Note from the Director
We are so proud to present Freedom Dance
Collective’s first evening-length performance!
This collective was founded on two principals:
1. freedom can be found through dance and
2. everyone should have the freedom to dance.
We demonstrate the latter principal by
offering community dance classes to the public
and allowing all company members to contribute
to our company repertoire.
We demonstrate the former principal through the
topics around which we frame our dances.
The arts have always functioned as a form of
activism. This is especially true in turbulent
times such as these, when fascism has taken grip
of the United States and many of us live
in fear of state-sanctioned violence. We have the
responsibility
to loudly identify and fight against injustice in any
way we can. As dance artists, we are called
to use dance for this cause.
When I meditate on this responsibility, I am
reminded of the song
“Turn! Turn! Turn!” by Pete Seeger: To everything
(Turn! Turn! Turn!), there is a season (Turn!
Turn! Turn!). This song reminds us that there is a
time in our lives for everything; a time to laugh,
a time to weep… a time to gain, a time to lose… .
The line that calls to me most is as follows:
…a time to dance, a time to mourn… . The
reason this line resonates is because I believe
that it is always a time to dance. Dance about
injustice. Dance so that others will connect their
own struggles with your movement. Dance to find
community. It is always time to dance, even when
it is time to mourn… and I’m not just saying that
as someone who likes adding choreographed
crying to my dance works!
While art has always functioned as a form of
activism, it’s also important to help in other ways.
Below is a list of organizations you can donate to
if you are able. Thank you for coming to our
first evening-length performance and remember:
it is always time to dance!
Yours in Dance,
Rachael Alexandra
Artistic Director
Organizations You Can Donate To:
ACLU - https://tinyurl.com/puu27v57
Palestine Children’s Relief Fund - https://www.pcrf.net/donate
World Central Kitchen - https://tinyurl.com/7982mwy8
Southern Poverty Law Center - https://tinyurl.com/4znd9s6e
Doctors Without Borders - https://tinyurl.com/4df7zf7a
Program
Baba Yaga
Choreographer: Kevin Ortiz
Dancer: Kevin Ortiz
Music: “Me and the Devil” - Soap&Skin
Tuning Out
Choreographer: Rachael Alexandra
Dancers: Rachael Alexandra, Angela Gelfand, Hannah Havrilla, Madison Whatley
Music: “Season of the Witch” - Donovan
Business as Usual
Choreographer: Rachael Alexandra
Dancers: Rachael Alexandra, Angela Gelfand, Hannah Havrilla, Faith Rokowski, Madison Whatley
Music: “God Only Knows” - The Beach Boys, “Kind of a Drag” - The Buckinghams “Hey, Baby” - Bruce Channel, “I
Want You to Want Me” - Cheap Trick, “Take Me Home, Country Roads” - John Denver, “Sweet Caroline” - Neil
Diamond, “Take it Easy” - Eagles, “Build Me Up, Buttercup” - The Foundations, “Hurt So Good” - John Mellencamp,
“Free Fallin’” - Tom Petty
This Dance is About Exactly Who You Think it’s About
Choreographer: Rachael Alexandra
Dancers: Rachael Alexandra, Madison Whatley
Music: “Spirit in the Sky” - Norman Greenbaum
Omalas
Choreographer: Rachael Alexandra
Dancers: Rachael Alexandra, Angela Gelfand, Hannah Havrilla, Kevin Ortiz, Faith Rokowski, Madison Whatley
Music: “Lullaby for the Traveling Child” - Mehdi Aminian
Child Soldiers, But Make it Fashion
Choreographer: Rachael Alexandra
Dancers: Rachael Alexandra, Angela Gelfand, Hannah Havrilla, Kevin Ortiz, Faith Rokowski, Madison Whatley
Music: “Wanna Be On Top” - Moniece Slaughter
A Popular Movement
Choreographer: Rachael Alexandra
Dancers: Rachael Alexandra, Angela Gelfand, Hannah Havrilla, Kevin Ortiz, Faith Rokowski, Madison Whatley
Music: Interview with James Baldwin
Company Members
Artistic Director
A Special Thanks
Jo Ann Appold
Don Appold
The Team at Dance Exchange
Nicolette Joseph
Kate Woods
Rosalind Miller
Robyn Enyiema
Anamaria Noguera
Paulina Gato
Frances Marty Gurtina
Laura Valencia
Mei Mei Chang
Riya Devi-Ashby