• March 25, 2009

    By Published On: March 25th, 2009

    Shimenawa is a beautifully crafted dance theater piece that showcased last fall at Counterpulse. This refined version has the classic feel of Kabuki and Noh theater with a modern overlay of sensibility and substance. It's ritual theater expressed in poetry, music and dance with a tight ensemble, Melody Takata has performed with over the years, including local treasure, Sensei Nakajima, the foremost sax player composer,

  • March 25, 2009

    By Published On: March 25th, 2009

     "Save SF Japantown" was on a sign held by a community member on the steps of SF City Hall in 2006 as we faced the devastating news that Kintentsu was selling 6 key properties.  We simultaneously celebrated the Centenial of SF Japantown, one of the last three Japantowns in the United States.  Japanese Americans have

  • March 21, 2009

    By Published On: March 21st, 2009

    Hey Gang, Here comes some of the Dance Discourse. Rachel Howard http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/03/21/DD3S16K77V.DTL&type=performance Allan Ulrich http://www.voiceofdance.com/v1/features.cfm/1708/Spellbinder-Jess-Curtis-Gravity708.html Allan somehow totally misses the fact that the piece is a co-creation by Maria and myself.  Hard to trust his reading of the piece (even when it's super positive) if he can't read the program. We're having a great time

  • March 19, 2009

    By Published On: March 19th, 2009

    Contemporary World Dance: Napoles Ballet Theatre & Friends presented a refreshing, powerful and culturally enriching affirmation this past weekend at CounterPULSE. Contemporary World Dance: Napoles Ballet Theatre & Friends brought together a fun and distinct mix of dance companies to produce an amazing piece beloved by all. Comment about the show below.

  • March 19, 2009

    By Published On: March 19th, 2009

    As I train my student Rebecca for her june bharatanatyam performance, and when I see that there is a 'performing in the diaspora' series planned for the future at counterpulse, it seems to me that it might be nice if audiences knew more about the abundance of bharatanatyam here in the bay area.  After all,

  • March 18, 2009

    By Published On: March 18th, 2009

    What a lovely intimate space and that long long stage!  Came in to counterpulse meet H. last friday in all that golden sunshine, and the wind!, "through the velvet leaves, the wind" and sign my papers for Rebecca's BN perf in the last week of June.  In large auditoriums, I always think, what a pity

  • March 17, 2009

    By Published On: March 17th, 2009

    Dateline March 17th- Hello counterPULSE blog-o-sphere- We've loaded into the Theater over the weekend, turned everything white and are getting ready for Thursday's opening. Maria and Julie (Phelps, our admin. and CP's head house manager) have curated a really  beautiful gallery exhibit in the front hall.  Please check it out and leave us

  • March 9, 2009

    By Published On: March 9th, 2009

    Chop wood, carry water, tape chairs and oh yes perform... 3/3 Night before the dress rehearsal. It's 11 pm and I'm still on on the sidewalk spray-painting my beautiful Mission-style dining room chairs a metallic silver, after spending way too many hours with Katarina covering their endless slats with gaffer's tape. Back aching, head thick

  • March 4, 2009

    By Published On: March 4th, 2009

    It is only a few days left to the opening of ANIMoid, the piece that Cathie Caraker and I have been working with for some time now. We think of it as a post-modern dance laboratory. The research we are performing in that laboratory started with the question: What might happen if two aliens came

  • February 27, 2009

    By Published On: February 27th, 2009

    So, next week my company and i will perform our new work "...our daily bread" that is this exploration of food and cultural identity. Forgive me if what I am about to throw down reads a bit like a high school essay that would begin with "what I learned......". But what has been the deepest

  • February 27, 2009

    By Published On: February 27th, 2009

    The Burning of the Ancient Library of Alexandria brought down the house at CounterPULSE this past weekend. The cast made use of many different forms of media and brought a fascinating evocation of ancient philosophy to life with their enthusiasm and commitment on the stage. Comment about the show below.

  • February 20, 2009

    By Published On: February 20th, 2009

    For me, last night’s Dance Discourse Project: Writing About Dance was a powerful and very mixed experience. Mostly I’m feeling grateful. I’m grateful that four dance writers—Rachel Howard, Rita Felciano, Ann Murphy, and Keith Hennessy— for giving us a window into their world. Rachel talked candidly about the nuts and bolts of her role at