Dancers Jose Brooks and Jenny Hegarty featured in Dance NOW Miami's "Bridges NOT Walls," performing at the Aventura Art & Culture Center on Sunday, March 15. (Photo Credit Simon Soong)
Nearly a decade after its debut, an emotional journey returns to the stage.
Dance NOW! brings back its 2017 work “Bridges NOT Walls,” alongside the world premiere of the company's co-founder and choreographer Hannah Baumgarten’s new piece, “1933."
Program II will be presented at 7 p.m. Sunday, March 15, at Aventura Arts & Cultural Center.
Originally created during a moment of global debate about immigration and national identity, “Bridges NOT Walls” explores themes of migration and human connection through contemporary dance.
Nearly ten years later, Baumgarten says the work is newly urgent.
“A million things feel different,” she says. “We really thought that this message had been heard. But now the political climate is one where individuals are being pitted against each other.”
She notes that the shifting social and political landscape has made the piece’s message about unity and communication even more relevant today.
Dance NOW! Miami performance of "Strings of Goodbye" with dancers Shellie Cash, Diego Salterini. (Photo Credit by Jenny Abreu)
“We are compelled to share our perspective,” Baumgarten says. “It’s about acknowledging that we have differences, but hoping that what unites us is greater than what divides us.”
"Bridges NOT Walls!," choreographed by Baumgarten and fellow artistic director Diego Salterini, the work combines movement with original video art by South Florida-based artist Francisco Javier Moraga Escalona and features a musical audio track.
“We thought that this idea of the piece we were going to create, while inspired by what was happening at the time, was also a universal message that would stand the test of time,” says Salterini.
The work has evolved since its Miami premiere through performances and ongoing creative development.
“As a general rule, when we bring back a work, we almost always change something about it. Not only because the moment has changed, but also because we want our performing artists to feel ownership of the work,” Baumgarten says.
Alongside “Bridges NOT Walls,” Program II will introduce Baumgarten’s newest choreography, “1933.” The cabaret-inspired piece follows a group of performers confronting the rise of fascism during the year Adolf Hitler came to power in Nazi Germany.
Baumgarten explains that the narrative draws from her own experience as the daughter of Holocaust refugees. Her father was born prematurely amid the tension of fleeing the Nazis, a circumstance that has shaped her life. Rather than focusing on political leaders, the piece centers on artists who must decide how to respond to the changes unfolding around them.
“It is a troupe of performers who see things changing around them and have to decide how they want to respond,” Baumgarten says. “You will see them both on stage, and behind the scenes. You will have a sense of their journey and the consequences of their journey.”
For her, the work raises a broader question about the role of artists during moments of political tension.
“Artists, like everyone else, are faced with the question: 'What are you willing to do, and how much risk are you willing to take?' ”
Dance NOW! Miami's ensemble during "Bridges NOT Walls." (Photo Credit by Simon Soong)
With “1933,” Baumgarten invites the audience to draw their own conclusions about the parallels between that era and today. The piece features historic audio spanning 1933, 1938, and 2026, creating a more immersive experience for the audience.
“(Diego) stepped in to introduce some of this archival audio, and it was clear that he was helping me move the work in the direction it needed to go,” she says.
This interrogation of responsibility and choice reflects a long tradition within modern dance, which Baumgarten notes has always been closely tied to the human experience.
“Modern and contemporary dance mirrors what is happening in society,” she explains. “It’s not just to entertain or be beautiful and athletic, it always has a human component. It captures the dilemmas, the courage and the risks that define our lives.”
Both Baumgarten and Salterini help to explain the importance of this production in Miami. Not only has the city been shaped by immigrants, but its melting pot of cultures creates an environment that breeds a new form of creativity.
When Salterini moved from Italy to the United States in 1997, he says Miami was the city that drew him in.
“I chose this country for what it represented, for what it could be. Specifically Miami, this city is really a crossroads of different cultures, different things coming together, living together, side by side.”
Dance NOW! Miami Bridges NOT Walls Kirsten Velasco and Ensemble. (Photo Credit Simon Soong)
The evening’s program will also feature Salterini’s duet “Strings of Goodbye” and “Forest Dreams” by West Coast choreographer Tandy Beal, as part of the company’s Masterpiece in Motion series.
DanceNOW was founded over two decades ago; Salterini shares what he believes has helped the company endure.
“We want to always offer a program with something for everyone,” Salterini says. “That is what has, I believe, given the longevity to our company, the fact that the audience will come and will always experience a very varied program.”
While the program is packed with social commentary, Baumgarten also highlights the emotional balance: “Even if we take audiences to difficult places, we want them to leave feeling uplifted.”
IF YOU GO
WHAT: Dance NOW! Program II Featuring "Bridges NOT Walls” and other works.WHEN: 7 p.m., Sunday, March 15
WHERE: Aventura Arts & Cultural Center, 3385 Northeast 188th St., Aventura
TICKETS: $25.96, $37.76, $49.56 (includes fees before taxes); $20, students with a valid ID at box office.
INFORMATION: dancenowmiami.org
