February Dance Highlights: From TikTok Fame to Royal Ballet
February is a vibrant month for dance, offering a diverse range of performances across the United States and Canada. From the social media-fueled success of Cost n’ Mayor to the poignant resonance of Crystal Pite’s Flight Pattern, this month’s calendar presents a compelling array of styles and themes.
TikTok Stars Take the Stage: 11 to Midnight
Austin and Marideth Telenko, known professionally as Cost n’ Mayor, are bringing their dynamic energy from social media to the stage with 11 to Midnight. The couple’s fresh theatrical dance production, which premiered February 11th at the Orpheum Theatre in New York City, follows seven friends through a single hour on New Year’s Eve. Produced by Hideaway Circus in collaboration with Keone and Mari Madrid, and directed by Lyndsay Magid Aviner, the show runs through March 1st. Cost n’ Mayor gained prominence for their synchronized and energetic dance style, amassing a following of 3 million on Instagram.
Contemporary Explorations and U.S. Premieres
Hudson Hall and PS21: Center for Contemporary Performance in New York will host the U.S. Premiere of Sweat Variant’s my tongue is a blade, February 21–22. This durational work, featuring Okwoi Okpokwasili, Bria Bacon, Kris Lee, and AJ Wilmore, examines perception and memory. The festival likewise includes performances by Trisha Brown Dance Company and the premiere of LaJuné McMillian’s Constellations.
Feminist Themes and Resilience
Compagnie Virginie Brunelle makes its Philadelphia debut at Penn Live Arts with the U.S. Premiere of Fables, February 20–21. This dance-theater work explores women’s struggles against patriarchy and celebrates their resilience.
Spiritual and Classical Traditions
Chicago’s Mandala South Asian Performing Arts presents Śiva Bhāva: Love, Care, and the Cosmos, February 20–22, at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts. Created and performed by Anindita Anaam, Shruti Parthasarathy, and Misha Talapatra, the work blends bharatanatyam, kathak, and Odissi to explore the deity Shiva and the expression of love.
Fusion and Collaboration
New York City’s 92NY hosts the premiere of SPEAK, February 21, a collaboration between kathak artists Rachna Niwas and Rukhmani Mehta and tap stars Michelle Dorrance and Dormeshia. This performance closes the “What Flows Between Us” festival celebrating Indian classical dance and music.
New Voices and Established Companies
The Black Choreographers Festival: Here and Now kicks off at Dance Mission Theater in San Francisco, February 21–22 and February 28–March 1, showcasing new works by a diverse group of artists including Olutola Afolayan and Dazaun Soleyn.
International Collaboration and Social Commentary
The Los Angeles Philharmonic joins forces with Brazil’s Grupo Corpo, February 26–March 1, for a concert featuring Gabriela Ortiz’s diamond revolution, choreographed by Cassi Abranches and Rodrigo Pederneiras. The piece responds to the 2019 feminist uprising in Mexico against violence towards women.
Fashion and Femininity
French choreographer Leïla Ka’s Maldonne receives its North American debut at New York Live Arts, February 27–28, as part of the Van Cleef & Arpels Dance Reflections festival. The work features five dancers cycling through 40 dresses, exploring themes of femininity.
Resonance and Remembrance
The National Ballet of Canada presents Crystal Pite’s Flight Pattern, February 27–March 6, a work created in response to the refugee crisis. The performance is paired with Serge Lifar’s 1943 Suite in White.