This preview has been provided by the American Dance Festival.

These two exciting companies will present a shared program of new and classic works. Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, featured in the ADF’s Emmy Award-winning PBS series, Free to Dance: The African-American Presence in Modern Dance, will present two acclaimed works that honor the influence of African-American choreographers on modern dance. They will perform Donald McKayle’s masterpiece Rainbow ‘Round My Shoulder (1959), a sorrowful glimpse into the lost hope of men on a chain gang as they yearn for their freedom, and Ulysses Dove’s Vespers (1986), created specifically for DCDC, which captures the soul and deep spirituality of the women in Southern churches. Ronald K. Brown’s company EVIDENCE brings its seamless fusion of traditional African dance, contemporary and social choreography, and spirituality to the program with the performance of his captivating work Grace (1999) and his newest work, On Earth Together (2011), set to the soulful songs of Stevie Wonder.