Coming to Dance City

On 16 January from 6:15, Dance City’s Artistic Director Anthony Baker, with some special guests, will introduce the new season’s programme and there will be complimentary food from DC Cafe and provided by Durham Distillery being served in the social space from 5:30.

The season’s programme will be (all shows at 7:30 unless stated otherwise):

• 10 February

  Flex Dance with a triple bill of Hunting the Unicorn, which explores what it means to be unique; George's Bedroom which is the centre of his world, where even everyday objects become part of his playground; and cAty wOMpuS, a home which was a place of full of laughter and love for a family but a ferocious storm blows through the house and leaves Pa wondering what his future will be.

  Flex Dance is a professional dance company of artists with a learning disability.

• 17 February (1:00 and 4:00)

  The Chit Chat Chalk Show from Hawk Dance for children aged 3 to 8 years & their families. Kiko and her friends go on a quest to discover what makes her unique in the world and sitting amongst the set and performers, the children in the audience play an essential part in helping her on her journey.

• 8 March

  The Aakash Odedra Company presents a double bill: Echoes, a Kathak dance piece which explores our relationships with our ancestors, and I Imagine, which combines dance with spoken word and masks to explore the imagined future and the confines of skin.

• 22 March
  Fall Out

  Old Kent Road’s show presents conversations of question and answer between soloists of the band and the performers expose emotions and trigger manoeuvres back and forth between each art form on stage, attempting to understand the journey of falling out of love.

• 12 April

  IZINDAVA by Tavaziva Dance. Choreographer Barwen Tavaziva’s work is a journey back to a fractured Zimbabwe of his youth, combining contemporary and traditional African dance and music.

• 19 April (6:00)

  Northern Platforms, a regular part of Dance City’s programming, features guest artists from Yorkshire and Edinburgh showcasing work alongside North East dance-makers, producing an eclectic evening of short pieces which provides a snapshot of contemporary dance across the north.

• 28 April

  Zero, a duet from Humanhood: a visually and sonically mesmerising performance of immersive sound, hypnotising lights and virtuosic movement where the two dancers entangle through a ritualistic journey.

• 3 May

  10 from Company Chameleon presents a new triple bill which explores human and personal issues in celebration of its 10th anniversary year.

• 12 May (7:30) and 13 May (2:00)

  NDCWales presents fresh works from Marcos Morau, hailed as "the next big thing in dance", and Mario Bermudez Gil, who wowed at Copenhagen International Choreography Competition, alongside Folk from the company's own Artistic Director, Caroline Finn.

• 18 May
  Still (Here)

  From Silke Z Resistdance. Performer Angus Balbernie (62) and the dancer Lisa Kirsch (26) meet and communicate through playful dance dialogues. They compare their own physical abilities, challenging themselves and each other.

• 26 May

  A triple bill by Dance City Associate Choreographic Dance Artist Lizzie J Klotz: Fawn, Dancing with My Dad (film) and To Suit.

• 23 June
  Fully Grounded

  From Fertile Ground, the region’s professional early career dance company. A double bill of contrasting work by choreographers Regina Wielingen (Founder and Artistic Director of The Audition Workshop) and Robby Graham (Artistic Director Southpaw Dance Company) exploring the theme "Borders and barriers real and imagined between peoples and cultures".

• 30 June (2:00 and 7:30)
  Used to Be Blonde
  

  The National Youth Dance Company returns to Dance City to present a new work created by the 2017-18 Guest Artistic Director Sharon Eyal.

• 6 July
  Hope Hunt and the Ascension into Lazarus

  From Oona Doherty: “thumping sweaty dance-theatre; a physical expression of the place between the flesh and the soul. Heaving lungs shout in the dark as Doherty takes you through a dirty Europe, from the dark and into the light like a bursting lightbulb. The show explores the experience and feelings of growing up white, male and disadvantaged.”

• 12 July
  An Evening with Ella Mesma
  

  Ella Mesma’s Dance theatre draws upon Afro-Latin, Breaking, Aerial and Contemporary dance styles. Ladylike is an exploration of modern gender roles whilst Foreign Bodies is about the fear of ‘cultural contamination’ spreading from one generation to the next.