Bounty 2024
May
19
5:00 PM17:00

Bounty 2024

Base is having a moment. There's not only huger-than-ever demand for what we provide, but fast-growing national awareness of Base's commitment to address artists' needs for space and resources. Our community is expanding, and that's exciting.

We invite you to join us in celebrating our growth at Bounty, a benefit evening in support of our mission and programs. As a member of our community, you're part of what makes Base indispensable within the cultural landscape—we would love to see you on Sunday, May 19 at 5pm.

In store at this year's Bounty...

  • An elevated meal prepared by culinary luminaries Brothers & Co

  • Dance film made at Base and live performance by artists from our community 

  • Surprises and prizes from cherished local businesses

  • The chance to connect with others who want Seattle to be a haven for creation and experimentation

Seating is limited! Details to come! See you at Bounty!

Don't forget to claim your RSVP to Bounty – purchase your tickets here

Learn more about this season's Base Residency program here.

Why support Base?

Space is often the biggest barrier for artists to create, to invent, and to try something new. Base works to eliminate that barrier. Base is a 2,000 square foot room with a sprung floor, 20-foot-high ceilings, sound systems, natural light, kitchenette, and private bathroom.

Base serves Seattle’s dance community by addressing artists’ need for time, space and experimentation through residencies, performance opportunities and low-cost rehearsal space. In a typical year, Base will host upwards of 500 artists.

Join the movement to elevate risk and invention in dance, performance, and multidisciplinary art.

Photo provided by Jim Coleman of Ben Swenson-Klatt from 12 Minutes Max: Edition One (2022)

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Base Independent Program: To Be Honest
May
31
to Jun 1

Base Independent Program: To Be Honest

To Be Honest is created by Zoe Wilson of Neutral Beat Productions involving poetry, movement and visual art.

An exploration of love and our perception of romantic love; the ways in which we love, expectations, heart break, and letting go. Self understanding through all the things we would have said; expressing our desires and feelings through words and movement. Continuously delving deeper for understanding and redefining what romantic love is.

Purchase Tickets Here

Showtimes:
Friday, May 31 at 8 PM
Saturday, June 1 at 8 PM

Learn more about Zoe Wilson here.

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Base Residency Entry Point: Naomi Macalalad Bragin
Jun
15
2:30 PM14:30

Base Residency Entry Point: Naomi Macalalad Bragin

For this residency, Milvia and Naomi will explore their collaborative process in dialogue with working artists. They will design a creative lab for interdisciplinary artists whose mediums include movement, voice, sound and writing. They will facilitate the three-day lab for a group of invited artists, during which participants will build collaborative practices and generate experimental forms. The group will present their work in an informal community sharing on the final day of the residency. 


Base Residency Entry Point: Naomi Macalalad Bragin
Saturday June 15, 2024
More Information Provided Soon

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Base Residency Entry Point: Ankita Sharma
May
11
7:30 PM19:30

Base Residency Entry Point: Ankita Sharma

Join us at Base for a performance of dhoka/Betrayal/ followed by a short talkback.

dhoka/Betrayal/ entangles Hindu goddess Kali's ultimate power and destruction with present-day authoritarianism and religious violence, using myth to unpack how Hinduism has been shaped into propaganda for ethno-nationalism by Western influence. Tracing Kali's deification, dhoka accompanies her transformation into a colonized, fetishized, destructive image that upholds violence with her bloodied tongue. The work lives at the fringes of reality, letting the epic and human dance together: a physical look at how worship can distort what something stands for and how worship can save.

Base Residency Entry Point: Ankita Sharma
Saturday May 11, 2024
Reserve FREE tickets here

Content Warning: Full nudity, blood effects, sexual and violent content

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Base Independent Program: Catalyst
Apr
26
to Apr 27

Base Independent Program: Catalyst

Catalyst is an evening length dance performance co-produced by Lael Battiste and Margaux Gex, and will be featuring 5 new works choreographed by Lael Battiste, Margaux Gex, and Emily Vazquez featuring Olivia Anderson, Lael Battiste, Carol Davis, Ally Elliott, Margaux Gex, Kate Henderson, Shayley Timm, and Emily Vazquez.

They all take inspiration from their cultural backgrounds, personal experiences, and collective imagination. They are interested in creating works that are intricate, athletic, detailed, musical, and visceral, their work is abstract yet thought provoking. 

Purchase Tickets Here

Showtimes:
Friday, April 26 at 8 PM
Saturday, April 27 at 5:30 PM
Saturday, April 27 at 8 PM

Help us pay and support our collaborators for their work, time, and efforts! Can’t make it to the show? You can donate the price of a ticket and we'll send you the video link! Check out our fundraiser here.

Please feel free to reach out for more information, email Margaux.gex@hotmail.com or dm on instagram @margaux.gex

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12 Minutes Max: Edition Three
Apr
21
to Apr 22

12 Minutes Max: Edition Three

Join us at Base on April 21 + 22 2024 for the third 12 Minutes Max of our 2023-2024 season! This edition is curated by 12 Minutes Max alumni Samantha Fabrikant and Antonieta Carpio and features Olivia Cesarano, Ieva Bračiulytė and Eva Crystal, Horacio Lopez, Andreya Pro, Shelby Natasha, and Alisa Popova.

12 Minutes Max: Edition Three at Base
April 21 at 5pm
April 22 at 7pm

Any additional accessibility needs/requests for the show? Reach out to shann@thisisbase.org.


