About the Choreographer

Diana Movius is the Founder and Artistic Director of Moveius Contemporary Ballet and its flagship arts center, Dance Loft on 14. Movius’ choreographic works have been presented by the Kennedy Center, Atlas Performing Arts Center, Dance Place, and many more. Her works have also toured to New York and San Francisco to critical acclaim, and have been featured in the New York Times, Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, Reuters, and others. She trained at Charlotte Ballet with Patricia McBride and earned degrees in Anthropology and Dance at Stanford University. 

About the Organization

Moveius Contemporary Ballet: Moveius Contemporary Ballet’s mission is to catalyze new choreography in the Nation’s Capital and increase opportunities for dancers, audiences, and students to experience dance and the performing arts. Moveius Contemporary Ballet pushes the boundaries of ballet to speak to contemporary issues. The art of ballet and modern are used as a medium to invite thoughtful reflection.

Dance Loft on 14: Dance Loft on 14 is Moveius Contemporary Ballet’s school and flagship studios. Guided by the belief in dance as a powerful means for cultural and social transformation, their mission is to expand access to dance and the performing arts in Washington, DC. Dance Loft on 14 provides vital rehearsal and performance facilities and programs that catalyze artistic work and connect DC residents with the arts. They envision a city where local performing artists thrive, homegrown performances are regularly presented, and dance is accessible to a full range of audiences. Dance Loft offers a range of styles and levels of dance classes. Members of the public can also take ballet classes with Moveius’ dancers and artistic team at Dance Loft.

About the Performance:

Responding to the “Brilliant Exiles: American Woman in Paris: 1900-1939” exhibition, Moveius Contemporary Ballet returns to the National Portrait Gallery with a work in inspired by the talented and independent American women in Paris who were determined to move beyond the limitations that restricted them at home.

Atlantic Paradox, a world premiere commissioned by the National Portrait Gallery and choreographed by the museum's Choreographer in Residence, Diana Movius, draws inspiration from these exiles in Paris as they shed the constraints they faced as women in the United States. This piece will offer reflections on how these constraints and conformities of dress, occupation, and other societal limitations affected women’s ability to express their full, authentic selves - then and now.

PROGRAM

Atlantic Paradox

Choreographed by Diana Movius 

Music: Chopin, Nocturnes, Op. 9: No. 1 in B-Flat Minor and No. 4 in F Major

Performers: Carrie Denyer with Dominique Buckman, Salma Gonzalez, Emily Hashiguchi,  Emily Hester,  Sarach Macdonald, Reagan Raczynski, Tamar Reisner, and Maya Richards