American Dance Institute (ADI), based in Rockville, Maryland, is a performance venue serving the greater Washington, DC region. Founded solely as a dance school in 2000, ADI expanded into a performance venue in 2011 and began presenting contemporary, post modern and dance theater works and providing production residencies for choreographers creating new works. Just one year after ADI's programmatic expansion, The Washington Post heralded ADI as "fast becoming one of the area's leading presenters of choice experimental dance."
In five short years, ADI has become one of the most active contemporary dance presenters in the country and one of the most progressive dance presenters in the DC region. As the organization grows, it continues to adapt, galvanizing its resources in service to the national dance field and supporting the development of artists, new work, and new audiences. In April 2015, on a grant award announcement, the NEA acknowledged ADI's unique role in the local dance scene calling it as "rare as hen's teeth".
Maps, Directions, and Place Reviews
History
ADI was co-founded in September 2000 by Pamela Booth Bjerknes, a former dancer with American Ballet Theatre and Michael Bjerknes, a principal dancer with The Joffrey Ballet with financial support from Solange MacArthur. In 2010, newly hired Executive Director Adrienne Willis created ADI's Performance Series and Incubator program. In under a year, ADI began presenting contemporary, post-modern and dance theatre works starting with Doug Elkins' 'Fraulein Maria' in May 2011. Later that year, ADI presented its first full season, featuring Jane Comfort & Company, David Dorfman Dance, Sara Rudner and Dana Reitz, among others. Dedicated to meeting the needs of dance artists, in 2012 ADI hired renowned puppeteer and performance artist Dan Hurlin to serve as its artistic advisor. In this capacity, Hurlin helped design ADI's Incubator and in 2013 ADI put together an Artistic Advisory Board made up of some of today's most progressive choreographers. Advisory Board members include, Dan Hurlin serving as the board chair, Brian Brooks, Jane Comfort, David Dorfman, Doug Elkins, Jodi Melnick, David Neumann., and Jawole Willa Jo Zollar from Urban Bush Women.
ADI/Lumberyard
In 2018, ADI will open a new facility in Catskill, NY specially created to support late-stage development of new work. ADI/Catskill will house the Incubator - a production residency program that helps new contemporary dance and performance work become premiere-ready by providing extended tech time for artists and their collaborators and presenting public premieres and work-in-progress showings. Since its creation in 2011, the Incubator has helped strengthen premieres of 19 new works and has seen increasing demand from artists seeking vital late-stage support and audiences hungry for new work. Renovations to a former lumberyard on the Catskill Creek will create a 5,000 square foot state-of-the-art black box theater, artist housing, and community courtyard specially designed to serve the development of new work and build new audiences for contemporary dance. Further renovations to ADI's waterfront properties will create vibrant community spaces and help enliven historic downtown Catskill. Check back in the coming months for design, construction, and programming updates.
ADI/NYC
The New York City season is an evolution of ADI's nationally recognized production residency program, which provides significant support to artists as they integrate design elements into new work. Each of the five works in the 2016 ADI/NYC season has received up to two weeks of production support, including: unrestricted use of a theater and ADI's production crew; meals; housing and transportation, as needed; photo and video documentation; and a presenting fee. The program's goal is to provide artists with the resources they need to fully realize the vision for their new work.
- 2016
- Yvonne Rainer
- Brian Brooks
- Jane Comfort
- Susan Marshall, Jason Treuting, Suzanne Bocanegra
- Jack Ferver
Facility
Located in a 20,000-square-foot former warehouse behind Congressional Plaza in Rockville, MD, ADI houses the Solange Macarthur Theater, a 150-seat black-box theatre named after ADI's most ardent supporter; four large studios with sprung floors, sounds systems and pianos; and administrative offices. The building is a short walk from the Twinbrook Metro Station and offers ample free parking.
