Sarah Bush Dance Project’s Spirit & Bones premiered in 2018 with an intergenerational cast of 15 dancers ranging in age from 23 to over 70. Featuring Bay Area dance luminaries, Spirit & Bones is an evening-length production highlighting female resilience in times of darkness, the tenacity of the solo woman, and the ferocious love and strength generated by community.
Spirit & Bones is an inter-generational dance performance with live music by an inter-generational all-star band!
Spirit & Bones is inspired by Clarissa Pinkola Estés’ book Women Who Run with the Wolves, national large-scale protests, and the movement of wolves, birds and systems of the body. Artistic Director Sarah Bush explains, “Spirit & Bones will show the multidimensionality of women, illuminating the many stages of grace and strength.”
“Spirit & Bones is a call to action, a call to join together and build loving community,” explains Sarah Bush. “The large cast demonstrates the power in numbers required for social change. The work also honors the women who have inspired and taught us. It is an opportunity to reflect on how we carry their legacies forward.”
“Dance makers want to reflect the zeitgeist in their productions. But every so often the planets align, and a long-planned work ends up tapping the cultural climate so aptly that it doubles as a rallying cry.”
– Claudia Bauer, SF Chronicle
Performers & Collaborators:
Conceived, Produced & Directed by Sarah Bush
Assistant Director – Rose Huey
Choreography – Sarah Bush in collaboration with Rose Huey and cast
Composer / Musical Director – Vicki Randle
Lighting Design – Patty-Ann Farrell. Costume Design – Krystal Harfert
Scenic Design – Katarzyna Krzykawska-Apolinarski in collaboration with Christiane Michaela Vincent
Video Design – Sarah Bush. Original Art Work – Nina Wu
Sound Design – Denise Woodward. Head Electrician – KC Cohen
Musicians – SKIP THE NEEDLE: Kofy Brown, Katie Cash, Shelley Doty, Vicki Randle, Julie Wolf
Dancers – Anne Bluethenthal, Richelle Donigan, Laura Elaine Ellis, Joanna Haigood, Dominique Hargrove, Courtney Hope, Rebecca Johnson, Courtney King, Joan Lazarus, Sue Li Jue, Elvia Marta, Priscilla Regalado, Jane Schnorrenberg, Frances Sedayao, Nina Wu
Read dancer bios and collaborator bios…
Premiere Dates:
October 26, 2018
October 27, 2018
October 28, 2018
Venue:
Taube Atrium Theater in the Wilsey Center for Opera
War Memorial Veterans Building, 4th Floor
401 Van Ness Ave, San Francisco, CA 94102
(wheelchair accessible)
Acknowledgements:
This production received generous funding from Blum Family Foundation, Meriama Fund, Open Meadows Foundation, and many individual donors.
Special Thanks:
Anonymous Amazon . Trew Boisvert . Mei Gee . Mary Carbonara . Suzy Furrer & Apparel Arts . Erica Stone & JLAG/Wild Crane Rising . Josh Klipp . Kelly Whalen . Elie Khadra . Ann Trinca . Berkeley Art Center . Wendy Jones . Joan Lazarus . Nina Wu . Randy Bush . Debra Slater . Margaret Jenkins . Verona Fonte . Krissy Keefer . Lena Gatchalian . Lisa Harding . Stella Adelman . Robert Moses . Dawn Robinson . Corey Action . Sue Li Jue . Huck Hensley . U.C. Berkeley Physical Education Program . Andre Apolinarski . Robert Breyer . Trader Joe’s . Lagunitas Brewing . The Harding Ranch . Barbara & Bill Hamilton-Holway
Spirit & Bones posts:
- Mark your calendars – online classes & performances!
- Press Release: SBDP’s Spirit & Bones nominated for TWO Izzie Awards!
- Year In Review – SBDP’s 2019 Highlights
- National Women’s Studies Association keynote — Spirit & Bones!
- Reflecting on a year without mirrors…
- “I am so ready to love more people.” Thank you!
- Spirit & Bones performance photos
- KALW Radio Open Air – Spirit & Bones
- SF Chronicle Datebook “Dance Pick”
- Radio Interview – Wanda’s Picks
- Stance on Dance – Unearthing the Feminine Spirit Via Old and Young Bones
- SF/Arts Feature (NY Times insert) – Spirit and Bones: A Dance for the Ages
- Meet the Collaborators of Spirit & Bones
- Meet the Dancers of Spirit & Bones
- Video teaser – Spirit & Bones
Sarah Bush Dance Project 