This September, West Harlem Art Fund, Visual Muze Storytelling Residency, and Katharine Pettit Creative present Uptown Pops — a dance series that will be performed in Nolan Park and Castle Williams on Governors Island. The works-in-progress are a part of a new interactive initiative designed to engage public audiences as they respond to developing dance. UNTITLED GIRL NARRATIVE is a three-act dance musical about three young people, “X”, “Y” and “Z”.
UNTITLED depicts their exploration of gender identity outside the binary, embracing their power and autonomy as BIPOC female-presenting persons, and follows their journey of self-discovery as they navigate childhood and adolescence in today’s America.
This work is significant in centering Black and Brown LGBTQ+ young people as protagonists and normalizing non-gender conforming and queer humans at the forefront of theatre and dance.
Katharine Pettit Creative – KPC is an extraordinary group of talented folx from across the LGBTQ+ spectrum, including many nationalities, creeds, and gender identities. KPC represents the world onstage, offering accessibility into the lives of these three young people “X”, “Y” and “Z”, allowing audiences a way in, enabling a path to empathy and conversation through the visceral art form of dance.
According to Director & Choreographer Katharine Pettit, “KPC continues to create platforms that center and celebrate LGBTQ+ youth, in particular the Black and Brown community, throughout the COVID-19 global pandemic. Now more than ever we believe keeping people connected is of the utmost importance.”
Katharine Pettit Creative (KPC) spotlights social injustices using the universal language of dance to change minds and open hearts through movement. KPC will share excerpts from UNTITLED GIRL NARRATIVE featuring their twelve company members, choreography by Katharine Pettit with musical composition by Logan Evan Thomas.
Savona Bailey-McClain, Executive Director of the West Harlem Art Fund and Co-Director of the Visual Muze Storytelling Residency & Retreat shared, “We are happy to help dancers during these difficult times with space and needed support. Governors Island is an oasis, a hidden gem where the arts can develop and thrive.”
Performance dates include Sunday, September 26th, on Governors Island, Nolan Park, 2PM EST, with the premiere of UNTITLED GIRL NARRATIVE in it’s entirety coming February 2022 to Episcopal Actors Guild, made possible through their Open Stage Space grant.
