COVID-19 Update from Zoetic Dance

Zoetic Dance

Mallory Lyles Baxley

Artistic Director

www.zoeticdance.org

“We officially postponed rehearsals for our summer 2020 programming at the end of February,” says Zoetic Dance artistic director Mallory Lyles Baxley. “Little did we know we would not be back in the studio for months.”

In April, Zoetic postponed its May 2020 dance festival and production, MIXTAPE, at Southwest Arts Center until November 2020. In July, MIXTAPE was officially canceled, although the company plans on presenting the festival in a virtual format later in 2020.

“All live performances and events for our organization have been canceled for the remainder of the year, and all initiatives will take place virtually,” Baxley says.

In May, Zoetic launched several virtual initiatives including the Distance Disco Project, a virtual film series open to movers and creators, which premiered via YouTube and Instagram TV (IGTV). The series showcased over 30 dance films from artists in Japan, the UK, New York, and across the globe. Zoetic also hosted a two-week virtual workshop featuring dance artists who were originally scheduled to teach and perform as part of MIXTAPE.

Zoetic recently announced a call to artists for the second Distance Disco Film Series, which will premiere in September 2020. The project will feature a virtual Artist Round Table featuring invited artists and community members in a discussion about making art during the COVID-19 pandemic. Later this year, Zoetic will premiere the virtual MIXTAPE 2020 Dance Festival, which will include virtual workshop classes open to the public and taught by MIXTAPE participating artists via Zoom.

“Our goal at Zoetic during this time is to continue offering opportunities for artists to create and to explore the potential of their art,” Baxley says. “We use art as a form of expression, a way to escape, and a means to feel connected to one another. As we look forward into an unknown future, we are hopeful that, during this time of uncertainty, we will come together and cultivate an era of curiosity and creativity.”