On Saturday, July 25, 2026, Battery Dance presents America 250: Moving Together, a one-night-only performance commemorating the U.S. semi-quincentennial. Set against the backdrop of the Statue of Liberty, the evening honors the many histories, cultures, and communities that have shaped this land for generations—highlighting the Indigenous peoples who stewarded these territories long before the founding of the United States. Through the expressive power of dance, the performance invites audiences to reflect on the evolving story of identity, resilience, and belonging in America. For more information, please visit https://batterydance.org/battery-dance-festival/.

Presented in partnership with Battery Park City Authority.

“This performance honors the land we dance on, and the people who have created the dances that make our country a magnificent project,” said Executive Director Emad M. Salem. “With the Statue of Liberty in view, we highlight our founding ideals and honor those who have contributed to its foundation.”

“We’re delighted to welcome Battery Dance’s return to the waterfront for this historic summer of America’s 250th anniversary,” said Raju Mann, President & CEO, Battery Park City Authority. “The performance celebrates not only our nation’s birthday, but also Battery Park City’s decades-long partnership with Battery Dance and commitment to the arts – past, present, and future.”

The event is part of Battery Dance’s summer season, which returns to the waterfront and transforms Wagner Park into a vibrant hub of movement, music, and cultural celebration in partnership with Battery Park City Authority. The Battery Dance Festival begins on August 10 with dynamic community workshops led by selected local dance groups, inviting New Yorkers of all ages to connect directly with artists through shared movement and cultural exchange. On Tuesday, August 11, 2026, the performances officially begin as the Festival proudly celebrates its legacy as New York City’s longest-running free public dance festival—an unforgettable annual tradition that brings together extraordinary artists and audiences from around the world.

Battery Dance Presents

America 250: Moving Together

Performance Schedule at Wagner Park

Saturday, July 25 at 7pm

Program:

Daystar, Contemporary Dance-Drama of Indian America:

Wolf: A Transformation choreography by Daystar/ Rosalie Jones

Dances for Joanne and Mother Earth choreography by Daystar/ Rosalie Jones

Hoop Dance danced by Sandra Lamouche (Cree)

Dancing Earth

Weaving of Worlds …We Dream in a Multiverse… Artistic Direction by Rulan Tangen

an offering created by Dancing Earth’s constellation of associate artists

Battery Dance

Heloha World Premiere; choreography by Jock Soto

Martha Graham Dance Company

Appalachian Spring choreography by Martha Graham

Jamel Gaines Creative Outlet

Mothers of War choreography by Christopher Huggins

Battery Dance

World Premiere by Sidra Bell

ABOUT BATTERY DANCE

Founded by Jonathan Hollander in 1976 in lower Manhattan, Battery Dance now serves as one of America’s leading cultural ambassadors, connecting the world through dance. With its exceptional team of dancers who also serve as teaching artists and choreographers, the Company pursues artistic excellence and social relevance, creating vibrant new works, performing on the world’s stages, presenting dance in public spaces, serving the field of dance with low-cost studios in its home in Tribeca, and teaching people of all ages with special attention to the disadvantaged and areas of conflict. Battery Dance is committed to enhancing the cultural vibrancy of its home community in New York City, extending programming throughout the U.S., and building bridges worldwide through international cultural exchange with programs in 75 countries to date batterydance.org/

ABOUT DANCING EARTH

Dancing Earth (DE) is a contemporary ecological dance theater initiative renewing intercultural communities and cosmologies through eco-somatic practice — arts education, workshops, retreats, master classes, pro-training, creation residencies, interdisciplinary collaborations, and paid professional opportunities in performance-making and touring.

Founded in 2004 by director Rulan Tangen (2018 Kennedy Center Citizen Artist fellow for Service, Justice, Freedom, Courage and Gratitude), to serve a need unmet in the U.S., DE gives Native, global Indigenous, and — since 2020 — BIPOC and mixed-heritage artists a platform often closed to them by mainstream performance’s lack of access. DE is a constellation of intercultural dancers, composers, costume designers, filmmakers, spoken word artists, and support staff.

Together, DE artists explore ancestral heritage and contemporary identity through culturally rooted, innovative performance. The work activates awareness of our connection and responsibility to all forms of life, uplifting cultural and biological diversity to build bridges of understanding. DE also expands what it means to be a professional artist, what an audience can be, and what dance and performance can do — rooting its aesthetic entirely in cultural worldview.

