DANCE TO THE PEOPLE was formed in 2014 in NYC by Mexican dancer, choreographer, artist and organizer Maira Duarte, with the goal of accessing unutilized spaces and promoting a sustainable exchange of resources within the dance and performance community, to break down models of competition that are detrimental to the positive effects dance and performance can have on social change.
The CUNY Dance Initiative residency at the College of Staten Island (2014-2016), hosted by George Emilio Sanchez, was DTTP’s starting point. Twenty weeks of open free classes were held for the dance community, as well as Staten Island seniors, and students of the college. The residency culminated in a full evening performance of an original collaborative work: Narrentanz, in November 2015.
Dance to the People started conducting movement outings open to the public in 2015, at beaches, parks, and other public spaces. The practice falls under the umbrella term “Environmental Dance”, which is an effort to develop movement practices that challenge an anthropocentric experience with nature. In 2019, outings started to include new focus on Trash as the main product of a consumerist society.
Since 2015, we have also been holding two donation-based adult open dance class series per year, with the support of Brooklyn Arts Exchange. The purpose of these series is to offer a cheaper and less hierarchical alternative in the exchange of knowledge in the dance/arts community, with a focus on POC artists teachers.
We have produced collaborative dance pieces (The Tampon Piece, #alloftheabove, Feels Like Home) that have been performed at the Anarchist Festival, Movement Research, The Clemente Center, Center for Performance Research, The Spectrum, and other venues and festivals. In March 2018, seven members of DTTP travelled to Cholula, Mexico to teach and perform at Foro Performatica. We also organize and curate periodic showings followed by dance parties, at the Woods Cooperative in Ridgewood, and in December 2018 at Nublu, a leading venue in the Lower East Side. We have organized forums of discussion, such as Where do I get my Tortillas? at Mayday Space, about tokenism in the arts, which ignited ideas for a second forum, in March 2019: Others Unite!, a forum to discuss the connections between social otherness and environmental injustice.
Dance ToThe People received the TRC NALAC Travel Award in 2017, and receives space from BAX Brooklyn Arts Exchange, Studio Maya, and Mayday Space. Most recently, it has come to run the administration of The Woods rehearsal and performance space, with a mission of supporting the performing arts community with low-cost space rental.
The CUNY Dance Initiative residency at the College of Staten Island (2014-2016), hosted by George Emilio Sanchez, was DTTP’s starting point. Twenty weeks of open free classes were held for the dance community, as well as Staten Island seniors, and students of the college. The residency culminated in a full evening performance of an original collaborative work: Narrentanz, in November 2015.
Dance to the People started conducting movement outings open to the public in 2015, at beaches, parks, and other public spaces. The practice falls under the umbrella term “Environmental Dance”, which is an effort to develop movement practices that challenge an anthropocentric experience with nature. In 2019, outings started to include new focus on Trash as the main product of a consumerist society.
Since 2015, we have also been holding two donation-based adult open dance class series per year, with the support of Brooklyn Arts Exchange. The purpose of these series is to offer a cheaper and less hierarchical alternative in the exchange of knowledge in the dance/arts community, with a focus on POC artists teachers.
We have produced collaborative dance pieces (The Tampon Piece, #alloftheabove, Feels Like Home) that have been performed at the Anarchist Festival, Movement Research, The Clemente Center, Center for Performance Research, The Spectrum, and other venues and festivals. In March 2018, seven members of DTTP travelled to Cholula, Mexico to teach and perform at Foro Performatica. We also organize and curate periodic showings followed by dance parties, at the Woods Cooperative in Ridgewood, and in December 2018 at Nublu, a leading venue in the Lower East Side. We have organized forums of discussion, such as Where do I get my Tortillas? at Mayday Space, about tokenism in the arts, which ignited ideas for a second forum, in March 2019: Others Unite!, a forum to discuss the connections between social otherness and environmental injustice.
Dance ToThe People received the TRC NALAC Travel Award in 2017, and receives space from BAX Brooklyn Arts Exchange, Studio Maya, and Mayday Space. Most recently, it has come to run the administration of The Woods rehearsal and performance space, with a mission of supporting the performing arts community with low-cost space rental.