Moody Center to present immersive dance work ‘Dada Gert’

The Moody Center for the Arts and Open Dance Project will present “Dada Gert,” an immersive work of dance theater conceived and choreographed by Annie Arnoult. The show is inspired by Valeska Gert (1892-1978), a pioneering Jewish dancer/performance artist/film star in Weimar-era Berlin. Audiences will be integrated into the performance space by walking throughout the site-specific, multimedia set designed specifically for the Moody’s Lois Chiles Studio Theater.

“Dada Gert” is inspired by Valeska Gert (1892-1978), a pioneering Jewish dancer/performance artist/film star in Weimar-era Berlin. (Photo by Lynn Lane)

The interactive set together with music, dance, and costumes, collectively inspired by Gert’s life and performance career, will transport audiences to early 1920s Germany. Open Dance Project’s multitalented performers embody the raucous performance world of Gert while the piece pits Gert’s excessive self-importance against the irreverent playfulness of her Dada counterparts — a conflict of aesthetics which literally comes to blows in a staged battle between the two.

“Dada Gert” originally premiered to full houses and critical acclaim in May 2013 and was reprised in January 2014 by Striding Lion Performance Group in Chicago. Open Dance Project’s all new version of this piece will be conceived, crafted and designed to fully incorporate collaborative contributions from the new cast members. Annie Arnoult is the founding artistic director of Open Dance Project.

The nine intermission-free, hourlong performances will take place May 11, 12, 18 and 19 at 7 and 9 p.m. and May 17 at 7 p.m. at the Moody. Tickets are $35 for the general public and are available at moody.rice.edu. The production features mature content and is recommended for ages 13 and above.