Cleveland Public Theater's Executive Artistic Director Raymond Bobgan is proud to present DanceWorks 2015, an annual showcase of contemporary dance. DanceWorks 2015 features six dance companies from the Northeast Ohio region, including Inlet Dance Theatre, MorrisonDance, The Movement Project, Ohio Dance Theatre, Cleveland Dance Exchange and Verb Ballets. Six companies premiere new work and revive popular performances, presented as single or double bills over 4 weekends.

The DanceWorks 2015 festival will conclude with a special guest production of The Neighbor's Grief is Greener by The Visual Theatre of Emanuella Amichai, on tour from Israel and presented in partnership with the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, May 1-3. The complete lineup is below:

Week 1: April 2-4 (DOUBLE BILL)
MorrisonDance
Compulsion to Move: ZUGZWANG
An eclectic group of movers shares a variety of dances that use metaphor and humor to explore the dynamic contrast between "moving" and "allowing." Described as "zany" and "endearing" by The Plain Dealer, MorrisonDance will "move" you through the dilemma of ZUGZWANG: The compulsion to move!

The Movement Project
All together now…
In their new work, All together now, The Movement Project investigates an oversized world of "Cat's Cradle" that challenges the physical limits of the human body and explores the concepts of weight and risk, while suspended in space. This highly collaborative work features multiple Cleveland artists and designers through set, lighting, sound, video and multimedia design.

Week 2: April 9 – 11 (DOUBLE BILL)
Ohio Dance Theatre
Blood Stripe
Ohio Dance Theatre will present the premiere of Blood Stripe, inspired by the story of an OIF/OEF Marine and his family, in honor of veterans suffering from PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). A second work, Construct, is a densely layered solo work partly inspired by Susan Sontag's monograph "Illness as Metaphor."

Cleveland Dance Exchange (CDX)
Top 10
Ten Cleveland choreographers. Ten original dance works. Ten Billboard Hot 100 hits. Which hits? You choose. Audience members will vote to determine which songs will be played each night. 1960s? 1980s? 2000s? You decide.

Week 3: April 16–18
Verb Ballets
Verb Ballets' Spring Series
Verb Ballets' Spring Series will feature two tales of love and agony. Carmen: The Story of Passion reinterprets the timeless tale with choreography by Associate Director, Richard Dickinson, and a second work, Laura's Women, is inspired by the music and life of blues singer, Laura Nyro. Critically-acclaimed Verb Ballets "dashes preconceptions…with keen dramatic power." – The Plain Dealer

Week 4: April 23– 25
Inlet Dance Theatre
Four Elements
Inlet Dance Theatre premieres Four Elements, a work the company has been building for the last three years, inspired by business author Laurie Beth Jones' book, The Four Elements of Success, which looks at the four elements as personality profiles. Inlet will also premiere work collaboratively created with international artist Mihaela Kavdanska, in partnership with the Cleveland Foundation's Creative Fusion International Artist Exchange.

SPECIAL EVENT – International Dance-Theatre troupe on tour from Israel
The Neighbor's Grief is Greener
The Visual Theatre of Emanuella Amichai (on tour from Israel)

May 1 – 3 :: Shows Friday and Saturday at 7:30pm :: Sunday matinee at 3:00pm

In partnership with the Jewish Federation of Cleveland, CPT presents The Visual Theatre of Emanuella Amichai, on tour from Israel. Critically-acclaimed The Neighbor's Grief is Greener is a macabre visual performance that takes place in the sterile and static setting of an archetypal suburban kitchen, merging physical theatre and contemporary dance with striking theatrical design that has wowed audiences and critics around the world. Tickets: $28

Ticket & Show Information

DanceWorks 2015 performances are Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 7:30pm in CPT's Gordon Square Theatre, 6415 Detroit Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44102.

The Visual Theatre of Emanuella Amichai's The Neighbor's Grief is Greener performances are Friday-Sunday. Friday and Saturday shows are at 7:30pm, with a Sunday matinee at 3:00pm. Tickets are $28.

Tickets are $12 – $28. Take advantage of $12 tickets for Thursday shows. Student and Senior discounts ($3 off) are available for Friday and Saturday performances.

Every Friday is FREE BEER FRIDAY at CPT. Audience members are invited to mingle with the artists after the show and enjoy a drink or two on CPT.

Tickets are available for purchase at www.cptonline.org or by phone at (216) 631-2727 x 501.

Photo © & courtesy of Cathleen O'Malley