^{Kelvin Fabian Hip-Hop}

by Mia Phillips

The Provincetown Dance Festival was conceived through a fiery passion and commitment to the art of dance. Adam Miller, the festival’s artistic director, was dancing at the Provincetown Theater at the ceremony honoring the opening of the Bradford Street theater in 2004. He approached Cherie Mittenthal, the executive director of Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill, with a mission: to create a dance festival. Together that is exactly what they did. Now, two decades later the festival is celebrating its 19th year on August 22nd and 23rd,it’s “biggest year yet,” according to Miller. In the past few years, the festival has been able to reach new potentials, through collaborations with the Cape Cod Symphony Orchestra and the construction of a new stage at Castle Hill’s Edgewood Farm. “We’re allowed to have a much larger crowd, and everybody’s been really excited about live music,” says Miller. 

After 10 years of hosting the festival at the Provincetown Theater, the stage at Edgewood Farm was built in 2021. Designed by Carmi Bee, a board member at Castle Hill and the architect responsible for the Center Stage in New York City, this new stage was built specifically with dance in mind. Miller explains, “he was very familiar with dance and stages.” 

The stage is large enough to accommodate dancers and musicians on it to perform at the same time and is also crafted for the dancers’ comfort with sprung floors. “It’s built according to the older idea of how a stage should be built. A lot of times people build new stages, and professional dancers are horrified by how hard it is,” says Miller. He adds, “it’s a beautiful stage. All the dancers and choreographers over the last five years that come to see it are always surprised at how nice it is. I was a dancer for 25 years and there were many times we danced outdoors in which we were skeptical and oftentimes very nervous about what kind of conditions we were going to be facing.”

“Boy, wouldn’t it be great to have live music?” Miller thought to himself after the construction of the new stage at Castle Hill. Mittenthal had been in communication with the Cape Symphony about the new stage, “when they came out and saw the stage, they were like ‘oh my god we’d love to do something at some point,” says Mittenthal. That some point has arrived and the something is a collaboration of the Provincetown Dance Festival and the Cape Symphony and their Glass Artists Quartet. 

“Adam found a couple of dance troupes that wanted to work with live musicians,” says Mittenthal. Miller goes on to elaborate that “Deanna Pearson, who is a dancer with Boston Ballet, is working with her partner who’s from Ballet Rhode Island. They were both really excited about creating new choreography to two live music pieces.”

Accompanying Pearson and her partner on stage is a diverse lineup of talented dancers, including Sokeo Ros, a hip hop and contemporary choreographer whose family were Cambodian refugees. He learned the technique of classical Cambodian dancing and integrates it into his work. Miller adds, “he’s working in collaboration with Kelvin Fabian who’s a real cutting-edge Rhode Island hip hop performer.” Additionally, audiences will have the privilege of seeing Madison Palffy, an eccentric and cutting-edge contemporary choreographer. She makes use of the whole stage and beyond, utilizing the surrounding foliage in her performances. 

“She is going to try to integrate the wild that surrounds the stage. She’s a real adventurous choreographer and I always want to have choreographers that stretch the boundaries,” says Miller. 

Also performing is Demir Tasmagambetov, who was visiting friends in Provincetown when he attended the festival and was inspired to reach out to ask about an opportunity to join. He’s a classical Indian dancer who Miller describes as “a really lovely dancer.” 

Miller has an eye for talent and a developed palette for a wide range of performance, even those who may be an acquired taste. “Some of this you may not like, but everybody’s going to like something,” says Miller. This year features hip hop, classical, ballet, contemporary, and classical Indian stylings. “Since there’s so little dance that can be seen on the Outer Cape, it’s really important to me that it’s a really wide range of programs,” says Miller. 

This year, Miller highlights, “we have an artist from Ballet Trocadero which is the famous, pretty legendary, drag company.” He continues, “That’s really important to me, to have new work, to have adventurous work, but also a really wide range of styles.”

Style isn’t the only aspect Miller looks for in a dancer, he also likes to offer new artists the opportunity to be on stage. He says, “it’s really important to me to have a chance to work with a new artist, I care a lot about regional artists as well.”

The Provincetown Dance Festival has something for everyone. Miller says, “you don’t need to have any special skills; you don’t need to do any research. Sometimes people say ‘what does that mean?’ I go, ‘don’t worry about that, it means what you want it to mean.” Miller and Mittenthal encourage audiences to pack a picnic and a blanket, to come early to watch the dancers warm up, and “let it wash over you,” Miller says. The stage is surrounded by nature, making it the perfect relaxing scenery to be whisked away by two nights of magical and transformative performances. 

The Provincetown Dance Festival happens Friday and Saturday, August 22 and 23 at Edgewood Farm, Rte. 6, Truro. For tickets ($30 students/$40 regular/$75 for both days) and information call 508.349.7511 or visit castlehill.org.