MAD Dance presents “Portal,” a New Collaborative Dance Theatre Performance
June 25 at the Y Arts Center in Frederick, MD
MAD Dance presents “Portal,” a collaborative dance theatre performance, on June 25 at 7:30 pm at the Y Arts Center, 115 East Church Street, Frederick, MD. Seating is limited, and advance ticket purchase is highly recommended. Tickets are by sliding scale on the Eventbrite platform (www.MAD-Dance-Theatre.eventbrite.com). The wearing of masks is respectfully requested of all audience members. The development and performance of this new work is supported in part by the Maryland State Arts Council (msac.org).
“Portal” is a pandemic-induced contemplation of people’s connection to earth and body, and a call to reconnect, get grounded, and take meaningful action to address the environmental crises caused by climate change. The all-consuming pandemic has assaulted our minds and bodies and left us scarred and shell-shocked. It has made us less connected to nature as we have become fearful and tight, obsessed with cleanliness, and unsure of how our bodies will cope. “Portal” seeks to offer a vision of reclaiming our connections to self, others, and earth.
Incorporating a poignant and impactful poem by climate justice advocate Neha Misra, and a rich and contemplative score by composer Cam Millar, MAD Dance Co-Directors Kitty Clark and Ray Shaw – in signature style – have crafted an immersive environment of vibrant colors, reflective surfaces, and images of forests in which non-linear communication thrives and a subtle, raw, and beautiful intimacy ensues.
About the Artists
MAD Dance is Kitty Clark and Ray C. Shaw, longtime colleagues who make contemporary work in the modern dance tradition. Drawing on improvisational and somatic practices, the 50+ duo manifests deeply intimate work. By highlighting the importance of nuance and sensitivity in expression, Kitty and Ray show audiences another way of being, listening, and communicating. MAD Dance has been honored with an Independent Artist Award and two Creativity Grants from the Maryland State Arts Council. Ray has an MFA from Arizona State University and is a practicing acupuncturist. Kitty has an MFA from Smith College and is a yoga instructor and independent arts administrator. They share a background in somatic-based dance training.
Neha Misra is a poet, contemporary eco-folk artist, and an award-winning climate justice advocate. Neha’s Earth stewardship-centered multi-disciplinary studio builds bridges between private, collective, and planetary healing through the power of art. Neha grew up in the heart of India’s capital New Delhi whose soulful vibrancy is a part of her creative DNA. America is her adopted home where she embodies powerful creative reclamations of (re)imagination for transformational worldbuilding. Neha is a Public Voices Fellow on the Climate Crisis — an initiative of the OpEd Project and Yale Program on Climate Change Communication to change who writes history. She serves as the inaugural Global Ambassador for non-profit Remote Energy, which is making the global solar energy movement more inclusive for people of color, especially women. Her work has been featured in National Geographic Magazine, Forbes, Ms. Magazine, Miami Art Week Regenaissance, and Mothers of Invention.
Cam Millar, originally from Canada, is a multi-genre musician with an original compositional voice. In addition to his own projects, including the horn-driven ensemble The Weather People, he has been commissioned by film and video directors, classical/art music chamber ensembles, modern dance choreographers, jazz artists, ice skating choreographers, equestrian show producers, multi-media artists, rock bands seeking horn arrangements, and many more. As a trombonist, he has performed with a wide variety of musical artists and organizations covering every conceivable style of music from classical to jazz to pop.
For more information, call 301-331-4398 or find MAD Dance on Facebook (www.facebook.com/MAD.Dance.Theatre).
