Season 53
Prime in Motion

September 24, 2026 - May 15, 2027

 

"53 marks a prime year—a number that stands whole and undivided. Season 53 at the Dance Center celebrates artists who carry that same singular force. Each artist who takes our stage brings a distinct movement language, shaped by lived experience, cultural lineage, and creative vision."

-- Meredith Sutton, Artistic Director

 
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Coming up

Sophie Daker, CJ Triche and Lola Jett-Beachley in “Matadora,” photo by Julie Lucas.

Matadora by INSÉKTA

Co-produced by Synapse Arts and presented in partnership with Chicago Latino Theatre Alliance’s DESTINOS–9th Chicago International Latino Theater Festival

Thursday, September 24, 2026 at 7:30 p.m.
Friday, September 25, 2026 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, September 26, 2026 at 12 noon

MATADORA is a new work of Latine Futurism about an untamable creature and the blistering rage that can smother or unchain her: beast, or diosx? MATADORA confronts Latin American mythologies that make monsters of women’s suffering, and uses dance, physical theater, and visual culture to construct a new Latine archetype that refuses domestication.

Find out more

Shirley Mordine, photo by: Richard Kein.

The Shirley Mordine Dance Maker Awards

A prolific artist, Shirley Mordine founded and led the Dance Center of Columbia College Chicago from 1969 to 1999 and served as Artistic Director of Mordine & Company Dance Theater from 1969 to 2019. Her contributions sparked and encouraged a vibrant, enduring Chicago dance community. 

The Shirley Mordine Dance Maker Awards are a living legacy to honor Shirley Mordine’s dedication and prolific contribution to Chicago and contemporary dance, and her prodigious and life-long love of dance making.

Join us on September 24 for the opening night of Season 53 - MATADORA by INSÉKTA to learn more!

David Rousseve/REALITY, from Stardust, photo by Yi Chun.

Urban Bush Women in Hep Hep Sweet Sweet, photo by Rick McCullough.

About

The Dance Center of Columbia College Chicago is the city’s leading presenter of contemporary dance – bringing international, national, and local artists to Chicago audiences. The Dance Center has served as a focal point for dance and performance in Chicago since 1974.

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We could not do our work without the generous support of our individual supporters, the Friends of the Dance Center, and institutional funders. Your donation directly supports the artists that we present.  

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Featured
New City Stage Picks MATADORA in its September Top Five
New City Stage Picks MATADORA in its September Top Five

New City’s Sharon Hoyer picks MATADORA as part of its September 2025 Top Five. The new work by Camila Rivero Pooley, aka Insékta, explores the power of Latine rage in a new Latine Futurist dance theater work.

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The Columbia Chronicle: Rhythm World brings tap history to Columbia College Chicago’s Dance Center
The Columbia Chronicle: Rhythm World brings tap history to Columbia College Chicago’s Dance Center

The Columbia Chronicle’s Nico Waugh covers the recent Chicago Human Rhythm Project’s Rhythm World at the Dance Center. The week-long festival brought together a community of dancers, including audience members with little tap experience.

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The Columbia Chronicle: Senior dance major Areli Ramirez was assistant producer for ‘Guardians of the Earth and Sky’
The Columbia Chronicle: Senior dance major Areli Ramirez was assistant producer for ‘Guardians of the Earth and Sky’

The Columbia Chronicle features ‘Guardians of the Earth and Sky,’ a performance that blended Asian American history with Chinese culture through dance. Senior dance major Areli Ramirez was assistant producer for the performance.

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‘Los Regalos’ viene del Perú al campus de Columbia para una actuación con máscaras
‘Los Regalos’ viene del Perú al campus de Columbia para una actuación con máscaras

La Crónica / The Columbia Chronicle's Sofía Oyarzún writes about Compañía de Teatro Físico’s ‘Los Regalos’ (‘The Gifts’): “La actuación de baile contó la historia del ciclo de la vida de dos hijos y su papá, con una escena parecida a la ciudad nativa de la compañía peruana.”

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New City Stage's Sharon Hoyer: "From Dance to Circus: A Riotous Journey with Physical Theater Festival"
New City Stage's Sharon Hoyer: "From Dance to Circus: A Riotous Journey with Physical Theater Festival"

Sharon Hoyer of New City features the Dance Center’s inclusion in this year’s Physical Theater Festival, an edition with a dance focus. The annual festival brings many performance types under its umbrella.

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The Columbia Chronicle: The Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre made its Columbia Dance Center debut
The Columbia Chronicle: The Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre made its Columbia Dance Center debut

The Columbia Chronicle, Columbia College Chicago’s student newspaper, featured the recent debut of Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre along with their special guest a youth dance ensemble from Music House, in a video that captured the performance.

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Block Club Chicago Picks Cerqua Rivera: 23 Things to Do in Chicago This Weekend
Block Club Chicago Picks Cerqua Rivera: 23 Things to Do in Chicago This Weekend

Block Club Chicago picks our presentation of Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre in its line-up of things to do over the May Day weekend!

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WGN-TV Channel 9 Chicago's Spotlight Chicago Features Cerqua Rivera's upcoming debut at the Dance Center!
WGN-TV Channel 9 Chicago's Spotlight Chicago Features Cerqua Rivera's upcoming debut at the Dance Center!

Artist Director Wilfredo Rivero speaks with the WGN-TV Spotlight Chicago team about the upcoming performances by Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre coming to the Dance Center’s stage on Channel 9.

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Third Coast Review: Didę Is African Tradition and Spirit Rising Up
Third Coast Review: Didę Is African Tradition and Spirit Rising Up

Third Coast Review’s Kathy D. Hey reviews Didę by Compagnie Multicorps, choreographed by Marcel Gbeffa from Benin, with direction and wood masks designed by Sarah Trouche from France.

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Chatting with Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre’s Co-Founder and Artistic Director Wilfredo Rivera
Chatting with Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre’s Co-Founder and Artistic Director Wilfredo Rivera

Artistic Director Meredith Sutton sat down with Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre’s Co-Founder, Artistic Director, and CEO Wilfredo Rivera to talk about the company's first concerts at the Dance Center on April 30-May 2, 2026.

La directora artística Meredith Sutton se reunió con Wilfredo Rivera, el cofundador, director artístico y CEO de Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre, para dialogar sobre los primeros conciertos de la compañía, que se darán a presentar en el Dance Center, del 30 de abril de 2026 al 2 de mayo de 2026.

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Banner image:  from Issa Bop choreographed by Monique Haley; pictured: Courtney Cooper, Milenka Aurelio, CJ Triche, Sophia Peck, Grace Butt, Erica Jones, Mikaylah Williams, Ava-C. Winfrey, Lizeth Hernandez, Nia Durlacher, Areli Ramirez, Diamond Turner; photo by William Frederking.