About 12 Minutes Max

12 Minutes Max is a performance lab for new and experimental works that was first developed by On the Boards in 1981. In this series, artists present 12 minutes of material, while audiences get an opportunity to be the first to see works-in-progress; some of which will go on to become full-length pieces. 12 Minutes Max has inspired similar programs in Vancouver, B.C., Bellingham, Salt Lake City, Chicago and Houston. Works presented range from performance art to dance, from experimental theater to sound art, from spoken word to comedy, and more.

Photo by Jim Coleman of Skye Hughes from 12 Minutes Max: Edition Two (2023).

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Base Residency Entry Point: Akoiya Harris
Mar
23
4:00 PM16:00

Base Residency Entry Point: Akoiya Harris

As a part of her practice, Akoiya engages with memory work as an impetus for creation. This looks like collection of oral histories, archival research, sitting with photos and other ephemera, and visiting spaces that hold familial or communal significance. In this residency, she will be investigating ways these processes can further inform her movement. Akoiya will be exploring physical responses to both external memories and the ones that only the body holds.

Join us for an informal showing and community gathering centered around the exploration of these responses to memory and oral histories.


Base Residency Entry Point: Akoiya Harris
Saturday March 23, 2024
Reserve FREE tickets here

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Base Residency Entry Point: Drama Tops
Mar
3
4:00 PM16:00

Base Residency Entry Point: Drama Tops

Drama Tops is excited to use this Base Residency as a production residency for their new work, "DADS" which explores Shane and Elby's relationships to their fathers, their complex thoughts on becoming dads, and their queer, male thoughts of "getting a Daddy" and "turning into a daddy".

As part of their research in fatherhood and leadership Drama Tops will be working on a new mentorship program called "Off the Lead" which invites their peers (Seattle-based performers Stasia Coup, Kelly Langeslay and Jenna Eady) into the space to have their own rehearsals during the residency. Drama Tops will be immersed in conversations with their peers about each other's work as a way to share opportunities and be "arts daddies" for each other. This program aims to give queer people space to make and talk about their work while encouraging artists to "unleash" their artistic ideas and question hierarchical structures of mentorship.

These works-in-process will be shown in the final "Off the Lead" showing and conversation as a part of Base's Residency Program.


Base Residency Entry Point: Drama Tops
Sunday March 3, 2024 at 4pm
Reserve your ticket here

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Velocity presents Bridge Project 2024
Feb
9
7:30 PM19:30

Velocity presents Bridge Project 2024

with TARIQ MITRI, HSIN-YU HUANG + SONAM TSHEDZOM TINGKHYE

FEB 9–10 | 7:30 PM*
FEB 10 | 2 PM
*ASL interpretation will be provided on Friday, FEB 9

Purchase tickets and get more information here

Velocity begins the year with a celebration of the new with the Bridge Project, their program for emerging Seattle dance-makers. Bridge Project is a chance for audiences to get in at the ground floor of an artist’s career – to be acquainted with choreographers who, today, have been making work in Seattle for five years or less, but who could become the Seattle mainstays of the future. The performances you will see are the result of an intensive 6-week rehearsal process undertaken by three choreographers and their cast of dancers. You’ll be invited to share what you see, and engage in a written feedback process that provides the choreographers with valuable feedback and affirmation. 

Bridge Project is a beloved program because it is a chance for the community to come together to welcome a new year, new artists, and to celebrate the generative power of creating work together. 

The Bridge Project is a core residency program, and supported by Velocity’s season sponsors and community of individual donors. The Bridge Project is presented in partnership with Base.

Interested in joining the community of support to make the Bridge Project possible? Contact erin@velocitydancecenter.org  to learn how you can be involved.

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Apply to Audition for 12 Minutes Max: Edition Three
Feb
5
to Mar 5

Apply to Audition for 12 Minutes Max: Edition Three

Applications are open for the third edition of 12 Minutes Max for our 2023-2024 season! Audition applications are open until March 5, 2024 at 3pm for the March 10 audition. Performance takes place April 21-22.

Applications slots are limited and accepted on a first come, first served basis. You must fill out an application to audition on March 10, 2024.

Learn more about the upcoming edition here. Want to audition on March 10, 2024? Apply here. Questions? Email cat@thisisbase.org.

12 Minutes Max: Edition Three at Base
April 21, 5pm + April 22, 7pm

Photo by Jim Coleman of Giordana Falzone from 12 Minutes Max: Edition Two (2023)

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Base Occasional No. 4: Ama, the Diver
Jan
12
to Jan 13

Base Occasional No. 4: Ama, the Diver

After a four-year hiatus, Base is delighted to announce the return of the Base Occasional, a periodic platform for new work in experimental dance and performance. Base Occasional No. 4, Ama, the Diver, marks a return to Base by three acclaimed artists.

Lori Goldston, renowned Seattle musician, cellist, plays live her original score for Ama, directed and performed by NYC theater artists Katiana Gonçales Rangel and Jim Fletcher.  These three have collaborated previously on a production of Sarah Kane’s Blasted, which ran in 2021 at PS21 in Chatham, New York. 

Ama, the Diver was developed as part of Nalanda West artistic residency in Seattle, WA.

About the play:

Ama, the Diver
A young man, of noble heritage on his father's side, searches out and learns the story of his mother, a seaweed diver of humble origins, who had attempted a superhuman feat, underwater, for his sake. This is an adaptation of the Noh play Ama (over a thousand years old) which is based on a 'prehistoric' Japanese play/story whose origin is not precisely known. 

