Arts & Entertainment
Two decades of dance
Gay-helmed company plans bevy of anniversary performances
Dana Tai Soon Burgess says building a foundation of donors who believe in his work has been essential to his success. (Photo courtesy DTSB)
The Dana Tai Soon Burgess dance company kicks off its 20th anniversary season next week with several performances.
On April 5-6, the outfit will perform several works over two nights at the Dorothy Betts Marvin Theatre (800 21st Street, NW) on the George Washington University campus.
Among the works are:
- “Becoming American” — which explores the experience of a Korean child uprooted from her birthplace when she is adopted by Caucasian American parents. The lead dancer is Katia Chupashko whose personal story is told in the work.
- “Hyphen” — which looks at the experience of being a “hyphenated” American (as in Korean-American). It features the full company.
- “Khaybet” — a solo dance performed by associate artistic director Connie Fink which depicts a woman at the end of her life. Burgess participated in a cultural exchange which led to the work in Pakistan.
- “Fractures” — a spare work depicting a love triangle to be performed by Yeonjin Cho, Kelly Southall and Sarah Halzack.
Tickets are $25 for general admission but discounts are available. Details are at dtsbco.com.
Burgess, who’s openly gay, says it’s exciting to see his eponymous company reach 20 years.
“Often we associate dance with being something very ephemeral and once it’s done, it’s gone, but it really attests to the staying power of our company and the work we do and the aesthetic we’ve developed to still be here,” he says. “Our community really supports us and that’s tantamount for an arts organization to feel we have a place and a home and we feel that.”
Though Burgess’s work isn’t LGBT specific, four of the 11 in his company are openly LGBT. While other gay arts companies, such as Ganymede Arts, have either closed or are struggling, how has Burgess kept going despite the tough economy?
“There are several ways an organization like ours can grow even within those confines,” he says. “When you’re producing work of high quality and individuals are really taken by that work, then they want to get involved if you ask them. If there’s enough of a structure in place for them to be a supporter and to feel part of an organization, they will. It’s a lot of work … you also have to realize ways to make even very specific themes, like this piece about being a Korean adoptee, reach out and have meaning to a larger group. There’s a universality that must reach out to all audience members so while they might think, ‘Wow, that’s specific, I’m not a Korean adoptee,’ it still says something about diversity and inclusion and they can feel an empathy and beauty in the work they can relate to … there are lots of approaches you can take to make niche work successful.”
When Burgess, who grew up in an art-rich household in Santa Fe, started the company just two years after moving to Washington, there were just seven dancers working mostly on a volunteer basis. The company now has a different structure altogether and Burgess, who last danced himself in about 2008, works full time in the field; he also teaches dance at George Washington.
He says he doesn’t particularly miss performing himself because in his coaching he’s “constantly moving.”
“I feel completely connected to the field in a way that’s perhaps more three dimensional than it was 20 years ago,” he says.
The group also plans a May 18 anniversary performance at the National Portrait Gallery, a spring tour of the Middle East sponsored by the U.S. State Department, a September perfornance also at the Marvin Theatre with other works including the gay-themed “Charlie Chan and the Mystery of Love,” and a private reception for donors at the Arts Club of Washington.
The Washington Post once called Burgess the region’s “leading dance artist, consistently following his own path and producing distinctive, well-considered works.”
Celebrity News
Brazilian police arrest two men who allegedly targeted Lady Gaga concert
Authorities say suspects wanted to target LGBTQ Brazilians
Brazilian police have arrested two people who allegedly sought to detonate explosives at a free Lady Gaga concert that took place on Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana Beach on Saturday.
The Associated Press reported Felipe Curi, a spokesperson for the city’s Civil Police, told reporters the men who authorities arrested hours before the concert took place wanted to target LGBTQ Brazilians. Civil Police Chief Luiz Lima said the men posted hate speech and violent content online “aimed at gaining notoriety in order to attract more viewers, more participants — most of them teenagers, many of them children.”
“They were clearly saying that they were planning an attack at Lady Gaga’s concert motivated by sexual orientation,” said Cury, according to the AP.
An estimated 2.5 million people attended the concert.
A Lady Gaga spokesperson told the AP the singer learned about the threats on Sunday from media reports.
