“Moore is a vivid daring creator” John Kendle, Uptown Magazine

“Moore's text is crisp, poetic, elegant and evocative; her painting of character is swift and deep.” Beverely Daurio, Evidance

DANCEWORKS PRESENTS

IN ABSENTIA

PRODUCED BY JDDANCE ​

CHOREOGRAPHY, CONCEPT, AND DIRECTION BY SHARON B. MOORE

PERFORMERS JORDANA DEVEAU, JESSE DELL, NOAH BLATT, YIMING CAI, HILARY KNEE, JAKE RAMOS AND KATHIA WITTENBORN

NOVEMBER 21 – 23, 2019 AT HARBOURFRONT CENTRE THEATRE

Toronto, ON (October 24, 2019) – Boldly interweaving dance, puppetry, set, music, lights, and live-action video design, DanceWorks is proud to present IN ABSENTIA, a stunning new multimedia work produced ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ by Toronto-based collective JDdance. Boasting choreography and direction by Sharon B. Moore, as well ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ as performances by Jesse Dell and Jordana Deveau, alongside five of Toronto’s most exhilarating ​ ​ ​ ​ emerging dance artists, this original production is five years in the making and will celebrate its World Premiere at Harbourfront Centre Theatre, November 21-23, 2019. ​ ​

A modern day fantasy, IN ABSENTIA celebrates the unexpected beauty that blossoms in the aftermath of ​ ​ calamity. Two humans, lost, traverse an ever-shifting landscape. Fragile and torrential, vivid and fantastical, the journey spins a prophetic dream world which helps them divine the consequences and potentials of living in a harrowing time.

“With complex design and over 1000 pounds of raw cardboard material on-stage, IN ABSENTIA is riddled ​ ​ with risk. Humorous and magical, threatening and horrifying, movement reshapes the weight of the world around us and our own human part in it. Whether navigating through a house of mirrors, escaping the poisonous needles of a porcupine or surrendering to the premonitions of two tiny fortune- telling skeletons, IN ABSENTIA is a visual journey through movement and design.” Sharon B. Moore

This ambitious dance piece also features a larger-than-life set design created by award-winning designer Steve Lucas. Turning and twisting like an incoming storm, it is entirely made of cardboard. The ​ production also features original music composition by Allen Cole, projection design by Laura Warren, ​ ​ ​ ​ elaborate costume design by Sonja Rainey, and two petite skeletons that provide hope in a world of ​ ​ treacherous fantasy.

Sharon B. Moore (Concept, Choreography & Direction) works across the worlds of dance, theatre, film, ​ ​ and circus. Alongside Canadian composer/director Derek Aasland, she runs Cinetic Creations, a

company dedicated to large scale cinematic and theatrical works. Their fantastical worlds are a hybrid of intimate narrative, movement, original music and production design. Their creations have received many Dora Mavor Moore nominations in the categories of choreography, production, performance, and lighting design, including a Dora for Outstanding Performance - Female, Jillian Peever in The Mystery of Mr. ​ Leftovers (2016). ​

Jesse Dell (Producer and Performer) is a dance artist, choreographer, singer, costume designer, graphic ​ ​ designer, and mother. As a dancer, Jesse has had the privilege of working with choreographers Peggy Baker, Aria Evans, Kate Franklin, Susan Lee, Shannon Litzenberger, Sharon Moore, Tracey Norman, Julia Sasso, and Holly Small, as well as for JDdance, a collective she co-founded in 2009.

Jordana Deveau (Producer and Performer) is a dynamic force in the Toronto dance community, active as ​ ​ a dancer, creator, educator, rehearsal director, and producer. She is the Co-Artistic Director of JDdance and is the co-author, with her mentor Donna Krasnow, PhD, of "C-I Training: Conditioning with Imagery for Dancers."

The show also features performances by five extremely talented graduates of The School of Toronto Dance Theatre; Noah Blatt, Yiming Cai, Hilary Knee, Jake Ramos, and Kathia Wittenborn. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

The production includes set and lighting design by Steve Lucas, who has designed award-winning sets ​ ​ and lighting for more than 500 productions of theatre, dance, and performance art. His work has toured extensively and has been seen all across Canada, the United States, the UK, Europe, Scandinavia, Russia, Australia, and Asia. Steve has also been nominated for several of Canada’s most prestigious awards, including the Siminovitch Prize in Theatre, the Pauline McGibbon Award, the K.M. Hunter Award, and 33 Dora Mavor Moore Award nominations.

Also, the show includes original music by composer Allen Cole. Allen has worked as composer, musical ​ ​ director, and writer on many musical theatre, dance, and film works and has won numerous awards, including four Doras, five Merritts, and a Best Film Score Award from The Atlantic Film Festival. The show will also include projection design by Laura Warren and costume design by Sonja Rainey. ​ ​ ​ ​

ABOUT DANCEWORKS: ​ DanceWorks began as a collective of independent dance artists in 1977 and has grown to become ​ Toronto’s leading presenter of independent dance. Strong in the belief that dance has the power to illuminate, engage, and transform all who participate, DanceWorks offers seasons of eclectic, exhilarating choreography programmed to intrigue, challenge, and enthrall.

ABOUT JDDANCE (JDd): JDdance was founded by Jordana Deveau and Jesse Dell in 2009. JDd has presented work in a variety ​ of events and festivals including Dance Matters, The Toronto Fringe Festival, Scotia Bank Nuit Blanche, Guelph Dance Festival, and dance:made in Canada. In addition to film work, JDd has also staged two full-evening productions: Ink to flesh (2010) created and produced by JDd and presented by The Young ​ ​ Centre for the Performing Arts; and episodesIandscapes (2013) co-created and co-produced with Tracey ​ ​ Norman and presented by Danceworks CoWorks.

DanceWorks honours and acknowledges the ancestral caretakers of this land: the Haudenosaunee ​ Confederacy, the Wendat, and, most recently, the Mississauga of the New Credit First Nation who have a

Treaty relationship with Canada. DanceWorks is grateful to have the opportunity to work in their community, on this territory, and pays respects to their Elders, past, present, and future.

IN ABSENTIA: When: November 21 – 23, 2019, 8 PM ​ Where: Harbourfront Centre Theatre, 231 Queens Quay W, Toronto, Ontario ​ Price: Tickets range from $36 - $42, with group rates, senior/CADA, students, and arts industry discounts ​ ​ ​ available. To purchase tickets, please visit danceworks.ca/tickets/ or call the Harbourfront Centre Box ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Office at 416-973-4000 ​ ​

DanceWorks will also present a Student Matinee on November 22, 2019. More information available here. ​ ​ ​

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For all media inquiries, contact Ashley Belmer, B-Rebel Communications, ​ ​ [email protected] / 416 617 8934