BodyVox is coming to Gainesville for the first time on October 27

BY MIGUEL MOLINA, Alachua Chronicle correspondent

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – For the first time ever, BodyVox is coming to Gainesville, Florida.

Hosted by the University of Florida Performing Arts, BodyVox is a multi-genre performance company that will perform Thursday, Oct. 27 at 7:30 p.m. at the Phillips Center. Tickets cost between $20 and $40, but University of Florida students only have to pay $10. Tickets are available from the Phillips Center box office at 352-392-2787 or at performingarts.ufl.edu/tickets.

“What are we?” said BodyVox co-Artistic Director Ashley Roland. “Because we have been asking that for 25 years.”

Roland and Jamey Hampton founded BodyVox in 1997. Hampton is the other co-Artistic Director of BodyVox and Roland’s husband. But even after 25 years, she said the reason why that question is difficult to answer is that they have blurred the lines among dance, theater, film, comedy, beauty, and visual arts.

“Categorically uncategorical,” Roland said. “That is one of our taglines.”

Roland acknowledges that the most honest description of what she and her husband do is that they dance and choreograph. But she says that neither of them sees themselves as just choreographers.

“We make shows,” Roland said. “Our shows take the audience on a journey from beginning to end.”

BodyVox often uses film to help the audience move from piece to piece. But Roland says that they also use film to escape the boundaries of the theatrical setting that dance performances are normally kept in.

One of these films was of a 45,000-ton excavator. Due to the excavator looking similar to a swan, Roland says she created a dance piece with the excavator titled, “The Dying Excavator,” set to the song “The Swan” by Saint-Saëns.

“Any movement is dance,” Roland said. “It is just how you approach it and present it.”

To further show the variety of the performance, she says that one of the pieces coming to the Phillips Center this Thursday is titled “S.O.S.” The specific piece is a dance that tells the tale of the Titanic.

Due to the variety of genres that BodyVox performs, Roland says that BodyVox is like a gateway company that gives new audience members a chance to enjoy a dance performance. She says there is a little bit of something for everybody.

“Is there a fishing community in your town?” Roland said. “Because there is a piece in there for fishermen.”

Theresa Hanson, a BodyVox dancer and Gainesville native, says that she is excited to leave Oregon and be back on tour.

“This is the first time we have really toured outside of our state since COVID-19,” Hanson said.

Hanson says that if people feel the need to clap during the middle of a piece or laugh, they should feel free to do so. She says that as performers, they want you to laugh and not be afraid to do so.

“We want people to feel comfortable having some level of interaction,” Hanson said.

She says that the show at the Phillips Center has a collection of pieces that are really lighthearted. However, Hanson says that some of them are outright ridiculous.

“There is one number where we are all sheep and we are audibly baa-ing on stage,” Hanson said. “Audiences really like that one.”

Ligia Ortega, Marketing Director at the University of Florida Performing Arts, says that the venue not only will have handicapped seating but also devices for those with hearing disabilities.

“We have headphones for them,” Ortega said. “We also have something that is called a loop where they can hook up their enabled hearing aids to our system.”

Ortega says that parking is free. There is a large parking garage in front of the venue. However, she recommends guests come 30 minutes early to make sure they do not have to rush.

Other than needing pants and shoes, Ortega says that there is no dress code and for guests to dress comfortably. She says that the event will be 95 minutes long with the intermission.

Brian Jose, Director at the University of Florida Performing Arts, says that he first saw BodyVox in 2005 at the Duke Theater in New York City. He loved their wit and the technical part of their dance. Jose says they were on his radar from that day forward.

Jose says that when he is selecting artists to perform, he looks at both how the artist is on stage and how they can connect with the university students.

“BodyVox is a great example,” Jose said. “They are great performers but they also check all the boxes for connecting both campuses.”

Jose says that because the Performing Arts is part of the University of Florida, they bring in contemporary and modern dance performances.

“To me, it is important that students across the academy have the opportunity to experience this kind of creativity,” Jose said.

  • “Other than needing pants and shoes, Ortega says that there is no dress code . . ” Cool, might be worth paying $20 – 40 just to witness a topless audience. At least the younger ones.

  • Looks and sounds utterly horrid . “Categorically uncategorical,” sounds like something very “miss-able” to me.

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