Welcome.

Joy and wonder are crucial to our existence. As I and many other people have said, it is the role of the artist to make us think, to lift us up and give us a chance to escape, to say things words can’t. William Parker, a brilliant and prolific jazz artist with whom we have collaborated with a couple of times, once said to me — artists are like trees — we bring oxygen to the world.

So here is some oxygen for you, some shelter from the storm, some light, some LIFE. I hope this party can bring you some joy and make you laugh. I wanted to make something beautiful and strange, fun and funny, groovy and surreal, transformative and bewitching, and I think I have, I think we have.

Making this kind of art takes a village, and the village that has made this party is incredible. The music sets the vibe and Carsten Rubeling (composer and music director) along with André, Luis and Jeff have created a VIBE. The environment or set by Scott Reid gives us a PLACE. Inspired by 1930s art deco/ the jazz age/surrealism Scott puts us in this house that gets a little wilder after intermission. This PLACE is nothing without lighting, and Brian MacNeil uses light like a paintbrush and can transform the stage in a fraction of a second, or so slowly that we don’t even realize a change is happening. The costumes finish the LOOK and Hannah Fisher was ready to PLAY. She has made the most incredible costumes for the dancers. And the dancers, as always are extraordinary, they are down to try almost anything, and beyond capable of making my ideas come to life, regardless of whether they are fully baked or not. Then there is the incredible production team, the marketing team, the staff of DJD… it sounds like many people, but really we are a small and mighty village.

And now we welcome you to the village. Watching live performance is different than watching a screen. This energy, this experience, this moment that we get to share, is fleeting, urgent, and only for us, now. It’s live, and it is jazz, so it is truly different every night. I know tonight will be special. Take a deep breath and settle in, it’s Party Time.

Enjoy the show,

Kimberley Cooper
Artistic Director