The Billie Holiday Theatre Presents EVIDENCE of Love and Legacy in Bed-Stuy: 40th Anniversary Celebration Weekend

The Billie Honors Four Decades of Ronald K. Brown’s Groundbreaking Choreography and a Homegrown Legacy Rooted in Brooklyn’s Bedford-Stuyvesant

Friday, November 14 and Saturday, November 15, 2025

EVIDENCE Community Dance Class,

Tuesday, November 11, 2025 – 7PM

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EVIDENCE in Concert “Prayer, Power, & Purpose,"

Friday, November 14, 2025 & Saturday, November 15, 2025 -7:30PM

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Dance Talk:

The Journey — 40 Years of Ron K. Brown & EVIDENCE,

Saturday, November 15, 2025 – 4PM

The Billie Holiday Theatre - one of the nation’s preeminent arts and culture organizations – is proud to present EVIDENCE of Love and Legacy in Bed-Stuy:40th Anniversary Celebration Weekend, a landmark two-night engagement saluting the four-decade journey of one of the most visionary and prolific choreographers of a generation. On Friday, November 14 and Saturday, November 15, 2025, audiences will gather in the very community that first shaped Ron Brown’s artistic voice - Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn—to celebrate a story that has come full circle: from his first childhood dance classes on the Bedford-Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation campus to international acclaim on the world’s great stages. The weekend will include performances, conversation, and community movement workshops.

Performance Dates: Friday, November 14 & Saturday, November 15, 2025 Venue: The Billie Holiday Theatre & Dance Studio 1368 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY 11216

Tickets: $25 General | $10 Students w/ ID (box office only)

To purchase tickets for events under the EVIDENCE of Love and Legacy in Bed-Stuy:40th Anniversary Celebration Weekend, and to register for free events: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/ronald-k-brownevidence-40th-anniversary-celebration-tickets-1607184164099

HIGHLIGHT OF EVENTS

EVIDENCE Community Dance Class

Date: Tuesday, November 11, 2025 – 7PM

Location: The Billie Holiday Theatre Dance Studio - 247 Herkimer Street Brooklyn, NY 11216, Tickets: This is a free event; registration is encouraged

EVIDENCE’s popular all-levels movement class incorporates the varied influences found within the work of Brown, fusing Western dance styles with the traditional rhythms and social dances of West Africa, the Caribbean, and the US. Taught by EVIDENCE artistic directors Brown and Arcell Cabuag, classes are open to everyone and are designed for all ages and experience levels, including beginners. This event is free with registration.

EVIDENCE in Concert “Prayer, Power, & Purpose”

Date: Friday, November 14, 2025 & Saturday, November 15, 2025 -7:30PM

Location: The Billie Holiday Theatre - 1368 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY 11216

Tickets: $25 performances, $10 student tickets w/ID at the box office

A curated evening of excerpts from the company’s celebrated works, performed by EVIDENCE dancers and special guest artists, including:

ONE SHOT: Rhapsody in Black & White Inspired by photographer Charles “Teenie” Harris, who chronicled Black life in Pittsburgh from 1936 to 1975, ONE SHOT examines legacy, memory, and cultural resilience through movement and spoken word. Structured in two acts and seven sections—from First Glance to The Crossroads—the piece reflects on the beauty and struggle captured in Harris’s lens, embodying community as both witness and inspiration.

OPEN DOOR (duet) Originally created for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in 2015 and re-envisioned for EVIDENCE, OPEN DOOR channels the spirits of Cuba and the Afro-Latin

Diaspora through Brown’s signature fusion of modern and African forms. Set to music by Tito Puente, Luis Demetrio, and Arturo O’Farrill, this duet is a celebration of connection, rhythm, and freedom of spirit.

GRACE (solo — “Mother God” featuring guest artist from Ailey) Brown’s 1999 masterwork for Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, GRACE is a spiritual journey toward the promised land. The “Mother God” solo honors the divine feminine and the interplay of strength and surrender. Set to music by Duke Ellington, Peven Everett, and Fela Kuti, it traces the transcendent path of body and soul toward redemption.

