ArtBeat by day: Sat., July 18th

Dance in the Somerville Theater

12:00pm — The History of Somerville (Conceptual Art Project)
Tim Devin’s “The History of Somerville, 2010-2100” is a community art project exploring residents hopes and fears about the future of Somerville. Tim will present his findings in this lecture; then throughout the day, he will oversee a Future Information table outside and hand out copies of a timeline.

1:00pm — Chu Ling Dance Academy
The performance groups from the Chu Ling Dance Academy will present a program of traditional and contemporary Chinese dances: Tibetan dance, in formal Tibetan costume; Peacock Dance and Blue Flower, two folk dances; Running, a solo acrobatic dance; Modern Asian dance, set to Latin music; and Fan Dance, set to strong contemporary music and based on a work of the Tang Dynasty poet Li Bai. All are original works by choreographer Chu Ling.

2:00pm — Contrapose Dance
Contrapose Dance, founded in 2008, strives to present new works from a diverse group of choreographers and is committed to presenting an uncompromisingly high quality of dance in Boston and beyond.  The four works presented today are “Champagne” and an untitled solo, both choreographed by Courtney Peix; “Gitanis,” choreographed by Gianni Di Marco; and “tidbit, too,” choreographed by Marcus Schulkind. To learn more about the company, visit www.contraposedance.com

3:00pm — Ludo Mlado
Ludo Mlado is a semi-professional dance group based in Boston, MA. The Bulgarian choreographers Petar Petrov and Marieta Mircheva lead the group at cultural events in Boston and around the world. By training dancers and showcasing performances at cultural events, the troupe endeavors to preserve and spread awareness of the rich dance traditions of Bulgaria and the Balkan people. Ludo Mlado will perform five different pieces, including a Northeast Bulgarian dance that celebrates harvest season, a spring dance that Bulgarians from the Thrace Valley typcially perform and “Return to the Innocents,” a medley of old Slavonic and traditional music and dance representing love and passion.

4:00pm — 3 Women/9 Dances by Ego Art, Inc., Weber Dance and Maggie Husak
Three of Somerville’s resident choreographers will offer a joint afternoon of delightful and eclectic contemporary dances. Weber Dance offers three new and recent works investigating beauty, vulnerability and materialism. EgoArt, Inc brings excerpts from “Requiem,” an evening-length piece to Mozart’s requiem that will be performed in an installation come Fall 2009. Maggie Husak will bring her lush dancing to a newly developed solo work.