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LaTasha Barnes Presents

The Jazz Continuum

Fri, July 21, 7:30pm
Sat, July 22, 7:30pm
Sun, July 23, 7:30pm
70 min

Schaeffer Theatre

Tickets are $5–$25 and will go on sale June 1

The Jazz Continuum is an unapologetic celebration of the prolific power of Black American artistry with Jazz as its center. Barnes reaches back nearly 100 years, connecting dances that sprang from America’s Black Jazz music to dance and music expressions of today such as House, Vogue, Lindy Hop, Hip-Hop, Hand Dances, Line Dances and more! Performed by an all Black, intergenerational cast of dancers and musicians, The Jazz Continuum is also a celebration of community and collaboration. Each performer investigates their personal relationship to Jazz as they explore imaginings of its inspirations and reapplications.

“A generous, joyful elixir of an experience.” — Janine Parker, The Boston Globe

LaTasha Barnes is an internationally recognized and awarded dance artist, educator (Asst. Prof of Dance ASU), and tradition-bearer of Black American Social Dance. The New York Times said of the Bessie-award winning Barnes that she: “is especially extraordinary for the way the past and the present can pass through her.” Currently operating between New York and Phoenix, Barnes’ expansive artistic, competitive, and performative skills have made her a frequent collaborator to arts organizations around the world. She is honored to serve as the visionary creator and Artistic Director of the critically acclaimed intergenerational and intercommunal Black cultural arts experience The Jazz Continuum. She is also grateful to be part of the Brain Trust guiding the ground-breaking stage production SW!NG OUT’,  the highly innovative faculty of Arizona State University School of Music, Dance & Theater, and serves as Board Chair to the Ladies of Hip-Hop organization.

More information: latashabarnes.com/about / elsieman.org/artist-roster/latashabarnes

The Jazz Continuum was supported and presented by Guggenheim Works & Process and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival in 2021. LaTasha Barnes received a 2022 National Dance Project production grant for the further development of The Jazz Continuum by the New England States Touring program of the New England Foundation for the Arts, made possible with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts Regional Touring Program and the six New England state arts agencies. The Joyce Theater commissioned and presented the proscenium premium of The Jazz Continuum (October, 2022). The Jazz Continuum was presented at the Williams Center for the Arts at Lafayette College and by the Celebrity Series, Boston in the 23/24 season.
Photo of The Jazz Continuum at The Joyce Theater by Steven Pisano

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