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12 Dance Performances to See in May & June

By: Juan Michael Porter II
Date: Apr 28, 2022
Dance

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Catch American Ballet Theatre, English National Ballet, Alvin Ailey and more

Over the next two months, NYC dance lovers can catch dynamic performances from major ballet companies, modern dance masters and visiting troupes from around the country. In terms of COVID-19 safety protocols, all of these performances require audiences to wear masks and provide proof of being fully vaccinated with an FDA or WHO authorized vaccine. While we are doing our best to keep this article up to date, before buying tickets to any event, double-check the COVID-19 rules to avoid disappointment.

If you're a TDF member, log in to your account to see what we're selling as ticket inventory changes frequently.

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L.A. Dance Project

The Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue at 19th Street in Chelsea

Runs May 3-15. If you're a TDF member, log in to your account to purchase discount tickets.

Former New York City Ballet principal Benjamin Millepied brings his Los Angeles-based ensemble back to the Joyce for a pair of programs showcasing four brilliant women dance-makers. Marvel at a vibrant restaging of Bella Lewitzky's 1970 work Kinaesonata, two New York premieres from former NYC Ballet principal Janie Taylor (Night Bloom and Adagio in B Minor); Madeline Hollander's 5 Live Calibrations and Bobbi Jene Smith's 2021 collaboration with Or Schraiber, Solo at Dusk.

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Stephen Petronio Company

The Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue at 19th Street in Chelsea

Runs May 17-22.

During the shutdown, choreographer Stephen Petronio premiered New Prayer For Now as part of the Joyce's digital season. Now he has reimagined this meditation on isolation, longing and survival as an in-person performance dubbed New New Prayer For Now. Created in collaboration with composer, performance artist and nightlife darling Monstah Black, the piece features Petronio's graceful company dancing to live songs performed by The Young People's Chorus of New York City. The program also includes Bloom, Petronio's 2006 collaboration with Rufus Wainwright, as well as his restaging of Trisha Brown's 1973 work Group Primary Accumulation.

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Donna Uchizono Company: Wings of Iron

Baryshnikov Arts Center's Howard Gilman Performance Space, 450 West 37th Street between Ninth and Tenth Avenues in Midtown West

Runs May 18-21.

Bessie Award winner Donna Uchizono presents the world premiere of Wings of Iron, an hour-length work exploring the challenges of remaining humane and vulnerable at this difficult time. Co-presented by the Chocolate Factory Theater and danced to an original score by okkyung lee, the piece was created in collaboration with dancers Bria Bacon, Natalie Green, Molly Lieber and Pareena Lim.

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Abby Z and the New Utility: Radioactive Practice

New York Live Arts, 219 West 19th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in Chelsea

Runs May 18-21.

Postmodern choreographer Abby Zbikowski and her multifaceted dancers explore cultural collisions in Radioactive Practice . With Senegalese dance artist Momar Ndiaye serving as dramaturg, this full-length, genre-defying piece fuses street dance, contemporary African forms, tap, and even soccer and martial arts moves to expand the boundaries of the art form and push the performers' limits as they navigate complex and demanding physicality.

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DanceAfrica Performance 2022: Homegrown

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, 30 Lafayette Avenue between Ashland Place and St. Felix Street in Fort Greene, Brooklyn

Runs May 27-30

The largest festival dedicated to Pan-African dance and music in the US, DanceAfrica celebrates its 45th annual edition under the artistic direction of Abdel R. Salaam. This year's lineup features five companies hailing from Brooklyn, Harlem, the Bronx and Washington, DC showcasing movement and musical styles from Nigeria, Ghana, Guinea, Mali and the Caribbean. The 25-year-old BAM RestorationArt Dance Youth Ensemble and the DanceAfrica Spirit Walkers will also perform.

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New York City Ballet: Spring 2022

David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center, 20 Lincoln Center Plaza at 62nd Street and Columbus Avenue in Lincoln Square

Runs through May 29. If you're a TDF member, log in to your account and search for NYC Ballet to purchase discount tickets.

