7 May 11-17, 2023 miaminewtimes.com | browardpalmbeach.com New Times | Contents | Letters | news | night+Day | CuLture | Cafe | MusiC | Weekly classes beginning June 12th, Monday – Friday, 9am – 2pm A hands-on cooking camp taught by Biltmore chef instructors with special workshops by our acclaimed hotel chefs. The weeklong sessions are open to children ages 9-16. Students are grouped by age and work in our fully equipped, professional kitchen. Class size is limited to 14 participants. For More Information, Please Call 305.913.3131 or Visit: www.biltmorehotel.com/dining/biltmore-culinary-academy/ C M Y CM MY CY CMY K BH_CulinaryAdF.pdf 1 5/8/23 4:55 PM miaminewtimes.com MIAMI NEW TIMES | CONTENTS | LETTERS | RIPTIDE | METRO | NIGHT+DAY | STAGE | ART | FILM | CAFE | MUSIC | two nights in a row, my performance will be completely refreshed and overhauled each time within the same framework,” they say. Carlos Fabián, a multidisciplinary artist, actor, director, and creative producer from Caracas, will present new work featuring two actors — Fabián and Miami singer and move- ment artist Gaiya — in a series of vignettes that question the current technocultural cli- mate and our subsequent challenges to find moments of presence. “Towards Now is a multidisciplinary perfor- mance that explores notions of presence within the current global landscape of virtuality, fic- tionality, delusion, and mass communication,” he says. “It asks, what are our relationships with the things we perceive to be our reality: our re- lationships, our technologies? When a baby cries, its mother gives it an iPad. When I’m un- comfortable, I pull out my phone. It’s getting harder to be present because the world is get- ting tougher. This piece is about how to remain present in this world right here.” Born in Miami and a graduate of the Juil- liard School who danced with the Ailey II company, Gentry George is a faculty member in ballet, composition, and choreography at Miami Dade College’s New World School of the Arts. For Here & Now, George will debut Afro Blue, featuring seven dancers swaying to the rhythms of American jazz vocalist Abbey Lincoln and Cuban percussionist Mongo San- tamaria, both of whom released versions of the jazz standard “Afro Blue.” George says this performance exemplifies the truth of life: it’s both a celebration and an experience of loss. “A lot of this material was created during the pandemic lockdown. It begins with a female solo number in which she’s mourning the loss of her husband or perhaps her son. We’ve all ex- perienced that sensation of loss and isolation,” George says. “Another number, ‘Brother, Where Are You,’ is a tragic, longing song. Growing up, I always wanted to make this piece for my father in reflection of the loss of his brother. Toward the end of the song, one male dancer lifts the other in the air. It’s quite moving, the simplicity and passion of this moment.” Darius V. Daughtry is a South Florida-born poet, playwright, director, and educator whose new work, Reverie in Black, utilizes theater, spoken-word poetry, and music to exemplify the duality of life experienced by many Americans. “I like to explore issues that are going to connect to and touch people right where they are. I deal with concepts of racism, discrimi- nation, and what that feels like,” he says. “I’m also intentional about playing in a field of joy, and I believe joy and resilience are revolu- tionary practices. This work has heavy mo- ments, but they are moments that exist in this eternal search and longing for joy, for that reverie in life.” Daughtry will be joined onstage by an en- semble whose makeup has perhaps never been seen at the club nor the performing arts center: upright bassist Portia Dunkley and DJ Rickyy. As the founder and artistic director of Art Prevails Project, Daughtry aims to culti- vate community and equitable access to the arts through performance and arts education, a mission not unlike the one Miami Light Proj- ect has furthered over the past two and a half decades of presenting Here & Now. Daughtry says he hopes Here & Now audiences end the weekend with openness, emotionality, and the sense that they, too, were critical parts of the performances they witnessed. “Whether it’s work I’m performing or work I’ve written or directed, I want to create a bond with the audience. When there’s trust, you’re more open to receive whatever’s happening. When I’m performing, I create that trust by being as vulnerable and open as I can be in that space. The audience is getting reality and truth at that moment. If I’m open, hopefully, they’re willing to be open, too, in their own ways,” he says. “I love when people cry when the work pricks something in them. I don’t think crying is bad at all. It’s a beautiful thing that means you have been moved and you’re human. When that happens, I feel like I’ve accomplished being a bridge to their humanity.” Here & Now 2023. 8 p.m. Thursday, May 11, through Saturday, May 13, at Miami Theater Center, 9806 NE Second Ave., Miami Shores; 305-751-9550; miamilightproject.com. Tickets are $20 to $25. [email protected] Carlos Fabián Gentry George will debut Afro Blue, a dance performance accompanied by music from jazz vocalist Abbey Lincoln and percussionist Mongo Santamaria. 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