JazzAntiqua Dance & Music Ensemble

About JazzAntiqua

...a few troupes like JazzAntiqua are premised on live music, with the interaction and ongoing relationship between the dancers and a music ensemble a defining element of their brand of dance. - Los Angeles Weekly

Mission

Jazz is an American phenomenon. In performances, classes and special presentations, the 15-member JazzAntiqua Dance & Music Ensemble celebrates the African American roots of the jazz tradition as part
of the American experience. JazzAntiqua's mission is to increase awareness of and appreciation for jazz
as an American legacy through collaborative dance and music projects that educate and inspire as well as entertain.

History

Co-founded in 1993 by choreographer Pat Taylor and musician/composer Marcus Shelby. JazzAntiqua has received grant awards from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles County Arts Commission, Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department, Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE) and most recently from the Doolittle Foundation.

Among the many venues JazzAntiqua has performed at are: the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion, Luckman Fine Arts Complex, California Plaza, Alex Theatre, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Japan America Theatre, California African American Museum, Claremont and Moorpark Colleges, Los Angeles Theatre Center, Highways Performance Space, Watts Towers Jazz Festival, Japan America Theatre and The Jazz Bakery.

Repertory

JazzAntiqua's original jazz-ballets are a unique style of jazz theatre that blends music, dance, poetry and song with a distinctive historical perspective.

Works in the repertory include: MIDTOWN SUNSET (1993), a blending of the collage art of Romare Bearden with the poetry of Langston Hughes; ODYSSEUS SUITE (1996), a contemporary re-telling of the epic Greek poem "The Odyssey;" THE BALLAD OF JOSH GIBSON (1997), a look at the legacy of the Negro Baseball League; IN THE BEGINNING (1998), a tracing of the oral tradition at the heart of blues music; TO DUKE, WITH LOVE (1999) a tribute to the musical magic of Duke Ellington; BIG TRAIN (2002), a journey along the 'blues highway' - following the Black migration from the rural South to the urban North; A LOVE SUPREME (2004), set to the music of John Coltrane; and LIVING WATER (2005), a collaboration with vocalist Dwight Trible.

Outreach

JazzAntiqua is dedicated to community outreach and presents a variety of activities through its ongoing program THE ART OF JAZZ. Activities include lecture-demonstrations, workshops and master classes, mentorship programs and free performances. JazzAntiqua's studio THE DANCE COLLECTIVE in Leimert Park Village provides low cost classes and affordable rental space to dancers of all ages.