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New Look. Same BRIC.

Urban Bush Women (Artists-in-Residence) /

Hair & Other Stories (New York Premiere)

An epic journey where you will engage in intimate conversations, enjoy local guest artist performances, and immerse yourself in this durational dance-theater work that explores disquieting ideas of beauty, identity, and race through the lens of hair.

Date

THU, JAN 31, 2019 | 8PM
FRI, FEB 1, 2019 | 8PM
SAT, FEB 2, 2019 | 8PM
THU, FEB 7, 2019 | 8PM
FRI, FEB 8, 2019 | 8PM
SAT, FEB 9, 2019 | 8PM

Guest performances and pre-show activities begin at 7PM each evening.

Cost

$20 Adv / $25 Day of Show

Location

BRIC House Ballroom
647 Fulton Street
(Enter on Rockwell Place)
Brooklyn, NY 11217
United States
Get Directions

Urban Bush Women: Hair & Other Stories | Photo Credit: Hayim Heron

“Urban Bush Women are committed, triple-threat performers who dance, sing and act with a sometimes searing sense of truthfulness.” – The New York Times 

Since Urban Bush Women burst onto the dance scene in 1984, the award-winning all-woman company has used contemporary dance to illuminate the history, culture, and spiritual traditions of the African Diaspora.

Described by the Brooklyn-based company as the “urgent dialogue of the 21st century,” Hair & Other Stories is a medley of personal narratives gathered from community, kitchen and living room conversations, social media, and YouTube. Urban Bush Women will take you on an epic journey with the New York Premiere of Hair & Other Stories, where you will engage in intimate conversations, enjoy local guest artist performances, and immerse yourself in this durational dance-theater work that explores disquieting ideas of beauty, identity, and race through the lens of hair.

Choreographed by Associate Artistic Directors Chanon Judson and Samantha Speis as a radical reinterpretation of HairStories (2001), the work features new music compositions by The Illustrious Blacks, costumes by DeeDee Gomes, and stage direction by Raelle Myrick-Hodges. A true experiential journey that begins outside of the theater with story-sharing and performances from a rotating cast of special guests, and that culminates in a performance space that evolves in the course of the evening to encourage shifting perspectives, Hair & Other Stories celebrates the path to freedom and self-love as we seek to rise to our Extra-ordinary Selves in extraordinary times.

Please note: The remaining performances for Hair & Other Stories are sold out.

Come early! The lobby will open at 7PM with an art installation from Sophia Dawson and Delphine Fawundu, and guest performances, story-sharing, and other activities from the following artists:

  • Noted painter, lyricist, and master barber Greg Purnell (1/31 & 2/2)
  • Drummer, educator, and author Shirazette Tinnin (1/31-2/2)
  • Choreographer, educator, and hair artist Edisa Weeks (2/1, 2/8, 2/9)
  • Singer-songwriter Pyeng Threadgill with Andy Bianco (2/7)
  • Spoken word artist Nuri Hazzard (2/7-2/9)
  • and more!

General Admission
Seating configurations will change throughout the evening and will vary between floor and chair arrangements. Please let the house manager know upon arrival if you have any accessibility needs.

The evening will conclude at approximately 10:30pm.

Ticket fees are waived for groups of ten or more. Call 718.683.9350 to purchase your group sales tickets today.


CREDITS:
Choreographed by: Chanon Judson and Samantha Speis in collaboration with The Company;
Stage Direction: Raelle Myrick-Hodges; Dramaturg: Jawole Willa Jo Zollar; The Company:
Du’Bois A’Keen, Courtney J. Cook, Chanon Judson, Tendayi Kuumba, Stephanie Mas and
Samantha Speis; Lighting Designer: Xavier Pierce; Costume Designer: DeeDee Gomes;
Projections Designer: Nicholas Hussong; Sound Design by: Everett Asis Saunders; Music
Composed by: The Illustrious Blacks (Manchildblack and Monstah Black)

Hair & Other Stories premiered in a Proscenium version at Virginia Arts Festival in April 2017 (Norfolk, VA). The audience-engaged version premiered at Contemporary Arts Center in January 2018 (New Orleans, LA).



ABOUT URBAN BUSH WOMEN

Urban Bush Women (UBW) burst onto the dance scene in 1984 with bold, innovative, demanding and exciting works that bring under-told stories to life through the art and vision of its award-winning founder Jawole Willa Jo Zollar. The company weaves contemporary dance, music, and text with the history, culture, and spiritual traditions of the African Diaspora.

Under Zollar’s artistic direction, Urban Bush Women performs regularly in New York City and tours nationally and internationally. The Company has been commissioned by presenters nationwide, and includes among its honors a New York Dance and Performance Award (“Bessie”); the Capezio Award for Outstanding Achievement in Dance; a Black Theater Alliance Award; and two Doris Duke Awards for New Work from the American Dance Festival. In March 2010, UBW toured South America as part of DanceMotion USA, a cultural diplomacy initiative spearheaded by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs and the Brooklyn Academy of Music. In recent years, Zollar has been awarded the 2014 Southern Methodist University Meadows Prize, the 2015 Dance Magazine Award and the 2016 Dance/USA Honors Award. In 2017, Zollar received a Bessie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Dance.


 

Venue Information:

A flexible performance space that accommodates a wide variety of configurations and performance styles. Located on the first floor of BRIC House. Visit our Accessibility page to learn more about access at BRIC.

Beginning Nov. 1, 2022, attendees of any BRIC House programming will no longer have to show proof of vaccination or a negative test to enter the building. Masks are encouraged but not required in all BRIC operated spaces. If you have questions regarding this protocol, please email Safety@bricartsmedia.org. For our full BRIC House COVID-19 policy, visit: https://www.bricartsmedia.org/safety.