Pilgrim | A Performance by Yacnoy Abreu Dutour

Pilgrim | A Performance by Yacnoy Abreu Dutour

Yacnoy Abreu Dutour, a French visual artist and dancer with Afro-Cuban roots, brings his multidisciplinary artistry to Pilgrim – a transformative ritual that defies conventional artistic boundaries. Inspired by the relationship of movement between sculpture and dance, Pilgrim invites audiences into a profound journey of symbolic action, as well as spiritual and emotional liberation, with Bruce Beasley’s monumental sculptures serving as guardians of this sacred passage.

The performance unfolds as a contemporary pilgrimage of the soul. Throughout the journey, Abreu Dutour carries various elements and accessories, each imbued with profound significance. Each element weaves an intimate narrative that transcends the physical and ventures into the transcendent. A powerful contemporary baptism becomes the centerpiece, creating an immersive environment that dissolves boundaries between performer and audience, offering a bridge between the material world and the intangible realm of spiritual awakening.

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About the Artists

Yacnoy Abreu Dutour (Pilgrim)

Yacnoy Abreu Dutour is a French visual artist, dancer, choreographer and performer with Afro Cuban roots. Passionate about dance, he found in painting a powerful language, commensurate with his bodily commitment. A State Graduate in contemporary and modern dance, Yacnoy Abreu Dutour
finds in visual art a logical development of his career. The line is an extension of the gesture, the drawing becomes the trace of the dance. His spontaneous sensuality, nourished by a mystique of the elements, does not ignore the codes and choreographic traditions of multiple cultures. Yacnoy Abreu Dutour extends dance to all aspects of the material. Canvas, paper, fabrics become living spaces, an arena where he dances and acts, alone or in company, as if the origin of what keeps us upright on earth became visible, animated by a rhythmic and plastic energy. Yacnoy Abreu Dutour has the class of Parisians and the elegance of a man of the world in the most universal sense of the term. He gives rise to multidisciplinary encounters, poetry, theater, painting, staging, in which his canvas absorbs the event. Curious about Chinese calligraphy and abstract expressionism, exploring the material through
all kinds of means, video, screen printing, performance, he finds in action-painting his most complete expression. He invents a writing of space and time, to be felt, to experience, to be perceived through the skin as much as through the eyes. The dance becomes a gathering, like a happy accident of the gesture, a grace, in a joyful and vital ambition.

Samantha J. Perkins (Violin)

Sam Perkins is a professional violinist in the Omaha area.  She has had the opportunity to perform with Omaha area theaters such as the Rose, Bluebarn, and Ralston Community, as well as performed with artists such as  Michael Bublé, Rod Stewart, Disturbed, and Trans-Siberian Orchestra.  She has a Bachelor of Music Performance Degree specializing in Music Technology  from University of Nebraska at Omaha.  She was highly involved in the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s Heartland Philharmonic Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra, Concert Choir, Jazz Choir, and Contemporary Music Ensemble 768. Her versatility spans a wide range of genres including classical, contemporary, fiddle, pop, and rock, which she brings into both performance and teaching.  Samantha is currently Resident Artist-Faculty with the Omaha Conservatory of Music and teaching String Sprouts program at Nelson Mandela Elementary.  She also teaches the Suzuki method privately as well as Suzuki Early Childhood Education classes at the Conservatory.  

Mindy Zimmerman (Cello)

Mindy Zimmerman holds a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Music Education from the University of Nebraska at Omaha where she studied cello under Dr. David Low. She has been the Director of Orchestras at South High School for over twenty-three years where the orchestra program has grown from one performing class to four. In that time, she has also expanded the Music Theory program to include Honors and Advanced Placement classes. This year, she launched an innovative mentorship program that trains high school orchestra students how to give 30-minute instrumental lessons based on best teaching practices to elementary and middle school mentees free of charge.  As a clinician and adjudicator, Mindy has worked with the Music for All Honors Orchestra of America, Nebraska Music Educators All-State Orchestra, Omaha Music Teachers Association, Millard Public Schools, Lincoln Public Schools, and UNO String Olympics. In November 2024, she was elected as Apprentice to the Nebraska Music Educators Director of Orchestra Affairs and will take over the position in January 2026.  As a cellist, Mindy has performed for Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Michael Bublé, Billy McGuigan, The Omaha Community Playhouse, The Rose Theater, Chanticleer Theater, Bellevue Little Theater, PART, Heartland Philharmonic Orchestra, Ralston Community Theatre, and is principal cellist and owner of the Metropolitan String Quartet.

Michael Murphy (Flute / Percussion)

Michael Murphy has been a folk musician for most of his life, piano, guitar, harmonica.  But in 1985 his mother passed away, and he felt that he was missing her heritage in his music.  She was Scottish/Mohawk on her father’s side, and French/Huron on her mother’s, and soon he started playing the Native American Flute.  When he does, he hears his mother sing again. His music has been used in a number of films and documentaries, performed in Cuba, Ireland, Mexico, and Guatemala, as well as across the US.

 

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Event Details:

 Saturday, April 26, 7:00 pm
General Admission: $25.00
KANEKO Members: $20.00

Parking: KANEKO is located in three turn-of-the-century warehouses in Omaha’s historic Old Market district. Street, meter, and service lot parking are available throughout the Old Market. 

Enter: Please enter through our East KANEKO atrium doors on 11th & Jones Streets.

Accessibility: Our facilities are completely ADA accessible. As an organization that encourages the exploration of the creative process, we strive to make sure everyone feels safe and welcome in our space. If you have any accessibility needs, please reach out to us at least 48 hours in advance of this event at info@thekaneko.org

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With Gratitude:

• Bruce Beasley Foundation