photo credit: Mary Noble Ours
Our Mission:
Choreographer Dana Tai Soon Burgess launched DTSB&Co as a non-profit modern dance company in 1992 with the mission to create, present and tour dance works with a unique Asian American aesthetic. Burgess’ work exhibits a passion for exploring the identity of the ‘new American’ or “hyphenated Americans”. A Korean-American himself, his dance company reflects his own philosophy of pursuing global inclusion and cultural equity through dance. With its performances and educational programs, DTSB&Co examines the common emotions felt by immigrant and emerging communities, therefore illuminating our multi-faceted American and international landscape.
The company’s goal, through a focus on historic events
and personal stories, is to bridge cultures and reduce
ethnic barriers. DTSB&Co is the only Asian American
dance company of its stature nationally. DTSB&Co's
history is marked by critically acclaimed
choreographies that have been shared with audiences
around the world, expanded student and regional
outreach programs, and by connections nationally and
internationally. DTSB&Co is proud to celebrate its
20th anniversary in 2012.
The Company:
The company
is the Washington, D.C. region’s premier contemporary
dance company. It has been the subject of multiple
feature stories in numerous American and international
outlets, including The Hindu, El Comercio, The
Washington Post and the Washington Post Magazine for
its critically acclaimed work. The company has
been covered by the National Geographic Channel,
Mongolian National TV and Peruvian National TV, among
others. DTSB&Co was awarded the Mayor’s Arts Award
for Artistic Excellence in 2005, has received 3
Mayorial Proclamations and is the recipient of 9 Metro
D.C. Dance Awards. The company has toured
extensively both nationally and
internationally.
DTSB&Co is ethnically and culturally diverse, with
dancers from six countries, including Chile, China,
Japan, Korea, Mongolia and Peru, who have language
fluency in speaking six languages: Korean, Mandarin
Chinese, Japanese, Spanish and English. Furthermore its
artistic team and staff have specialties in teaching
and designing programs for underserved youth,
communities at risk and general audiences. Dana Tai
Soon Burgess is currently the Chair of the Theatre and
Dance Department at the George Washington University.
The associate director Connie Lin Fink holds
post-secondary degrees, both undergraduate and
graduate, in education and pedagogy.
"Each dance is as spare, intimate and perfect as a pearl."
- Washington Post
"The best Asian American dance work I've seen"
- Hong Kong Dance Journal
"Mr. Burgess's choreography was unhurried...Mr. Burgess can devise attractively sinuous choreography."
- New York Times
"... the chronic pain of lost love fills the stage like smoke, as subtle lighting, dark music and tense, deliberately hesitant movement create a layered impression of mourning."
- Washington Post
"This company's work is something that children can really identify with... encourages them to think."
- Dance Spirit
"The most significant Asian American choreography out there... dedicated to exploring the Asian American aesthetic in dance and nurturing Asian American dancers."
- Koream
"...Burgess's work builds bridges between the cultures of rice bowls and Coke cans"
- KOREA Update