Our Performances
Dancing Legacy’s Repertory Etudes (or RepEtudes for short) are short dances based on signature works by significant American choreographers and are the brainchild of Dancing Legacy visionary Carolyn Adams. RepEtudes allow students, dancers, and the general public to have access to modern dance masterpieces for learning, performing, and viewing. RepEtudes offer people, from all walks of life, the opportunity to explore, discuss, and appreciate their own personal connection to American dance as well as its cultural relevance.
In 2013 Dancing Legacy and DAPpers joined forces to host a unified event and presented a Lecture Demonstration featuring Carla Maxwell’s Limon Etude. Brown students and professional dancers and DAPpers each performed their own versions of the Etude, while high school students from Central Fall High School shared their own interpretation of the dance. Maxwell was in the audience and reported, with tears in her eyes, that the DAPpers was one of the most powerful expressions of her choreography that she had witnessed. The DAPpers, in turn, were inspired by seeing the dance they had performed interpreted by others and felt a connection to the other dancers through the work. They also wanted costumes like the other dancers had. They were bitten by the performance bug.
Initially, DAPpers performed adapted versions of the Repertory Etudes, but in 2017, the separate dance groups started rehearsing and performing together. It has been a catalytic experience. The dance community that has been created through the partnership between Dancing Legacy and DAPpers includes the DAPpers, college dancers, young and mid-life professional dancers, and teenagers, some recent non-English speaking immigrants. Where else would this diverse group of people even cross paths, much less share a stage to tell a shared story?
To learn more about Repertory Etudes visit the Dancing Legacy site: https://www.dancinglegacy.us/about-repetudes.html
DAPpers RETROSPECTIVE
This retrospective video documents Dance For All People (DAPpers) classes through the years since 2013 as well as the journey from separate dance performances of Dancing Legacy's Repertory Etudes to those which include dancers of all ages and abilities.
LIMON ETUDE -by Carla Maxwell, after José Limón
The beautiful Limón Etude, choreographed by Carla Maxwell is a celebration of the musicality, breath, emotions, and use of space that are signature elements of Mexican-born choreographer José Limón's repertory.
At the age of 20, José Limón (1908-1972) relocated to New York City to study at the New York School of Design. In 1929, he joined the Humphrey-Weidman Company where he would spend the next twelve years working closely with Doris Humphrey and dancing and choreographing for Broadway. The Limón technique is known to emphasize the natural rhythms of fall and rebound while exploring concepts of weight and weightlessness. Limón is remembered for being an influential choreographer, advocate for modern dance, and breath-taking dancer.
Limon etude by dancers from Connecticut and Rhode Island with Parkinson's Disease, led by Rachel Balaban
BURACZESKI ETUDE by Danny Buraczeski
Buraczeski Etude is comprised of three short duets based on stylistically different dances from Danny Buraczeski's repertory — Fission, Blue on the Moon, and Swing Concerto. These energetic and at times humorous excerpts explore partnering, space, style, and musicality. The RepEtude can be staged for one or more couples.
Buracezski’s early dance career was spent on Broadway where he performed with Angela Lansbury in Mame and Liza Minelli in The Act. In 1979, he formed the original JAZZDANCE based in New York City, and the company proceeded to tour the United States, the Carribean, and Europe. In 1989, Buraczeski relocated to Minneapolis/St. Paul and reformed JAZZDANCE to be based in the Twin Cities.
While he is mainly considered a jazz choreographer, Buracezski’s dance vocabulary incorporates elements of ballet and modern and his movement is always rhythmically complex.
Buraczeski Etude by dancers with Parkinson's Disease from Connecticut and Rhode Island, led by Rachel Balaban. Part of Dancing Legacy 2014 mini fest, ASaP 2014 Symposium, and Widening the Circle at Brown University, Providence, RI.
RAINBOW ETUDE by Donald McKayle
The powerful 4-minute Rainbow Etude is based on Donald McKayle's signature work, Rainbow 'Round My Shoulder, about chain gangs in the American south, and is a masterful distillation of the quintessential elements of the larger 25-minute work. Rainbow Etude can be staged as a solo or for groups and can be adapted to accommodate dancers of different levels.
Donald McKayle (1930-2018) was born in and raised in East Harlem, New York City. In 1947, he witnessed a performance by Pearl Primus which sparked a passion for social dance. He auditioned for the New Dance Group where he was granted a scholarship.
His works are known for exploring the human condition and themes of unity through emotional movement and dramatic characterization. He received countless awards and accolades including a Tony Award in 1974 and the 2004 Heritage Award from the National Dance Association.
Dancers from Dance for PD classes in Newport and New London join with dancers from the DAPpers class in Providence to perform a version of the Rainbow Etude. This performance followed other versions of the Rainbow Etude by dancers from Brown University and Central Falls High School as part of a lecture/demonstration at the 2015 Dancing Legacy/ASaP event.
This video is one of two performances of Donald McKayle's Rainbow Etude at Brown University's Granoff Center for the Creative Arts during the 2019 ASaP Symposium. The dance features the DAPpers, Brown Dance Extension, Dancing Legacy, and Central Falls High School dancers.
PARSONS ETUDE by David Parsons
The energetic 4-minute Parsons Etude is a medley from David Parsons' repertory. It highlights principles and elements of his style and can be staged as a solo, a duet, or for larger groups. Parsons Etude has also been staged as a jam, incorporating less experienced dancers and/or the audience.
David Parsons was a leading dancer with the Paul Taylor Dance Company from 1978-1987 until he founded his own Parsons Dance Company with lighting designer Howell Binkley in 1987. He also has a long list of television appearances having presented his own works, performing in televised programs, and choreographing for film projects.
He is loved for being “one of the great modern-movers,” and his talent is sought after around the globe. Parsons is heavily involved in education outreach, appearing at workshops, lectures, demonstration events, and master class venues, and he continues to share his knowledge with new dancers.
Parson Etude by dancers with Parkinson's Disease from Connecticut and Rhode Island, led by Rachel Balaban. Part of Dancing Legacy 2016 mini-fest, ASAP 2016 Symposium at Brown University, Providence, RI.
BATTLEWORKS ETUDE by Robert Battle
This powerful tour de force includes movement elements from four of Robert Battle’s signature works — Flock, Jewel Lost, The Hunt, and Rush Hour — representing the early years of Battleworks Dance Company. This RepEtude, which can be staged as a solo or for groups of all sizes, challenges dancers to express a range of emotions while executing bound, strong, unrelenting movement.
Battle danced with the Parsons Dance Company from 1994-2001. In 2002 he created his own Battleworks Dance Company which toured the United States until 2010. In July of 2011, Battle was named the artistic director of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. He is only the third person to head this famous company.
This is the performance of the Dancing Legacy Battleworks etude at the 2017 ASaP Symposium at Brown University by dancers from Brown DAPpers and other area Dancing with Parkinson's classes.