NOVEMBER 21-23: PIONEER WINTER COLLECTIVE PERFORMS APOLLO AT THE BROWARD CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
–An Intergenerational Exploration of Queer Dynamics & Legacy–
ioneer Winter Collective announces Apollo, a queer, intergenerational dance-theater performance, November 21-23 at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts in Fort Lauderdale, FL. Featuring a multigenerational cast, Apollo explores queer dynamics, memory, HIV/AIDS, and legacy while also confronting ageism in the performing arts and reimagining who gets to be seen and celebrated on-stage.
Pioneer Winter Collective (PWC) is a critically acclaimed Miami-based dance company known for creating queer, intergenerational, physically integrated (disabled and non-disabled performers), and experimental work that reimagines the possibilities of dance. This performance marks PWC’s first engagement at the Broward Center.
Event Details
Apollo by Pioneer Winter Collective
Friday, November 21, 8:00 pm
Saturday, November 22, 8:00 pm
Sunday, November 23, 2:00 pm
Abdo New River Room, Broward Center for the Performing Arts
201 SW 5th Ave, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33312
Tickets $40 General Admisison, $60 VIP Ticket https://www.browardcenter.org/events/detail/pioneer-winter-collective-apollo-2025
Free workshop for adults and elders new to dance on Sunday, November 23, details below.
In the performance, Pioneer Winter is joined by dance artists Clarence Brooks, Frank Campisano, and Octavio Campos. Original composition and live performance by sound artist, Diego Melgar.
Pioneer Winter describes Apollo as a biomythography, a style of composition that weaves myth, history, and biography in epic narrative. The work draws inspiration from Greek mythology’s Apollo (god of the sun, music, prophecy, and healing), George Balanchine’s 1928 ballet Apollo, and the cast’s lived experience. Where Balanchine’s Apollo character encountered three ageless Muses, Pioneer Winter’s Apollo encounters three queer elders, each a past iteration of Apollo himself. Together, these dancers meet, compete, and find strength in their tensions as they try to understand each other and themselves. As Apollo’s story unfolds, questions emerge: of community, queering the classics, HIV/AIDS and the Missing Generation, and the importance of legacy.
“At Pioneer Winter Collective, we strive to expand the definition of all that dance is and can be so that all bodies survive, thrive, and are witnessed. We push against the constant erasure of certain bodies, performances, and voices based upon race, body type, age, and ability,” shares PWC Artistic Director Pioneer Winter. “In Apollo we explore identity, personal story, mentorship, and rebirth. This is something queer people have always done: reshaping themselves, forging their own paths. We are honored and excited to bring this performance to Fort Lauderdale.”
Artists of the Pioneer Winter Collective will also teach a free workshop especially for adults and elders on Sunday, November 23, 10 – 11:30 am. This workshop is for folks who have not had the chance to dance before, but are curious to explore movement in a supportive space. After viewing excerpts from Apollo, participants will be guided through accessible ballet-inspired movement, choreography, and discussion to create their own “movement portraits.” No prior dance experience is needed — just curiosity and a willingness to try. Participants should dress comfortably in clothing they can move in. Email [email protected] for more information.
Pioneer Winter (b. 1987; he/they) is a choreographer, dancer, and artistic director based in Miami. Winter creates intergenerational, queer, and physically integrated dance-theater rooted in community, care, and social change. Their work challenges dominant notions of beauty and belonging, while expanding what dance is and who it’s for.
Winter is the founder of Pioneer Winter Collective (PWC), a platform that supports artists living at the intersection of dance, identity, and public health. Through PWC’s performances, workshops, and artist development programs, he creates space for queer, elder, disabled, and system-impacted artists to be seen as essential culture-bearers. Pioneer’s choreographic work blends movement, text, and film, with 2025 projects including Apollo and In the Belly of the Bird/Godmother.
Winter holds an MFA in Choreography and a MPH in Epidemiology. He was named in Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch” and received awards from Creative Capital, NEFA, National Performance Network, MAP Fund, and the Mellon Foundation. Pioneer has directed and curated the ScreenDance Miami Festival since 2017, and mentors artists across the country.
