Yerba Buena Gardens ChoreoFest (Day Two)

ASL interpretation to be provided for this program.

YBG ChoreoFest 2023 Dates:

• Day One: September 23, 2023
• Day Two: September 30, 2023

A two-weekend festival of site-specific work, the Yerba Buena Gardens ChoreoFest showcases the extravagant creativity, diversity and vibrancy of the Bay Area dance scene. Programmed by RAWdance for its first five years, YBG ChoreoFest opens a new chapter co-curated by David Herrera Performance Company (Artistic Director David Herrera) and PUSH Dance Company (Artistic Director Raissa Simpson and Associate Artistic Director Ashley Gayle).

The two companies lay the groundwork for a dance festival promoting and presenting contemporary, modern hip hop and global dance forms. A recipient of the National Latino Arts & Culture Leadership Fellowship and many other grants, commissions and residencies, David Herrera launched David Herrera Performance Company in 2007 in response to the lack of Latinx visibility and representation on the U.S. modern dance scene. A highly sought after educator, scholar, interdisciplinary artist and award-winning choreographer hailing from African-descended sharecroppers and an immigrant from the Philippines, Raissa Simpson founded PUSH to examine the body as a site for racial discourse. Together, these companies have designed the sixth annual YBG ChoreoFest with extraordinary performances throughout the Gardens’ lawns and architecture by an array of distinguished local dance companies.

Know Before You Go:

• This program moves to various locations in the Gardens, spanning approx. 2 blocks or .5 miles
• Seating at each site is very limited and prioritized for seniors and those with disabilities
• Each performance is about 15-20 minutes in length
• ASL interpretation will be provided on both September 23 and September 30 events
• Feel free to ask event staff or volunteers for questions or assistance
• Contact us at info@ybgfestival.org or (415) 543-1718 

Day Two Artists:

PUSH Dance Company, described as “emotional and kinetic” (San Francisco Bay Guardian), performs vibrant contemporary dances, providing audiences an opportunity to examine issues of identity and intersecting cultures that surround and affect us all. Founded in 2005 by Artistic Director Raissa Simpson, PUSH maintains a philosophy that bold movement and intellect can coexist. The company has performed at Joyce SoHo, Aspen Fringe Festival, Dance St. Louis, Ferst Center, Los Angeles Women’s Theater Festival and Black Choreographers Festival, among others. Raissa has held creative residencies at Dance Initiative Carbondale, Bayview Opera House and more. Most recently, PUSH received a WAVE Award, Hometown Media Award and Isadora Duncan Award for its project EMME YA.

Mix’d Ingrdnts is a multi-ethnic, multi-genre dance collective composed of female-identified artists, who work together with the intent to contribute to the impact of social change. Mix’d Ingrdnts Dance Company was established in 2010 and exists to empower women to express themselves. The company connects with communities through forums, school assemblies, festivals, large curated occasions and various events around the Bay Area that promote social change and/or entertain the community. Mix’d Ingrdnts strives to inspire those around them and through skillful artistry, uses their platform to continue to pave pathways for womxn and youth to authentically express themselves and utilize their very important and necessary voices.

Noorani Dance Company (NDC), founded by Artistic Director Farah Yasmeen Shaikh, specializes in Kathak dance of South Asia and is comprised of pre-professional and professional dancers. Displaying a unique artistic sensibility that is both traditional and innovative, much of the work of NDC examines social and historical topics of South Asia that are relevant to a global society. NDC is committed to enlightening minds and hearts through the arts through traditional and innovative repertoire and performances and collaborative partnerships across other forms of performing arts. Performance experience and collaborations include the New York Kathak Festival at Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Beyond Bollywood and the Sari Dress Tent at Asian Art Museum in San Francisco, performances for Maitri, Community Seva and Asia Society of Northern California, Gilead Corporation, Google Talks, Ballet Beyond Borders and in The Partition Project at Z Space in San Francisco and Hammer Theatre in San Jose.

David Herrera Performance Company, founded in 2007, prides itself in providing visibility, agency and exposure of a diverse Latinx American experience within an American context. Rich in theatricality and immersed in nuanced, visceral movement, the company makes its statement by weaving dance, story-telling, music and media into a textured conversation between Latinx cultures and a multicultural audience. The company is centered on equity and representation of Latinx peoples in modern dance arts as topic/themes, performers, choreographers, audience, curators, scholars, policy makers, teachers and students. We hope to create a lineage and network from which other Latinx artists can learn from and work with. DHPCo. is one of few predominantly Latinx focused modern dance companies in the United States.