Hope College's annual major dance concert, Dance 30, will feature a variety of works during its March 4-6 run.
Hope College's annual major dance concert, Dance 30, will feature a variety of works during its March 4-6 run.
The concert will be presented on Thursday-Saturday, March 4-6, at 8 p.m. in the DeWitt Center main theatre. The program will feature works choreographed by members of the Hope dance faculty and guest artist Mark Yonally, and will be performed by Hope students.
Choreographer Linda Graham has developed a contemporary ballet piece titled "Unexpecting the Expected." Of the work, she has said, "Words such as 'whimsical' and 'idiosyncratic' come to mind. I was inspired by observing how differently children who are bored choose to handle their time."Dancing in the piece are: junior Lindsay Brown of Boise, Idaho; junior Dawn Flandermeyer of Saint Charles, Mo; freshman Kate Goetzinger of Indianapolis, Ind.; sophomore Paula Grahmann of Verona, Wis.; sophomore Lauren Lochner of Troy; sophomore Sarah Loomis of Fredonia, N.Y.; senior Erin Rupert of Traverse City; and freshman Erin Whaley of Trenton.
Ray Tadio is choreographing two pieces for this season's production. His first piece is titled "Tierra Hermosa," with special thanks to Julio Rivera and the dancers for their artistic input. Dancers for the piece include: senior Matthew Farmer of Bangor; senior Colette Harris of Chicago, Ill.; junior Jeffrey Kurtze of Elkhart, Ind.; sophomore Sona Smith of Chicago, Ill.; junior Mari Stuppy of Dowagiac; Amy Vertalka, a 2001 graduate and current student from Grand Ledge; senior Kara Wilson of Fort Wayne, Ind.; and junior Jessi Yokas of Oelwein, Iowa.
Tadio's second piece is titled "skeeduhdup." The dancers are: freshman Kate Caldwell of Streamwood, Ill.; freshman Josh Cummings of Harbor Springs; senior Lindsay Howes of Alma; freshman Jaime Klein of Aurora; freshman Jillian Koestner of Phoenix, Ariz.; sophomore Lauren Lochner of Troy; senior Tara Mistry of Schaumburg, Ill.; freshman Amanda Piagnarelli of Willowbrook, Ill.; and junior Mari Stuppy of Dowagiac.
Dance 30 choreographer Julio Rivera noted that his piece, a 15-minute suite titled "Lost Sanctuary," was inspired by a visit to a small chapel in the hills of Athens, Greece. "Small and lost in space and time I entered and was transfixed by the bright sunlight piercing the dust filled space through the small, rustic, stained glass windows," he said. "The dancer captures that moment; it is the refracted light come alive, and exposes the viewer to a lost sanctuary. The colors of the stained glass coupled with the vibrant beauty of the colors in Caravaggio's religious paintings moved me to create this work; rich in color and movement."
Rivera's piece was originally choreographed for Dance 24 and is currently in the repertory of Ballet Municipal de San Juan (the San Juan City Ballet). As a tribute to the anniversary year of Dance 30, he has reconstructed the piece and made it into a suite for seven women. Dancers for this piece include: senior Kathleen Davenport of Gainesville, Fla.; senior Colette Harris of Chicago, Ill.; junior Jessica Mumford of Kalamazoo; freshman Missy Rossi of Maple Grove, Minn.; senior Dolores Sanchez of Whiting, Ind.; senior Kara Wilson of Fort Wayne, Ind.; and junior Jessi Yokas of Oelwein, Iowa.
Steven Iannacone will choreograph a duet titled "UNET" for seniors Matt Farmer of Bangor and Dolores Sanchez of Whiting, Ind. The duet is set to the music of Jan Garbarek and costumed by Susan Eyler. "Form, place and identity define this duet that is both liquid and crystalline in texture; a short journey through the microscope or the telescope," Iannacone noted.
Amanda Smith will choreograph a pointe piece to the music of Spanish guitars. Dancing in her piece are: freshman Sommer Amundsen of Coon Rapids, Minn.; junior Chelsea Brown of Naperville, Ill.; freshman Cara Corbett of Sylvania, Ohio; sophomore Paula Grahmann of Verona, Wis.; freshman Joanna Leeman of Plainfield, Ill.; sophomore Lauren March of West Lafayette, Ind.; freshman Katie Maxwell of Naperville, Ill.; freshman Laurie Parker of Shelby Township; and freshman Heather Robertson of Flint.
Rosie DeVries will be choreographing a tap piece to Benny Goodman's "Sing Sing Sing." The dancers are: freshman Lauren Grumm of Grand Rapids; junior Nicole Herbst of Menomonee Falls, Wis.; senior Joy Hofmeyer of Oelwein, Iowa; freshman Andhra Norman of Graytown, Ohio; sophomore Ashley Perez of Honeoye Falls, N,Y.; sophomore Alison Rickey of Richmond, Ind.; sophomore Jamie Thompson of St. Joseph; and senior Lindsey Townsend of Lombard, Ill.
In addition, guest choreographer Mark Yonally of Chicago Tap Theatre will set a tap piece titled "Blue Monday" to the music of trip-hop band, Flunk. Dancing in the piece will be: junior Johnah Archer of Randolph, N.Y.; junior Colleen Cooney of Radcliff, Ky.; junior Madeline Crist of South Whitley, Ind.; junior Molly Hamel of Wyoming; sophomore Peter Hammer of Laurel, Mont.; junior Jessica Mumford of Kalamazoo; junior Jessica Nelson of St. Joseph; sophomore Ashley Perez of Honeoye Falls, N.Y.; sophomore Alison Rickey of Richmond, Ind.; junior Teresa VanDenend of Ripley, Ohio; senior Abby Whitenight of Ludington; and sophomore Julia Wylie of Powell, Ohio. Molly Hamel is also the rehearsal assistant for this piece, and Susan Eyler is designing the costumes.
Tickets for Dance 30 will be available from the theatre lobby box office in the DeWitt Center beginning on Monday, Feb. 23, and will cost $7 for regular adult admission, and $5 for senior citizens, students and members of the Hope College faculty and staff.
The ticket office is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m., will be open until curtain time on Thursday-Friday, March 4 and 5, and will be open from noon to 8 p.m. on Saturday, March 6. The ticket office can be called at (616) 395-7890.
The DeWitt Center is located on Columbia Avenue at 12th Street.