In celebration of the Great British Festival from 24 to 26 February, the British Council and Fringe Manila present an exciting dance collaboration between Filipino dance company Airdance and British DJ Mica this 25 February at Bonifacio Global City High Street, Taguig.
AIRDANCE
Airdance is one of the Philippines’ pioneering companies in contemporary dance and the aerial arts. Since 2001 the group has been gaining a reputation for performances that creatively combine modern dance with apparatuses while suspended in thin air. Its dancers have been invited to present in WiFi Body Dance Festival, Contemporary Dance Map, Pasinaya, and in international events in Japan, Indonesia, China, Singapore, and most recently the 2016 WDA Asia-Pacific Showcase Conference in Korea.
’Airdance is looking forward to this collaboration with Mica Atkinson, Fringe Manila and the British Council for this festival. Performing aerial arts to live music will definitely be an exciting experience. We are grateful for this opportunity for cultural exchange and dialogue,’ says Artistic Director, Rhosam Prudenciado, Jr.
MICA
Doing the live original mix is Mica. Coming from a small seaside town called Fleetwood in the UK, Mica has been spinning house music since 2007 in Manchester, London, and now Asia. Mica has since earned a reputation for her blend of styles and has participated in events and residencies in Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam), Guangzhou (China) Fukuoka (Japan), and Manila. She is co-founder of Phoenix Radio, rated one of the top radios on Pyro Music, and is one half of Rising Soul, an online radio and podcasting show in Japan for underground music.
’It’s always great to unite countries and culture through the arts, whether that be music, art, dance and so on, and Fringe Manila is doing exactly that. It’s a pleasure to represent the UK, from which Fringe originated, and here in the Philippines with talented dancers,’ says Mica.
FRINGE MANILA
‘Fringe’ has its roots in the 1940s when eight theatre groups – hoping to gain recognition from Edinburgh International Festival’s audiences – came to the festival without an invitation from the jury. Whereas the ‘official’ event took place in the city’s more established venues, the artists ‘on the fringe’ opted for smaller and alternative spaces. These were the early days of today’s much awaited Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Now an internationally recognised concept, Fringe has also evolved into an open access festival independently organised in the world’s major cities.
In the Philippines, Fringe Manila was founded in 2013 and is fast gaining recognition for its diverse programming.
’We’re excited to be presenting this collaboration with Fringe Manila in time for the Great British Festival. The idea of an open and unjuried festival giving artists a platform for exchange and discovery has had such an impact on art and culture in the world. The values that Fringe promotes – inclusion, creating opportunities for emerging artists, and recognising the role of art in creative placemaking in cities – run throughout our work at the British Council,’ shares Lai del Rosario, Head of Arts and Creative Industries.