Run time: 75 minutes

Tickets:
Friday, January 12, 2024 at 8pm
Saturday, January 13, 2024 at 8pm

About the Artists:

Lori Goldston is a cellist and composer from Seattle. Her voice as a cellist draws connections between far-flung idioms, and explores timbral thresholds of her instrument moving, built on a restless curiosity and a long, busy history of collaborations with bands, orchestras, composers, film makers, writers and choreographers, including Earth, Nirvana, the BBC Scottish Symphony, Black Belt Eagle Scout, Helms Alee, Mirah, Maya Dunietz, Jherek Bischoff, Tara Jane O'Neil, Jessika Kenney, Eyvind Kang, Ilan Volkov, Vanessa Renwick, David Byrne, Terry Riley, Lonnie Holley, Stuart Dempster, Torben Ulrich, Shelley Hirsch, Ghedalia Tezartes, Senga Nengudi, Ellen Fullman, Lynn Shelton, Natacha Atlas, Matana Roberts, Christian Rizzo, Marisa Anderson, and many, many others. She has released recordings on Sub Rosa, Woodland Fauna, Marginal Frequency, Yo Yo, K Records, Second Editions, Sub Pop, Mississippi Records, Eiderdown, Substrata, SofaBurn, Ed Banger, PIAPTK, SofaBurn, Broken Clover, and No Sun. She has performed her work at venues and festivals throughout the US, Mexico, Canada, Australia and Europe, including the Kennedy Center, Joe’s Pub, Cineteca Nacional de Mexico, Henry Art Gallery, Frye Art Museum, PS21, Tectonics, Le Guess Who?, On the Boards, Bumbershoot, TBA, What the Heck Fest, Chicago Humanities Festival, River to River, Sydney Festival, and for Paris Fashion Week. https://www.lorigoldston.com/

Jim Fletcher is a founding member of New York City Players with Richard Maxwell and currently works with The Wooster Group. He has worked with Sarah Michelson (Devotion); Elevator Repair Service (GATZ); Katiana Rangel (Blasted); Forced Entertainment; Dayna Hanson; and many others.

Katiana Gonçales Rangel (they/them) is an independent theater artist and educator from Brazil based in New York City. They founded with Rodrigo Pavon the theater and performance research group Untitled in 2011, for which they translated, co-directed, and performed 4.48 Psychosis by Sarah Kane and What Where by Samuel Beckett. In 2023, Katiana directed, along with Richard Maxwell and Gillian Walsh, After Hours at The Clemente, a theater piece collaboratively developed on the theme of works of immigrants; and Tales Frey and Katiana merged their work in the creation of Amalgam NYC Connection developed at LMCC studios in Governors Island and performed at Judson Memorial Church. In 2022, Katiana directed Graceland and Open House, two documentary theater works about housing experiences. In 2021, Katiana conceived, with the anthropologist Jasmine Clotilde Pisapia, the project The Vessel, directed by Richard Maxwell; and directed and performed Blasted by Sarah Kane with Jim Fletcher with music by Lori Goldston. As a solo artist they have created the performance works Suspended and Iraci or What’s Underneath My Skin. They are also a founding member of the dance group Les Ballets Nomades (Voices Transposed: The Refugee Crisis at Manhattan Movement and Arts Center), and a collaborator of New York City Players. Katiana received the Immigrant Artist Performance Award 2022 from Chashama, NYC. https://www.katianagoncalesrangel.com/

Ama, the Diver marks a return to Base for all three artists: In 2019, Lori presented a series of live-scored silent films, including Salome, by Charles Bryant and Alia Nazimova, and Theodore Dreyer’s Joan of Arc. Jim performed in Base Co-Founder Dayna Hanson’s 28 problems in Base’s first public performance ever, and Katiana performed her solo work, “Suspended,” as part of Base’s 12 Minutes Max.

Find them: katianagoncalesrangel.com, lorigoldston.com, @katjanarangel, @legoldston

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12 Minutes Max: Edition Two
Dec
3
to Dec 4

12 Minutes Max: Edition Two

Join us at Base on December 3 + 4 2023 for the second 12 Minutes Max of our 2023-2024 season! This edition is curated by 12 Minutes Max alumni Miri Daniels and Leslie Graves and features Bryon Carr, Antonieta Carpio, Jonathan Chu, Giordana Falzone, Skye Hughes, and Sarah Maker.

12 Minutes Max: Edition Two at Base
December 3 at 5pm
December 4 at 7pm

Any additional accessibility needs/requests for the show? Reach out to shann@thisisbase.org.


About 12 Minutes Max

12 Minutes Max is a performance lab for new and experimental works that was first developed by On the Boards in 1981. In this series, artists present 12 minutes of material, while audiences get an opportunity to be the first to see works-in-progress; some of which will go on to become full-length pieces. 12 Minutes Max has inspired similar programs in Vancouver, B.C., Bellingham, Salt Lake City, Chicago and Houston. Works presented range from performance art to dance, from experimental theater to sound art, from spoken word to comedy, and more.

Photo by Jim Coleman of Izumi Nance from 12 Minutes Max: Edition One (2023).

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Apply to Audition for 12 Minutes Max: Edition Two
Sep
18
to Oct 15

Apply to Audition for 12 Minutes Max: Edition Two

Applications are open for the second edition of 12 Minutes Max for our 2023-2024 season! You must fill out an application to audition on October 22, 2023. Audition applications are open until October 15, 2023 at 5pm. Applications slots are limited and accepted on a first come, first served basis. Learn more about the upcoming edition here. Want to audition on October 22, 2023? Apply here. Questions? Email cat@thisisbase.org.

12 Minutes Max: Edition Two at Base
Dec. 3, 5pm + Dec. 4, 7pm

Photo by Jim Coleman of Tiffany Bierly and Sara Caplan from Betsy Miller’s [you are (HERE)] from 12 Minutes Max: Edition One (2023)

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12 Minutes Max: Edition On
Sep
10
to Sep 11

12 Minutes Max: Edition On

Join us at Base on September 10 + 11 2023 for the first 12 Minutes Max of our 2023-2024 season! This edition is curated by Ev Dan and Moonyeka and features Izumi Nance, Hsin-Yu Huang, Betsy Miller, The BGS Collective, Leina Seeley, Sarah Daniels, and Hadi Yusri.

