Events Curated by the Collective:
October 2023: CT Convention Center
The Hartford Dance Collective popped up at a large scale private event Halloween party at the Connecticut Convention Center as zombie scare actors and flash mob dancers, bringing the party to life with terrifying makeup, costumes, hair, and creepy-crawly zombie movements. The performance was credited to be the thrill of the evening, grabbing thousands of party-goers attention with the big finale performance of “Thriller”.
June 2023: Hartford Dance Festival
One thousand audience members gathered for the second annual festival featuring 25 diverse professional dance performance groups on the Elizabeth Park Stage in Hartford, CT. The free to the public performance featured David Dorfman Dance, Pilobolus, The Hartford Dance Collective, Samiyah Lynnice, Garet and Co, Emory Ferra, Alison Cook Beatty, Seyong Kim, Ballet Hartford, AJ Urban, Marllon Marcellus, The Mo.vement, Seaco, Faustine Lavie, Image Quilt Dance Theater, Art Frm Da Hart, Leah Suskind, N Squared, The ChoreoJoey Project, Kenzie Ginter, Brooklyn Ballet, Baila Con Gusto, Colby Connelly, Alexis Robbins, & Vibesetters Club.
This performance was supported by the Greater Hartford Arts Council, The Connecticut Office of the Arts, and the Hartford Dance Collective.
September 2022: Yesterday
A brand new theatrical production that combines re-produced and re-imagined music of the Beatles with an interpretive, artistic, and athletic stage performance created by The Hartford Dance Collective and The Meadows Brothers.
LIVE MUSIC by The Meadows Brothers (Dustin Meadows, Ian Meadows, Tim Leffingwell, Stephen Cusano)
DANCE PERFORMANCE by The Hartford Dance Collective (Jillian Foley Cusano, Jane Krantz, Rosanna Karabetsos, Roxanne Lebenzon, Taylor Zappone, Lauren Horn, Raechel Manga)
August 2022: Contemporary Currents
Movement and music flow together at the river. This collaborative performance produced by the Hartford Dance Collective will show the relationship between sound and sight, music and movement, and the beauty of art in nature.
Performing artists include:
Chantal Edwards-Matthews + Ghazi Omair
Rosanna Karabetsos + DJ Laki
Jane Krantz + Mixed Company
Marjorie Gross + Tony Davis
Emory Ferra + Jonathan Barber
June 2022: Riverfront Dance Festival
This first annual performance provideded a unique opportunity for distinguished dancers and choreographers, students, and community members, to present original works in a free public gathering with a strong emphasis on the inclusion of diverse dance styles. This event featured performances by The Hartford Dance Collective, BOM DIGGS, The Connecticut Tap Collaborative, Alma Collective, GHAA, Rebecca Pappas, L.I.V.E C.TY DANCE CO, Dalit Agronin & Dancers, Damir Tasmagambetov, Amalgam Dance Ensemble, Ballet Hartford, NSquared Dance, P-Boogie, Rhamzi Amani, Spencer Pond/Convenience St, KAMR Dance, Chantal Edwards-Matthews, Baila Con Gusto, Indorican Multicultural Dance Project, 860MVMT, BOUND, FriendZ World Music, David Dorfman Dance, & DJ Sonia Sol.
Follow @riverfrontdancefest on Instagram for updates!
December 2021: “LINKED”
A collaborative dance performance experience presented in our transformed studio space; The Resident Artists and special guests of the Collective performed live in-person, while audience members sipped on Hartford Flavor cocktails, shopped with local artist vendors, and enjoyed the human connection of artists and arts-lovers. The choreographic artists that presented work are Xan Burley, Lauren Horn, Jillian Foley Cusano, Jasmine Stack, Rosanna Karabetsos, Mariah Rasmussen, and will feature dancers, Katie Bittner, Cameron Whitney, Taylor Zappone, Jasmine McPherson, Roxanne Lebenzon, Jane Krantz, Katie Schenker, and more!
March 2021: “Empowered Through Movement”
Empowered Through Movement is a dance film series presented on Monday evenings during the course of Women’s Month (March) on the Hartford Dance Collective’s YouTube page. Each vignette, based on a theme of female empowerment, shows virtual audiences an inside look on what makes us feel empowered. During this uncertain and bizarre time in our lives, we have collaborated to bring dance performance to film and show more up close and personal stories through movement.
December 11, 2020: “Family Reunion”
"Family Reunion" is a collaboration between artist Shannon VanGyzen, the Hartford Dance Collective, and drag artists Severity Stone and Coleslaw at Real Art Ways. Using the sculptures included in the exhibition "Homebound", performers and choreographers created 13 unique performances, one for each sculpture in the exhibition. Shannon’s sculptures utilize found objects and furniture to explore ideas of taste and decoration, creating familial tropes like The Teenager, The Caretaker, and so on. The dancers and choreographers took these tropes and crafted each performance to explore the various formal and conceptual ideas using their bodies and sound.