New York City Ballet continues its spring season with its two-week, 50th anniversary celebration of its Stravinsky Festival, featuring four exhilarating programs set to music by the blazing Russian composer, mostly choreographed by George Balanchine. Highlights include Balanchine and Jerome Robbins' restaging of Firebird, Justin Peck's Pulcinella Variations and a world premiere from former company dancer Silas Farley that honors Stravinsky and Balanchine's fruitful collaboration. The season wraps up with an eight-day run of Balanchine's magical A Midsummer Night's Dream, which includes the farewell performance of gifted but embattled principal dancer Amar Ramasar.

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Doug Varone and Dancers

The Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue at 19th Street in Chelsea

Runs May 31-June 5.

Doug Varone's company celebrates its 35th anniversary with a pair of pieces at the Joyce. The New York premiere of Somewhere puts new moves to Leonard Bernstein's score for West Side Story divorced from the tragic tale, while Varone's 1993 masterpiece Rise, set to John Adams' Fearful Symmetries, features tightly coiled bursts of chaos.

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English National Ballet: Giselle

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, 30 Lafayette Avenue between Ashland Place and St. Felix Street in Fort Greene, Brooklyn

Runs June 8-11.

English National Ballet brings 50 dancers to BAM for the New York premiere of choreographer Akram Khan's Giselle. Although the love story remains intact, the romantic ballet is reset in a modern-day factory to explore class divisions, collective rage and redemption. Vincenzo Lamagna's new score is inspired by Adolphe Adam's original, and the production's sets and costumes were created by Oscar-winning designer Tim Yip (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon). One of the hottest tickets of the season.

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Paul Taylor Dance Company

The Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue at 19th Street in Chelsea

Runs June 14-19.

After 68 years of captivating audiences around the world, the breathtaking Paul Taylor Dance Company makes its Joyce debut with three programs featuring six classic works by its founder, all choreographed before 1980. The lineup also includes the New York premiere of choreographer Peter Chu's A Call for Softer Landings and an untitled world premiere from Michelle Manzanales, an astounding choreographer and the director of Ballet Hispánico's school.

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Gibney Company: Up Close

New York Live Arts, 219 West 19th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in Chelsea

Runs June 14-18.

Pioneering downtown dance company Gibney launches its brand-new series Up Close featuring a trio of world premieres. Gustavo Ramírez Sansano's Dance Me to the End of Love explores the impact of modern technology on romance; Yin Yue's A Measurable Existence tackles self-discovery and reflection; and Rena Butler's Plato-inspired Re | Build | Construct investigates the nature of perception.

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Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center, 20 Lincoln Center Plaza at 62nd Street and Columbus Avenue in Lincoln Square

Runs June 15-19.

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater presents four eclectic programs over as many days, each concluding with Ailey's masterpiece Revelations. The run kicks off with the world premiere of resident choreographer Jamar Roberts' In a Sentimental Mood and BUSK by Aszure Barton. Day two is the troupe's annual Ailey Spirit Gala, with performances from the company and students from its school. Day three includes a company premiere of Paul Taylor's Duet and Ailey's The River, originally choreographed for American Ballet Theatre to a commissioned score by Duke Ellington. The engagement wraps up with a 10th anniversary celebration of Robert Battle's artistic leadership featuring six of his works, including Mass, Ella and Takademe, plus a post-performance talkback.

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American Ballet Theatre: Summer Season

Metropolitan Opera House, 30 Lincoln Center Plaza at 62nd Street

Runs June 13-July 16.

American Ballet Theatre returns to the Metropolitan Opera House for its first summer run since 2019. This month-long celebration serves as artistic director Kevin McKenzie's final season with the company after 30 years of leadership. Highlights include the New York premiere of resident artist Alexei Ratmansky's Of Love and Rage as well as the return of McKenzie's staging of Don Quixote and Swan Lake. Although company star Misty Copeland is currently on maternity leave, a new crop of principal dancers as well as stalwarts Herman Cornejo and Gillian Murphy are on deck to ensure balletic pyrotechnics.

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Juan Michael Porter II is the staff writer for TheBody.com and a contributor to TDF Stages, Did They Like It?, SF Chronicle, Christian Science Monitor, American Theatre, them, Into More and SYFY Wire. He is a National Critics Institute and Poynter Power of Diverse Voices Fellow. Follow him at @juanmichaelii. Follow TDF at @ TDFNYC.

Top image: Jermaine Terry and Sarah Daley Perdomo in Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater's The River. Photo by Paul Kolnik.

Juan Michael Porter II