Hot steps

>>Local talent at the Fringe, a festival
in Ottawa, dance destinations and more

NOT YOUR GARDEN VARIETY DANCERS: Throwing Gnomes

by MARITES CARINO

Instead of plunking yourself down in front of the tele to take in the Cancon version of So You Think You Can Dance, here are some picks for some real live dance to catch in these summer months.

June in Montreal means Fringe, and Fringe means dance with intriguing show titles like Throwing Gnomes and Barbie World.

Of the 10 acts, the focus is on local talent this year with fewer moves from abroad. One of the press releases that caught my eye was from an interdisciplinary artist from Toronto. Meagan O’Shea of Stand Up Dance performs Coffee for One, a solo choreography that uses improv and humour to talk about singledom.

What is now becoming a June landmark, the ever-popular Piss in the Pool contemporary dance event is back for its fourth year, but this time with a twist. Organizers decided to ditch the sound system for this unplugged edition of poolside dance experiments so artists have to get creative and provide their own soundscape. Will they sink or swim? Find out at Bain St.-Michel (5300 St.-Dominique) June 20–21.

If you’d rather dance, sashay over to Slow Dance Night where you can relive your high-school dance dream or disaster, all to a soundtrack of slows. If you get cracking now, you’ll have time to snag a date for the big night at the Academy Club (4445 St-Laurent) on June 20. It’s all happening at the Fringe. www.montrealfringe.ca

CHANNELLING BLACKBURN: Jeune Ballet du Québec

ROAD TRIP

If, for some reason, you still haven’t gotten your fill of dance at the FTA that just wrapped up, it’s not so far to the nation’s capital for the Canada Dance Festival that runs until June 15.

It’s a chance to preview works that haven’t yet come to Montreal like Provincial Essays by Lola MacLaughlin, a world premiere by former Ballet Frankfurt dancer Crystal Pite, and One Man’s…by the Vancouver-based Wen Wei Wang. The fest is also putting the spotlight on Montreal choreographer Marie Chouinard at an exhibit of photography and memorabilia dedicated to her 30-year career. Chouinard will launch the North American Premiere of the film bODY_rEMIX/gOLDBERG_vARIATIONS on June 12. www.canadadance.ca

Another choreography to be adapted for film is by choreographer Louis-Martin Charest, whose company LIBERAMAE combines dance, theatre and film. Blanche, his new work for six women, delves into the intimate, emotional lives of women of different time periods diagnosed with hysteria. The creation, which is the first in a triptych, will be performed to live music by the Quatuor de Montréal. It runs from June 12–15 at the Monument-National.

LOSING IT: Hanako Hoshimi-Caines rehearsing Blanche

PLAY IT AGAIN

Dance you may have missed during the year often returns at the Théâtre de Verdure. This summer, choreographer Ismaël Mouaraki presents his urban work LOOPS, which took inspiration from the metro (July 13), Zab Maboungou dances in Décompte (July 30) and Margie Gillis performs in a retrospective of works before she goes on tour (Aug. 6–7).

The Jeune Ballet du Québec presents an evening of works by Hélène Blackburn, Mario Radacovsky, Kristen Cere and François Chirpaz (July 23–24). www.ville.montreal.qc.ca/culture.

And capping off the dance activity, Agora de la danse is hosting a new summer dance event called Destinations: Danse. In its inaugural year, the fest will focus on Catalonia and feature contemporary choreographies by a quartet of veteran and emerging contemporary dance companies from Aug. 20–30. www.agoradanse.com