Occurrence #14

Spectrum Dance Theater is proud to continue its OCCURRENCE series, a bold and imaginative choreographic format first introduced on March 20, 2016, at La Usina del Arte in Buenos Aires, Argentina. 

Premiered as the culminating public presentation of a U.S. Embassy residency, OCCURRENCE #1 was modeled on the spirit of a Merce Cunningham EVENT—a performance constructed of complete dances, excerpts, and new sequences arranged specifically for the site, often layered with multiple actions occurring simultaneously. 

What distinguishes OCCURRENCE within Artistic Director Donald Byrd’s body of work is its deliberate embrace of experimentation, process, and choreographic play. “This is my playtime,” says Byrd. “It’s when I get to nerd out as a choreographer. I recombine past work with new material, guided by imagination and the pursuit of the next right thing to do.” In the OCCURRENCE series, Byrd reconfigures choreographic elements like a child rearranging blocks—placing familiar sequences in new contexts, layering movement phrases not originally meant to coexist, shifting background moments to the foreground, and exploring the impact of music, or its absence. 

Each OCCURRENCE becomes a one-of-a-kind dance collage: ephemeral, rigorous, and alive with possibility.