Phoenix Dance Theatre will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the ground-breaking 1964 Civil Rights Act by presenting Tenacity, a specially curated programme that commemorates the Act as a landmark piece of American legislation that allowed voices to be heard. It became a catalyst for change in many parts of the world. Presented at the Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre in Leeds, Tenacity is a mixed bill curated from Phoenix’s archive, reflecting the company’s own heritage through a range of choreographic voices and paying tribute to the global civil rights movement.
Alesandra Seutin’s 1976 tells the story of the Soweto uprising in South Africa, where a group of children were shot dead during a bloody protest for their rights. Longevity is an emotional duet by Gary Lambert, inspired by Martin Luther King’s ‘I have a Dream’ speech delivered during the Civil Rights March in 1963. The Audacious One, by Warren Adams is a passionate look into a world of political intrigue and power.
To accompany the Tenacity season Phoenix Dance Theatre will present a unique multi-media Symposium – including dance, lectures, film and audience discussions – that further explores how dance and choreography address historical and current political issues. It will consider the history in this programme and explore how movement can approach historical moments and express the forces that fuelled them.
Phoenix will then embark on a 7-venue national tour with its new triple bill of exciting and diverse works as part of its 2014 national tour, including a week-long season at Linbury Studio Theatre, Royal Opera House. The London season features a double bill by Christopher Bruce including Shadows, a brand new work created especially for Phoenix Dance Theatre, and a restaging of Christopher’s classic study of life in the 1940’s, Shift. Having choreographed works for leading dance companies across the globe, this is the first time that Phoenix will perform any of this renowned choreographer’s work.