You don’t need to grab your passport for this night in Brazil, presented by Iris Orchestra and Collage Dance Collective. “It’s really like a street party indoors in Memphis,” says Rebecca Arendt, director of community initiatives and artist fellows coordinator with Iris.
The night of entertainment will consist of bossa nova melodies with “Memphis-soul seasoning” by the Deborah Swiney Quartet, a Brazilian feast by Carson Rodizio with caipirinha specialty cocktails, and a dance performance, scored by Iris musicians and artist fellows, under the artistic leadership of Iris’ Pedro Maia and Collage’s Fabio Mariano. The night will close with a samba party where guests can dance to DJ Alpha Whiskey.
The two organizations have been in conversation about this event since August 2020. “We knew we wanted to partner between the Iris Artist Fellowship Program and the Collage Dance Company,” Arendt says. They didn’t have a set plan of what that collaboration would look like at first, but when they looked around the Zoom room, they noticed that a few of the dancers with Collage and Pedro Maia, one of the two Iris fellows, were from Brazil. “As we were talking about what really spoke to us artistically, that really kept rising to the surface — wanting to celebrate the mutual connection the two organizations have to that culture,” Arendt says. “We felt that was really the best choice.”
The night promises to be a festive one, Arendt says. “From my perspective, it’s music that’s hard to sit still when you listen to it.”
“Brazil by Night: Where Art and Culture Collide,” Collage Dance Center, Saturday, April 9th, 7 p.m., $75.
