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Call it a comeback
Dance Theatre of Harlem returns.
RACHEL NEVILLE
BY KRISTEN ANDRESEN
IN HONOR OF Black History Month in February, Dance Theatre of Harlem traveled to Honduras as part of the U.S. Department of State’s Arts Envoy Program. It was a whirlwind week full of workshops that culminated in two public performances. At each, the company had to turn away hundreds of people. “There was such a desire, such a hunger around the diversity of the company, which reflected the diversity in the country, ” says DTH artistic director Virginia Johnson. “There’s a resonance with Dance Theatre of Harlem that we’re seeing as we go out into these communities.” None of this is terribly surprising – since its inception in 1969, DTH has resonated with audiences of all backgrounds. But even three years ago, what happened in Ecuador – or New York, or Akron, Ohio – wouldn’t have been possible. In 2004, financial woes forced the company to cease operations. At the time, Johnson, one of the company’s founding members, was serving as executive editor of Pointe magazine.
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“I remember thinking: Oh my God, this is the end of those dancers’ careers, but back then, there was never even a thought that the company wouldn’t come back,” she recalls. But as the years passed, that certainty seemed less certain, until 2010, when the company’s co-founder, Arthur Mitchell, tapped Johnson to lead the revival. “I knew there was a need for this company, but what does it look like?” says Johnson. In 2004, the company had 44 dancers who toured the country with two tractor-trailers full of top-of-the-line everything. The company returned to the stage in 2012 with no elaborate sets and 18 dancers, who check their costumes with their luggage when they travel. Yes, things are much leaner. And yes, Johnson faces the challenge of balancing a grueling touring schedule with the need to develop her dancers and their work. But in many ways, the rebirth has brought DTH back to its roots. “Arthur Mitchell realized the art form of ballet was pretty exclusive, and he wanted to show there was a place
for blacks in ballet,” Johnson says. “He was on a mission to change perceptions — let’s look at this art form again, let’s look at how ballet fits into people’s lives. Is it elite? Is it just something for Sunday dress up? Or is it something everyone can relate to? No matter who you are, no matter your race or class or position in life, ballet can give you something meaningful, something that is uplifting.…One of my goals is to take the art form from the outside and put it back in the center of everyone’s lives.” As the company approaches the half-century mark — 2014 marks DTH’s 45th anniversary —Johnson is working to take ballet out of the margins through great performances, robust educational and community outreach and the transformative work of the DTH School. Using dance as a launch pad, DTH continues to build community and spark dialogue at home and abroad. “Dance Theatre of Harlem isn’t just about blacks and ballet,” Johnson says. “It’s about humanity, and we bring the common thread of many cultures to the story of humanity.” @8
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