In this lecture and performance, The Dayton Contemporary Dance Company (DCDC) and Artistic Director Kevin Ward explore the history of African-American contemporary dance pioneers, including choreographers and dancers Asadata Defora, Talley Beatty, Katherine Dunham, Essie Marie Dorsey, Donald McKayle, Mary Hinkson, Alvin Ailey and Arthur Mitchell. The company performs excerpts from notable works, including Defora's "Kykunkor,", Beatty's "Congo Tango Palace," "Mourner's Bench," "Road of the Phoebe Snow," Dorsey's "Carmina Burana," and McKayle's "Rainbow Round My Shoulder" (recorded in 1999 at C. D. Hylton High School in Woodbridge, VA).
Dayton Contemporary Dance Company (Performance / Lecture)