two-week showcase of creativity running Tuesday, April 25 – Saturday, April 29 and again Wednesday, May 3 – Saturday, May 6, 2006 and featuring pianist Eve Egoyan.

The HCT Series continues in 2006 with the Canadian Premiere of London, England’s Stan Won’t Dance with Sinner, Thursday, March 30 – Saturday, April 1. the HCT Series concludes the season Thursday, May 25 – Saturday May 27 with Montreal’s Cas Public with its Toronto premiere of a new work--a co-presentation with Milk International Childrens Festival of the Arts - MICFA.                          

               DanceSpeak: Post-show Talks

On the second night of each performance run, moderators from The Dance Current conduct an informal discussion with the evening’s choreographer and company members. Free with purchase of tickets.

Dance On-line

Additional information about the companies in our season and other dance performances at Harbourfront Centre can be found on the Dance page of our web site. Visit www.habourfrontcentre.com and click on Performing Arts and then Dance.

Dance E-news

Keep in the dance loop with this free monthly electronic newsletter with details of all the great dance events year-round at Harbourfront Centre. To subscribe, follow the instructions at www.harbourfrontcentre.com/news.htm

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Media Contact:

Bill Bobek; 416-973-4428; wbobek@harbourfrontcentre.com