Peninsula Dance Fest ready to unleash a global celebration
Judging by geography alone the Peninsula International Dance Festival is an impressive undertaking Running July - at the San Mateo Performing Arts Center the fourth annual cultural showcase features more than artists from companies devoted to a global spectrum of dance traditions But the metrics hardly tell the tale behind an event designed to introduce the region to the international array of artists who call the Bay Area home Related Articles Caviar hot dogs Nobu star in the Outside Lands food line-up Summertime and the living is easy with these Bay Area events Photos San Jose s Obon Festival draws hundreds to Japantown A London music festival cancels its final night after ELO s Jeff Lynne pulls out Protests immigration concerns in L A foil Southeast Asian Coachella Produced by the Peninsula School of the Arts the festival was created in a burst of cautious optimism in as the performing arts society was seeking to recover from its unprecedented contraction With the pandemic there was no theater dance or music performances and coming back there were all the limitations commented choreographer Gregory Amato artistic director and school co-director of Peninsula School of the Arts We just didn t know if the audience was going to come back Looking to put on a sure-fire attraction Amato decided to produce a festival that could only happen in the Bay Area After consulting with legendary dancer and choreographer Carlos Carvajal co-artistic director of the San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival from - he programmed selected of the same companies that performed at the acclaimed SFIDF But Amato desired to cast a wider net The cultural diversity we have is so much more than the Ethnic Dance Festival he announced In square miles we have several of the best cultural companies on the planet Saturday s activity spans four continents from the dramatic classical Indian tales of Chitresh Das Dance a leading exponent of the Kathak tradition to the Parangal Dance Company which explores an array of styles from across the Philippines and tell stories like no one else Amato declared The performances start with a benediction from Association of Ramaytush Ohlone the indigenous people of Peninsula and opens up the throttle with San Jose s Taiko SOBA The effort also features the Yang Yang Leon s International Performing Arts of America which focuses on the classical folk and ethnic dance of China Melissa Cruz Flamenco and Jubilee American Dance Theatre a company that celebrates social dances of the United States from Appalachia to Cajun country and swing era dance halls to East Texas juke joints We took a world map and noted let s try to get as plenty of countries as we can Amato explained Tahiti Greece Peru Mexico Armenia Preponderance of these companies present one festival a year for their communities usually outdoors They rarely get into a theater with a fully produced show Various of the artistic directors are professors and world-renowned choreographers In the situation of North Bay-based Charya Burt Cambodian Dance which also performs Saturday the company has played a central role in rescuing traditions that the Khmer Rouge sought to eradicate during the genocide of the s Under Pol Pot the communist regime targeted teachers professionals intellectuals and artists of all stripes Charya Burt got a grant from the regime to go back and rediscover this dance that was lost Amato stated She identified teachers and dancers who had escaped in the hills and she was able to recreate the royal Cambodian court dances that were lost and destroyed She s one person I ve perpetually been moved by Sunday s plan is similarly expansive with Oakland s percussion powered Ballet Nlolo Kongo San Francisco s Tradici n Peruana San Leandro s Kantuta Ballet Folkl rico de Bolivia Theatre Flamenco of San Francisco San Mateo-based ARAX Dance which celebrates the folk dance of Armenia Mexico s various regions are represented by San Jos s Aztec dancers of Calpulli Tonalehqueh and Oakland s Ballet Folkl rico Mexicano de Carlos Moreno a protege of the great Amalia Hern ndez who documented much of Mexico s regional dance and music styles Amato noted Reliably on the lookout for talent Amato first saw the Bollywood-inspired Gurus of Dance at a Warriors half-time show Impressed by their force and athleticism he hesitated for a moment before offering the troupe a spot due to the flashy production values of their performances but their passion isn t any less than ours he announced Talking to Gurus founder Aditya Patel he realized that they work so much like a ballet company but with dance based on Bollywood India is such a diverse country with so a multitude of different traditions and styles We decided to add them on Saturday s effort Contact Andrew Gilbert at jazzscribe aol com PENINSULA INTERNATIONAL DANCE FESTIVAL When p m July - Where San Mateo Performing Arts Center N Delaware St San Mateo Tickets - www peninsulalivelyarts org