“Prior to and during the show, there were no known safety concerns, nor any communication from the police or authorities to Lady Gaga regarding any potential risks,” said the spokesperson. “Her team worked closely with law enforcement throughout the planning and execution of the concert and all parties were confident in the safety measures in place.”
Lady Gaga in an Instagram post thanked her Brazilian fans.
“Nothing could prepare me for the feeling I had during last night’s show — the absolute pride and joy I felt singing for the people of Brazil,” she wrote. “The sight of the crowd during my opening songs took my breath away. Your heart shines so bright, your culture is so vibrant and special, I hope you know how grateful I am to have shared this historical moment with you.”
“An estimated 2.5 million people came to see me sing, the biggest crowd for any woman in history. I wish I could share this feeling with the whole world — I know I can’t, but I can say this — if you lose your way, you can find your way back if you believe in yourself and work hard,” added Lady Gaga. “You can give yourself dignity by rehearsing your passion and your craft, pushing yourself to new heights — you can lift yourself up even if it takes some time. Thank you Rio for waiting for me to come back. Thank you little monsters all over the world. I love you. I will never forget this moment. Paws up little monsters. Obrigada. Love, Mother Monster.”
An estimated 1.6 million people attended Madonna’s free concert on Copacabana Beach last May.
Books
A boy-meets-boy, family-mess story with heat
New book offers a stunning, satisfying love story
‘When the Harvest Comes’
By Denne Michele Norris
c.2025, Random House
$28/304 pages
Happy is the bride the sun shines on.
Of all the clichés that exist about weddings, that’s the one that seems to make you smile the most. Just invoking good weather and bright sunshine feels like a cosmic blessing on the newlyweds and their future. It’s a happy omen for bride and groom or, as in the new book “When the Harvest Comes” by Denne Michele Norris, for groom and groom.
Davis Freeman never thought he could love or be loved like this.
He was wildly, wholeheartedly, mind-and-soul smitten with Everett Caldwell, and life was everything that Davis ever wanted. He was a successful symphony musician in New York. They had an apartment they enjoyed and friends they cherished. Now it was their wedding day, a day Davis had planned with the man he adored, the details almost down to the stitches in their attire. He’d even purchased a gorgeous wedding gown that he’d never risk wearing.
He knew that Everett’s family loved him a lot, but Davis didn’t dare tickle the fates with a white dress on their big day. Everett’s dad, just like Davis’s own father, had considerable reservations about his son marrying another man – although Everett’s father seemed to have come to terms with his son’s bisexuality. Davis’s father, whom Davis called the Reverend, never would. Years ago, father and son had a falling-out that destroyed any chance of peace between Davis and his dad; in fact, the door slammed shut to any reconciliation.
But Davis tried not to think about that. Not on his wedding day. Not, unbeknownst to him, as the Reverend was rushing toward the wedding venue, uninvited but not unrepentant. Not when there was an accident and the Reverend was killed, miles away and during the nuptials.
Davis didn’t know that, of course, as he was marrying the love of his life. Neither did Everett, who had familial problems of his own, including homophobic family members who tried (but failed) to pretend otherwise.
Happy is the groom the sun shines on. But when the storm comes, it can be impossible to remain sunny.
What can be said about “When the Harvest Comes?” It’s a romance with a bit of ghost-pepper-like heat that’s not there for the mere sake of titillation. It’s filled with drama, intrigue, hate, characters you want to just slap, and some in bad need of a hug.
In short, this book is quite stunning.
Author Denne Michele Norris offers a love story that’s everything you want in this genre, including partners you genuinely want to get to know, in situations that are real. This is done by putting readers inside the characters’ minds, letting Davis and Everett themselves explain why they acted as they did, mistakes and all. Don’t be surprised if you have to read the last few pages twice to best enjoy how things end. You won’t be sorry.
If you want a complicated, boy-meets-boy, family-mess kind of book with occasional heat, “When the Harvest Comes” is your book. Truly, this novel shines.
The Blade may receive commissions from qualifying purchases made via this post.
The Victory Fund held its National Champagne Brunch at the Ritz-Carlton on Sunday, April 27. Speakers included Tim Gunn, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Gov. Wes Moore (D-Md.), Rep. Sarah McBride (D-Del.), Rep. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) and Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.).
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)
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