Queer the Ballet presents the world premiere of Dream of a Common Language from June 21-23, at Baruch Performing Arts Center in NYC. Tickets are $40, with student tickets available for $25, and can be purchased online at bpac.baruch.cuny.edu
Dream of a Common Language is a new evening-length ballet inspired by lesbian writer and activist Adrienne Rich’s 1978 poetry collection by the same name. Directed by Adriana Pierce, founder of Queer the Ballet, the program includes choreography by Adriana Pierce, Minnie Lane, Rosie Elliott, and Lenai Alexis Wilkerson with dramaturgy by Emily DeMaioNewton. The story follows six dancers’ journeys through community, friendship, romance and heartbreak, bringing to light the similarities between Adrienne Rich’s yearning for queer community in the ’70s and queer ballet dancers’ current struggles to find each other. From mountaintops to dimly lit bars, this new ballet illuminates the struggles and joys of LGBTQ+ people through history and queer dancers today — all dreaming of a common language to connect them.
All performances are presented in partnership with Baruch Performing Arts Center, with support by CUNY Dance Initiative performance residency grant.
Choreographer Adriana Pierce created the initiative Queer the Ballet, along with Patricia Delgado, to broaden the scope of classical ballet to authentically include lgbtq+ voices and narratives. Focusing on queer cis women, trans people of all genders and nonbinary dancers in ballet, Queer the Ballet seeks to “queer” our ballet spaces and explore choreography often absent from ballet stages. By developing and producing works by queer artists, providing community support for lgbtq+ dancers and creators, and facilitating outreach and education, Queer the Ballet hopes to expand ballet partnering and choreography, offering a genuine representation of queer and gender-diverse ballet dancers.
For more information, visit www.queertheballet.com.
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