DOPE: a Dance For Rebels

SuarezDanceTheater and the Tribeca Performing Arts Center, as part of Tribeca's Artists in Residence Work and Show Festival, are proud to present, for three performances only, DOPE: a Dance For Rebels on Thursday, March 18th at 7 PM, Saturday, March 20th and Sunday, March 21st at 3 PM. All performances are at Tribeca Performing Arts Center, located at Borough of Manhattan Community College, 199 Chambers Street (between Greenwich and West Streets - subway- 1,2,3,9, A, C, E, J or M to Chamber or N, R to City Hall stop).Tickets are $10/$8 students and seniors and can be reserved by calling 212-220-1460. For more information go to www.tribecapac.org.

DOPE: A Dance for Rebels is an athletic dance-theater piece for 4 dancers performed in an aggressive, skate/ surfboarding style. The movement and original music are all inspired by the 1970's-style skateboard sub-culture and the recent film "DogTown and Z-Boys." The film is a documentary of the radically anti-establishment and inventive skateboarders from Southern California. This group of "forgotten kids" created a style of their own, emulating the movement of surfing on their skateboards. Without using the skateboards themselves, we borrow the fearless movement of these skater heroes: deep, low spiraling, aggressive acceleration, and dangerous spinning.

Christine Suarez (choreographer) was born in Venezuela, graduated form Emory University and founded SuarezDanceTheater in 1998. The Company has performed at various venues in NYC including P.S. 122, Dixon Place, Brooklyn Arts Exchange, the 92nd Street Y and Queensbourough Community College. The past two seasons have been at the Williamsburg Art nexus. Her work for the theater has been presented at the Atlantic Theater, Ohio Theater, Ontological-Hysteric Theater, HERE and Urban Stages.

Choreography is by Christine Suarez in collaboration with the dancers Aaron Haskell, Daniela Hoff, Becky Pearl and Christine Suarez.

Original music was composed by Peter Lane. In February 2000, Peter joined SuarezDanceTheater as Resident Composer creating music for their productions of LINK and A Woman Alone. In the fall of 2001 Peter received a grant from the Meet the Composer Foundation to create the soundtrack for SuarezDanceTheater's I Know But.

Ms. Suarez and dancers began collaboratively developing DOPE in July 03 as a part of the Artist in Residence program at Tribeca Performing Arts Center.