about

Ebb & Flow is a free, site-specific community festival of local artists which integrates dance, visual arts, music and technology to explore climate change and its impact on the environment and, consequently, our health. Inaugurated in 2018 and hosted annually since, Ebb & Flow has engaged community members, local arts, health and environmental organizations, and multidisciplinary artists.

June 2023, Los Angeles State Historic Park

For the sixth year, HDD brought Ebb & Flow to Los Angeles State Historic Park. We were joined by artists Hibiscus TV, Andersmith, Tori Cristi, MawusiSarah, Rachael Lovinger, Marie Osterman, Stephanie Sherwood, and Katie Shanks. The festival also featured performances choreographed by Heidi Duckler and HDD’s artist in residence, Raymond Ejiofor.

The pieces featured spanned a variety of mediums, from site-specific dance to interactive installations. Each work was positioned in a different place in the park, allowing audiences to walk through and visit them all. With our theme centered on the climate and its health, the each piece engaged with the surrounding environment.

Ebb & Flow: Chinatown is made possible through support from the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs and California State Parks. Heidi Duckler Dance expresses a special thanks to Stephanie Campbell, Manager of Planning, Public Affairs, and Community Engagement for the Los Angeles District and a special thanks to Dan Rosenfeld.

September 2022, Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook

We brought the festival back to the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook in Culver City for the first time since lockdown. The festival featured a variety of interdisciplinary art pieces stationed throughout the park. Each unique piece was an exploration of climate change, nature, humanity, and health. Audience members strolled through the park and engaged with each work.

Heidi Duckler Dance was joined by artists Peter J. Harris, Victoria Goring (The Cardboard Countess), Five Skins with Jobel Medina, Shenandoah Harris (Psychopomp Dance), Dan Greene, Caitlin Javech, John Eagle and Emily Call, Marianna Varviani, Maëlys Renaud, Indigo Smith, Ashton S. Phillips, and Andrea Burr and Luke Dakota Zender.

June 2022, Los Angeles State Historic Park

HDD brought the festival back to the Los Angeles State Historic Park for a fourth year. Heidi Duckler Dance was joined by local choreographers and artists Bib Bauer, Elena Brocade, Deborah Brockus, Taylor Donofrio, Darrel ‘Friidom’ Dunn, Lydia Janbay, Nat Wilson, Sunrise Transparence (Anj Vancura), and Beartriz Vasquez. HDD’s Artist in Residence, Ching Ching Wong presented a work activating our yellow DanceMobile with dance and musical collaborators Rebecca Lee, Alejandro Perez, and Gloria and Javier Arjona. Visual artist Elkpen (Christian Kasperkovitz), a Los Angeles-based visual artist who creates visual stories about neighborhoods, natural history, science, and the next economy presented her work in partnership with Hollywood Orchard, a community orchard that is a teaching model for sustainability.

Alongside Hollywood Orchard, local organizations provided learning opportunities for attendees. The Los Angeles Audubon Society hosted a nature walk, and Stop the Gondola had an informational booth.

This project is supported in part by the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.

June 2021, Los Angeles State Historic Park

HDD brought the festival back to the Los Angeles State Historic Park for a third year. This was the company’s first live outdoor performance of 2021. The festival featured dance, visual arts, music, and technology through interdisciplinary art pieces stationed throughout the park. Guest artists 3-19 Dance Art, Brittany Delany, Darrel ‘Friidom’ Dunn in collaboration with Kaz Mogi of Taiko Project, Lily Ockwell, Sand Dance Project, Shannon Janet Smith, and Carissa Songhorian, as well as HDD, explored climate change, nature, humanity, and health. Audience members strolled through the park and observed each piece. Augmented Reality artworks and an installation by Snezana Petrovic were also displayed around the park.

This project is supported in part by the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.

June 2020, Los Angeles State Historic Park

With assistance from Los Angeles State Historic Park, HDD put on our annual festival in virtual form with exhibits and interactive installations scattered through-out the park.

Instead of our usual festival activities which involve live performances and workshops, we utilized augmented reality to give attendees a self-guided, site-specific, socially distant, spectacular experience.

Park goers went on a journey from Ebb to Flow. In the Ebb section of the park, they encountered 5 static artworks representing the earth’s elements. With the use of an augmented reality app, they were able to bring these images to life to watch HDD dancers on video.

In the Flow section, audiences experience Collateral Damage, an immersive installation designed by Snezana Petrovic that spoke of the damage and harm that we, humans, are causing unintentionally on nature.

June 2019, Los Angeles State Historic Park

The day started with free public dance workshops for all ages and abilities, booths from local artists, and opportunities to engage in environmental and wellness activities from community organizations. The festival also included daytime community performances by David Calderon, East Wind Foundation for Youth and Shaolin Temple Cultural Center U.S.A.

The festival concluded with an evening professional performance. Guest choreographers included Moises Josue Michel, Candy Yi in collaboration with Chantal Cherry, Carissa Songhorian and JA collective, as well as HDD’s new work titled Further, in collaboration with composer/performer, Drum & Lace

February 2019, Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook

After a successful one day event in 2018, HDD was asked to bring the festival back to the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook for two days in 2019. The days started with free public dance workshops for all ages and abilities, booths from local artists, and opportunities to engage in environmental and wellness activities from Culver City health & wellness organizations. The festival also included student performances by Culver City High School, A Place Called Home, and Dion Pratt throughout the day. The event concluded with a night time professional performance featuring guest choreographers Bernard Brown, Comfort Fedoke, Raymond Ejiofor, and Jacob “Kujo” Lyons. HDD also premiered a new work Further in collaboration with composer/performer, Drum & Lace.

February 2018, Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook

The first Ebb & Flow Festival included workshops through out the day, booths from local organizations, and opportunities to engage in environmental and wellness activities. The festival also included student performances by Culver City High School, Saint Mary’s Academy, and Loyola Marymount University throughout the day. The event concluded with a night time professional performance with opening remarks by New York Times Best Selling author Jedidiah Jenkins featuring guest choreographers Comfort Fedoke, Tess Hewlett, Rebecca Lemme, and Ryan Walker Page. HDD also performed FishEyes accompanied by music from Juhi Bansal.