Pittsburgh Cultural Trust Media Contact:
Diana Roth, Senior Communications Manager
roth@trustarts.org | 412-471-8717
Derek Scalzott, Senior Director, Communications and Marketing Management
scalzott@trustarts.org | 412-471-8715
2025-2026 Pittsburgh Dance Council Series, images: HERE
https://trustarts.canto.com/b/S5RU5
Pittsburgh Cultural Trust
Presents
2025-2026 Pittsburgh Dance Council Series
Celebrating its 55th Season!
The season celebrates five world-renowned choreographers and
contemporary dance companies with a showcase of extraordinary performances in Pittsburgh’s Cultural District!
Pittsburgh, PA- (April 22, 2025) The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust presents the 2025-2026 Pittsburgh Dance Council Series and has announced the 55th season will showcase five contemporary dance companies from France, United Kingdom and the United States. The performances will take place at the Byham Theater, at 7:30 p.m., 101 Sixth Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15222.
Subscriptions to the full season and group tickets are now on sale for the 2025-2026 Pittsburgh Dance Council Series. Flex packages and single tickets will go on sale later this summer. For tickets and information, please visit Pittsburgh Cultural Trust official ticket sources: TrustArts.org, by calling 412-456-6666 or in person at Theater Square Box Office, 655 Penn Avenue.
Brooke Horejsi, Chief Programming and Engagement Officer for the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, shares a glimpse of the upcoming season, “We are excited to present a unique lineup of dance companies with a range of movement styles for this 55th season. With two international and three US based groups, audiences will be able to both celebrate iconic choreographers with Pittsburgh roots and discover new and compelling artists.” Ms. Horejsi said, “This season we are thrilled about the return of Martha Graham Dance, particularly because it is the hundredth year of their founding by Pittsburgh born Martha Graham. We are also pleased to welcome back A.I.M by Kyle Abraham, a Pittsburgh native with great love for the city and the region, and Step Afrika!, performing their signature work. And, of course, we are proud to continue the long-standing history of bringing premiers to the series with Compagnie Hervé KOUBI and Aakash Odedra Company. Join us this season for an amazing journey through dance!”
2025-2026 Pittsburgh Dance Council Series
Compagnie Hervé KOUBI
Saturday, September 20, 2025
Byham Theater
Repertoire: Sol Invictus
Country of Origin: France
Named after the “invincible sun” deity, the work upholds love as the guarantor of peace, that despite fracture, communion emerges as humanity’s saving grace. The music score includes a composition by Swedish composer Mikael Karlsson, with excerpts by Steve Reich and digital composer Maxime Bodson. “I want to talk about light, solidarity, and those bonds that unite us,” says Koubi. “Here, the sun and the dance will emerge victorious.” “They Fly. They Spin. They Change How You See the Amazing.” - The New York Times
Aakash Odedra Company
Saturday, October 11, 2025
Byham Theater
Repertoire: Samsara
Country of Origin: United Kingdom
Inspired by the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West, Samsara is a spellbinding piece that traces the steps we take, both forward and backward, in search of our higher selves. UK/Indian dancer Aakash Odedra and Chinese dancer Hu Shenyuan draw on the dance traditions of their respective countries to explore the notion of samsara: the wheel of life, of birth, existence and re-birth. Drawing on thinking and imagery at the heart of Buddhist philosophy, Samsara’s mythological storytelling merges with personal experience from two globally opposite perspectives in a seductive, astonishing journey of twin movement. “Discover perfect, wordless harmony in exquisite dance.” - The Sydney Morning Herald
Martha Graham Dance Company
Wednesday, January 28, 2026
Byham Theater
Repertory: 100th Anniversary Program
Country of Origin: United States
Celebrating its 100th anniversary, the Martha Graham Dance Company, the oldest dance company in the United States, is renowned for its legendary and groundbreaking style of modern dance. Described by the New York Times as “spellbinding and as prescient as ever,” the Company continues to captivate audiences with Graham's iconic works, alongside an exciting new creation made especially for the company’s centennial!
Step Afrika!
