In celebration of the opening of a new performance space in Midtown Detroit’s Carr Center, the DIA will participate in New Standards Jazz Crawl, a series of performances by women composers curated by Terri Lyne Carrington.

Camille Thurman is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, and unique interpreter of the jazz tradition. Fluid and powerful on the tenor saxophone and highly inventive as a vocalist, she also plays bass clarinet, flute, and piccolo. Her rich sax sound has been compared to Dexter Gordon, while her vocal approach—including an impressive scatting ability—has been classified alongside those of Ella Fitzgerald and Betty Carter. Thurman has shared stages with such jazz luminaries as George Coleman, Wynton Marsalis, Jack DeJohnette, Jon Batiste and Diana Krall among others.  

The Carr Center @ The Park Shelton, Suite 104

15 E. Kirby Street, Detroit

Join us for an afternoon celebrating martial arts as seen in the films of legendary director King Hu. Through epic martial arts skills and the magic of editing, Hu brought great subtlety and expressivity to his films and ultimately, the genre.

1:30 p.m. | Interactive: Pushing Hands Demonstration  

Detroit Tai Chi Group, led by Master Ching-Yu Meng, demonstrates the basic steps of pushing hands, a form of Tai Chi practice that emphasizes the principle of “softness overcoming hardness.” Audience members will be invited onstage to try the movements themselves.

2:20 p.m. | Talk: Raining in the Mountain – Art Aesthetics and Opposition

Tony Williams, professor of film studies from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale provides critical analysis of King Hu’s Raining in the Mountain as an art film on its own and in context with Hu’s other works.

3 p.m. | Film Screening: Raining in the Mountain

Taiwan/Hong Kong/1979—directed by King Hu | 120 minutes

During the Ming Dynasty, a Buddhist abbot, charged with protecting the sacred scroll of Tripitaka, prepares to name his successor. An aristocrat and a general arrive at his secluded mountaintop monastery promising to help in his search but are in fact scheming to secure the scroll for themselves. As they set about recommending corrupt successors, rival bands of martial artists lie in wait to steal the precious artifact; they soon transform the monastery into an epic battleground for the scroll, with each player caught in a web of betrayal.

Newly restored, this visually spectacular, grand-scale caper heist overflows with witty, jaw-dropping collisions of minds, fists and karma; Raining in the Mountain may be the peak of legendary director King Hu's (Touch of Zen, Dragon Inn) infusion of Buddhist spiritual principles into the legacy of pan-Asian action filmmaking. In Mandarin with English subtitles.
 

This program is made possible through partnerships with the DIA’s auxiliary Friends of Asian Arts and Cultures and Michigan Chinese Women Association, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Chicago, and is supported through a generous grant from the Freeman Foundation.

Two of Detroit Dance City Festival's programs highlighting new works come together for an evening of exciting dance! 

DDCF’s College Showcase was developed to give platform and agency to collegiate choreographers, professors and guests artists to present their newest work. This year’s showcase features Tricia Zweier of Lindenwood University, Kiki Lucas of Western Michigan University, Paul Singh of Grand Valley State University, Paige Mulick of Western Michigan University and Tracy Halloran of Madonna University. 

Choreographers Showcase II, presents new works by local, national, and international artists and dancers, this year including Water Street Dance Milwaukee, Rachel Slater, NSquared Dance, Leah O’Donnell, Xing Dance Theater and Nova Linea Contemporary Dance 

This program is free but requires registration. 

Featuring adjudicated dance films from around the globe, each under 12 minutes in length, SDI’s International Dance Film Shorts merge dance and cinematography together to create an equal and dynamic partnership. 

Founded by Joanna Mcnamara/ JMC/Productions, Screen Dance International partners with Artlab J to bring films highlighting dance across a wide range of genres to the Detroit Dance City Festival. 

This program is free but requires registration. 

You will be required to wear a mask and show proof of vaccination to attend programs in the Detroit Film Theatre.

COVID-19 Policies 

This newly created category highlights adjudicated dance films that were created as live performances for stage, but were cancelled due to COVID-19, as well as dance films that move back and forth from a stage, whether real, imaginary, or environmental. 

Founded by Joanna Mcnamara/ JMC/Productions, Screen Dance International partners with Artlab J to bring films highlighting dance across a wide range of genres to the Detroit Dance City Festival. 

This program is free but requires registration. 

You will be required to wear a mask and show proof of vaccination to attend programs in the Detroit Film Theatre.

COVID-19 Policies 

Two of Detroit Dance City Festival’s most anticipated programs come together for an evening of unparalleled dance. DDCF’s Dance and Celebration starts the night with performances by world-renowned guest dancers and choreographers, including Lee Jung In, Christa Smutek and Kyunnghwa Hong.

Then, a selection of local, national, and international artists and dancers share their current projects during the Choreographers Showcase I, featuring the works of Take Root, Ariel Rivka Dance, project whitewall, Moonwater Dance Project and Contexture Dance Detroit. 

This program is free, but requires registration. 

SDI PROJECT Michigan consists of adjudicated dance films under 12 minutes in length directed, filmed, choreographed or produced exclusively by Michigan-based dance filmmakers.  

Founded by Joanna Mcnamara/ JMC/Productions, Screen Dance International partners with Artlab J to bring films highlighting dance across a wide range of genres to the Detroit Dance City Festival. 

You will be required to wear a mask and show proof of vaccination to attend programs in the Detroit Film Theatre.

COVID-19 Policies 

Join us for an in-person screening of a performance showcase filmed in the Detroit Institute of Art’s Rivera Court. Designed to highlight local, national, and international talent, Rivera Court Stage shares diverse styles of dance with Detroit Dance City Festival audiences in an inspiring museum setting.  

This showcase features works by Compañeros de Flamenco, Next Step Broadway, Iris Klein, Ava Kowalewski, Embodied Arts Collective, Xing Dance Theater Student Company, Suttle Dance, Annie Dingwall, Meghan Allen, and Maggie Gates. 

This program is free but requires registration. 

You will be required to wear a mask and show proof of vaccination to attend programs in the Detroit Film Theatre.

COVID-19 Policies 

The BASSment, co-led by bassists Marion Hayden and Jaribu Shahid- presents a concert in celebration of the centennial of bassist/ composer Charles Mingus.

Born in 1922 in Nogales, Arizona and raised in Watts, California, Mingus studied classical bass and composition, eventually turning his creativity to jazz-working with Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington and his own group the Jazz Workshop- a pivotal group in composition and improvisation. Mingus recorded over 100 albums and wrote over 300 scores, expressing his deep love and understanding of vernacular music and brilliant compositional technique.

The BASSment, an ensemble of four string basses, piano and drums, will perform Mingus arranged for the voice of the string bass.

Featuring: Marion Hayden-Bass, Jaribu Shahid, Jeff Pedraz, Jonathan Muir-Cotton, Buddy Budson (piano) and Djallo Djakete Keita (drums).

This special Friday Night Live performance will be the world premiere of From Darkness We Awaken, a new suite by composer, improviser, and pianist Michael Malis. Featuring Malis on prepared piano and the chamber improvising ensemble Virago, From Darkness We Awaken weaves cascading horizons of resonance into a sonic tapestry for the musicians to improvise with.