History

Twenty Five Years of the Momentum Dance Company

Momentum Dance Company recently concluded its Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Season with over 60 performances in 2006-2007, and is one of the oldest and most established contemporary dance companies in the Southeastern U.S. The company was founded in 1982 by Artistic Director Delma Iles and has been in continuous operation since, giving over sixty performances a year including: concert seasons in South Florida, concert series for children in both Miami Beach and Coral Gables, educational programs in the schools, ongoing residencies at South Miami Middle School and R.R.Moton Elementary School, educational programs for adults, appearances at community events and festivals, special projects, and touring.

Momentum launches into its second quarter century with a wonderful season of activities for 2007-2008 including numerous educational performances for children, the Miami Beach Dance Festival, Florida touring under the aegis of the Florida Department of State’s Touring Program, a return performance at the National Dance Week New York Festival, and year two of the company’s exciting International Cultural Exchange Project with Ballet Contemporaneo de Oaxaca, based in Oaxaca, Mexico.

In 2004, Momentum co-founded the Miami Beach Dance Festival, which has included performances by soloists from the Martha Graham Dance Company (NYC), the Lula Washington Dance Company (Los Angeles), the National Dance Company of the Bahamas (Nassau) and Florida based companies Ballet Flamenco La Rosa, Florida Dance Theatre, the Dance Now! Ensemble, the Isadora Duncan Dance Company, as well as many independent dance artists. The Miami Beach Dance Festival is now a nationally recognized event spanning ten days and including dance films, master classes, lectures and workshops and diverse social events in locations throughout Miami Beach. In 2008 the Festival will feature the internationally acclaimed Ballet Hispanico (NYC), Ballet Contemporaneo de la Ciudad de Oaxaca (Mexico), Florida dance Theater (Lakeland, FL) plus local favorite Ballet Flamenco La Rosa in an innovative Flamenco/Irish step dancing World Premiere; and newcomer BrazzDance Theatre with its unique mix of Brazilian, Samba and Afro-Brazilian influenced work. Momentum is now the lead organization and sole producer of the Festival.

Momentum currently consists of eight dancers. The company’s repertory is extremely varied and features historic modern dance works by pioneers such as Doris Humphrey and Anna Sokolow, works by award-winning Artistic Director Delma Iles, including the highly acclaimed Sand Calendar, The Tyranny of Beauty, Requiem, and Birds Flying in Warped Time, works by newly appointed Associate Artistic Director Josee Garant, as well as dramatic, comic, and experimental works by many Florida choreographers. Momentum has been presented by the Florida Department of State on the Florida Touring Program since 1988, and was the first modern dance company ever appointed to the program. Momentum represented the U.S.A. at the Jose Limon Festival International in Culican, Mexico in 1995 where it was invited to perform one of its most successful works, Hot and Spicy – Duke Ellington’s Nutcracker, set to Ellington’s vibrant, witty score, and featuring art deco style costumes and scenery. This season Momentum tours to Oaxaca, Mexico through an International Cultural Exchange Project sponsored by the Florida Department of State and the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs.