Dance Place is happy to announce our 2018 New Releases commission recipient, Jamal Abrams.
Dance Place, in partnership with co-commissioning organization Dance Metro DC, will support the creation of a new work by Jamal which will premiere in next year’s New Releases concert. In addition to a $1,500 commissioning fee, Jamal will receive 30 hours of pro-bono rehearsal space and a scholarship to Dance Place’s fall Fieldwork session to further his choreographic research.
Born in Baltimore, MD, Jamal Abrams studied at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. While training, he had the opportunity to tour Europe with a selected group of students, and worked with artists including Doug Varone, Netta Yerushalmy, Andrea Miller, and Mark Caserta.
Jamal’s work THIS was curated into Dance Place’s 2018 New Releases Showcase by adjudicators Kahina Haynes (Executive Director, Dance Institute of Washington), Ben Levine (Director of Production, Dance Place) and Laura Schandelmeier (Co-Artistic Director, Dance Box Theater). Other performances in the 2018 New Releases showcase included Ronya-Lee Anderson (Ritual); Sylvana Christopher and Maggie Lockhart (Then She Fell); Gabriel Mata (Boundless Trajectory); and 2017 New Releases Commission recipient, Tariq O’Meally (Whatever Happened to Halle Berry). Dance Place and Dance Metro DC offer heartfelt congratulations to all participating choreographers on their contributions to this year’s concert.
The selection of Jamal Abrams as this year’s New Releases Commission Recipient is based on the adjudicators feedback. The final decision was made by Dance Place Executive Artistic Director Christopher K. Morgan. The decision took into account the work as seen during the 2018 New Releases concert and how it fit into Dance Place’s 2018-2019 curatorial vision. You can read more about our curatorial vision here.
Dance Place is grateful to Dance Metro DC for its partnership, and to all of the 2018 New Releases choreographers for their participation.