12 Minutes Max: Edition One at Base
September 10 at 5pm (Join us for MAXED, a FREE opening night party after the show)
September 11 at 7pm

Any additional accessibility needs/requests for the show? Reach out to shann@thisisbase.org. Please note that Base is not air-conditioned.


About 12 Minutes Max

12 Minutes Max is a performance lab for new and experimental works that was first developed by On the Boards in 1981. In this series, artists present 12 minutes of material, while audiences get an opportunity to be the first to see works-in-progress; some of which will go on to become full-length pieces. 12 Minutes Max has inspired similar programs in Vancouver, B.C., Bellingham, Salt Lake City, Chicago and Houston. Works presented range from performance art to dance, from experimental theater to sound art, from spoken word to comedy, and more.

Photo by Jim Coleman of Ev Dan from 12 Minutes Max: Edition Three (2023).

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Base Residency Open House: The Seattle Project with Amanda Morgan
Aug
20
10:30 AM10:30

Base Residency Open House: The Seattle Project with Amanda Morgan

Please join us at Base on Sunday, August 20 at 10:30 AM for The Seattle Project with Amanda Morgan's Open House. They will premiere a dance film and perform a new duet, both made by Amanda Morgan during the residency period. Come at 10:30 AM for a traditional Dominican and Puerto Rican breakfast station and stay for the showing beginning at 11:00 AM.

The Seattle Project is exploring traditional dance and spiritual practices of African and indigenous movement that originated from the West Africa slaves brought to the Caribbean Islands; this research will be compared and combined with contemporary dances from the islands such as merengue, bachata and salsa.

Space is limited– please reserve a free ticket in advance. Masks are encouraged, but not required at Base.

Base Residency Open House: The Seattle Project with Amanda Morgan
Sunday, August 20 from 10:30 AM - 12 PM

Reserve FREE ticket here
*
Please note that Base is not air conditioned

Amanda Morgan (she/her) is from Tacoma, Washington. She studied at Dance Theatre Northwest and Pacific Northwest Ballet School, and she attended summer courses at Alonzo King LINES Ballet, Boston Ballet School, and the School of American Ballet. Amanda joined Pacific Northwest Ballet as an apprentice in 2016 and was promoted to corps de ballet in 2017. 

In addition to her dance career, Amanda is a newly established choreographer. She has choreographed for Pacific Northwest Ballet's Next Step Program, premiering her works "Pages" (2018) and "The Argument" (2019) at McCaw Hall. She also was selected to be a choreographer in the Seattle International Dance Festival in 2019. In 2019, Amanda won a residency at Northwest Film Forum and Velocity Dance Center, giving her the opportunity to create her own show at Northwest Film Forum. Later in 2019, she launched her project titled "The Seattle Project" which is a group of collaborative artists, led by Amanda, that creates new work and dance that breaks down accessibility barriers in the community. In February of 2020, she had her first show "The How of It Sped" premiere at Northwest Film Forum, and in July of 2020 she created and premiered her piece "Musings" for Seattle Dance Collective's Continuum Program. In October of 2020, Morgan made her first piece for Pacific Northwest Ballet's Digital Season.  Ms. Morgan was named "25 to Watch" in Dance Magazine for the 2020 year. She also has been featured on the National Endowment for the Arts podcast in February of 2021.

Photo provided by Jessamy Lennon
[Image Description: Amanda Morgan is sitting with legs folded on a white cube. She is wearing a flesh colored leotard with a white linen, arms are folding behind her head with her gaze to the floor.]

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Base Independent Program: The Williams Project Presents Champagne + Sodomy: The Art and Crime of Oscar Wilde
Jul
28
to Aug 5

Base Independent Program: The Williams Project Presents Champagne + Sodomy: The Art and Crime of Oscar Wilde

The Williams Project Presents Champagne + Sodomy: The Art and Crime of Oscar Wilde

A developmental workshop and theatrical event featuring Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde by Moisés Kaufman & The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde

Purchase Tickets Here

Show Dates & Times
Friday, July 28, 7:30pm (Preview)
Saturday, July 29, 7:30pm (Includes Afterparty)
Sunday, July 30, 2:00pm (Mask-Mandatory Performance, No Bar)
Wednesday, August 2, 7:30pm (Mask-Mandatory Performance, No Bar)
Thursday, August 3, 7:30pm
Friday, August 4, 7:30pm
Saturday, August 5, 2:00pm (Mask-Mandatory Performance, No Bar)
Saturday, August 5, 7:30pm

Pre-order your champagne!
Select your tickets, proceed to check out, and then you'll have the option to add bottomless bubbly to your ticket reservation before completing your order. You'll get a wristband when you check in at the box office; we'll keep your glass full all evening. Must be 21+ and purchase 1 per patron; wristbands cannot be shared.

Pricing & Seating
To keep its work financially accessible, The Williams Project offers sliding scale ticket prices, including a limited number of Pay What You Can (PWYC) tickets available for online reservation. All seating is general admission, except in the case of accessibility needs. Patrons are invited to email the box office at contact@thewilliamsproject.org to reserve accessible seating.

COVID-19
The Williams Project no longer requires proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test to attend in-person events, and mask-wearing is optional for most performances. For patrons who would prefer to attend the show with a masked audience, three performances have been designated mask-mandatory (see calendar above), and concessions will not be sold at those performances. 