DE’s work has been recognized by Dance Magazine as one of its “25 to Watch” as well as for its dance for climate action and is one of the few companies to receive both the National Dance Project and National Theater Project’s production and touring awards over the years, along with a medallion from the US Ambassador to New Zealand and many other honors. DE has been invited to communities, institutions, and festivals across 20 states and 14 countries, and continues to uplift the power of cross-cultural exchange and collaboration to dissolve borders.

“We gather as individual artists to create experimental yet elemental dances that reflect our richly diverse backgrounds and explore identity as contemporary peoples. Ancient and futuristic, our dances are an elemental language of bone and blood memory in motion.” — Founding Artistic Director, Rulan Tangen

dancingearth.org/about

ABOUT DAYSTAR: CONTEMPORARY DANCE_ DRAMA OF INDIAN AMERICA

Daystar/Rosalie Jones (Pembina Chippewa-Cree) was born on the Blackfeet Reservation in Montana. She holds a Master’s Degree in Dance from the University of Utah and studied with Jose Limon at Juilliard School, NYC. In 1980 she founded the first native modern dance company in the USA, known as Daystar: Contemporary Dance-Drama of Indian America. Choreographic works include Napi Tales of Old Man (Blackfeet), Sacred Woman, Sacred Earth (Lakota), Wolf: A Transformation (Anishinaabe) and No Home but the Heart (a family story). Daystar was the first Native American (USA) to receive an Individual Choreographer’s Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, 1997 and in 2004 UC-Riverside created the Daystar archive for cultural/career related materials. In April, 2016, Jones received the First Annual Lifetime Achievement Award in Performing Arts from the Institute of American Indian Arts, “in honor of her lifetime of creativity, inspiring others and service to the field”. A lifetime of learning from tribal Elders and Knowledge Keepers enables Daystar to continue to create unique native-based dance theatre into the 21st century, to be shared broadly with all, both native and non-native.

Alongside contemporary western expressive forms, Daystar/Rosalie Jones has danced and taught Intertribal Dance over many years, to all ages and in many settings, such as schools, convention events and community centers as well as in theatrical performing venues. She performs Women’s Traditional, Shawl Dance, Jingle Dress and Hoop Dance and continues to lecture, present choreographic works and to publish articles on Native American culture and the performing arts. — Founding Artistic Director, Rosalie M Jones

www.daystardance.com

ABOUT JAMEL GAINES CREATIVE OUTLET

Jamel Gaines Creative Outlet (JGCO) is a critically acclaimed non-profit dance theatre company dedicated to creating transformative choreography rooted in social justice and the Black cultural experience. For over three decades, JGCO has been a cornerstone of Downtown Brooklyn, showcasing diverse, exceptionally trained professional dancers and blending classical and modern techniques with a soulful, African-American spirit—all designed by founder Jamel Gaines.

Our multimedia performances weave together dance and theatrical storytelling, sparking cultural dialogue, challenging conventional perspectives, and leaving a lasting impact on audiences worldwide. The company honors national celebrations such as Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Earth Day, Juneteenth, and Martin Luther King Jr. Day through evocative works that resonate with both local and global audiences.

Beyond the stage, JGCO elevates the ethnic diversity of dance in American theatre through programs that include dance workshops, master classes, choreographic mentorship, and fitness and movement classes. While celebrating the cultural contributions of Black communities, our work also reflects the shared struggles and disparities across the human experience, reaffirming our commitment to fostering empathy, awareness, and unity through the power of art. www.creativeoutlet.org

ABOUT JOCK SOTO

Jock Soto is a former principal dancer with New York City Ballet (NYCB) and one of the most distinguished ballet artists of his generation. Of Diné (Navajo) and Puerto Rican heritage, he was born in Gallup, New Mexico, and raised in Phoenix, Arizona. He began studying ballet at age five and, at thirteen, entered the School of American Ballet. At just sixteen, he joined NYCB at the invitation of legendary choreographer George Balanchine. During his 24-year career, Soto became renowned for his powerful artistry, musicality, and extraordinary partnering. As a principal dancer, he performed many of the company’s most celebrated works by Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, and other leading choreographers, creating unforgettable partnerships with ballerinas including Heather Watts and Wendy Whelan. His artistry inspired audiences around the world, prompting The New York Times to declare, “Ballet is a man called Jock.” Since retiring from the stage, Soto has devoted himself to coaching, staging ballets internationally, and mentoring the next generation of artists while championing Indigenous representation in the performing arts. His contributions have been recognized with numerous honors, including the 2024 New Mexico Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts as well as the Navajo Nation proclamation of August 23 as “JOCK SOTO DAY”. He lives in Eagle Nest, New Mexico, with his husband Luis Fuentes and their two dogs Larry and Paco. @jocksoto (IG) @jocksoto (FB)

