Flying to Freedom [BVOH + Zaccho Dance Theatre]

Bayview Opera House, Inc. in collaboration with Zaccho Dance Theatre presents this special Juneteenth performance of Flying to Freedom, on June 16 & 17, 2023. This is a curated performance by Joanna Haigood exploring the theme of liberation. Juneteenth is a national holiday that celebrates the day (June 19, 1865) enslaved people in Texas were informed of their emancipation, two years after Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation.

The piece will showcase the work of local music, theater, dance, and aerial artists reflecting on their own understanding/definition of liberation.

Featured artists include Steven Anthony Jones, Tossie Long, amara tabor smith, Veronica Blair, Toni Cannon, Erik Raymond K. Lee, Jason Span, and Zaccho Youth Company. Haigood provides creative prompts to the performers and will weave together the artists’ material into a coherent whole.

The project also involves a joyful and imaginative community event on April 20, 2023, that asks attendees to consider what it means to achieve individual and collective liberation through an interactive experience of art, music, and community conversation.

Both events are open to people of all ages.

This program is made possible by the generous support of the City of San Francisco's Dream Keeper Initiative, Office of Economic & Workforce Development, and Grants for the Arts as well as the Kimball Foundation, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, Zellerbach Family Foundation, and Fleishhacker Foundation.