Setting The Stage 2020

"The Moving History of African-American Dance"

Kansas City and Topeka

Created, Choreographed and Directed by Tyrone Aiken

Thursday 27 February 2020
The GEM Theatre, 1615 E. 18th St. Kansas City, Missouri
Saturday 29 February 2020
Georgia Neese Gray Theatre at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas

Kansas City Friends of Alvin Ailey

This program is a set of slide presentations paired with corresponding choreographies based on the presentation subject.
These photos were taken in performance on two stages, The GEM in Kansas City, Missouri's "jazz district" and in the Georgia Neese Gray Theatre at Washburn University in Topeka, Kansas.

Shooting the second venue this year (Topeka) actually made it better for me in terms of still pictures.
There is no studio rehearsal and no dress rehearsal for me at which I can take stills (my preferred method) so I have to shoot stills at the same time I am shooting 4-camera (2 fixed) video during the performance with an audience, and I am in the middle of that audience. That means I miss a lot of pictures both because I have to jump back to video to make sure I am still in frame and because this is my first chance to see these pieces with these dancers this year. So, the performance at The GEM on Thursday gave me a bit of a leg up in knowing what to shoot by the time I got to the Saturday performance.

Warming up before the GEM show: Psalm Gadson (left) and Courtney Collado

The cast of dancers (in order of their solo/duet performances):
Abram Hawkins - Flowers Today (2020)
Courtney Collado - Let Me In (2020)
Psalm Gadson & Marcus Johnson - Bound (2020)
Kennedy Banks - In Transit (2019)
Christopher Peacock - Everyday (2017)

The full-cast start and finale pieces are:
Tryin to Get There (2020
Over and Over (2020)

Tryin' to Get There - Christopher Peacock, Abram Hawkins, Courtney Collado, Kennedy Banks, Psalm Gadson, Marcus Johnson

Flowers Today - Abram Hawkins

Let Me In - Courtney Collado

Bound - Psalm Gadson and Marcus Johnson

In Transit - Kennedy Banks

Everyday - Christopher Peacock

Over and Over - Courtney Collado, Abram Hawkins, Kennedy Banks, Christopher Peacock, Marcus Johnson, Psalm Gadson

After the show in Topeka: L-R - Tyrone Aiken, Courtney Collado, Abram Hawkins, Christopher Peacock, Kennedy Banks, Marcus Johnson, Psalm Gadson

Psalm Gadson in the dressing room at The GEM

Courtney Collado in the dressing room at The GEM

Bound - Psalm Gadson

After the show in Topeka at Washburn: Christopher Peacock, Psalm Gadson, Tyrone Aiken, Abram Hawkins, Kennedy Banks, Marcus Johnson

Let Me In - Courtney Collado

Everyday - Christopher Peacock

In Transit - Kennedy Banks

Tryin' To Get There - Christopher Peacock, Abram Hawkins (behind), Courtney Collado, Kennedy Banks, Psalm Gadson, Marcus Johnson

After the show in The GEM lobby - Chris Peacock surrounded by his students from Paseo Academy

Bound - Psalm Gadson, Marcus Johnson