Elevate Chicago Dance Festival is taking place this month from the 19th to the 21st, and 40 different Chicago based dancemakers are expected to present their work. The event will consist of various studio showings and dialogues around the city, and will mark the end of the Regional Dance Development Initiative (RDDI), which has been a multi-year project. However, what’s most important about this event is the long lasting impact it has made among the Chicago dance community. 

The festival builds connections among dancemakers who would otherwise never meet. Not to mention, Elevate Chicago Dance Festival has lead to several other projects and collaborations, such as Chicago Dance Lab and Presenter Exchange in Summer 2016 and choreographic workshops throughout 2016-17. The RDDI has truly had a lasting impact that has reached further than anyone would have thought. It seems that one project can stimulate many others once the right kind of momentum is created. 

Elevate will be taking over the city, with performances spread out across different venues. Anatomical Theatres of Mixed Reality (ATOM-r), BraveSoul Movement, The Seldoms, Visceral Dance Chicago, Ayako Kato/Art Union Humanscape, Lucky Plush Productions, Hedwig Dances and Ayodele Drum & Dance will be performing, just to name a few.