Food & Culture
Playful, Heartfelt ‘A Dance For Dark Horses’ to Premiere at Velocity Dance Center
Seattle choreographer Kim Lusk's work riffs on a quirky cowboy lineage
By Gavin Borchert February 28, 2018
This article originally appeared in the March 2018 issue of Seattle Magazine.
This article appears in print in the March 2018 issue. Click here to subscribe.
Parody, ’90s pop beats and the combination of the two are often cited in descriptions of Seattle-based choreographer Kim Lusk’s work; it’s intriguing to imagine how these attributes might or might not tie in with her self-description as “descended from a hearty line of cowboys, homesteaders and mountaineers.”
More heart on her sleeve is her credo: “I make dances because I want people to feel things—good things, fun things, thoughtful things, heartbreaking things.”
It’s an approach that’s attracting attention. Lusk was recently an artist-in-residence at her alma mater, Bainbridge Dance Center, where she showed excerpts of a work then in-progress. Now, Velocity Dance Center premieres that piece, A Dance for Dark Horses, a Kickstarter-funded, evening-length work for four dancers, which Lusk calls “a story about the ultimate power of the unlikely winner,” with a little bit of “country giddy-up.”
3/8–3/11. 7:30 p.m. $15–$50. Velocity Dance Center, Capitol Hill, 1621 12th Ave.; 206.325.8773.
Follow Us
Delicate Dance for the Pacific Northwest Ballet
At PNB, the pandemic has brought on Zoom fittings and tight turnarounds.
It’s no secret that the pandemic has devastated arts organizations. A recent study by Seattle-based ArtsFund found that 73% of arts organizations throughout the region had laid off or furloughed employees because of Covid-19. Arts groups pivoted quickly, with 100% of respondents transitioning to digital programming. Pacific Northwest Ballet quickly shifted to a six-performance digital season….
Stories from Seattle: Dance Artist Kaitlin McCarthy on Coping with Coronavirus while Pregnant
"Dancing my way through the crowd, a spontaneous clapping and stomping erupted on the beat. One perfect moment of togetherness that, it turns out, may have been our last for a long while."
Kaitlin McCarthy dances with the audience of her show 'Gender Reveal Party: a dance show,' at Velocity Dance Center
