“Curiously stylish and sincere, glossily cold and tender. Always visually striking.” —New York Times
BLACK HOLE begins when a body emerges from its cocoon. What follows is a kaleidoscopic performance choreographed by award-winning movement artist Shamel Pitts and performed by his Brooklyn-based arts collective TRIBE. Deeply inspired by the ideals of Afrofuturism, the piece combines virtuosic dance, original sound, video projection, and light design to transport a trio of Black performers to a cosmic void. The third multidisciplinary live artwork in Pitts’s “BLACK Series” triptych, BLACK HOLE is a tale of vitality and tenderness, darkness and light, personal growth and collective empowerment.
Copresented with Northrop.
Shamel Pitts | TRIBE: BLACK HOLE – Trilogy And Triathlon
Thursday–Saturday, March 21–23, 8 pm
Tickets start at $20. No additional fees.
McGuire Theater
ABOUT SHAMEL PITTS
2020 Guggenheim Fellow Shamel Pitts is a performance artist, choreographer, conceptual artist, dancer, spoken word artist, and teacher. Born in Brooklyn, New York, Shamel began his dance training at LaGuardia High School for Music & Art and the Performing Arts and, simultaneously, at the Ailey School. He is a 2003 YoungArts Finalist and a first prize (level 1) winner of the YoungArts competition. Shamel then went on to receive his BFA in Dance from the Juilliard School and was awarded the Martha Hill Award for excellence in dance. He began his dance career in Mikhail Baryshnikov’s Hell’s Kitchen Dance and BJM_Danse Montreal. Shamel danced with Batsheva Dance Company for seven years under the artistic direction of Ohad Naharin, and is a certified teacher of Gaga movement language. Shamel has created a triptych of award-winning multidisciplinary performance artworks known as his BLACK series which has been performed and toured extensively to many festivals around the world since 2016. He is an adjunct at the Juilliard School and has been an artist-in-residence at Harvard University. Shamel is the choreographer of the play Help by acclaimed poet and playwright Claudia Rankine, directed by Taibi Magar, and commissioned at the Shed in New York. He is the recipient of a 2018 Princess Grace Award in Choreography, a 2019 NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship Award winner in Choreography, and a 2020 Jacob’s Pillow artist-in-residence. Shamel is the artistic director/founder of TRIBE, a New York-based multidisciplinary arts collective.
ABOUT TRIBE
TRIBE (TRI314 Multidisciplinary Visual Performances, d.b.a. TRIBE) is a Brooklyn, New York-based multidisciplinary arts collective founded by Shamel Pitts in December 2019. The arts collective is composed of international and local artists working across mediums such as movement, choreography, lighting design, video mapping projection, poetry, spoken word, painting, cinematography, scenography, dramaturgy, costume styling, and music composition. www.itsatribe.org
TICKETS
Ordering tickets is easy: visit walkerart.org/tickets or call 612.375.7600. Prices include all applicable fees. The box office is open Wednesday–Sunday and one hour before the performances.
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STUDENTS COME EARLY
Arrive an hour before showtime for $10 in-person rush tickets. One ticket per person with valid student ID.
BUY MORE AND SAVE
Groups of 10 or more save 15% on tickets. Purchase group tickets online, over the phone, or in person. Discount automatically applied at checkout on orders of 10 or more tickets to the same performance.
ACCESSIBILITY
Sensory Note: This performance may contain rapid changes in lighting and flashing lights.
Audio description (AD) is planned for Friday, March 22. Please use this link in order to book AD seats, if you or a member of your party will be using this service.
Assistive-listening devices are available at the box office. For more information about accessibility or to request additional accommodations for this performance, call 612.375.7564 or email access@walkerart.org.
For more information about accessibility at the Walker, visit our Access page.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Walker Art Center’s Performing Arts programs are made possible by generous support from the Doris Duke Foundation through the Doris Duke Performing Arts Fund, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
PRODUCERS COUNCIL
Performing Arts programs and commissions at the Walker are generously supported by members of the Producers’ Council; Christina Evans and Weston Hoard; Nor Hall and Roger Hale; King’s Fountain/Barbara Watson Pillsbury; Sarah Lutman and Rob Rudolph; Emily Maltz; Leni and David Moore, Jr./The David and Leni Moore Family Foundation; Jon Oulman; Therese Sexe and David Hage; and Mike and Elizabeth Sweeney.
Media Partner:
ABOUT NORTHROP AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA
Situated at the heart of the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus and a state historic landmark, Northrop has served as the University’s primary gathering place for the performing arts, world-renowned dance performances, concerts, academic ceremonies, and major civic events for nearly 100 years. From touring international and favorite local dance companies, musicians, and film screenings to the hottest comedy acts, renowned speakers, celebrated authors, and prestigious UMN lectures, Northrop offers opportunities for all ages to explore, learn, and engage.
ABOUT THE WALKER ART CENTER
The Walker Art Center is a renowned multidisciplinary arts institution that presents, collects, and supports the creation of groundbreaking work across the visual and performing arts, moving image, and design. Guided by the belief that art has the power to bring joy and solace and the ability to unite people through dialogue and shared experiences, the Walker engages communities through a dynamic array of exhibitions, performances, events, and initiatives. Its multiacre campus includes 65,000 sq. ft. of exhibition space, the state-of-the-art McGuire Theater and Walker Cinema, and ample green space that connects with the adjoining Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. The Garden, a partnership with the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board, is one of the first urban sculpture parks of its kind in the United States and home to the beloved Twin Cities landmark Spoonbridge and Cherry by Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen. Recognized for its ambitious program and growing collection of more than 15,500 works, the Walker embraces emerging art forms and amplifies the work of artists from the Twin Cities and from across the country and the globe. Its broad spectrum of offerings makes it a lively and welcoming hub for artistic expression, creative innovation, and community connection. Visit walkerart.org for more information about upcoming presentations, programs, and opportunities to experience the art of our time.