The new year is rolling in, and here are all the dance events taking place in January. Time to start working on your resolutions with full force!
Courtesy of *Scape
my_space
comma, is a monthlong initiative by *Scape from mid-December to mid-January to celebrate creatives — bringing a celebration of dance, music and visual arts while paying homage to Singapore’s creative world. Part of this celebration is my_space, happening on the 6 January. It’s a presentation by *Scape’s resident dancers, which explores the idea of space and the relationship between us and the spaces we occupy. They will also experiment with the Hololens, a Virtual Reality (VR) technology.
The two pieces of interactive works are Homepage and Moving Density. Homepage encourages reflection of our online activity patterns in shaping our digital spaces through our virtual presence. Relying on audience input, Homepage tailors each experience to the participant’s likes and dislikes, streamlining it into the data patterns of the majority. Meanwhile, Moving Density explores how society returns to life before the pandemic. It questions if we have taken time to think about those we left behind and if we’ve shown empathy to the individuals in our society.
Read more about the pieces and catch these works for free by reserving your spots here!
Home Ground
Courtesy of *Scape
Also part of this celebration is Home Ground, a two-part local dance celebration. It begins with a Dance Interest Group Showcase on the 13 January. They are calling back the communities and youth that have been instrumental in keeping *Scape alive. The performers include Roar City Grounds, Lion City Lockers, K-Pop Dance Off, and Still Steaddy.
Courtesy of *Scape
The next day, on 14 January, Home Ground will also hold an Intensive and Inter-studio Showcase! Various dance studios in Singapore have been invited to celebrate their talents by presenting a showcase performance.
Courtesy of *Scape
The showcase will consist of established instructors you know and learned from or youth consistently training for years from Danz People, Legacy, New Heights, and Step Studio! These dancers are now brought together to share a platform to celebrate our home-grown talents!
Both events are free, and you can reserve your spots here.
Jalan Jalan Cari Makan
Courtesy of SHIFT (@shiftsg_)
SHIFT is a dance program for progressive young dance artists aged 14 – 25 to instill the physical and mental capabilities required to participate in Singapore’s performing arts industry. It runs for three years — focusing on different aspects each year. The program is designed to advance the dance techniques and artistic capabilities of those trained in street dance.
Led by Luqman, the young artists will gain dance skills and a holistic understanding of dance movement philosophies with hands-on application alongside industry professionals through workshops, lectures, and industry exposure.
Piloting in February 2021 with 28 students, the Year 1 SHIFTers, who have successfully undergone a full year of training, will apply their experiences in Jalan Jalan Cari Makan. The production features four pieces choreographed by dance industry professionals in collaboration with the SHIFTers. Loosely meaning ‘going for a stroll to look for food,’ the dancers’ journeys are envisioned to be a collection of different experiences, with ‘ingredients’ that make up who they are today. Exploring themes from hunger to desire, confusion to abstinence, it asks what they can make of these ingredients and how they feel about the journey and the results.
Catch Jalan Jalan Cari Makan at the Stamford Arts Centre on the 14 and 15 January, and get your tickets here!
Over & Over
Courtesy of Over&Over (@overandover_sg)
On the 14 January, two 1 v 1 battles will take place at L5 by O School from 1 to 7 pm. The first category is a Popping 1 v 1 Battle judged by Ness Westgang from France, Brendan Phang from Malaysia and Jason Chong from Singapore. Jason will also be judging the Funk Music Open Style 1 v 1 category alongside Jin Neo! The event will be emceed by Kyung and DJ-ed by Robin. The winner will get a plaque and a $150 cash prize for each category!
Ness will also hold two separate workshops on the 15 January for his first time in Singapore. The first workshop will be focused on body control and isolation, while the second will be a Popping workshop. The workshops are full, and the early bird registrations have ended, but entry tickets and battle registrations are still open. The entry ticket is priced at $30 for the audience and participants, and each battle registration costs $10.
If you haven’t, you can still get tickets and register here!
Dance en Scene
Courtesy of The Esplanade
The Esplanade brings back Dance en Scene for its third iteration to present commissioned films from Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan! These works feature dance journeys that explore multifaceted identities and renewed traditions.
Courtesy of National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts (Weiwuying)
Dance films bring together artists and filmmakers to rethink movement and evolve in storytelling. Dance en Scene hopes to inspire artists using sites or themes of meaning and significance while celebrating the diversity of culture and artmaking of the artists living in different cities. Four commissioned films will be featured online, premiering on the 27 January and remaining until the 19 February.
Courtesy of National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts (Weiwuying)
There will be four films featured in this free event. For more information, check out esplanade.com!
Intensive by Gin & Gerald
Courtesy of Amalgam (@amalgamsg)
Amalgam and Stirring Ground presents a 6-week intensive where street dance and creation collide. It will be led by Gin Lam and Gerald Chan — both iconic and reputable dancers of Singapore for the past 30 years. With a focus on movement exploration, creation tools and concepts, we know there’s so much to gain after all of their experiences in the local dance scene. So don’t miss out on this golden opportunity, happening every Sunday from 29 January till 5 March!
Sign-ups are still open but with limited slots, so make sure to register here now.
Which event are you most excited to start the new year with?
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