Dance Origin: Appalachia, US Genre: Clogging Artistic Director: Ian Michael Enriquez First Appearance in SF EDF: 1988 Website:www.barbarycoast.org
This boisterous and jovial all male company was founded
in 1981 by an Asian-American woman, Janice Yee Hanzel, who remained its artistic director for the next two decades
until her retirement in 2001. The company was initially formed to
bring the rowdiness inherent in this rural vernacular dance, to the
heart of an urban community of men in San Francisco.The company’s mission is to perpetuate and educate
audiences about this often overlooked dance style from the United
States. Using clogging dance, the Barbary Coast Cloggers
literally “tap into” the vital spirit inherent in the dance and music,
and strive to convey this felt exuberance to audiences. Over the
years, the Cloggers have developed a performance style uniquely
their own, which has since carried them across the United
States and Canada to perform with such celebrities as Earl
Scruggs, Nancy Sinatra, Ricky Skaggs, and Faith No More.
2012 PERFORMANCE
TITLES: Hambone, We No Speak Americano, Miser on a Pile of Gold CHOREOGRAPHERS: Matt Ellinger (Hambone) and Ian Michael Enriquez (We Speak No Americano, Miser on a Pile of Gold) DANCERS: Jose Arebalo, Kiernan Donleavy, Ian Michael Enriquez, Ming-Lun
Ho, Antonio Ortiz, Richard Willyard, Brian Wines, Tom Winter
The first of three dances, Hambone, displays the many
cultural layers that comprise the foundation of clogging and is
their only dance to feature Juba dancing. The second piece, We No
Speak Americano, is a contemporary duet mimicking the popular,
viral video by group, Up & Over It. The final piece, Miser
on a Pile of Gold, uses music from Los Angeles composer Shawn
Kirchner’s album inspired by the film Brokeback Mountain. The dance incorporates various circle and line formations—starting
from a single line, going into two, and ending the dance in
four.
2009 PERFORMANCE
Titles:Steamerlane Breakdown, Cripple Creek, Gone But Not Forgotten Choreographers: Matthew Ellinger, Janice Yee Hanzel Dancers: Doug Chin, Matthew Ellinger, Ian Enriquez, Dan Goldes, Dale Petros, Jeff Porter, Richard Ridley, Rick Sherwin, Ramon Torres, Richard Willyard, Brian Wines
In Steamerlane Breakdown, the cloggers perform to the Doobie Brothers, with a "buck-style" chorus of tapping, syncopated heels. Cripple Creek is danced to Buffy Sainte-Marie's recording of the bluegrass drinking song with a choreography inspired by old-time improvisations. In Gone But Not Forgotten, thegroup cuts loose to a raucous country-western tune by Asleep at the Wheel.
Janice Yee Hanzel (Founder) choreographed Steamerlane Breakdown in the mid-90s. Matthew Ellinger recently choreographed Cripple Creek and Gone But Not Forgotten. Cripple Creek was performed in 2008 at the Fresh Meat Festival in San Francisco. This is the first performance of Gone But Not Forgotten.
2007 PERFORMANCE
TITLE:Forked Deer, Hambone, Merina, Paint the Town ARTISTIC DIRECTOR: Matt Ellinger CHOREOGRAPHERS: Matt Ellinger (Forked Deer, Paint the Town, and Hambone) and Janice Yee Hanzel (Merina) DANCERS: Steve Branch, Doug Chin, Matt Ellinger, Ian Enriquez, Dan Goldes, Joey Hill, Ron Jenkins, Jeff Porter, Richard Ridley, Kyle Temple, Ramón Torres, Richard Willyard, Brian Wines MUSICIANS: Sidesaddle - Lisa Burns (bass), Kim Elking (mandolin), Louise Mintun (guitar), Sonia Shell (banjo), Lee Anne Welch (fiddle)
The first of four dances, Forked Deer, is a playful dance commemorating the spirit of camaraderie, showmanship, and inventiveness from which clogging was born. The second piece, Hambone, displays the many cultural layers that comprise the foundation of clogging – African, Native American, and European. Next, Merina weaves together clogging and quadrille patterns, which shows another influence – square dancing. The final piece, Paint the Town, is a spirited blend of traditional and contemporary clogging steps. The all male clogging team is accompanied by the bluegrass band, Sidesaddle.
2005 PERFORMANCE
DANCES:The
Fisher's Hornpipe/Devil's Dream, Bucket to
the South, Banjo
BuckCHOREOGRAPHY: Janice Yee Hanzel,
Matt Ellinger DANCERS: Doug Chin, Matt
Elinger Ian Enriquez, Dan
Goldes, Joseph Hill, Ron Jenkins, Dale Petros,
Jeff Porter, Richard
Ridley, Scott Terry, Richard Willyard, Brian
Wines MUSICIANS: "Sidesaddle" - Lisa Burns
(bass),
Diana Donnelly (guitar), Kim Elking (mandolin), Sonia Shell
(banjo),
Lee Anne Welch (fiddle)
In the 2005 Festival, the
Barbary Coast Cloggers, accompanied by the
all woman band Sidesaddle,
perform a medley of three dances, which
directly express clogging's
cultural sources. The first piece,
Bucket to the South, is an old-time
country tune, which is linked to
European fiddle melodies and shows off the
clogging styles: Buck, Burton,
Flatfoot and French-Canadian, while also
incorporating contemporary
clogging steps. The second dance, Banjo Buck,
evokes the heart-quickening
momentum of an accelerating train, while
emphasizing quadrille patterns
typical of traditional forms of clogging.
The third piece, The Fisher's
Hornpipe/Devil's Dream, danced to a
jubilant Spiritual, is a
raucous favorite among all types of clog dancers
and reflects the exuberant
joy and sincerity of the form and the company.
TITLES: 
Titles