SPLIT BILL 

Saturday, August 16 & Sunday, August 17, 2014
4:00 pm daily 

See two amazing dance companies captivate through rhythm! The Bang Group bangs it full force and (very) out loud with smiles in tow while Antara elegantly counterbalances the hypnotic beauty of India’s Kathak beats.

Antara Bhardwaj (San Francisco, California)
The Bang Group (New York City)

Purchase Split Bill Tickets HERE

BOOKING DANCE FESTIVAL 2014 OVERVIEW
The seven USA companies performing in the Festival Showcase are representative of some of the finest and most innovative of the American Dance scene.  The theme of this year is the celebration of rhythm!

This year’s BOOKING DANCE FESTIVAL includes modern, contemporary, multi-cultural, African-American, Indian, ballet and tap dance in its rhythm-based programmes. The majority of selected U.S. dance companies for this summer’s BOOKING DANCE FESTIVAL are from the fast-paced New York City, alongside renowned artists from Pittsburgh and San Francisco.

Featuring several world premieres! 

Fantastic for audiences of all ages, the Festival Showcase is the perfect choice for both dance lovers and first time dance-attendees. Seeing seven different dance companies perform in a showcase format, where each company performs for 5-15 minutes, is ideal to introduce audiences to this vibrant art form while giving dance aficionados their fill of great dance. In addition to the Festival Showcase, there will be a Split Bill featuring two top dance companies from the USA in extended performances.

In addition to the Booking Dance Festival Edinburgh 2014 performances, the Festival will go beyond the stage to include a diverse range of outreach activities to complement the “Festival within the Festival” concept. In keeping with the mission of the Booking Dance Festival, these outreach activities have been designed to link the Edinburgh community and youth with our USA artists.

This year Booking Dance will once again offer an Educational Outreach Day on Thursday, August 14th from 1-4:30pm including a pre-performance Panel Discussion with the producer and company artistic directors, as well as a post-performance artist question and answer session. Group rates and free entry available for those schools in need.  

Jodi Kaplan / BookingDance continues to position its Booking DANCE FESTIVAL Edinburgh as a return engagement annually

“…the whole experience of seeing some of America’s best dancers one after another leaves a happy after-glow.” – Damo Bullen, MumbleDance

“A true festival within a festival – it’s a celebration of life and the body….Many rose in a standing ovation.”
– Broadway Baby

Selected Artists

Antara Bhardwaj (San Francis)

www.antarabhardwaj.com
A powerful Kathak artist, Antara has dazzled audiences all over with her strong mime and expression, or abhinaya, in story telling.  She is also a leading exponent of her Guru, Pandit Chitresh Das’, innovation of Kathak Yoga – a mind and body practice in which the dancer becomes her own instrument. Antara builds on the vision of her Guru, by delving deep into the traditional art, and discovering, evolving and expressing her own unique voice.

The Bang Group (New York City)

www.thebanggroup.com
A past performer at The Fringe, the Bang Group is a rhythm-based, theatrical dance troupe founded in New York City in 1995 by David Parker and Jeffrey Kazin who continue to direct the company together. It is devoted to choreographer David Parker’s love of rhythmic form and the humor and the connection it brings to artists and audiences alike.  Many of The Bang Group’s works have achieved international acclaim including his notorious velcro duet, Slapstuck (2002 New York Dance and Performance (Bessie) Award), Nut/Cracked which has been touring for the past 11 seasons, and ShowDown a choreographic reinvention of “Annie Get Your Gun.” 

BARKIN/SELISSEN PROJECT (New York City)
www.barkinselissenproject.com
BARKIN/SELISSEN PROJECT, founded in late 2008, sprang from the collaborative partnership of artists Kyla Barkin and Aaron Selissen. Their pieces are inspired by the space and time between beings, between actions, and between breaths, where there is room to create authentic connections. As articulate, passionate, and precise movers, BARKIN/SELISSEN PROJECT uses both athletic and subtle, qualitative movement to transform the seed of an idea into an evocative and absorptive performance.

Bugg� Ballet  (New York City)

www.nicolebugge.com
Bugg� Ballet is an emerging company featuring Artistic Director, Nicole Bugg�. Its vision is to be a modern-day storyteller exploring human behavior though contemporary ballet. The company seeks to create universally appreciated works that inspire, delight, and engage audiences through captivating movement. With work that is “Fresh…Charming…A wonderful articulation of Americana.” Edward Villella, the pieces “...actively engag[ing] its audiences through innovative musical demonstrations, a brilliant touch” Examiner.com.

danceTactics  (New York City)

www.dancetactics.org
Under the direction of Artistic Director Keith A. Thompson, former Rehearsal Assistant to Trisha Brown, danceTactics performance group directs its interest towards dance’s capacity to communicate on its own, undressed. The company thrives on seeking out challenges of discovery that takes place within the moment, compositionally and conceptually. Complexity and the articulation of multiple pathways through and between spaces are a main focus. Thompson in collaboration with his dancers intensely value researching the fusion of theater and contemporary dance. With a passionate focus of movement investigation in dance and physical theater they look to create a connection somewhere between abstraction and narrative for the viewer. Their "ability to show dance as a reason unto itself, relaying sheer kinetic energy enlivened in unexpected pathways. Thompson’s unique ability to orchestrate fresh, vivid interactions on stage sets the scene for an abstract telling of humanity’s story". Jennifer Dunning, New York Times

REED Dance (Pittsburgh)

www.reeddance.org
REED Dance is committed to staying on the pulse of contemporary dance through its world-class repertory and diverse group of dancers bringing the multicultural community together in a professional, educational environment while preserving the African American experience. Previously of 2014, REED Dance was formally known as August Wilson Center Dance Ensemble. In transitioning with the same intent, vision, and mission, REED Dance is continuing its excellence and standard that it has already set and pushing to new heights and goals with determination to spread the love of dance to all.

SynthesisDANCE (New York City)
www.synthesisdanceproject.com/
Returning to The Fringe as a favorite, Synthesis Dance Project celebrates athletic ability, technical precision and passionate performances. Firmly grounded in classical technique and pulling from all styles of movement, the company strives to challenge the boundaries of any singular dance genre. Artistic Director Tracie Stanfield has selected strong, vigorously trained, articulate dance artists to create a company that strikes a perfect balance. Synthesis Dance "thrilled and mesmerized with their versatility, their musicality, their masterful fusion of classical and contemporary forms and their combination of integrity and intellectual rigor on the one hand - or foot - and sharp instinct for entertaining on the other." Huffington Post UK


WHERE


Venue 150

The leading venue of The Edinburgh Fringe, boasting one of the largest and most accomplished stages at The Fringe. Renowned for its popular sold-out shows, this beautiful space positions dance in the best possible setting.