These policies are subject to change, and any updates will be emailed to ticket-holders at least 24 hours in advance of your performance. For more information, check our COVID-19 information page.

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Base Residency Open House with Annabel Turrado
Jul
22
12:00 PM12:00

Base Residency Open House with Annabel Turrado

Annabel Turrado (she, her, ella) is a Los Angeles based performance installation artist. The focus of her Base Residency is on the Mexican Danza de los Viejitos, or the Dance of the Old Wo/Men. La Danza de los Viejitos is said to have originated in the Mexican state of Michoacan in the Purépecha Region, and was a pre-hispanic ritual to honor the old god for good harvest and communication with spirits. She will be adapting this traditional dance and conceptualizing a contemporary version using this as the foundation. Through dance and bodily movement, she will honor our Elders; those who no longer have the youth to move their bodies freely and comfortably, those who have used their bodies to support our futures, and those that no longer inhabit bodies in this realm. 

Please join us at Base on Saturday, July 22 between 12 - 6 PM for Annabel Turrado's durational performance. Audience is welcome to enter and exit Base anytime during this six hour performance.  Space is limited– please reserve a free ticket in advance.

Base Residency Open House with Annabel Turrado
Saturday, July 22 from 12 PM - 6 PM

Reserve Tickets Here
*
Please note that Base is not air conditioned

(b. 1982, Glendale, CA) Annabel Turrado (she, her, ella) is a Los Angeles based performance installation artist. In 2018 she took on a solo 24-hour performance piece in Boulder, CO. In 2020 she was selected to be a part of Yellow Fish's Durational Performance Art Festival residency, with a culminating 12-hour performance in NY in 2021. Her most recent video work was on exhibit at The Front in San Ysidro, CA. At present, she is a participating artist in the 2022-2023 MexiCali Biennial. Annabel's work is time based and has a foundation in contemplative and meditative practice with an emphasis on imagery and symbolism. Currently, her work intends to highlight the beauty and power of Brown love and resilience. 

Graphic by Stefany Turrado
[Image Description: a graphic design by Stefany Turrado that says Esther, Fijate en la Lima Paquete Importante.]

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Apply to Audition for 12 Minutes Max: Edition One
Jul
10
to Jul 30

Apply to Audition for 12 Minutes Max: Edition One

Applications are open for the first edition of 12 Minutes Max for our 2023-2024 season! You must fill out an application to audition on August 6, 2023. Audition applications are open until July 30, 2023. Applications slots are limited and accepted on a first come, first served basis. Learn more about the upcoming edition here. Want to audition on August 6, 2023? Apply here. Questions? Email cat@thisisbase.org.

12 Minutes Max: Edition One at Base
Sept. 10, 5pm + Sept. 11, 7pm

Photo by Jim Coleman of Flatchestedmama from 12 Minutes Max: Edition Three (2023)

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12 Minutes Max: Edition Three
Jun
25
to Jun 26

12 Minutes Max: Edition Three

Join us at Base on June 25 + 26 2023 for the final 12 Minutes Max of our 2022/23 season! This upcoming edition is curated by Christie Zhao and Naomi Blue and features Leah Russell, Amy-Ellen Trefsger, Ev Dan, Wade Madsen Group, Iveliz Martel, Samantha Fabrikant, McKenzie Raynor + Moonyeka & The House of Kilig. 

12 Minutes Max at Base
June 25 at 5pm
June 26 at 7pm

Want to volunteer and see the show for free? Contact us here.

Masks are required for Base events.
Base is not air-conditioned.

Join us for MAXED, a FREE opening night party on June 25 to celebrate the performers!

Any additional accessibility needs/requests for the show? Reach out to shann@thisisbase.org


About 12 Minutes Max

12 Minutes Max is a performance lab for new and experimental works that was first developed by On the Boards in 1981. In this series, artists present 12 minutes of material, while audiences get an opportunity to be the first to see works-in-progress; some of which will go on to become full-length pieces. 12 Minutes Max has inspired similar programs in Vancouver, B.C., Bellingham, Salt Lake City, Chicago and Houston. Works presented range from performance art to dance, from experimental theater to sound art, from spoken word to comedy, and more.

Photo by Jim Coleman of Hsin-Yu Huang from 12 Minutes Max: Edition Two (2023).

This edition is supported in part by the OAC C.A.R.E. grant.

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Base Independent Program: Cameo + Maia
Jun
8
8:00 PM20:00

Base Independent Program: Cameo + Maia

An evening of work by Cameo + Maia

On Reflection is a new work from Cameo featuring Alicia Pugh, Erica Badgley, Maia Melene Durfee, Maya Tacon, and Rhea Keller

I'm sitting facing the wind is a trio with Alicia Pugh and Ashley Menestrina, exploring tenderness, true self expression, and navigation of our depths as a collective.

Purchase Tickets Here

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Base Independent Program: The CCBdance Project Showing
Jun
1
6:00 PM18:00

Base Independent Program: The CCBdance Project Showing

The CCBdance Project will be showing work that will include two excerpts of movement research for a solo project, Jewish Girls and the Moon, and a trio with collaborators Celia Weiss Bambara, Kimathi Moore and Lacina Coulibaly, Communicating Beauty. Alongside the work will be three screen dances made for the CCBdance Project and completed between 2020 and 2022. Works to be screened include: Je Te Souhaites Du Bien et Apres...blue, green, and Cycles of Growth.

This work and showing have been partially sponsored by a Faculty Development Grant from Cornish College of the Arts.

Space is on a first come first serve basis
Email celia@ccbdanceproject.com to reserve your spot!

Donations are suggested through the fractured atlas here.

