Highly Recommended Dance: WINTER SERIES 2025 (Hubbard Street Dance Chicago at the Harris)

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by Mitchell Oldham on February 2, 2025

in Dance,Theater-Chicago

HUBBARD STREET’S WINTER SERIES
PRIMED TO UNLEASH DANCE FIRE

“It’s not magic, but it should seem like it is.” That advice came from a veteran jazz musician in the 1930s as he counseled a young aspiring player. In many ways, that nugget of truth applies to the world as dance as well. Closing in on its fifth decade, few contemporary dance companies in the country have sustained the illusion of magic within its art form as consistently, boldly or as successfully as Hubbard Street Dance Chicago (HSDC). February 13-16, 2025, Hubbard Street will present its most current iteration of excellence with their Winter performance series at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance.

FLOCK. Photo by Malcolm Wesley.

While exceptional dance ability is essential, it is just one of the many distinguishing virtues of the company. For Hubbard Street, its remarkable adaptability—a proficiency of shapeshifting—may be its most enduring and formidable superpower, and the Winter Series line-up typifies how well HSDC plays the part of consummate dance chameleon. With a focus on entertainment, storytelling, and innovation, the selected works span a vast creative spectrum—ranging from the mysteriously captivating to the delightfully playful.

Hubbard Street Dancers Aaron Choate, Michele Dooley, Jacqueline Burnett,
Cyrie Topete, and Simone Stevens in 'Into Being' by FLOCK. Photo by Michelle Reid
Hubbard Street Dancers Aaron Choate, Michele Dooley, Jacqueline Burnett, Cyrie Topete,
and Simone Stevens in 'Into Being' by FLOCK. Photo by Michelle Reid

Florian Lochner and Alice Klock, whose choreographic partnership goes by the name FLOCK, bring a whole new approach to dance physicality with their work Into Being. Both veterans of HSDC through past roles as choreography fellows, they well know the company and its capabilities. And they’ll use that knowledge to extract every ounce of virtuosity from the dancers themselves. Known for their non-gendered partnering techniques, intricate movements and propensity to showcase the subliminal impact momentum has on the psyche, Into Being will give the audience a new way of looking at and embracing life’s totality.

Hubbard Street Dancers Michele Dooley, Jacqueline Burnett, and Aaron Choate
in 'Into Being' by FLOCK. Photo by Michelle Reid
Hubbard Street Dancers David Schultz, Alysia Johnson, Shota Miyoshi, Abdiel Figueroa Reyes,
and Elliot Hammans in 'Into Being' by FLOCK. Photo by Kristie Kahns

LA based choreographer James Gregg, whose dance roots originated in Chicago, combines seemingly completely disparate dance forms to create his own idiosyncratic vision of how dance can be used to reflect life. His world premiere Within the Frame will blend elements of ballet and break dancing, among other forms, to show how amenable dance is to creative inspiration (see video below). For dancers, Mr. Gregg’s choreography can be both challenging and exhilarating; causing at least one to muse, “we’re not trying to dance the step, we’re trying to be the step”.

Both pieces, even if subtly, celebrate youth and its associated vigor. Ohad Naharin’s choreography often encompasses vast, universal themes, that play out in explosiveness and stillness conjoined together in one dance. Created in 1985, Black Milk stands as a testament to his enduring artistic vision. This quintet has long served as a crucible by top-tier dance companies, challenging dancers to cement their mettle and push the limits of their capabilities. Described as both “raw and elegant,” the piece engages both body and spirit, delivering a message that is as haunting as it is deeply resonant.

Hubbard Street Dancers Jacqueline Burnett, Jack Henderson, and David Schultz
in IMPASSE by Johan Inger. Photo by Michelle Reid.
Hubbard Street Dancers Jack Henderson, Jacqueline Burnett, and David Schultz
in IMPASSE by Johan Inger. Photo by Michelle Reid

A thread of caution runs through IMPASSE, the fourth and final dance on the program. Choreographed by Johan Inger, that thread is only faintly suggested at the outset, revealing its full significance only in hindsight. it’s easy to get lost in its carnivalesque spectacle, it’s bigness and humor and the outlandish fun spilling from this full ensemble piece, which is yet another work HSDC dances to perfection. Precisely and beautifully translating stories through impeccable movement stands at the center of Hubbard Street’s wheelhouse. Their upcoming Winter Series at the Harris promises to seamlessly merge the two together for a delightfully memorable effect.

 Hubbard Street Dance Chicago in IMPASSE by Johan Inger. Photo by Kristie Kahns.

Following opening night’s performance, choreographer James Gregg and HSDC Artistic Director Linda-Denise Fisher-Harrell will be in conversation and take questions from the audience regarding Gregg’s world premiere, Within the Frame.

James Gregg. Photo by Michael Slobodian.

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago
Season 47 Winter Series
Harris Theater for Music and Dance
Millennium Park, 205 East Randolph St
Thursday, February 13 at 7:30
Friday, February 14 at 7:30
Saturday, February 15 at 7:30
Sunday, February 16 at 3
1 hour and 40 minutes, including two 15-minute intermissions
for tickets, call 312.850.9744 or visit Hubbard Street Dance

for more shows, visit Theatre in Chicago

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