AKIRA UCHIDA x The Playground NYC
Company:
The Playground NYC
AKIRA UCHIDA x The Playground NYC
Tuesday, 03/07 || 2:00-3:45PM, $6
Gibney Dance: Agnes Varis Performing Arts Center, 280 Broadway, NYC
Entrance 53A Chambers Street
The Playground NYC allows dancers to experience various choreographic styles and ideas, engage with a new community of dancers, and gather resourceful information and inspiration from the array of choreographers involved. In turn, established choreographers are paid for their creative investigations, are given free space to explore new movement with professional dancers, and are provided with the opportunity to establish relationships with new dancers and fellow choreographers.
Class Description:
In this class, you'll indulge in play and exploration, with the use of Akira's vast movement vocabulary and experimental improvisational tasks. In movement, Akira’s style is an eclectic fusion of forms and influences and is characterized by the use of flow, rhythm, groove, and a contrast between effortless qualities and extreme tension and resistance. He incorporates groove into his movement as a universal language of dance, and his work exhibits a strong influence of dance music culture. His teaching focuses on building awareness and finding power within the body, and using improvisational prompts to help you develop your unique voice within his movement aesthetic.
Bio:
Based in NYC, Ottawa born Akira Uchida is a dancer, choreographer, creative director and teacher whose practice shows an interest in how dance intersects with the mediums of film, animation, fashion and photography. As a recent example of this, in 2022 Akira collaborated with visual artist Tom Furse by creating AI choreography in a music video for HAAi and Jon Hopkins, documented by FACT Mag. In this same year Akira also worked on Puma’s Futrograde show as part of New York Fashion Week SS23. Most recently, Akira was commissioned to create a film in partnership with the Clyfford Still Museum in Denver, presented by NOWNESS. In addition to these recent creative milestones Akira has previously presented work at the Capezio Ace Awards, Fire Island Dance Festival and Battery Dance Festival, whilst he has worked with other music artists including Leon Vynehall, Photay, Ria Mae and Tyler Shaw. Outside of artistic and commercial achievements, Akira remains dedicated to inspiring the next generation through teaching and advocacy: he is currently a faculty member on JUMP Dance Convention and is a board member at Share The Movement, a non-profit dedicated to uplifting and providing opportunity to young BIPOC dancers.
PC: Lori Lyon
