Micaela Taylor’s All Star Band in ‘The Residency’ a Documentary Short Film – VIRTUAL PREMIERE

Contemporary dance meets Grammy Award-winning musicians in the VPAC’s first documentary short film
The Residency series film release features Micaela Taylor’s All Star Band 

On April 8, the Vilar Performing Arts Center (VPAC) will release a short documentary film about Micaela Taylor’s All Star Band residency which took place in Beaver Creek, Colorado, January 7-9, 2021. The film, shot by local director and cinematographer Will Campbell, includes footage of the world premiere of Taylor’s piece, “winner.” The piece is the first in a series of short films about the performing arts and will be available to stream on the VPAC YouTube channel.

Taylor, who is a Los Angeles-based choreographer and founder of TL Collective, created “winner,” an avant-garde, contemporary dance especially for the VPAC stage. In the film, watch as Taylor and three additional dancers — Matt Luck, Madison Tanguay and Taylor Graham — perform mesmerizing movements while dynamic, award-winning musicians DJ Logic, MonoNeon, Daru Jones and Vernon Reid provide the live soundtrack on stage.

“We asked them to create something unique for our stage and for our community; to consider the separation between our families and neighbors and friends because of social distancing,” says VPAC Executive Director Owen Hutchinson.

The result, “winner,” is a celebration and blending of unity, groove, and expression that is uniquely intertwined with rhythmic sounds. The dancers let go and let loose as the music plays. Additionally the dancers perform “Pull,” a six-minute solo by Taylor, she seems to defy gravity while grooving to the funky beats of the All Star Band.

“It’s all about how do we keep that stability no matter where we’re being pulled,” Taylor says.

Along with the actual performance, watch the behind-the-scenes process of the dancers and musicians coming together to create new work and prepare for three days of performances. The experience was particularly poignant because for most of the artists as it was their first time back in a theater since the start of the pandemic.

“I haven’t been in a theater like this in 11 months,” Vernon Reid says in the film. “It feels good to be back.”

The performing arts industry as a whole has been decimated by the pandemic and the VPAC is no stranger to the struggle. Along with showcasing “winner” and this special collaboration, the goal with the film was to tell the story of how the VPAC and the artists who perform there are adapting and continuing to deliver much-needed shared cultural experiences.

“The arts are joy, the arts are healing, the arts are inspiration and we need that more than ever right now,” Hutchinson says.

By staying open this winter and curating unique artist performances like the Residency Series, the VPAC hopes to inspire the industry to continue to push forward and return stronger than ever.

Tune in April 8 at 5:30pm [mst] on YouTube at www.youtube.com/c/VilarPerformingArtsCenterBeaverCreek