August 26th, 2020: “In The Box”
An Immersive Dance Experience at Parkville Market where audience members took a tour through the second level of the Market, where they looked inside the variety of worlds that the dancers created and embodied amidst each box. The cast consists of fifteen professional female dancers from the Hartford area; a diverse group of members and collaborators of The Hartford Dance Collective: Katie Bittner, Jillian Foley, Savana Jones, Kailah King, Jane Krantz, Cassie Laskowski, Roxie Lebenzon, Celina Lopez, Raechel Manga, Jasmine McPherson, Alexis Robbins, Katie Schenker, Jasmine Stack, Cami Whitney, and Taylor Zappone.
March 8th, 2020: International Women’s Day Performance
The Hartford Dance Collective is back, dancing in a brewery on Sunday, March 8th at 5:00pm. Keeping the evening casual and cool, come join us and grab a pint while you sit back and enjoy professional contemporary dance performance! The Collective brings you cultural & art performances outside a formal, traditional setting. The choreographic artists that presented work are Roxie Lebenzon, Rosanna Karabetsos, Audra Brown, Jillian Foley, Sarah Nulsen, Katie Bittner, & Jane Krantz.
December 21, 2019: The Hartford Holiday Spectacular
The Dance Collective and Parkville Sounds joined forces to bring you a Holiday Spectacular like no other. We celebrated the holiday season with a photo booth, cash bar, music and dance performances, and HOLIDAY CHEER! Performances by: The Mike Carabello Project, The Dance Collective, The American Jazz Company, Connecticut Tap Collaborative, Hannah Seiden, New England Ballet Collective, & Cuatro Puntos.
August 24, 2019: Spectra Wired Cafe
Experience dance performance in an atmosphere like no other by enjoying a coffee or a cocktail while being entertained by storytelling contemporary movement in this gorgeous downtown Hartford venue. The choreographic artists who presented work are: Jillian Foley, Hannah Seiden, Rosanna Karabetsos, Jane Krantz, Sheila Huggins, Roxie Lebenzon, & Daniella Parisot.
November 2nd, 2018: ShapeShifter Lab
Dancers took the space, set up like a cabaret, captivating audience members with their storytelling movement. The choreographic artists that presented work are Rhamzi Burks, Fran Fuller & Jillian Foley, Marjorie Gross, Rosanna Karabetsos, Jane Krantz, Jessica Ray, and Michelle Thompson-Ulrich.
July 28th, 2018: "Waves" at Riverfront Recapture
This free performance was a part of National Dance Day 2018. The choreographic artists that presented work were Ashely Carter & Vanessa Martinez de Banos of Double Take Dance, Uma Shannon, Kristen Schranze, Jane Krantz, Rosanna Karabestos, Fran Fuller and Kristen Delillo.
May 6th, 2018: Hog River Brewing
The dancers surrounded the brewery highlighting work of various female choreographers (in collaboration with dancers). Choreographers included Dot Armstrong, Betsy McMillan, Rosanna Karabetsos, Sheila Huggins, Meghan Dodd, Frances Fuller, Alice Halter, Emory Campbell, and Kirsten Schranze.
February 1st, 2018: Art After Dark at the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum
The Dance Collective paired 5 female choreographers with 5 female vocalists, set up in different sections of the museum. The artists who presented work were Lydia McClain, Jessica Ray, Mary Corso, Aliza Russell, Marjorie Gross, Asha Potter, Meredith Rose, Gwendolyn Gussman, Gabrielle Lakshmi, and Ali Kenner Brodsky.
November 5, 2017: Hog River Brewing
The dancers surrounded the brewery highlighting work of various female choreographers and dancers including Jillian Foley, Jane Krantz, Katie Bittner, Abigail Corr, Marjorie Gross, Sheila Huggins, Frances Fuller, Meghan Dodd, and Dana Mazurowski.
July 7, 2017: "She" at Proctors Theatre
“She” highlighted work of various female choreographers and dancers from across the United States. A bill consisting of solos, duets, and group performances; dancers took the stage, conveying themes of empowerment, strength, and more. The choreographic artists that presented work are Elizabeth Coker, Hannah Myers, Emory Campbell & Alex Bittner, Marjorie Gross & Jillian Foley, and Kirsten Schranze.
We have been so lucky to participate in:
Arts On Site Performance Party, NYC
5x5 Dance Festival, West Hartford, CT
Year’s End Hartford, Dirt Salon, Hartford, CT
TheaterWorks “STRIPPED”, Hartford, CT
#HEARD at Vasu Studio, Hartford, CT
Crafted @ Hartford Flavor & Real Art Ways, Hartford, CT
Vivid Ballet’s Spring Performance
Greater Hartford Arts Council’s Big Red for the Arts
Dance Current in Great River Park, East Hartford, CT
“Breakout” a Series of Dances, Seattle & Pullman, WA, and Moscow, ID
Dancing for a Cause with Ballet Theatre Company, West Hartford, CT
MLK Jr Community Day at the Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, CT
March Madness on Pratt Street, Hartford, CT
Art on the Streets & Make Music Day, Hartford, CT
Greater Hartford Arts Council’s Art Social, Goodwin Hotel, Hartford, CT
Dancing from the Heart, Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital, CT
Open Studio Hartford, CT
Creative Cocktail Hour, Real Art Ways, Hartford, CT
Steffi Nossen Dance Choreography Showcase, Mamaroneck, NY
CT Inclusive Arts BELIEVE, West Hartford, CT
Playhouse on Park’s “Encore”, Bloomfield, CT
First Night Hartford, CT