7 News Belize

Dance Project Makes Waves In Bze
posted (November 28, 2012)
The P-G-K Dance Project is in Belize for the first time to perform at the 4th annual Dance X 2012- an event hosted by the Institute of Creative Arts.

P-G-K Dance Project is an award winning contemporary repertory company- based in San Diego California- and it consists of 7 professional dancers who have travelled the world performing.

Dance X 2012 will also be featuring professional dancer -Jamie Thompson from the Dallas Black Dance Theatre - one of the oldest Dance Companies in the US.

Thompson who is Belize's very own will be doing two solo performances at the upcoming shows. The shows will also include performances by 13 local groups and 2 other international groups. The dancers will only be performing 3 nights in Belize City and 7news got a glimpse at rehearsal.

Karen Vernon - Theatre Director, Bliss Institute for the Performing Arts
"Dance X 2012, this is our 4th year for Dance X, and it takes place this week. It's starts tonight at the Bliss for the forum, and it continues Thursday, Friday, and Saturday with dance shows. We have 13 local groups of these 3 night, and 4 international groups. On Thursday, Ballet De Camara De Quintana Roo takes the stage for a free performance at 8 p.m. On Friday, we have all the Belize City based groups along with our own Jamie Thompson from Dallas Black Dance Theatre, and the PGK Dance Project from San Diego, California. And on Saturday, we have the district groups performing. We have each district being respresented, and again, we have Jamie Thompson from Dallas Black Dance Theatre, and the San Diego Dance Group, and a group from Merida."



Peter Kalivas - Artistic Director, PGK Dance Project
"We're a contemporary dance company, and what that means is that we have a foundation in classical ballet, but also mixing it with modern dance, typically American contemporary ideas. So, it's very structured and athletic. It's got a lot of design - I have an architectural background, so has a lot of design, and I'm really interested in shape, and I'm really interested in space, how I move the dancing bodies around. Also, I'm a musician, so I am really interested in a lot of different styles of music. So, the program goes all the way from some kind of classical music to a percussion group, and it's really aggressive, but really joyful percussion. Then, we have a South-African musician we are playing for another dance. So, we're all over the place as style go."

Monica Bodden
"How many dancers?"

Peter Kalivas
"We're a company of 7 dancers, but this time we only have six. One is injured, and the artist director of the company. But, we're doing 6 different pieces on the show as well."

Monica Bodden
"Hi Jamie, first of all, how does it feel to be back home?"

Jamie Thompson - Dancer
"It's definitely exciting to be back home once again to dance for my Belizean people."

Monica Bodden
"Now, I understand that your dance company couldn't make it this year, but you will be doing a solo performance. Tell us about that."

Jamie Thompson
"The company couldn't make it this year because we had a very tight schedule, but I was able to get away for this short period of time. I'm doing 2 solos. One of them is choreographed by Alvin Ale. It's called Reflections in D, and the other one is called the ostridge, which I think our community will definitely appreciate. It was choreographed in 1932, so it's definitely one of those classical pieces that majority of the male dancers always look forward to performing. Well, you know, dance is an experience that words cannot do justice to because you have to be there to experience it. I know that the 2 solo pieces which I am doing are very entertaining. I think that it's very articulate. I do crazy things with my body, and I am sure people will appreciate that."

The first show starts on Thursday night at 8pm at the Bliss and entrance is free. The other shows are on Friday and Saturday nights at the same time and tickets are on sale for only 20 dollars and can be purchased at the Bliss.

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