MAX ROACH “TENDER WARRIORS” (excerpts — all sections except the first) Created for the centennial of jazz legend Max Roach and co-choreographed with Arcell Cabuag, Tender Warriors interlaces Roach’s music (Percussion Bitter Sweet) with Brown’s choreography to illuminate the discipline and compassion that define true resistance. Performed by EVIDENCE with Brown’s trademark grounded fluidity, these sections evoke the heartbeat of the African Diaspora through collective movement.

Dance Talk: The Journey — 40 Years of Ron K. Brown & EVIDENCE

Date: Saturday, November 15, 2025 – 4PM

Location: The Billie Holiday Theatre - 1368 Fulton Street, Brooklyn, NY 11216

Tickets: This is a free event; registration is encouraged

A conversation and multimedia presentation with dance historian Sandra L. Burton, reflecting on Brown’s artistic arc, his global influence, and his commitment to community storytelling.’

“Ronald K. Brown’s journey is inseparable from the journey of this neighborhood and this institution,” said Shadawn Smith, Executive Director, The Billie Holiday Theatre. “His choreography has been a balm, a call, and a bridge between ancestors and the present. Celebrating his 40 years at The Billie - on the very grounds where his story began - honors both the artist and the community that birthed him. We are blessed witnesses of this evolution.”

“Restoration has been a part of my life from the very beginning, and I’m deeply grateful to have grown as an artist and a person within this community. Over the years, EVIDENCE has taken me and my company to stages all over the world, but there is truly no place like home,” said Brown. “To celebrate our 40th anniversary at The Billie, in partnership with Restoration, is especially meaningful — it’s a reflection of the love, faith, and creativity that have shaped my journey. Being part of this community, and watching the children and families I’ve known for decades grow and thrive, has been one of the great joys of my life. I’m excited to keep creating, sharing, and building on the foundation that started right here in Bed-Stuy.”

Ronald K. Brown, a “son of Brooklyn” founded his company, EVIDENCE in 1985 and it has become synonymous with deeply spiritual storytelling that connects audiences to the histories, traditions, and evolving expressions of the African Diaspora

ABOUT THE BILLIE HOLIDAY THEATRE The AUDELCO, Obie, and National Medal for the Arts award-winning Billie Holiday Theatre is an artistic anchor to the largest African American community in the nation: Central Brooklyn and one of the last remaining theaters forged in the aesthetic and sociocultural kiln of America’s Civil Rights/Black Arts Movements. Founded in May 1972, The Billie Holiday Theatre is a beacon for world class art rooted in racial justice in the heart of Bed-Stuy: producing, presenting, and commissioning new and classic works and festivals in theater, dance, music, visual arts, and film; providing artistic and institutional residencies; and serving ages 3 to 103 with dynamic and accessible educational programming. For bold and daring artists and audiences from around the corner and around the world who look to The Billie as a rigorous artistic space that tackles racial injustices, presents new and unapologetic voices, and imagines a world where all people can flourish...welcome home.

ABOUT RONALD K. BROWN/EVIDENCE Founded in 1985 by Ronald K. Brown, EVIDENCE, A Dance Company, celebrates its 40th Anniversary in 2025, blending traditional African and contemporary dance with music and spoken word to tell stories that uplift community, resilience, and the human experience. Brown has created more than 30 works for the company and has been commissioned by major institutions including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Jacob’s Pillow, The Joyce Theater, and Ballet Hispánico, among others. The company’s repertoire includes the luminous Grace, which will celebrate its 25th anniversary in 2025 and continues to captivate audiences worldwide. EVIDENCE reaches more than 25,000 people annually through performances and community-based programs across the U.S. and internationally, including in Cuba, France, South Africa, Nigeria, and the U.K. EVIDENCE maintains longstanding partnerships with Bedford Stuyvesant Restoration Corporation, The Billie Holiday Theatre, and The Joyce Theater Foundation.

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