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Duke Arts Presents

Urban Bush Women

Thursday, November 12, 2009 | 8:00 pm

Reynolds Industries Theater


Pounding out double-dutch rhythms with bare feet, the Brooklyn-based UBW are “fierce” and “smart” and “shake the theater” when they move (Village Voice). The mostly-black, all-female ensemble comes to Duke for a three-day residency, culminating in a performance where chants and drums are the backbeat for these “physically poetic” dancers (New York Times), who turn the stage into a place they own.

Residency runs November 10 – November 12, 2009

PROGRAM:
Give Your Hands to Struggle (solo)
Choreographed by Jawole Willa Jo Zollar
• • •
Girlfriends
Choreographed by Jawole Willa Jo Zollar
• • •
Naked City (2009)
Choreographed by Jawole Willa Jo Zollar and Nora Chipaumire
[Naked City references the late ’50s film noir television series, Naked City, and the stories of life in NYC.  Naked City explores rants, alienation, protest, and ultimately celebration through a humorous and sometimes dark lens.  It is inspired by the images of Toni Morrison’s novel Jazz and the paintings of Ernie Barnes.]
• • •
Walking with Pearl – African Diaries
Choreographed by Jawole Willa Jo Zollar

“[UBW’s] choreography combines text, musical accompaniment, and motifs inspired by African, pedestrian, modern, and social dance techniques. The result is a repertory of heart wrenching, soul-searching works that communicate the ecstasy and agony of the human condition.”
Dance Magazine

Urban Bush Women Residency Schedule

Tuesday, November 10

10:05-11:20 am: Class visit: Introduction to Dance with Prof. Barbara Dickinson & Ballet II with Prof. Julie Walters
In the Ark on Duke’s East Campus
• Movement exercise and discussion with Urban Bush Women Founding Artistic Director, Jawole Willa Jo Zollar and UBW company members

4:25-5:50 pm: Pearl Primus Conversation
In the Ark on Duke’s East campus
• With Dean Jeffrey, American Dance Festival Archivist, and Jodee Nimerichter, Co-Director of the American Dance Festival
• Pearl Primus & UBW’s Walking with Pearl

6:00-7:30 pm: Urban Bush Women Master Class
In the Ark on Duke’s East campus
• With Urban Bush Women Founding Artistic Director, Jawole Willa Jo Zollar and UBW company members

Wednesday, November 11

10:05-11:20 am: Class visit: Gender in Performance with Prof. Purnima Shah & Ballet IV with Prof. Julie Walters
In the Ark on Duke’s East campus
• The Role of Gender in Dance
• With movement exercise led by UBW Founding Artistic Director, Jawole Willa Jo Zollar

1:00-2:15 pm: LUNCHBOX Discussion Series with UBW Founding Artistic Director, Jawole Willa Jo Zolla
In Brody Theater on Duke’s East campus
• The Urban Bush Women Aesthetic