The visionary choreographer Daniel Phoenix Singh is returning to Reston CenterStage with a premiere of his newest dance theater work, “Persistent Voices.” Singh is known for crossing cultural and artistic boundaries in his dance works. He wants his works to communicate to an audience as “a vehicle for social change and community development.”
Singh’s new dance theater work “Persistent Voices” will explore the effect of AIDS. He was inspired by an anthology of poems entitled “Persistent Voices: Poetry by Writers Lost to AIDS” that he heard at a reading several years ago with Philip Clark co-editor of the book who is a Northern Virginia resident.
After he heard the poetry at the reading, Singh noted that he “was immediately drawn to the power of the words to take us to a place and time in the history of the LGBT community.”
“Persistent Voices” will celebrate “the lives and creativity” of eight D.C. area poets whose works are included in the anthology. “I hope the dance theater work will continue to honor and memorialize the work and lives of these poets,” said Singh.
Asked about the dance style for the performance of “Persistent Voices,” Singh indicated, “I am trying to find the right balance between the lush beautiful words and working on finding a way to shade in colors in the spaces the words open for us without weighing the words down…the sounds of the words and the movement get equal play.”
The music will create an arc for the performance. “Most of the music came from different movie soundtracks, and are mostly instrumental. I've also used a few tracks with voices in them but deliberately chose them in other languages so that they don't compete with the beautiful poetry you will be hearing during the performance,” added Singh.
Singh hopes that “the performance serves as a catalyst to spark dialogues around our emotional, physical, and sexual health in candid and supportive ways. Often the language around health is scientific and de-emotionalized. I know that the anthology gave me a way to feel and be in the experience and I hope the dance can live up to the magic of the words in letting people find an emotional connection”.
The CenterStage performance will also include excerpts showcasing Singh's modern choreography along with the expressive grace and sculptured look of classical Indian dance, including a performance by dancer Sudha Radhakrishnan.