Friday, February 13, 2026
Byham Theater
Repertoire: The Migration: Reflections on Jacob Lawrence
Country of Origin: United States
Step Afrika!’s signature work The Migration: Reflections on Jacob Lawrence charts the story of African Americans moving from the rural South to the industrial North to escape Jim Crow, racial oppression, and lynchings in the early 1900s. Inspired by Jacob Lawrence’s iconic 60-panel “The Migration Series” (1940-41), this signature work from the award-winning dance company uses the images, color palette, and motifs in the painting series to tell this astonishing story through pulsating rhythms and visually stunning movement.
Special thanks to Museum of Modern Art and The Phillips Collection for providing Step Afrika! access to all of Jacob Lawrence's paintings for the very first time.
A.I.M by Kyle Abraham
Saturday, May 9, 2026
Byham Theater
Repertoire: Mixed Repertory Program with works by Andrea Miller and Kyle Abraham
Country of Origin: U.S.
Contemporary dance company A.I.M by Kyle Abraham, considered “one of the most consistently excellent troupes working today” (The New York Times), provides multifaceted performances, educational programming, and community-based workshops across the globe. Led by acclaimed Choreographer and Artistic Director Kyle Abraham’s innovative vision, the work is galvanized by Black culture and history and features the rich tapestry of Black and Queer stories and is grounded in a conglomeration of unique perspectives; described by Abraham as a “post-modern gumbo” of movement exploration. Abraham is thrilled to return to his hometown Pittsburgh to showcase an evening of work of his own and Andrea Miller.
Pittsburgh Cultural Trust - Tickets/Information:
Groups of 10 or more tickets please call 412-471-6930 or visit www.TrustArts.org/groups
Single tickets (as low as $23) for the Pittsburgh Dance Council 2025-2026 Season (55th presenting season) will be available at a later date, and available by visiting TrustArts.org/DANCE, calling Guest Services at 412-456-6666, or in person at Theater Square Box Office, 655 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222. For more information about Pittsburgh Cultural Trust presentations, visit TrustArts.org.
Student Discounts: Students are welcome to spend a day off campus and explore the arts in the Cultural District! Undergraduate and graduate students are eligible for ticket discounts of up to 50% off select Pittsburgh Cultural Trust performances. The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is the premiere performing and visual arts organization in Pittsburgh's Cultural District. For more information, visit the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s Student University Tickets webpage at www.TrustArts.org.
Guest Services Resources
For information about Pittsburgh Cultural Trust venue entry requirements, visit TrustArts.org/welcome.
For more information about accessibility services, call guest services at 412-456-6666 or visit TrustArts.org/TheaterAccessibility.
Information about the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust venue and theater entry requirements, visit: www.TrustArts.org/Welcome. Additional information specific to the performance may also be published on the event page at TrustArts.org.
Support the art you love! To learn more about how to become a member of the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, visit TrustArts.org/support.
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The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust is one of the nation’s premier arts presenters and a major catalytic influence in Pittsburgh, having overseen one of the city’s most historic transformations: turning a seedy red-light district into a magnet destination for arts-lovers, residents, visitors, and business owners. Founded in 1984, the Cultural Trust presents an array of quality performing and visual arts, provides comprehensive educational experiences, and stewards Pittsburgh’s Cultural District as a national model of economic revitalization through the arts. Lauded as “the single greatest creative force in Pittsburgh,” the Cultural Trust has worked to make Pittsburgh a place where the arts can flourish. The 14-block Cultural District, a project of the Cultural Trust, has become a vibrant center for culture, art, food, and community in downtown Pittsburgh, providing a home for a broad range of performance groups and resident companies. Approximately two million people visit the Cultural District each year, generating more than $300M in economic impact for the region.
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The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust’s Pittsburgh Dance Council Series continues to bring the best contemporary dance companies from around the world to the Cultural District. Each season, Pittsburgh Dance Council Series showcases diverse, world-class contemporary works by exceptional artists, including U.S. and world premieres. Now celebrating its 55th presenting anniversary for the 2025-2026 season, the Pittsburgh Dance Council Series continues to grow its roster in supporting thousands of dance companies and artists- local, national, and international over these many years. The Pittsburgh Dance Council joined the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust as a programming division in 2002.