ABOUT MARTHA GRAHAM DANCE COMPANY

Founded in 1926 by visionary choreographer Martha Graham, the Martha Graham Dance Company emerged from a small studio in Carnegie Hall and grew to become one of the most influential institutions in the history of modern dance. Graham developed a revolutionary movement technique rooted in the fundamental principles of contraction and release, creating a dynamic vocabulary that expanded the expressive potential of the human body.

Her bold choreography explored the complexities of the human experience through powerful, angular, and emotionally charged movement, forever transforming the landscape of contemporary dance. The Company continues to preserve and celebrate Graham’s groundbreaking legacy while inspiring new generations of artists and audiences around the world through innovation, artistic excellence, and an unwavering commitment to creative exploration.

As it celebrates GRAHAM100, a three-season commemoration of the Company’s 100th anniversary, the Company honors Graham’s transformative contributions to dance while looking boldly toward the future. The celebration highlights her psychological masterpieces, complex female protagonists, and enduring artistic collaboration with sculptor Isamu Noguchi, alongside new creative partnerships, film projects, publications, and interdisciplinary collaborations.

Balancing preservation with innovation, the Martha Graham Dance Company remains one of the world’s leading forces in contemporary dance, continuing to inspire audiences and artists through groundbreaking performances, education, and artistic excellence.

ABOUT SIDRA BELL

Sidra Bell is an award-winning choreographer, dancer, and educator who has shaped the contemporary dance landscape for over two decades. She made history as the first Black female choreographer commissioned to create works for the New York City Ballet. As the artistic director of Sidra Bell Dance New York (SBDNY), she has produced over 100 progressive dance theater works worldwide. Her choreography spans prominent international venues across Europe, Canada, Asia, and the Americas, earning prestigious honors including First Prize for Choreography at the Solo Tanz Theater Festival in Stuttgart, Germany, a Creative Capital Award, National Dance Project Award, and a Yaddo Artist Medal. Bell was featured on The Today Show and in Essence Magazine for her stewardship of progressive dance creation and educational methods. Bell is also the founder of MODULE Laboratory, an immersive NYC-based movement and theater workshop. An influential educator, she has served as a Master Lecturer at the University of the Arts, an artist-in-residence at Harvard University, and an adjunct professor at Barnard College. Her commissions include The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Derek Fordjour Studio, Museum of African Diaspora San Francisco, The Juilliard School, ODC Dance Company, Uppercut Dance Theatre Denmark, St. Louis Dance Theatre, Ailey II, Sacramento Ballet, Boulder Ballet, and Ballet Austin among many others. Her signature educational pedagogy, Contemporary Systems, emphasizes an interior and material approach to movement, blending visceral physical demonstration with deep intellectual curiosity. It has been taught during her guest artist residencies at universities across the country including NYU Tisch, University of Oklahoma (distinguished visiting artist), Marymount Manhattan College, and University of North Carolina School of the Arts among many others. Bell holds a BA in History from Yale University and an MFA in Choreography from the Purchase College Conservatory of Dance. www.sidrabell.com

SUPPORT FOR THE 2026 BATTERY DANCE FESTIVAL

The 2026 Battery Dance Festival is presented in partnership with Battery Park City Authority. Public Funds have been contributed by the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the New York City Council; New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature; and New York City Council member Christopher Marte’s Office. Generous support has been provided by The Shubert Foundation, The Harkness Foundation for Dance, The Seth Sprague Educational and Charitable Foundation, Indian Council for Cultural Relations, Consulate General of India in New York, State Bank of India, the Taipei Cultural Center of TECO in New York, the Ministry of Culture in Taiwan, the Consulate General of Spain in New York, the Romanian Cultural Center, the Consulate General of Germany, Weill Cornell Medicine, and many individual donors.

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