EMERGE125 or E125, a New York-based contemporary dance company, will perform Oct. 1 at 7 p.m. at the Homer Mariner Theatre.
Described on its website as a “Black female-led hub for dance performance, creation, and education,” the group is performing in 10 cities across Alaska. They started in Sitka on Sept. 13. Homer will be their sixth performance location. They will finish up with a performance in Seward on Oct. 22.
Producer and booking agent for the company, Jodi Kaplan, says this is the longest-running professional dance tour in Alaska with companies like this rarely performing in some of the smaller communities in the state. Additional performance locations include Petersburg, Haines, Skagway, Anchorage, Ketchikan, Fairbanks and Kodiak.
EMERGE125 is an 11-member dance company that operates in two home locations in Harlem and in the Adirondack mountains. Eight members of the company as well as choreographer and Artistic Director Tiffany Rea-Fisher are part of the Alaska tour. The performance includes five pieces of varying lengths: “Poly String Theory”, “Memphis Hesitation”, “Behavioral Synchrony”, “Spirit Celestial” and “Tilted Arc.” The mixed program of choreography each showcases the signature style of the Rea-Fisher, according to the company press release.
In addition to the performances, the company is doing substantial outreach and public education in communities they’re visiting. In Homer, they will be providing workshops to students at Paul Banks Elementary School, West Homer Elementary and Homer High School.
Rea-Fisher stressed the company’s core values as inclusive, cross-cultural and accessible to people of all ages and backgrounds. “Everyone can take something from the pieces we share. Whether you have a background in dance or not, everyone can find their own sense of meaning,” she said.
Rea-Fisher grew up in California and started dancing when she was 3 years old, primarily in competition dance. She later moved on to the State University of New York at Purchase, where she received a degree in contemporary dance and continued performing in various venues.
In addition to her work as choreographer with EMERGE125, she recently completed a commissioned piece, “Sound of Hazel,” through the Dance Theater of Harlem in 2022. This piece celebrates the life of the classical pianist, singer, Hollywood star, and activist Hazel Scott, born in Trinidad in 1920.
In April and May of 2024, she also provided the choreography for musical “Gun & Powder,” also in New York City. Additional information about Rea-Fisher’s personal background and biography can be found on the company website at www.emerge125.com.
EMERGE125 also offers summer dance workshops for youth age 14 to 23. Dates for the 2025 workshop are not yet posted on the company website.
Tickets for the Tuesday evening show can be purchased online at www.homerart.org, at the Arts Council office on Pioneer Avenue or by scanning the code on advertising flyers posted at businesses in Homer. Tickets are $35 for general admission, $30 for HCOA members and $15 for youth.
