Weekend Dance Round-up

By Michelle Meywes Kopeny in Arts & Entertainment on Apr 27, 2012 8:20PM

Mexican Dance Ensemble. John Tran Photography.

World Dance Day is officially this Sunday and what better way to celebrate than with performances from 11 different cultural groups including Ensemble Espanol (Spain), Renacer Boliviano (Bolivia), Mexican Dance Ensemble (Mexico), Laume (Lithuania), Miorita (Romania) and Choomsarang (Korea). Hip-hop, tap and ballroom will also be featured. Presented by Chicago Music and Dance International, this year marks the holiday’s 30th anniversary. Showcase begins at 7pm this Sunday at Athenaeum Theatre, with a special 2pm children’s performance. Tickets are $15-$35.

Inaside Chicago Dance Project

Also at the Athenaeum this weekend, contemporary jazz company Inaside Chicago Dance presents an evening of established, emerging and new choreographers. This one-night-only performance includes a new work from Sinead Gildea, as well as pieces from Artistic Director Richard Smith and a selected in-house choreographer. Saturday, 8pm. Tickets are $20-$30 (tickets for post-show reception available at additional cost).

Armitage Gone! Dance

“Punk ballerina” Karole Armitage brings old and new works to the Museum of Contemporary Art this weekend. Drastic-Classicism, one of her first works from 1981 is presented in conjunction with current MCA exhibit This Will Have Been: Art, Love, & Politics in the 1980’s. The piece is truly rock meets ballet as dancers are joined on stage by a drummer and guitarists. Also presented are Watteau Duets and GAGA-Gaku, her new Balinese influenced work. Performances tonight and tomorrow evening at 7:30pm. Tickets are $35 ($28 for members).

Curator Helen Moleworth will be interviewing Armitage along with artist David Salle at 2 p.m on Saturday. Tickets for this event are $10 (members $8).