Clarence Brooks (he/they), Performer
Clarence toured North America, Western Europe, Japan, and South Korea with 90 plus companies performing works by more than 130 choreographers. A former associate professor, who has lectured, choreographed, and taught in institutions across the nation, founded the Repertory Dance Theatre Ensemble which performed in curated festivals from Miami to Boston. They can be seen in the 5-part video documentary The World of Alwin Nikolais and their essay, Dancing with the Issues, was published in One Teacher in 10: LGBT Educators Share Their Stories. Additional distinctions include induction into the OCU Performance Hall of Honor, two Atlantic Center for the Arts Associate Artist-in-Residences, a Japan Foundation Grant to study Butoh, and the Library of Congress recorded their interpretation of Talley Beatty’s masterpiece “Mourner’s Bench” for the national archive. A founding member and past president of the Florida Dance Education Organization, Clarence holds advisory positions with FDEO and Natural Movers Foundation and sits on the boards of the Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble, danceTactics Performance Group, Miami Dance Futures, and Doris Humphrey Foundation for Dance. A high school dropout, they hold an MFA, a bachelor of performing arts, and several somatic certifications including Laban Movement Analysis, yoga (200 hour), and the Evans Method of Teaching Dance Technique. Clarence currently works with the Dance Exchange, Pioneer Winter Collective, Sokolow Theatre/Dance Ensemble, danceTactics performance group, Megan Williams Dance Projects, and David Parker & The Bang Group.
Frank Campisano (he/him), Performer
Frank is originally from New Jersey, and he received his early ballet training at the New Jersey Ballet under the direction of Edward Villella and the Garden State Ballet under Constantine Casanova. Campisano later studied with Tampa Concert Ballet under Ric Brame, Nevada Dance Theatre under Vassili Sulich, the Darvash School of Ballet under Gabriela Darvash, and Broadway Dance Center under Ron Forella. Campisano has performed in Las Vegas, The Follies at The Tropicana Hotel and Casino, and with several major dance companies: Boston Ballet II, Anna Myer and Dancers, Festival Ballet Providence, and Island Moving Company, as well as Summer Stock at the Barn Theatre and Off-Broadway tours. Campisano has previously worked with Pioneer Winter Collective in the 2011 premiere of 42: A Stonewall Prospective at the Bass Museum of Art and in the 2017 premiere of Forced Entry and Other Loves Stories at the Light Box at Goldman Warehouse, and 2018 and 2019 performances of Reprise at Miami Dade County Auditorium, Spinello Projects/Brickell City Centre, and Luminaria Contemporary Arts Festival (San Antonio, Texas).
Octavio Campos (he/him), Performer
Octavio is a Cuban-American performance artist, choreographer, educator, community organizer, restorative justice circle keeper, and multidisciplinary trickster whose work defies categories and dances on the edge of possibilities, disruption and wonder. Born into a world of contrasts — Cuban, Queer, Buddhist, Positive, Rebellious — Campos’ artistic voice emerged as a force for disrupting norms and revealing the unseen. Over four decades, he has created countless works and collaborated with hundreds of artists across disciplines, forging a path where spectacle meets intimacy and activism meets art and wellness. Trained at the Martha Graham School, SUNY Purchase Conservatory of Dance, and Germany’s Folkwang Hochschule under the legacy of Pina Bausch, Campos absorbed a movement philosophy rooted in humanity, rawness, and risk. After a decade of work in Europe, he has collaborated with visionary artists including Robert Wilson, Philip Glass, Vivienne Newport, and Yoshiko Waki, leaving his mark on experimental performance, immersive theater, and politically charged rituals. Campos founded Camposition, an interdisciplinary collective in Miami dedicated to creating provocative, site-specific works confronting themes such as HIV/AIDS, religious extremism, and domestic violence. His collaborations with Juggerknaut Theatre Company have redefined audience-performer relationships through immersive, boundary-breaking productions. He is a member of the Pioneer Winter Collective, where he performs, collaborates, and facilitates Recovery in Motion, a signature program blending expressive arts, movement, and recovery principles. He is also the architect of LALA Open Studio, an artist incubator and wellness meetup that nurtures a new generation of interdisciplinary artists and expands Miami’s creative landscape. As an educator, Campos has served on the faculty of the New World School of the Arts in Miami and NIDA (National Institute of Dramatic Art) in Sydney, Australia, sharing his dynamic approach to movement, storytelling, and social engagement worldwide. Offstage, Campos is a certified mindfulness instructor, restorative justice circle keeper, somatic practitioner, and peer support worker. He also serves on the board of B. Riley, an LGBTQ+ treatment center supporting individuals in recovery and mental health resilience. Currently, Campos is Director of Human Readiness Training for PARABOLES, a project by longtime collaborator Natasha Tsakos, with whom he has worked for over 20 years. In this pioneering microgravity experiment, he prepares performers – bodies and spirits alike – to surrender to weightlessness and possibility. After a lifetime crafting works in theaters, recovery centers, city streets, and abandoned spaces, Octavio Campos now takes his mischief, rigor, and deep humanity into space – and enjoys the ride all the way.
