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Discount Tickets to American Dance Festival

Tickets on sale for Durham performances June 11 to July 25

The American Dance Festival is bringing about 60 performances to the Durham area this summer, including (starting from top left, clockwise) Shen Wei Dance Arts, Ballet Folklórico Cutumba, Company Wang Ramirez and Three Acts, Two Dancers, One Radio Host.
The American Dance Festival is bringing about 60 performances to the Durham area this summer, including (starting from top left, clockwise) Shen Wei Dance Arts, Ballet Folklórico Cutumba, Company Wang Ramirez and Three Acts, Two Dancers, One Radio Host. Photos courtesy of ADF
By April Dudash

Tickets are on sale for the 82nd season of the American Dance Festival (ADF), which is bringing about 60 modern dance performances to Durham June 11 to July 25. Duke employees and students can receive a 20 percent discount to most performances at the Durham Performing Arts Center, Reynolds Industries Theater and Carolina Theatre by showing a valid DukeCard ID. Also, audience members ages 18 to 30 can purchase a $10 ticket to most performances at the Durham Performing Arts Center and Reynolds Industries Theater at Duke. The schedule includes 11 ADF commissions and 10 world premieres, and participating companies and choreographers are from the U.S., South Africa, Spain, France and Cuba. “There’s something for everyone,” said Sarah Tondu, director of communications and marketing for the American Dance Festival. “We’re so lucky to have this festival in Durham. It’s a world-class festival, and we attract companies and performers from all over the world.”Some new additions to the festival are the “Dynamic Duos” program, which pairs together choreographers who have never worked together before, as well as “Three Acts, Two Dancers, One Radio Host”, which will marry the storytelling of radio show “This American Life” with dancing on July 18. John Hanks, a Duke Dance Program staff associate, has played percussion and piano for both Duke and ADF dance classes since the 1980s. He accompanies modern dance lessons with electronic percussion, tapping a drum pad with his fingers to improvise ethereal or snappy sounds and rhythms, exploring a palette of tones on his computer.He said every year, he tries to see as many ADF performances as he can, especially the smaller, newer dance companies that present different dance styles."Try not to worry about what a dance may be about,” Hanks said. “There is time for that after the performance. I may or may not feel like I get it, but it will be thought-provoking, and for me, that's what art is about.”Find more information on upcoming ADF performances and ticket prices on the ADF website.