The CCBdance Project was formed in 2006 by Christian Bambara and Celia Weiss Bambara to promote intercultural understanding and peace through experimental African-based contemporary dance. The CCBdance Project aims to address themes of anti-racism, travel, translation, love, violence and interculturalism. Since its formation, the CCBdance Project has engaged in work that critically addresses the traditional base of West African and Caribbean dance in combination with African, American and European contemporary movement. The company is directed by Celia Weiss Bamara and includes the choreography and collaboration of Lacina Coulibaly and Christian Bambara.

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Bounty 2023
May
21
5:00 PM17:00

Bounty 2023

We invite you to join our bounty of artists and creatives for a celebration of Base: Experimental Arts + Space! Base staff, Board of Directors, Circle of Support, and Artists will come together to support the continuation of risk-taking and experimentation in Seattle's movement community.

At Bounty, we'll enjoy a meal, drinks, desserts, live performance, dance film, and more! Stay tuned for more information.

Don't forget to claim your RSVP to Bounty––purchase your tickets here

Why support Base?

Space is often the biggest barrier for artists to create, to invent, and to try something new. Base works to eliminate that barrier. Base is a 2,000 square foot room with a sprung floor, 20-foot-high ceilings, sound systems, natural light, kitchenette, and private bathroom.

Base serves Seattle’s dance community by addressing artists’ need for time, space and experimentation through residencies, performance opportunities and low-cost rehearsal space. In a typical year, Base will host upwards of 500 artists.


Join the movement to elevate risk and invention in dance, performance, and multidisciplinary art.

Photo provided by Jim Coleman of Zara Martina Lopez from 12 Minutes Max: Edition One (2022)

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Base Residency Open House with Moonyeka
May
7
2:30 PM14:30

Base Residency Open House with Moonyeka

Moonyeka (they/them) is  a nonbinary Ilocano-Filipinx  shapeshifter who takes form as a performing artist, teaching artist, writer, choreographer, curator, scholar, brujx and interdisciplinary artist. With a specialty in offering sensually sacred dance and movement-based storytelling experiences, Moonyeka's performance, community organizing and divination work centers kapwa and kilig as a compass to imagine worlds where their communities can thrive. Their dance and movement foundations lineages found root in the Street Styles Communities of South King County and Seattle where they engaged in cypher practices + freestyle forms such as Popping, Tutting, Animation. In conjunction, modern dance, improvisational methods, and sensual movement practices across contemporary dance spaces, diasporic upbringing, QTBIPOC show girl magic, and nightlife worlds also inform their practice.

Amongst dance and movement practices, Moonyeka plays in the fields of autofiction and biomythographic writing practices and is working towards publishing their first book.

This Open House is a works-in-process sharing and celebration of Harana for the Aswang. Harana for The Aswang is an audio-visual-performance work centered on queering the research of harana, a Filipinx-Ilocano-Southern Americas diasporic serenade song form rooted in courtship and grief rituals. Aswang is an umbrella term for various shape-shifting, mythological, animist, folkloric, "evil" spirits and creatures in Filipino folklore. They will be exploring dance phrase work and durational music/sound scores that activate in and out of the theater space. Harana for the Aswang is researched through 7 different Aswang archetypes. For this BASE sharing, they are developing material specifically for the Siren archetype. This research modernizes Aswang spirits to those who root into our intersectional QT diasporic lives.

This QTBIPOC all star collaborative cast includes: Arabella Bautista (Digital Producer), Amy Piñon (Videographer),  Heidi Grace Acuna (Soft Fabric Artist + Costume Designer), Gaby Colon (Dancer), Olivia Stevens (Dancer), Freddie Lee Toyoda (Musician), Izumi (Musician), karinyo (Composer + Musician), Juno (Singer), Yunue (Lighting + Technical Operation), Maka (Collaborator), and Athena Herrington (Collaborator + MakeUp Artist).

Please join us at Base on Sunday, May 7 at 2:30pm for Moonyeka's Base Residency Open House followed by a special announcement, mingling and celebration.

Space is limited– please reserve a free ticket in advance

Base Residency Open House with Moonyeka
Sunday, May 7 at 2:30pm

Reserve your ticket here

Photo provided by V

[Image Description: Moonyeka is adorned in blue silk sleeves, their arms framing their face to the right side. They wear a pink lips, a rich blue eyeliner with some shimmer, and has their hair down long. Behind them is a clear blue sky with some telephone wires. Their top is lavender with a deeper purple fringe that sparkles.]

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Apply to Audition for 12 Minutes Max: Edition Three
Apr
10
to May 7

Apply to Audition for 12 Minutes Max: Edition Three

Applications are open for the next edition of 12 Minutes Max: Edition Three! You must fill out an application to audition on May 14, 2023. Audition applications are open until May 7, 2023. Applications slots are limited and accepted on a first come, first served basis. Learn more about the upcoming edition here. Want to audition on May 14, 2023? Apply here. Questions? Email cat@thisisbase.org.

12 Minutes Max: Edition Three
Base
June 25, 5pm + June 26, 7pm

Photo by Jim Coleman of Raquel Gordon from 12 Minutes Max: Edition Two (2023)

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Base Independent Program: Dice Keeper: Twelfth Night
Mar
31
to Apr 22

Base Independent Program: Dice Keeper: Twelfth Night

Viola washes up on the shores of the bewildering land of Illyria after losing her twin brother in a shipwreck. But what is Illyria exactly? In Dice Keeper: Twelfth Night’s 18-show run, no two Illyrias are the same… and no two Violas for that matter.