Performance Series
"Most of what ADI presents in its performance series is work you might not otherwise see unless you trek to the niches of Lower Manhattan," The Washington Post. This statement encapsulates the intention behind ADI's Performance Series. Praised by dance artists and dance critics alike, ADI purposely seeks out high-quality experimental dance by artists who may not be as well known to DC-area audiences as more conventional groups. Executive Director Adrienne Willis intentionally chose this type of programming because she firmly believed DC's intellectual audiences would respond positively to edgy, progressive dance. ADI's Performance Series runs from October through May each year, bringing to the DC area a diverse set of artists from across the U.S. and beyond. Current and past Performance Series companies by season include:
- 2016-2017
- ZviDance
- Steven Reker
- Morgan Thorson
- Kate Weare Company
- Okwui-Okpokwasili
- Dan Hurlin
- 2015-2016
- Jillian Peña
- Urban Bush Women
- Chris Schlichting
- Wendy Whelan, Jack Soto, and David Neumann
- Big Dance Theater
- Palissimo
- Samita Sinha
- 2014-2015
- Jodi Melnick
- Vicky Shick
- Aszure Barton & Artists
- Ivy Baldwin
- Vertigo Dance Company
- Neil Greenberg
- Ballet ADI and Loni Landon
- Jack Ferver
- Dorrance Dance
- David Neumann
- Urban Bush Women
- Joanna Kotze
- Jodi Melnick and Runqiao Du
- Christopher K. Morgan and Artists
- 2013-2014
- Ballet ADI
- John Jasperse
- Sally Silvers & Dancers
- Reggie Wilson/Fist and Heel Performance Group
- Kidd Pivot/Crystal Pite
- Yvonne Rainer
- Tere O'Connor
- Christopher K. Morgan
- 2012-2013
- Brian Brooks Moving Company
- Jodi Melnick/David Neumann
- Joe Goode Performance Group
- Doug Elkins Choreography, Etc.
- Erica Rebollar, Karen Reedy, Vincent Thomas
- 2011-2012
- Doug Elkins and Friends***
- Jane Comfort and Company
- David Dorfman Dance
- Dana Reitz, Jennifer Tipton, Sara Rudner
- Doug Elkins Choreography, Etc.
- Tzveta Kassabova**
Incubator
ADI's Incubator program, begun the same year as its Performance Series, is a late-stage residency program providing artists from outside the Washington, DC region with unrestricted use of ADI's theater; unlimited support from ADI's full-time production staff; housing; meals; local transportation; and a fee to help companies cover other expenses, such as dancer salaries . The program grew from a need within the dance community for late-stage dance residencies - residencies that enable artists to refine new works just before their premieres. Not only does the National Incubator provide area residents with a sneak peek at new works before anyone in the country, but ADI's National Incubator blog also provides insights from the artists about their artistic processes and more. Current and past National Incubator artists by season include:
- 2013-2014
- Brian Brooks Moving Company
- Jane Comfort and Company
- Doug Elkins Choreography, Etc.
- John Jasperse
- 2012-2013
- Erik Ehn, Dan Hurlin
- Joshua Beamish
- 2011-2012
- David Neumann
Future Artists Scholarship
Beginning in 2016, ADI will offer scholarships that support the development of the next generation of artists and address issues of diversity and equitable access to dance training. ADI Future Artists Project is scholarship initiative investing in talented young dancers from diverse backgrounds to increase racial diversity in the dance field. ADI will build a flexible scholarship program that offers targeted scholarships to deal with a broad set of needs, including tuition, transportation stipends, and dance clothing. The project will target racially diverse students from all over the country that want to pursue professional training in dance.
Audience Education/Opportunities
Prior to every Performance Series, National Incubator, ADI holds pre-show talks to provide insight into what audiences will see onstage - a unique component that has proven very successful. ADI also offers post-show receptions where patrons can interact with dance artists and each other. Catering to dance students age 16 and up, visiting artists often lead one-hour master dance classes to give DC-area dancers opportunities to learn from some of the most innovative choreographers working today.[17]
Press
- American Dance Institute Dances to Edge of Suburbs, The Washington Post
- The Rockville Suite: How American Dance Institute Became the Area's Most Progressive Dance Venue, Washington City Paper
- Israeli dance shows off its new moves, The Washington Post
- 'Fraulein Maria' at American Dance Institute, The Washington Post
- Jane Comfort opens American Dance Institute's season with fantastic performance, The Washington Post
- American Dance Institute's 'Necessary Weather' gives lighting equal billing, The Washington Post
- 'Two Othellos' at American Dance Institute, The Washington Post
- A dance troupe in loco-motion, The Washington Post
- American Dance Institute Presents: A Performance for Mankind, The Pink Line Project
- Dance schools draw new students with expanded offerings, Dance Studio Life
- Amazing Grace, Gazette.net
- Marinated Movement, Washington Jewish Week
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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