kloetzel&co. is a dance theatre company committed to creating works that span stage, site, and screen. Under the direction of Melanie Kloetzel, kloetzel&co. has devised and presented interdisciplinary stage performances, dance films, and site-based installations across four continents. Come join the journey!
kloetzel&co. stands up unequivocally for the efforts being made via the Black Lives Matter movement and other movements that prioritize justice for indigenous and Black communities, and all people of color. The deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and so many other Black Americans is a heinous crime and indicative of a system of racist oppression that has deep and abiding roots.
While advocating for social and environmental justice is a key subject area for artwork undertaken by kloetzel&co., this is not enough. As such, kloetzel&co. is taking a serious look at its own complicity and privilege within a racist and oppressive system. As a company that has been mostly (though not solely) composed of white women over the years (all working on small contract-based commissions or grants), we are looking at such homogeneity with a critical eye and seeking to diversify our hiring practices. As such, we are standing in support of the 35//50 initiative, which seeks to develop a more diverse and equitable artistic ecology in Alberta.
kloetzel&co. calls upon leaders, artists, and the general public to acknowledge and address inequities based on race, gender, sexuality, class, and species and to promote systemic change that will ensure a just and fair future for the planet and all its inhabitants.
MEN in charge, a feature film directed by Melanie Kloetzel and Linnea Swan and produced by kloetzel&co., was released on January 20, 2021. The doc(mock)umentary follows the development of the satirical dance theatre work It began with watching, highlighting the possibilities and provocations that arise from the intersection of dance and politics. As ‘alternative facts’ and outlandish acts populate the political landscape, MEN in charge takes viewers on a brutally humorous jaunt through a sector enthralled with surveillance, concentrated wealth, and the workings of power.