Beat the heat as dancers celebrate alongside the ocean in Long Beach; stay at the beach-Venice Beach-for contemporary dance and experimental performance; move inland to Atwater Village to revel with a clown pas de deux; mosey nearby to Pasadena where a musical recounts the lesser known underground railroad to Mexico; plus more SoCal dance this week, and a peek at next week.
Live Performance This Week (ending July 23)
Different styles of dance along the shore highlight this free celebration paying homage to the Pacific Ocean. Presented by Nannette Brodie Dance Theatre & South Coast Dance Arts Alliance, The Blessing of the Pacific presents modern dance, Hawaiian dance, and East Indian dance, along with singing by the choir of St. Joseph Church. Other participants include priests and ministers of the South Coast Interfaith Council and speakers from the nearby Aquarium and the Port of Long Beach. At Belmont Beach across from Alamitos Bay (cross streets Ocean Blvd. and Bayshore Dr.), Long Beach; Sat., July 18, 6 pm, free. Blessing of the Pacific
Nannette Brodie Dance Theatre – Photo courtesy of the artists.
Daredevil Festival
Co-produced by the adventurous Venice arts institutions Electric Lodge and Pacific Resident Theater, the second Daredevil Arts Festival has over 50 dance, theater, music, and experimental performances jam-packed into two weeks from July 10 to 19. Here are some of this week’s dance and movement events. The website Daredevil Arts Festival has full listings of all the events.
Daredevil #1
Rigidity and fluidity as they relate to personal growth and self-actualization.
In A Dance for Dionicia / Water and Rock: A Study on Fluidity and Rigidity, Ariana Chavez/ Leanna Fodor explore how physical properties of stiffness and liquidity, captured in movement, can relate to personal growth and self-actualization. At Daredevil Dance Festival, the Electric Lodge, 1416 Electric Ave., Venice; Sat., July 18, 8:30 pm, Sun., July 19, 3:30 pm, $16.25. Ariana Chavez & Leanna Fodor
Daredevil #2
In SQRM, Carole Kim and dancers Michelle Shiu-lin Lai, Kate Morales, Carmela Hermann Dietrich, and Joyce Lu/Chenhui Mao translate Alice Notley’s epic poem The descent of ALETTE into movement, live installation and sound. At the Electric Lodge, 1416 Electric Ave., Venice; Sat., July 18, 3:30 pm, $16.74. Carole Kim
Hanna Ponturo- “1518: The Dancing Plague” – Photo courtesy of the artists.
Daredevil #3
In 1518: The Dancing Plague, Hannah Ponturo satirizes a documented outbreak of mass hysteria that led to uncontrollable dancing. Cast includes Britney Shields, Nicole Souza, Ryabrae ‘Ngaide, Tallulah Jones, Gilberto Ortiz, Ann Marie Howard, and Don Berman. At the Electric Lodge, 1416 Electric Ave., Venice; Sun., July 19, 2 pm, $16.74. Hannah Ponturo
Daredevil #4
With the subtitle A Hollywood Tale, Kick Boom Theater offers Anatomy of a Back with movement and song set to live percussion. Performers include Kate Faye, Jennie Griffin, Michael Heger, Tyler Marquis, and Logan Spahitz. At the Daredevil Arts Festival, Electric Lodge, 1416 Electric Ave., Venice; Fri., July 17, 9 pm, $16.74. Kick Boom Theater
The Great Clown Bank Show – Photo by John Dlugoleck.
Send in the clowns
Created and directed by Hank Jacobs, who also acts as the “ringmaster,” The Great Clown Bank Show is described as a “burlesque on income inequality in 15 circus acts.” Promising a blend of dance and circus, including a clown pas de deux, the show will include a weekly guest circus act. At the Open Fist Theater Company @ the Atwater Village Theater, 3269 Casitas Ave., Atwater Village; Fri., 9 pm, Sat., 8 pm, Sun., 7 pm, thru Sat., Aug. 1, $35.25, $31.25 seniors, $22.25 students. The Great Clown Bank Show
“Mexodus” – Photo by Thomas Mundell.
Southbound escaping
Choreographer Tony Thomas provides the moves as the award-winning hip-hop musical Mexodus unearths the story of a southbound Underground Railroad that led 4,000 to 10,000 enslaved people to seek freedom in Mexico. The two-person show began at Berkeley Repertory Theater which also nurtured Ain’t Too Proud, the hit Motown musical about The Temptations. Mexodus moved east after highly successful runs, including off-Broadway where it picked up impressive attention. Thomas is the choreography part of the artistic team led by creators/performers Brian Quijada and Nygel D. Robinson and director David Mendizábal. At the Pasadena Playhouse, 39 S. El Molino Ave., Pasadena; Thurs.-Fri., 8 pm, Sat., 2 & 8 pm, Sun. 2 pm, thru Sun., Aug. 2, $40-$127. Mexodus
Sign of summer
Watch or join in as the Friday night summer series Dance DTLA celebrates reggaeton this week. Instruction precedes the free dance. All free. A complete list of upcoming dance genres at the website. At the Music Center, Jerry Moss Plaza, 135 N. Grand Ave., Downtown LA; Fri., July 17, 24 & 31, Aug. 7 & 14, 7-11pm, free. Dance DTLA
Dance DTLA – Photo courtesy of the Music Center.
Another sign of summer
Part public performance, part participatory dance party, and free! The outdoor Tuesday Night Dance series hosts two Tuesdays devoted to hula dance. See the website for dance styles coming up on Tuesdays thru Aug. 25. Line Dance Segerstrom Center for the Arts, Argyros Plaza, 600 Town Center Dr., Costa Mesa; Tues., July 21 & 28, 6:30 pm. free. Tuesday Night Dance.
A Peek at Next Week (July 24-30)
LA Dance Project – Performance Lab with Jobel Medina, Rebecca Laufer & Mats Van Rossum at LA Dance Project Studios, 3325 E. Washington Blvd., Downtown LA Arts District; Fri.-Sun., July 31 – August 2, 8 pm, $40-$75. Performance Lab
Pasadena Civic Ballet – Christmas in July at Heritage Square, 3800 Homer St., Montecito Heights; Sat.-Sun., July 25-26, 11 am & 5 pm, $43.45-$93.61. Pasadena Civic Ballet
National Choreographers Initiative (NCI) – The Last Dance at the Irvine Barclay Theater, UC Irvine, 4242 Campus Dr., Irvine; Sat., July 25, 8 pm, $28-$105. National Choreographers Initiative
National Choreographers Initiative – Photo by Dave Friedman.
SoCal Dance & Choreography Festival 2026 at Lakewood High School, 4400 Briercrest Ave., Lakewood; Sat., July 25, 5:30 pm, $30, $35 at door (includes fees). SoCal Dance & Choreography Festival
Backhausdance – Deconstructed: Hive at Chapman University, Waltmar Theatre, 315 E. Palm Ave., Orange; Fri., July 24, 6 pm, $48.75, $38.25 students. Backhausdance
Raiford Rogers Modern Ballet – Photo courtesy of the artists.
Raiford Rogers Modern Ballet at Luckman Fine Arts Complex, Cal State University Los Angeles, 5151 State University Dr., East LA; Sat., July 25, 7 pm, $24-$63. Raiford Rogers Modern Ballet
Dance Camera West at LA Dance Project, 2245 E. Washington Blvd., Downtown LA Arts District; Wed., July 29, 8 pm, $22.50 – $38.50. https://www.lapopsup.com/pop-ups
Featured image: Nannette Brodie Dance Theatre – Photo courtesy of NBDT.
Ann Haskins’ Blog appears at CulturalDaily.com
