On Friday, Sept. 27, five coffee shops around downtown Akron will screen the short dance film “But First…” in a celebration of caffeine and creativity ahead of National Coffee Day (Sunday, Sept. 29). Between 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. people can stop in at any of the following five shops for a free cup of coffee.

Akron Coffee Roasters, 30 N. High St.
Angel Falls Coffee Company, in the Shoppes at Akron Centre, 76 S. Main St.
Rubber City’s Remarkable Coffee & Cafe at Bounce Innovation Hub, 526 S. Main St.
SerendipiTea, 11 E. Exchange St.
Sweet Mary’s Bakery, 76 E. Mill St.

All weekend long coffee shop visitors can view the film and enter to win a prize package including a pair of tickets to the upcoming Parsons Dance performance at E.J. Thomas Halll, presented by DANCECleveland. Coffee shop weekend hours vary by location and can be found on downtownakron.com.

“But First…” was shot and produced along the Towpath Trail in July 2018 by choreographer Mike Esperanza and filmmaker Erin Brown Thomas, Filmmaker with Red Point Digital, LLC on production. This collaboration was realized during the Dancing Lab: Screendance residency created by the National Center for Choreography at The University of Akron (NCCAkron) and Dance Film SF (DFSF) with lead support from the Akron Civic Commons.

Brown Thomas is an Akron native now working in Los Angeles. She and Esperanza were inspired by many cups of coffee and visits to Akron Coffee Roasters (ACR). During the creative process, ACR’s Albert Masco and team welcomed the artists in to record found sounds that Esperanza later layered and remixed as the film’s score.

This promotion is possible possible with support from Akron Civic Commons, Downtown Akron Partnership, Knight Foundation and the National Center for Choreography at The University of Akron (NCCAkron).