Jodi Kaplan & Associates - About Jodi Kaplan

A bicoastal dance company with bases in both Hawaii and New York City, the essence of Dancers Unlimited is creating powerful movement narratives for the advancement of the community. Established in 2009 by Artistic Director Linda Kuo, the company was formed to offer free youth dance classes on Furlough Fridays in Hawaii, when Hawaii`s Department of Education canceled school on Fridays due to funding cuts - since then, the company has presented work in Hawaii, NYC, and China garnering accolades for Kuo`s entertaining genre-blending movement and its strong educational outreach mission.

Touring Programs/ Video Links:

PROGRAM 1:

CYPHER: Homecoming

CYPHER: Homecoming embraces the dance circle as a place of HUEMan connection, expression and celebration. It pays tribute to our ancestors on and off the dance floor, who have connected and empowered us all with dance steps and meaningful movements. A special 10-minute slot has been build into the production to showcase or collaborate with local talents wherever the show is presented.

reasonsLegacy/Club Heads

reasonsLegacy is an ever-evolving work that celebrates the cultural legacies of street dances. The work contains reflections from our dancers as they explore their relationships with the street dance culture, while exploring the dance lineage of NYC dances, including Hp Hop, House and Swing Dance. Club Heads investigates the soulful side of dancing, and our kinetic and spiritual connection with each other as we dance. Club Heads explores the relationship between expressing authentically and creating unity in dance circles.

Original Paths

Original Paths is a reflective piece that explores finding peace, love, and joy in chaos. The work is a dedication to our mentor and ancestor, Marjory Smarth. We strive to live up to Marjory`s wise words, `I love myself. I do what I love. I love those who love me.`

3017: Time and Again

Time and Again reflects upon human conditions and humanity. We imagine what our collective future will look like in a thousand years, through the lenses of our ancestral wisdom. By calling on our ancestors, we grow collectively through resilience, faith and love that are innate to humanity.

Missing You

Created by the company advisor, and award-winning Choreographer Sekou Heru, Missing You celebrates our loved ones and embraces our connections with our ancestors. The repertoire is inspired by the legacies of street dance pioneers Marjory Smarth, Kid Dynamo and Voodoo Ray.

HERStory

HERstory examines gender roles, definitions and identities, and what femininity means to the different genders. The work explores our own unique experiences with womanhood and femininity: frustration, desire, confusion, power, creation and much more.

PROGRAM 2:

I`mMigration (Work in Progress)

I`mMigration is an immersive dance & art installation that explores the challenges and promises that are attached to being an immigrant, and being a body on a foreign or unfamiliar land. Each Dancer`s (im)migration narrative is weaved into the choreography, and the movements represent how our experiences shape our identities and perspectives.

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