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Abraham.In.Motion’s 'The Radio Show' comes to the College of Saint Benedict
April 17, 2012
Photo credit: Steven Schreiber
The CSB/SJU Fine Arts Series presents the Bessie Award-winning The Radio Show by acclaimed contemporary dance choreographer Kyle Abraham and company Abraham.In.Motion at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 28, in Escher Auditorium, College of Saint Benedict.
Abraham delves into themes of identity and personal history in The Radio Show. Creating an abstract narrative around the loss of communication, he investigates the effects of the abrupt discontinuation of a radio station on a community and the lingering effects of Alzheimer's and aphasia on a family. Abraham mixes recordings of classic soul and hip-hop with contemporary classical compositions to create an eclectic score that evokes fond memories and a passion for what is lost.
The Radio Show is broken up into various shorter works that blend Abraham's fondest memories of driving with his family and listening to Pittsburgh's radio stations Hot 106.7 FM WAMO and its sister station AM 860. In 2009, WAMO, the only urban radio station in Pittsburgh, went off-air. Black radio stations had been covering the turmoil surrounding the death of a teenage boy, which caused Abraham to think about how the community would have a voice without these urban stations.
"Radio was so prevalent during times of strife in the past. Where is its place today? Is radio fading away? Are we still listening?" Abraham asked. In The Radio Show, Abraham reinterpreted these questions into the context of his father's Alzheimer's diagnosis 10 years ago and his more recent aphasia-afflicted conditions. Thematically, the performance follows the common thread of exploring the loss of voice.
Tickets to The Radio Show are $30, Senior $27 and Student/Youth $10. For tickets, call the Benedicta Arts Center Box Office at 320-363-5777 or order online at www.csbsju.edu/fine-arts.
In recent years, Abraham has received remarkable accolades and awards for his work including a 2010 Bessie Award for Outstanding Performance in Dance for The Radio Show; a 2010 Princess Grace Award for Choreography; and a Jerome Foundation Travel and Study Grant. In 2009, he was honored as one of Dance Magazine's 25 To Watch.
Related Activities
Abraham will lead two Dance as Identity Ownership workshops. Both are free and open to the public: from 6-8 p.m. Friday, April 27, and from 1-3 p.m. Saturday, April 28, in the Helgeson Dance Studio, College of Saint Benedict. The focus of these workshops is to present participants with the opportunity to use dance as a platform for generating and exploring dialogue about gender and identity. No dance experience is necessary. Pre-registration through the Box Office is required.
This performance is sponsored, in part, by St. Cloud Orthopedics. This performance is funding, in part, by a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. The CSB/SJU Fine Arts Series is made possible in part by a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, through an appropriation by the Minnesota State Legislature from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund with money from a vote of the people of Minnesota on Nov. 4, 2008.