Perseverance Shorts Program

Purchase a ticket to Perseverance Shorts Program featuring Firebird Rising and automatically be entered into a giveaway for a virtual or in-person AfroDance Performance Workshop with Cumbe Dance! 

Los Perros del Barrio Colosal (The Dogs of the Colossal Neighborhood)
New York Premiere
Drew L. Brown, Omar Román De Jesús, 2021, USA, 12m
Through the exaggerated mannerisms of daytime television, the six characters of Los Perros del Barrio Colosal take us on a wild romp through the challenges of creative decision-making. Diving dramatically into the adventure of an imagination yet to be physicalized, they ask us to consider the far side of the moments when our ideas threaten, with disjointed urgency, to swallow us whole. Los Perros del Barrio Colosal was co-directed by Student Academy Award–winning filmmaker Drew L. Brown and Omar Román De Jesús, Artistic Director of New York City–based dance company Boca Tuya.

Firebird Rising
David Roseberry, 2021, USA, 18m
Directed by David Roseberry, Firebird Rising documents Memphis-based Collage Dance Collective’s painstaking commitment to creating and presenting choreographer Kevin Thomas’s latest work amid uncertain times. In this film, an iconic classical ballet is reenvisioned to affirm the beauty and power of women from the African diaspora. Set in an enchanted jungle, Kevin Thomas’s Firebird explores moments of magic, love, and redemption through new and refreshing choreography. With social unrest, a global pandemic, and the shuttering of nearly every performing arts organization, Collage Dance—composed of professional company dancers, artistic leadership, and a production crew—deepened their trust and faith in one another. In the “Collage bubble,” this unified group of individual artists created a masterpiece in one of the most difficult times in modern history.

OMEN
New York Premiere
Blake McCord, Justin Clifton, Harlan Taney, 2021, USA, 27m
Through dance and movement, OMEN tells the story of one woman’s exploration of bravery and perseverance, intimately following her as she takes risks and overcomes fears. The film tells the story of our shared interdependence, and the beauty of surrendering to the unknown. OMEN was shot in the Grand Canyon National Park by award-winning filmmakers Harlan Taney, Justin Clifton, and Blake McCord of Sandcast Media. Devised by the groundbreaking Dark Sky Aerial Company, OMEN is a 10-minute dance film with a 17-minute companion documentary created by Firewatch Media.

Places, Please
North American Premiere
Reed Luplau, 2020, USA, 20m
Eight artists meet in a support group to discuss how the COVID-19 shutdown has affected their lives and livelihood. Blending live-theatre and cinematic techniques, the film offers its audience an intimate look into the minds, passions, and struggles of our creators during these unprecedented times. The artists’ journey is a reflection of the human experience, and Places, Please is a theatrical representation of a generation surviving in a global pandemic.