Dance Briefs: new projects by Core Dance, Fly on a Wall, staibdance, Atlanta Baroque

Atlanta’s contemporary dance company staibdance, led by Atistic Director George Staib, and the Atlanta Baroque Orchestra, led by Artistic Director and Concertmaster Julie Andrijeski, are collaborating on a new work, a fully staged production of Henry Purcell’s opera Dido and Aeneas. It will be performed February 2 and February 3 at Emory University’s Glenn Memorial Chapel and on February 6 at Spivey Hall.  

Staib is stage director. He and Sarah Hillmer, founder of ImmerseATL, are co-choreographers. Staibdance company artists Patsy Collins, Bailey Jo Harbaugh, Henry Koskoff and Zac Pritts will perform in the work, alongside ImmerseATL alumuni Andie Knudson and Haley Wall.

Deanna Joseph, Georgia State University professor of music and director of choral activities, will direct a chorus of current and recent Georgia State graduates along with guest vocalists Hannah De Priest, Brian Giebler, Michael Galvin and Andréa Walker.

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Core Dance will celebrate the 10th anniversary of its film series enCore: Dance on Film during the Decatur Arts Festival in May.

In the meantime, the organization will feature three films by artists Deanna Sirlin and Nuno Veiga. They will be screened, once a month, on Core Dance’s studio windows in Decatur as part of its REEL Art Film Series.

3 Scherzi 4 Strata #1 – Lines will screen February 1 through February 29, followed by 3 Scherzi 4 Strata #2 – Lights in March and 3 Scherzi 4 Strata #3 – Screens from April 1 through May 2.

These dance films were created for Sirlin’s exhibit Strata that was on view in Portugal from June 2020 through June 2021.

Veiga and Sirlin will be guests on the February 29 edition of Core Dance’s online conversation 1830EST: Artists Talk. On March 8, Core Dance will screen all three films followed by an in-person conversation with the artists.

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Fly on a Wall will present its second annual Big Show with Perlizbeth De Leon’s In This Country at Moving in the Spirit studios in Candler Park on February 3 and February 4. The Big Show program awards an artist $2,000 in unrestricted funds and a weekend of shows produced by Fly on a Wall.

De Leon says In This Country is informed by her experiences growing up as a Filipino American and coming to terms with being a minority in the United States. “The Big Show platform has felt important for me because not only does it give me a space to showcase my work . . . it makes me feel like I have a voice in this ecosystem of dance. Just the offer alone has instilled a confidence in me to create this work,” she stated in a press release.

The evening-length work will feature dancers Cladia Thrasher, EC Fajardo and Julie Kim.