Salzburg’s SEAD Company Bodhi Project will be making its U.S. debut at thirty-fifth annual free Battery Dance Festival (photo by Bernhard Müller)
Robert F. Wagner Jr. Park, Battery Park City
20 Battery Pl.
August 14-20, free
batterydance.org
The thirty-fifth annual Battery Dance Festival takes place August 14 to 20, featuring more than thirty companies from around the world. Formerly known as the Downtown Dance Festival, the event is hosted by the New York City-based Battery Dance, which was founded by artistic director Jonathan Hollander in 1976. The festival will begin with a tribute to Iraqi dancer Adel Euro, who had been training with Battery Dance online before being killed in the July 3 suicide bombing in Karrada that took more than three hundred innocent lives; three of his Iraqi colleagues, refugees in America, will perform in his honor. Sunday’s lineup also includes Florida Dance Theatre, Joshua Beamish/Move: The Company, Razvan Stoian, XAOC Contemporary Ballet, and the U.S. debut of Zeynep Tanbay Dance Project from Istanbul. On Monday, the “Erasing Borders Festival of Indian Dance” consists of Avijit Das, Battery Dance, Carolina Prada, Pt. Krishan Mohan Mishra, Surabhi Bharadwaj, Sooraj Subramaniam, and Sumeet Nagdev Dance Arts. Tuesday brings together De Funes Dance, Jennifer Muller / The Works, Kilowatt Dance Theater, Shawnbibledanceco, and Zeynep Tanbay Dance Project. Wednesday features FJK Dance, Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, Obika Dance Projects, Steps Repertory Ensemble, and Te Ao Mana. On August 18, taking the stage will be DoubleTake Dance, the Martha Graham School, Maxine Steinman & Dancers, Robin Aren/TRAC, SEAD Company Bodhi Project from Salzburg making its U.S. debut, and Y + Y Dance. Friday comprises Amy Marshall Dance Company, Ballet Inc., Battery Dance, Buglisi Dance Theatre, Lori Belilove & the Isadora Duncan Dance Company, Thomas/Ortiz Dance, and Trainor Dance. The festival concludes indoors on August 20 at the Schimmel Center at Pace University with performances by Battery Dance, SEAD Comapany Bodhi Project, and Unnath H.R., along with a reception. In addition, there will be free workshops at 10:30 am on August 15 with Zeynep Tanbay Dance Project, August 16 with Razvan Stoian, August 18 with Battery Dance, and August 19 with SEAD Company Bodhi Project; advance RSVP is needed here.