LADP PERFORMS: CITY OF DANCE
A Citywide Program of Free Public Performances
Presented by L.A. Dance Project + Paris Dance Project
June 2-7 + 17-21, 2026
This June, L.A. Dance Project and Paris Dance Project bring City of Dance to Los Angeles—the U.S. premiere of a landmark initiative first imagined by Benjamin Millepied as La Ville Dansée.
Reimagining the city as a stage, City of Dance invites Angelenos to encounter dance in public space, where the histories carried by bodies meet the histories embedded in the city.
City of Dance proposes a simple but radical idea: to take dance out of the theater and into the shared spaces of civic life. In doing so, the project asks how movement can deepen our understanding of one another, expand empathy, and reveal the stories held within the city itself.
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Artistic Director’s Statement
“The film Koyaanisqatsi found me in the late nineties and never left. Its political force — its warning of a world out of balance — has stayed with me ever since. For years, I dreamed of commissioning a dance to Philip Glass’s extraordinary score. My dream is the event of this year’s City of Dance. I imagined five choreographers, each taking on a specific musical section of the film, coming together to create a single work — a work defined by the velocity of technology and the toll it exacts on nature, on society, on us. Koyaanisqatsi is as urgent today as the day it was made. Perhaps more so. It has been a thrill for all of us to come together and make this piece.”
— Benjamin Millepied
City of Dance brings together choreographers Dimitri Chamblas, Madeline Hollander, Jamar Roberts, Pam Tanowitz, and Benjamin Millepied, each responding to Philip Glass’s score with a distinct choreographic voice.
Citywide Performances & Conversations
Throughout June, City of Dance transforms iconic Los Angeles sites into platforms for free, site‑specific performance. Select events include post‑performance conversations curated by author and political scientist Françoise Vergès, exploring themes of urbanism, ecology, technology, and social change.
Locations include:
Century Park, Marciano Art Foundation, Hollyhock House at Barnsdall Art Park, Tongva Park, Gloria Molina Grand Park at The Music Center in Downtown L.A., Hollywood Forever, and LACMA, with additional sites to be announced.
City of Dance At-A-Glance
Open Rehearsals
May 15, 1:30–2:30 PM + Q&A with Jamar Roberts
May 29, 1:30–2:30 PM + Q&A with Dimitri Chamblas
Classes
May 17, 2:30–4:00 PM
May 31, 2:30–4:00 PM
Performances
June 2–4, 12:30 PM daily — Century Park
June 4, 6:30 PM — Marciano Art Foundation
June 6, 4:00 PM — Hollyhock House at Barnsdall Art Park
June 7, 4:00 PM — Tongva Park
June 17, 7:00 PM — Hollywood Forever
June 18, 12:00 PM — Gloria Molina Grand Park at The Music Center in Downtown L.A.
June 21, 3:00 PM — LACMA
Post‑Performance Conversations
June 4 — Marciano Art Foundation
June 6 — Hollyhock House
June 7 — Tongva Park
June 18 — Gloria Molina Grand Park at The Music Center in Downtown L.A.
Acknowledgments
L.A. Dance Project and Paris Dance Project present the U.S. premiere of City of Dance in 2026, with a newly commissioned section, with foundational support from Dance Reflections by Van Cleef & Arpels.
The Century Park Art Fund supports the presentation of City of Dance at Century Park, including the newly commissioned section.
We gratefully acknowledge additional contributions from the City of Santa Monica – Recreation and Arts Department Art of Recovery Fund and the City of Santa Monica Office of Sustainability and the Environment, Villa Albertine, and the Albertine Foundation through the FUSED program, and LACMA, with in- kind support provided by LA County Arts & Culture, the Marciano Art Foundation, Hollywood Forever, and Gloria Molina Grand Park at The Music Center in Downtown L.A.
City of Dance was originally commissioned as La Ville Dansée by Paris Dance Project in 2025, with support from Chanel and Richard Mille, who continue to support Paris Dance Project’s artistic initiatives.