As the executive director of Texas International Theatrical Arts Society (TITAS), Charles Santos imports performing arts companies and musicians from all over the world to perform in the Dallas Arts District. The 2013-14 season includes companies from New York City, Canada, the United Kingdom and Israel.
“We bring big companies to Dallas,” Santos says. “We’ve always said it’s the coolest ticket in town. This upcoming season is no exception.”
Primarily area debuts, the dance companies on the upcoming lineup range from Jessica Lang Dance’s modern styling to Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, which Santos describes as “everybody’s favorite drag ballet.”
“We bring big companies to Dallas,” says executive director Charles Santos. “We’ve always said it’s the coolest ticket in town.”
Jessica Lang Dance (not to be confused with actress Jessica Lange) opens the TITAS season on September 14. Known for rich choreography and distinct use of human forms to create compelling images, the company performs one night only at Winspear Opera House.
Santos recalls with fondness a Lang performance in New York City when Mikhail Baryshnikov leaned over to remark, “This company is really great. She has a classical structure with a modern aesthetic.”
The JLD stint in Dallas includes a collaborative exhibit with the Crow Collection of Asian Art, comprising works from the show’s visual artist, Shinichi Maruyama, as well as salon conversations with the artists. The week surrounding the performance, Lang will work with the students of Booker T. Washington School for the Visual and Performing Arts.
“The AT&T Performing Arts Center has been a great partner for us,” Santos says. “As the center gains a footing as a partner in the cultural community, it’s great to be a part of that.”
After Jessica Lang Dance, the season continues November 22 with Scrap•Arts•Music, the percussion-oriented music troupe from Canada. And TITAS fills the early months of 2014 with one spectacular company after another.
January brings the modern dance company Pilobolus and the multidisciplinary contemporary ballet company Alonzo King LINES Ballet. The only pure music experience of the season takes place February 24, with chamber music compositions from world-renowned composer Philip Glass for violinist Tim Fain.
Through June, the season promises one exciting choreographer after another. On March 1, the preeminent Israeli Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company visits the Dallas City Performance Hall. The month of April sees the return visit of the amusing, all-male Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, followed by the Dallas debut of England’s Motionhouse, known for innovative use of multimedia in contemporary dance.
The celebrated Mark Morris Dance Group visits the Winspear Opera House May 10. And the season closes June 19 with a tour de force production from Shen Wei Dance Arts.
“The upcoming season is visually compelling and brings in some of the world’s best in terms of choreographers and dancers,” Santos says. “I’m proud to share these productions with the city of Dallas.”
The TITAS 2013-14 season opens with Jessica Lang Dance.
