The REVOLVE Dance Project is drawing us out from a year-long winter into the warmth and brightness of a stunning music and dance performance, set against the backdrop of a Rhode Island summer. Project director Kirstin Evans is thrilled to bring her “brainchild” to life at the Temple to Music at Roger Williams Park on July 24.
This show was born from Evans’ desire to give the dancers in her company a way to stay involved with their craft during what is normally a dance company’s off-season, but there is also a deeper and more personal reason for it. Evans is working toward acquiring nonprofit status for the Revolve Dance Project in order to expand the educational aspect of her work. She wants to remind young dancers what their art and passion are really for: themselves. Dance is an all-consuming art form that requires extraordinary amounts of both mental and physical dedication, and these requirements can make for a stressful and sometimes toxic environment that emphasizes perfection. Instead, Evans believes that dance should be about learning and growth in the classroom. It should be about progress, collaboration and pure love for the art form more than it should be about putting on perfect recitals and competitions. Evans says of her company, “I aim to create an environment for dancers where everyone feels comfortable and to give them a chance to be challenged to grow while enjoying the experience of progress along the way.” Evans eventually hopes to host artist talks, provide open rehearsals and workshops and give free tickets to kids to come and learn more about dance in a friendly and supportive environment.
Evans confessed that, above all else, she wants her dancers to focus on the creative process. And in combining dance with live music, she says the real experience she wants to provide is for the artists “to be able to use each other’s art forms to learn more about their own.” She hopes to get everyone involved in the performance to approach each of their art forms with a greater understanding of how dependent they are on each other.
Six professional dancers from around the world will perform at Temple to Music: Azamat Asangul, Brenna DiFrancesco, Kirsten Evans, Kailee Felix, Mamuka Kikalishvili and Alex Lantz. The five choreographers are Kurt Douglas, Dara Nicole, Jorge Rullán, Viktor Plotnikov and Alex Lantz, and the four musicians who will playing live are Daniel Hass, Josh Knowles, Cameron MacIntosh and Chrissy Stewart.
The Revolve Dance Project provides a unique opportunity to get people out of their houses and be fully immersed in art again, and Evans hopes to remind everyone how necessary and irreplaceable art is to a community.
The outdoor performance will premiere on July 24 at The Temple to Music at Roger Williams Park, with a showing at 4pm and at 7pm. The performance will consist of five original pieces, four of which are world premieres. For more information or to purchase tickets, go to revolvedanceproject.com.
