Gay-helmed dance company to perform

(photo courtesy of Dana Tai Soon Burgess Dance Company)

Dance company Dana Tai Soon Burgess & Company, a prominent local gay-helmed dance outfit with several awards to its credit, performs a trio of works tonight and Saturday at Marvin Theatre on the George Washington University campus (800 21st St., N.W.).

The program includes “Charlie Chan and the Mystery of Life,” a work the troupe premiered last year that drew rave reviews. Burgess calls it a “coming-of-age story about realizing I am gay.”

“It’s the first time I’ve created a work so personal and I’m very excited to share it with audiences,” he says.

“America’s Cloud” is a dance commissioned by the Corcoran Gallery of Art to interact with a visual installation by artist Spencer Finch. It’s set to songs by Civil War-era composer Stephen Foster.

Burgess is chair of the theater and dance department at George Washington University. He’s gay and all the male dancers in the company are as well. The company recently visited Mongolia where they performed and worked with dancers there in a tour sponsored by the U.S. Embassy of Mongolia and the U.S. State Department.

Tickets are $25 for general admission and $17 for students. Call 202-994-1660 for more information.