Diego Melgar (he/they), Sound Designer & Composer
Diego is a Peruvian-born and Miami-raised, idiosyncratic guitarist reflecting the tropical melting pot he calls home. His two most recent albums, ‘Falling Forward’ and ‘Summer Memories,’ reflect the influence of Miami’s underground rave scene through a unique abstract lens coming from Melgar’s involvement in the avant garde scene. The albums ‘Noble Savage’ and ‘Mitingu’ showcase Melgar’s jazz roots, the prior featuring his American trio and the latter with his European quartet. ‘Where’d You Go’ by Butterfly Snapple, a group of which Melgar is a founding member, features him in the context of an eclectic hip-hop band. Currently, Melgar runs a concert series hosted at Floyd Miami called ‘Pachamanca,’ where artists from the several communities Melgar is a part of collaborate on new music for each concert, creating a one of a kind live musical experience. Diego has been collaborating with Pioneer Winter Collective since 2023.
Pioneer Winter Collective (PWC), established in 2016, is a physically integrated (disabled and nondisabled artists performing together) and intergenerational dance theater company that creates performances in public spaces, museums and galleries, stages, schools, and film. The work PWC creates seeks to expand the definition of all that dance is and can be, so all bodies survive, thrive, and are witnessed. https://pioneerwinter.com/
One of America’s premier performing arts venues, the Broward Center for the Performing Arts presents more than 850 performances each year to more than 600,000 patrons, displaying a wide range of exciting cultural programming and events. Guest experiences at the Broward Center include the all-inclusive Spirit Club Level, the Nicklaus Children’s Health System Intermezzo Lounge, special events in the Huizenga Pavilion, and innovative classes and workshops for all ages at the Rose Miniaci Arts Education Center. With one of the largest arts-in-education programs in the United States, the Broward Center serves more than 100,000 students annually. The Broward Center also manages The Parker, an iconic Fort Lauderdale venue, the Rose & Alfred Miniaci Performing Arts Center on the campus of Nova Southeastern University and the Aventura Arts & Cultural Center in Miami-Dade County. The Broward Performing Arts Foundation, Inc. receives and maintains funds to sustain, develop and secure the future of the Broward Center. The Broward Center is located at 201 SW Fifth Ave. in Fort Lauderdale, FL. For more information, visit BrowardCenter.org.
Funding Credits
Pioneer Winter Collective’s Apollo is made possible by a 2022 Creative Capital Award. Apollo is a 2024 National Performance Network (NPN) Creation & Development Fund Project co-commissioned by Miami Light Project in partnership with Carolina Theatre of Durham and NPN. The Creation & Development Fund is supported by the Doris Duke Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Apollo also received support from the National Performance Network (NPN) Artist Engagement Fund and Alternate ROOTS. Apollo was created during a series of short, intense residencies at Miami Light Project, The Carolina Theatre of Durham, Maggie Allesee National Center for Choreography, Atlantic Center for the Arts, The Movement Lab at Barnard College, Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, and The Ringling.
Pioneer Winter Collective’s Apollo is part of AMPLIFY ARTS, a new Broward Center initiative which aims to elevate and support local artists and emerging arts organizations with the goal of helping them reach a wider audience and develop their skills as professional presenters. Broward Center’s AMPLIFY ARTS initiative is made possible by Wayne and Lucretia Weiner, Baptist Health and TD Charitable Foundation.
Image Description: Four dancers pose in a line, each reaching one arm upward while extending the other arm to the side. Their gazes lift with purpose. At the front stands a younger, in-his-30s dancer dressed in black, distinct from the three elder dancers behind him, who are clad in white.
