Main stage performance
ZAZ is an immersive sensory performance that shifts traditional viewing practices beyond just sight and sound. The performers embody the oral histories and recorded experiences of survivors of Hurricane Katrina. They perform in tap shoes, hard-soled shoes, gumboots, and barefoot, creating a rhythmic score that supports the narration woven into the performance. These stories are conveyed through speaking, singing, rapping, and projections, creating a unique experience that transports the audience to New Orleans and breaks down the boundaries of the fourth wall.
Conceived by Ryan K. Johnson, an acclaimed 2024 Guggenheim Choreography Fellow and recipient of the prestigious 2024 New England Foundation for the Arts National Dance Project production grant, this choreography-led performance intricately weaves soundscapes and cutting-edge media technology with vibrant percussive dance. Zaz includes Associate Director Jodeci Milhouse with choreographic contributions from all performers, guest choreography by Quynn Johnson and Michelle Gibson and musical arrangements by Tamar Greene of Hamilton, Broadway company and Henley Connor III. (75 mins. no intermission)
ZAZ
A powerful performative archive of stories honoring the resilience of Hurricane Katrina survivors, embodying their experiences through dance, music, and technology.
Performers: Eight
Traveling Crew: Two - Three
Arts Education and Community programming can be added to Zaz:The Big Easy
Tap, Body Percussion, West African, and Contemporary movement workshops, and residencies can be added to ZAZ bookings.
The Pulse is a 70-minute immersive performance experience that transforms audiences from passive spectators into active participants. Rooted in the rich traditions of African Diasporic dance forms, the performance takes viewers on a dynamic, polyrhythmic journey, blending Tap Dance, Body Percussion, Sand Dance, and audience engagement into a powerful, multilayered expression of rhythm and movement.
By translating global rhythmic patterns through the human body, The Pulse creates a living, breathing score where music and dance are inseparable, igniting the senses and inviting deep connection. The audience becomes part of this rhythmic dialogue, blurring the lines between performer and observer, and fostering a shared energetic experience.
At the heart of the program is the company’s latest work, Body Language, which pushes this exploration further. This piece is a sonic and kinetic investigation into African Diasporic Percussive Dance through the innovative use of loop machine technology. The artist builds an original soundscape in real time, layering body percussion and movement that create complex rhythms and textures. The live looping technology allows for an evolving musical environment that the performer simultaneously inhabits and responds to, resulting in an electrifying conversation between body, sound, and technology.
Together, these elements combine to make The Pulse a groundbreaking performance that celebrates the heritage, innovation, and transformative power of percussive dance traditions.
THE PULSE
Dancer(s): Six
Crew: Two
Arts Education and Community programming packages can be added to The Pulse.
Tap, Body Percussion workshops, and residencies can be added to The Pulse.
