Category: DANCECleveland

Dance Reviews 2026, DANCECleveland

YY Dance’s Cleveland Debut Left The Audience Clamoring For More [REVIEW]

YY Dance CompanyMimi Ohio Theatre at Playhouse SquareCleveland, OhioApril 25, 2026 By Steve Sucato DanceCleveland’s 69th season came to a satisfying close Saturday night at Playhouse Square’s Mimi Ohio Theatre with the Northeast Ohio debut of YY Dance Company. The spellbinding performance by the New York-based troupe, established in 2018 by Chinese American dancer-choreographer Yue Yin, was part of the company’s very first domestic tour, … Continue reading YY Dance’s Cleveland Debut Left The Audience Clamoring For More [REVIEW]

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Dance Reviews, DANCECleveland

Graham Dance Company Triumphs in 100th Anniversary Tour Performance [REVIEW]

By Steve Sucato A full house of enthusiastic dance fans welcomed the Martha Graham Dance Company back to Cleveland Saturday night for the first time in nearly two decades.  Presented by DANCECleveland and Playhouse Square, Graham 100, at KeyBank State Theatre, was part of the company’s worldwide 100th Anniversary Tour.  The company delighted the audience with a mixed repertory program of works spanning the company’s … Continue reading Graham Dance Company Triumphs in 100th Anniversary Tour Performance [REVIEW]

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Airings, Dance Reviews, DANCECleveland, Fjord Review

BEST OF 2025 

By Steve Sucato 2025 was a year of experimentation for me as a professional dance writer/reviewer. I launched a monthly Airings digest on my website, artsair.art, featuring select dance news, performance impressions, and upcoming event listings, and expanded my arts coverage to include more non-dance events. So, why not end the year with one more experiment, compiling best-of-2025 lists from the dance productions and dancer … Continue reading BEST OF 2025 

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Dance Reviews 2025, DANCECleveland

Hometown Hero Dianne McIntyre’s ‘In the Same Tongue’ was Superbly Spoken in Music and Dance [REVIEW]

Dianne McIntyre Group – In the Same TongueMimi Ohio Theatre at Playhouse SquareCleveland, OhioNovember 15, 2025By Steve Sucato There was no place like home for Cleveland-native Dianne McIntyre on Saturday night. The 79-year-old dancer/choreographer’s eyes welled up with heartfelt appreciation when taking her bow during a lengthy and enthusiastic standing ovation for her latest dance work, In the Same Tongue. Performed by her eponymous dance … Continue reading Hometown Hero Dianne McIntyre’s ‘In the Same Tongue’ was Superbly Spoken in Music and Dance [REVIEW]

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Dance Reviews 2025, DANCECleveland

Classic Literature Meets Hip Hop in Raphael Xavier’s Brilliant ‘Skiff’ [REVIEW]

Raphael Xavier – SkiffThe John P. Murphy Foundation TheatreCuyahoga Community College (Tri-C)Cleveland, OHApril 13, 2025 By Steve Sucato Our eternal battle with Father Time was brilliantly explored in Philadelphia-based hip hop dancer/choreographer Raphael Xavier’s new work Skiff, this past Sunday at Tri-C Metro Campus’s John P. Murphy Foundation Theatre. Presented by DANCECleveland and Tri-C, Skiff was a hip hop dance theater contextualization of Ernest Hemingway’s … Continue reading Classic Literature Meets Hip Hop in Raphael Xavier’s Brilliant ‘Skiff’ [REVIEW]

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Dance Reviews, DANCECleveland

‘Diamond Jubilee’ Tour is Legendary Choreographer Twyla Tharp at her Tharpiest [REVIEW] 

Twyla Tharp Dance – Diamond Jubilee TourKeyBank State Theatre at Playhouse SquareCleveland, OHMarch 8, 2025By Steve Sucato The 21st performance of Twyla Tharp Dance’s coast-to-coast Diamond Jubilee Tour, Saturday night’s performance at Playhouse Square’s KeyBank State Theatre, was the first by the eponymous company in Cleveland in 23 years and one to cherish as it quite possibly could be its last.  One of our greatest … Continue reading ‘Diamond Jubilee’ Tour is Legendary Choreographer Twyla Tharp at her Tharpiest [REVIEW] 

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Dance Reviews, DANCECleveland

‘The Drama’ Shines a Revealing Spotlight on the Life of a Star Dancer [REVIEW]

Lloyd Knight – The DramaWestfield Insurance Theatre at Playhouse SquareCleveland, OHSunday, February 16, 2025 By Steve Sucato For his autobiographical solo dance theater piece, The Drama, Martha Graham Dance Company principal dancer Lloyd Knight created a love letter to the art form and the two most influential women in his life, his mother Yvonne and Martha Graham. While Knight shares a birthday with the latter, … Continue reading ‘The Drama’ Shines a Revealing Spotlight on the Life of a Star Dancer [REVIEW]

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Dance Reviews, DANCECleveland

Hélène Simoneau Danse Captivates with Mathematical Beauty in Cleveland Debut [REVIEW]

Hélène Simoneau DanseMimi Ohio Theatre at Playhouse SquareCleveland, OhioNovember 9, 2024By Steve Sucato Power dynamics served as a throughline in two meticulously crafted dance works presented by Hélène Simoneau Danse Saturday night at Playhouse Square’s Mimi Ohio Theatre.  Co-presented by DanceCleveland and Tri-C Performing Arts, the Cleveland debut of the Montréal, Canada, project-based dance company opened with French-Canadian choreographer/director Hélène Simoneau’s new work-in-progress “Late Bloomer.” … Continue reading Hélène Simoneau Danse Captivates with Mathematical Beauty in Cleveland Debut [REVIEW]

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Dance Reviews 2024, DANCECleveland

ODC/Dance’s Trio of Works a Gratifying Mix of Peculiarity and Brilliance [REVIEW]

By Steve Sucato DANCECleveland simultaneously capped its annual Community Dance Day activities and opened its 68th presenting season Saturday night at Playhouse Square’s Allen Theatre with the return of Oberlin Dance Collective (ODC/Dance).  Founded in 1971 at Oberlin College by artistic director Brenda Way, who was then on faculty, the San Francisco-based dance company last returned to Northeast Ohio in 2015. The company presented a … Continue reading ODC/Dance’s Trio of Works a Gratifying Mix of Peculiarity and Brilliance [REVIEW]

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Dance Reviews 2024, DANCECleveland

VERTIGO FINDS BALANCE IN OUTSTANDING ‘MAKOM’ [REVIEW]

Vertigo Dance Company – MAKOMMimi Ohio Theatre at Playhouse Square Cleveland, OhioPresented by DANCECleveland & Playhouse SquareApril 18, 2024 By Steve Sucato Last in Cleveland in 2019, Israel’s Vertigo Dance Company returned this past Thursday to close out DANCECleveland’s 2023-2024 season with their 2022 evening-length contemporary dance work, MAKOM. Makom means “place” in Hebrew, and Playhouse Square’s Mimi Ohio Theatre was the place to experience … Continue reading VERTIGO FINDS BALANCE IN OUTSTANDING ‘MAKOM’ [REVIEW]

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