Artists in Exile: A Story of Modern Dance in San Francisco

25th Anniversary!

Please join us after the screening for a 15–20 minute post-show conversation with Joanna Haigood of Zaccho Dance Theatre and Dazaun Solyen. Together, they’ll reflect on the film and explore how the Bay Area dance landscape has evolved over the past two decades since the film’s original release.

Artists In Exile: A Story of Dance in San Francisco chronicles over forty years of dancemaking in the San Francisco/Bay Area. The film begins with the revolutionary Anna Halprin and highlights Bay Area choreographers who reflect a boundary-pushing spirit: Mangrove, Tumbleweed, ODC/San Francisco, Margaret Jenkins, Dance Brigade, Joe Goode, and Contraband. The film also addresses the special nature of the Bay Area’s social, political, and environmental climate; the marginalization of Bay Area artists due to the predominance of the New York dance establishment; and the unique and vital dance community that has existed and continues to grow.

There is an intriguing story of art making in San Francisco that can only be told by its main characters. Artists in Exile includes forty-three interviews with dance luminaries, choreographers, dancers, critics, and historians, as well as dance footage from over fifty concerts, ranging from in-your-face, in-the-street performances to elegantly staged full productions at major venues. Archival footage and photographs illustrate the rich heritage of dance in the Bay Area.

All proceeds to benefit The Roxie and Counterpulse!