Dacha returns with the next iteration of our most audacious original format: Dice Keeper: Twelfth Night. In the Dice series, a small ensemble of actors memorizes the entire script of a Shakespeare show and the roles are randomized at the start of each performance. This year, we’ve added a brand new wrinkle - the Dice Keeper. The Dice Keeper changes the directorial concept for each performance with no warning to the cast. Has he set the show in the Wild West or has he replaced all the costumes with hospital scrubs?

Watch our virtuosic ensemble face the Dice Keeper’s challenges, all while attempting to tell the full story of the play! No two casts are the same, and no two performances are remotely alike. 

Dice Keeper: Twelfth Night is a playful send-up of directors with over-imaginative interpretations of Shakespeare, and a love letter to all the actors, designers and audiences who have endured their whims. Most importantly, with each new concept the Dice Keeper is convinced that this is the best way to tell the story of Twelfth Night, and who knows, by the end of the show you may just agree with him.  

March 31 – April 22
at Base: Experimental Arts + Space

Tickets Available Here

Please note that the Dice ensemble has 9 members, but only 7 are in any given show. If you're hoping to see a specific performer, the performer schedule will be available on March 13th.

Audiences will be masked during the duration of the performance.

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12 Minutes Max: Edition Two
Mar
19
to Mar 20

12 Minutes Max: Edition Two

Join us at Base on March 19 + 20 2023 for our second 12 Minutes Max of our 2022/23 season! This upcoming edition is curated by Ben Swenson-Klatt and YUELAN and features Ankita Das, Melia Dodge, Naomi Blue Nieves Driver, Raquel Gordon, Hsin-Yu Huang, Olga Kravtsova, Kelly Langeslay, and Nelle Tankus.

12 Minutes Max at Base
March 19 at 5pm
March 20 at 7pm (Performance will also be live-streamed)

Get tickets for March 19 here!
Get tickets for March 20 here!

Want to volunteer and see the show for free? Contact us here.

Masks are required for Base events.

Join us for MAXED, a FREE opening night party on March 19 to celebrate the performers!

Any additional accessibility needs/requests for the show? Reach out to shann@thisisbase.org


About 12 Minutes Max

12 Minutes Max is a performance lab for new and experimental works that was first developed by On the Boards in 1981. In this series, artists present 12 minutes of material, while audiences get an opportunity to be the first to see works-in-progress; some of which will go on to become full-length pieces. 12 Minutes Max has inspired similar programs in Vancouver, B.C., Bellingham, Salt Lake City, Chicago and Houston. Works presented range from performance art to dance, from experimental theater to sound art, from spoken word to comedy, and more.

Photo by Jim Coleman of Zara Martina Lopez from 12 Minutes Max Edition One (2022).

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Base Residency Open House with NEVE & Rana San
Feb
25
6:00 PM18:00

Base Residency Open House with NEVE & Rana San

NEVE (they/(s)he) ) and Rana San (she/her) discovered their shared love of the ancient, ritualistic, and folkloric dances of their respective and related peoples during NEVE’s Wildest Dreams class at Velocity Dance Center in 2018. Together they responded to the oft-cited phrase “I am my ancestors’ wildest dreams” through dance improvisation, composition, collaborative experimentation, storytelling, and dream interpretation. For NEVE and Rana, it was love at first dance. They subscribe to the notion of a global indigeneity, of which they are a part. Their research will fuse Rana's curiosity with the embodiment and expression of Anatolian folk dances and traditions in her waking and sleeping dreams with NEVE's exploration of the ritual dance Zar which has roots in their native Sudan, Rana’s native Turkey, as well as Egypt, Ethiopia, and Iran.

Please join us at Base on Saturday February 25 at 6pm for NEVE & Rana San’s Base Residency Open House followed by a discussion and a reception to celebrate the 2022/23 resident artists. Food and drink will be provided at the reception. 

Space is limited– please reserve a free ticket in advance

Base Residency Open House with NEVE & Rana San
Saturday, February 25 at 6pm

Reserve tickets here

Photos provided by Sunita Martini and Olga Rabtskaya

[Left Image Description: NEVE, a Black Indigenous disabled multigender dancer, raises their right arm over their head, fingers splayed, in a port de bras. He has curly dark hair, brown skin, many tattoos, and a soft, neutral expression. She is seated on her wheelchair, a tree growing up behind her. NEVE is wearing a fuzzy pink crop top and cream colored wide leg pants. ]

[Right Image Description: Rana smiles big with her long dark curls tossed to one side, wearing a strappy blush velvet top and large aqua sunburst earrings in front of a brick-walled Brooklyn warehouse covered in creeping ivy.]

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Base Independent program: Two Goldfish Who Become Heroes by Yun Theatre
Dec
16
to Dec 18

Base Independent program: Two Goldfish Who Become Heroes by Yun Theatre

Two Goldfish Who Become Heroes
December 16, 7pm
December 16, 8:30pm
December 17, 2pm
December 17, 4pm
December 17, 7pm
December 17, 8:30pm
December 18, 2pm
December 18, 4pm
Tickets available here

In an ordinary fish tank, live two ordinary goldfish, Apollo and Bubbles. Thanks to their short memory, their life has been simple and suspiciously happy - until Apollo catches a glimpse of “the sea” on the “glowing box” across the living room.

Two Goldfish (Who Become Heroes) is an original allegorical one-act play about memory, freedom, and the heroic transformation of ordinary humans. The play directly responds to the recent anti-dictatorship protests in China and worldwide, and also aspires to honor all the dissidents and activists who have stood up to oppressive regimes, regardless of time and place.

Produced by Yun Theatre, Two Goldfish (Who Become Heroes)  will open in December at Base: Experimental Arts + Space, Seattle, featuring an all-Asian cast. There will be 8 performances from December 16th to 18th.

The performances will be in Mandarin to serve the target audience, the Chinese immigrant and Chinese American community. English subtitles will be provided. 

