abraham.in.motion.jpgMIAMI — MDC Live Arts at Miami Dade College presents renowned choreographer and dancer Kyle Abraham and his extraordinary company, Abraham.In.Motion (A.I.M.), in their South Florida premier of Live! The Realest MC, on Friday and Saturday, Feb. 1 and 2, on 8 p.m., at the Colony Theatre.

Tickets are $25 for the general public and $10 for MDC students who show valid identification. For tickets and more information call 305-237-3010 or visit mdclivearts.org

The origin of this project dates back to 2009, when MDC Live Arts (formerly Cultura del Lobo) recognized Abraham’s talent and potential and commissioned the emerging artist for a new body of work through the National Performance Network Creation Fund.

Inspired by Pinocchio’s plight to be a “real boy,” Abraham investigates gender roles in the African-American community and the quest for acceptance in the world of hip-hop.

Live! The Realest MC references humanity in the digital age, placing the iconic childhood character in an industrial dystopia. “Trying to be someone else to not be noticed is really kind of messed up,” Abraham says.

As part of MDC Live Arts’ commitment to create meaningful educational experiences, Kyle Abraham and A.I.M. will engage in numerous residency activities prior to their performances, including master classes in technique and dance for high school and college students at New World School of the Arts, as well as MDC North, Kendall and Wolfson campuses.

TRAVELER

Abraham began his training at the Civic Light Opera Academy and the Creative and Performing Arts High School in Pittsburgh, PA.

He continued his dance studies in New York, earning a BFA from Purchase College at the State University of New York, and an MFA from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

His choreography has been presented throughout the U.S., most recently at On The Boards, South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center, REDCAT, Philly Live Arts, Portland’s Time Based Arts Festival, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, Danspace Project, Dance Theater Workshop, Bates Dance Festival, Harlem Stage, Fall for Dance Festival at New York’s City Center, Montreal, Germany, Jordan, Ecuador, Dublin’s Project Arts Center, The Okinawa Prefectural Museum & Art Museum located in Okinawa Japan, The Andy Warhol Museum, and The Kelly-Strayhorn Theater in his hometown of Pittsburgh.

RECOGNITION

In recent years, he has received accolades and awards for his dancing and choreography, including the 2012 USA Ford Fellow, the 2012-14 New York Live Arts Resident Commissioned Artist, the 2012 Jacob’s Pillow Dance Award recipient, a 2010 Bessie Award for Outstanding Performance in Dance for his work in The Radio Show, a 2010 Princess Grace Award for Choreography, a BUILD grant and individual artist fellowship from the New York Foundation for the Arts, and a Jerome Foundation Travel and Study Grant.

He was selected in 2009 as one of Dance magazine’s 25 To Watch.

The company is represented by dancers from various disciplines and diverse backgrounds. Together, these individualities create movements that are manipulated and molded into something fresh and unique.