Anne Bluethenthal and Dancers
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ABD has a long history of Community Arts Practice, Community partnership, and art-making that arises from communities of spirit. In addition to the formal performances, festivals, concerts, artistic collaborations, and benefit performances, ABD has consistently combined their artistic work with community partnerships around issues of social justice and global politics. Bluethenthal's community arts projects ranged widely and include work with:
- Palestinian and Jewish artists/activists
- Breast Cancer organizations
- Young women and girls
- Women with HIV o Women on issues of gender based violence
- Organizations working on valuing women's work.
Borrowing from words by Celeste Miller and Arlene Goldbard, we believe that Community Arts Practice is based on the understanding that cultural meaning, expression, and creativity reside within a community and that the artist is an integral part of community life.
October 31, 2008, San Francisco
Working in coalition with choreographer/activist Krissy Keefer (Dance Brigade), women's spirituality activist, Vicki Noble, eco-feminist luminary, Starhawk, and many other representatives from the local women's community, ABD was blessed to be a co-conspirator in this wild and wonderful gathering of women dancing in the streets. In the style of the recent film, Mama Mia, a glorious dancing crowd of 350+ women danced through the streets of San Francisco's Mission district, gathering in Mission Playground for various performances, rituals, oracles, and further dancing.
Cariño: Economy of the Heart, March 2008, San Francisco
During the creation of Cariño, ABD worked in partnership with OASIS for Girls, a San Francisco organization that works with young women and girls around issues of empowerment, social justice, and art. During the creation of Cariño, ABD dancers worked with a group of eight young women to develop a performance piece that dealt with women’s empowerment, and transformation of conflict and violence to nurturing and caring for the world / community. Using original text, movement, and theater developed by the group, the young women performed their theater-dance work at all performances of Cariño and also made central appearances in the main stage dance work. http://www.sfoasis.org/
Unsing the Song March 2006, San Francisco
During the creation of this multi-discipline work on the subject of genocide, ABD worked in collaboration with numerous organizations dedicated to issues of HIV treatment, counseling, and prevention; gender-based violence; post genocidal Rwandan women survivors; and genocide awareness and education. Among the organizations were WEACTx, WORLD, SURF, and Facing History as Ourselves.
Alongside Bluethenthal’s choreography was a mini-play developed in conjunction with WEACTx, Rwandan women survivors, WORLD, and ABD, using survivor stories performed by local women actors and HIV+ women.
Tears of Rock, September, 2001-2002, San Francisco
This groundbreaking work premiered only ten days after the events of September 11, 2001. During the year prior, Bluethenthal convened a group of Palestinian and Jewish artists to discuss collaboration on this tender and divisive issue of Palestine – Israel. The group met and talked for several months before studio work began. Artists shared personal stories, artistic ideas, concerns and experiences. The work involved a weaving of Palestinian and Israeli folk dance with modern dance, Hebrew and Arabic chanting, Jewish-American voices, Arab-American drumming, and a set, which combined images from the Western Wall (Wailing Wall) and the Dome of the Rock.
Keeping A Breast, 2000, San Francisco
While creating a dance investigation of the breast, it’s symbolism, its historic meaning, its function, and its poetry, Bluethenthal created partnerships with various organizations including Global Women’s Strike and Wages for Housework working on issues of valuing women’s work nationally and international, counting unwaged labor in national domestic product reports, and on women’s rights to nurse.
Yucatan Blue, 1999, San Francisco
Dedicated to the memory of Bluethenthal’s dear friend, Dr. Marcy Olmsted, Yucatan Blue was presented in partnership with the Breast Cancer Fund and Charlotte Maxwell Clinic. Sound score, composed by Marc Ream, put Olmsted’s poetry to lyric.
ABD Productions is dedicated to activism in the arts. As ticket sales only cover 30% of our costs, we appreciate donations from individuals. All donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.