The door will open 10 minutes prior to the performance for general admission seating. Please bring your e-ticket for the performance. We require all attendees to wear a mask during the show.

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12 Minutes Max Edition One
Dec
4
to Dec 5

12 Minutes Max Edition One

Join us at Base on December 4 + 5 2022 for our first 12 Minutes Max of our 2022/23 season! This upcoming edition is curated by Akoiya Harris and Gary Champi and features Erica Badgeley, Emma Lawes, Nikolai Lesnikov, Zara Martina Lopez, Nelia Miller, Alicia Pugh, Ben Swenson-Klatt, and Christie Zhao + YUELAN.

12 Minutes Max
Base
December 4 at 5pm (Performance will also be live-streamed)
December 5 at 7pm

BUY TICKETS HERE
*
All audience members must wear a mask while at Base

Want to volunteer and see the show for free? Contact us here.


About 12 Minutes Max

12 Minutes Max is a performance lab for new and experimental works that was first developed by On the Boards in 1981. In this series, artists present 12 minutes of material, while audiences get an opportunity to be the first to see works-in-progress; some of which will go on to become full-length pieces. 12 Minutes Max has inspired similar programs in Vancouver, B.C., Bellingham, Salt Lake City, Chicago and Houston. Works presented range from performance art to dance, from experimental theater to sound art, from spoken word to comedy, and more.

Photo by Jim Coleman of marco farroni from our March 2022 12 Minutes Max.

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BASE UNBOUND 2022
Nov
19
6:00 PM18:00

BASE UNBOUND 2022

  • Sleight of Hand Tasting Room SODO (map)
  • Google Calendar ICS

We invite you to join us for an evening of celebration and community gathering to support Base as we continue to elevate risk and invention in dance, performance, and multidisciplinary art! We'll enjoy wine courtesy of Sleight of Hand Cellars, live music, a dance film showcase, and a live dance performance.

Limited Capacity - Buy your tickets here

If you’re unable to attend, we invite you to support us with a generous donation!


We do not want ticket price to be a barrier for guests so we have a limited amount of free registrations available, please reach out to Base Development Manager, Zane Ellis (zane@thisisbase.org) to get registered.

Photo by Jim Coleman of Akoiya Harris from our March 2022 12 Minutes Max.

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Base Residency Open House with Saira Barbaric
Oct
15
10:00 AM10:00

Base Residency Open House with Saira Barbaric

Base Resident Artist Saira Barbaric (they/ he/ she/ ze) is a multidisciplinary, gender-blending hedonist creature in a thicc Black disabled human suit. His work exists in mediums and venues considered both high and low art with the aim of weakening the barrier between the two. Across discipline, Saira explores mythologies, sex, Afro Psychedelic dreams, ritual objects and glitch aesthetics as digital expressionism. The way to arch his back and bounce that fat was never shown to him. He twerked with enthusiasm before he ever saw Big Freedia and felt so validated when he did. Saira wants to explore the roots of twerk and sensual club dances to see how they connect with traditional African movement and ritual.

Please join us at Base on Saturday October 15 at 10am for Saira Barbaric’s Base Residency Open House. Enjoy a morning of tasty bites accompanied by art, discussion and a dance film premiere with Saira Barbaric. As their final output within the Base Residency program, Saira's excited to share their new work and their research.

Space is limited– please reserve a free ticket in advance

Base Residency Open House with Saira Barbaric
Saturday, October 15

Reserve tickets here


Please keep in mind that masks are still required at Base except when eating and drinking


Photo provided by Michael B. Maine

[Image Description: In their warm brown skin on a white background and wearing a white outfit, Saira whips their skirt as they lean on a black floral cane. A white lace with bells hanging from it obscures their face.]


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Base Residency Open House with Hexe Fey
Sep
24
5:00 PM17:00

Base Residency Open House with Hexe Fey

Base Resident Artist Hexe Fey (he/they) is an interdisciplinary mover, art worker, and community harm reductionist. Hexe is using the Base residency as a research and praxis intensive exploring pow wow dancing and the Ghost Dance in relation to personal and sociopolitical history, ancestors, family, and indigenous futurisms.

Please join us at Base on Saturday September 24 at 5pm for Hexe Fey’s Base Residency Open House.

Seating is limited– please reserve a free ticket in advance

Base Residency Open House with Hexe Fey
Saturday, September 24 at 5pm

Reserve tickets here

[Image description: A black and white selfie of a light skinned transmasculine mixed European and Oglala Lakota person with short hair wearing a black touque and feather earring.]

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David Glass Ensemble's Workshop in Devised Theatre
Aug
29
to Aug 31

David Glass Ensemble's Workshop in Devised Theatre

The fundamental techniques of the collaborative & physical performer

This six-day intensive will aim to improve the performers presence in relation to one’s self and the stage. The participants will leave the workshop with a practical series of realizable tools and practicable skills that will enhance and integrate into their existing skill sets around Physical Theatre Practice taught by a recognized world leading pioneer and master teacher in the field. There will be an opportunity for attendees to showcase their work on the sixth day of the workshop at West of Lenin Theatre. 

At Base: Aug. 29-31, 10-6pm

At West of Lenin Theatre (Fremont): Sept. 1-3, 10-6pm

Workshop fee: $475, scholarships available 

For more information and to register, please contact: katekraay@gmail.com

As an International company and artist David Glass Ensemble seeks to nurture learning, process and projects that are both humane and sustainable at this time of great change when renewal, progressiveness and the inclusion of diversity and diverse voices are needed more than ever. 

[Image courtesy of DGE, featuring workshop participants in a partnering/counterbalance exercise]

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