Created for Harlem Week and last year’s African-American Day Parade, the video Dancing Through Harlem by the Dance Theatre of Harlem sends beautiful, masked dancers in street clothes through some of the neighborhood’s most iconic locations. Included are:

• 145th and St. Nicholas Subway Station (Which I really need to get to!)
• The City College of New York at 137th
• Riverbank State Park
• Adam Clayton Powell Jr. State Office Building

Filmed by Heather Olcott and Joe Samala, the piece is set to Bach’s Violin Concerto in A minor, which makes for an interesting juxtaposition with the casually-dressed dancers. The performance was created by Alexandra Hutchinson and Derek Brockington, and it made use of choreography from Robert Garland’s ballet New Bach.

In case you’re not familiar with the company, I think their mission statement says it all:

“Dance Theatre of Harlem is a leading dance institution of unparalleled global acclaim whose mission is to present a ballet company of African-American and other racially diverse artists who perform the most demanding repertory at the highest level of quality, to maintain a world-class school that trains young people in classical ballet and the allied arts, and to provide arts education, community outreach programs and positive role models for all. Each component of Dance Theatre of Harlem carries a solid commitment towards enriching the lives of young people and adults around the world through the arts.”

“Dancing Through Harlem” was created for Harlem Week and the African-American Day Parade – two iconic Harlem organizations. We’re proud to bring this video and more to you, our followers! Thank you for viewing this video and for your support! Support your local ballet company! Filmed by Heather Olcott and Joe Samala Music: Johann Sebastian Bach’s Violin Concerto in A minor, BWV 1041 Harlem Locations (in order of appearance):

You can follow the luminous Dance Theatre of Harlem on their website and on Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook.