Dallas Arts District Announces Newly-Elected Officers

Check out this press release from the Dallas Arts District announcing its new officers for the 2013-2015 term, including Charles Santos, Executive Director of TITAS and Zenetta Drew, Executive Director of Dallas Black Dance Theatre.

Arts District CEOs Boost Collaboration Among Organizations

DALLAS, TX — May 7, 2013 — The Dallas Arts District announced Tuesday its new officers for the 2013-2015 term with a common goal of strengthening collaboration both among Arts District organizations and with the surrounding community. The group represents CEO-level leadership as the District gears up for the national conference of the Theater Communications Group this June, and in 2014 the Association of Art Museum Directors Annual Meeting and U.S. Conference of Mayors.

The Dallas Arts District organization is a catalyst for cultural activity within the Dallas Arts District recognizing artistic excellence and the role arts organizations play in the ongoing development of North Texas’ social, educational and economic development.

“This group represents a wealth of knowledge and experience,” says Dr. Maxwell L. Anderson, Chair of the Dallas Arts District nonprofit board and Eugene McDermott Director of The Dallas Museum of Art. “With the completion of the Dallas City Performance Hall, the Perot Museum of Nature and Science and Klyde Warren Park, we are now seeking ways that we can actively work together to reach our ultimate goal of inclusivity and community engagement crucial to the success of the Arts District.”

With Dr. Anderson as Chair, the 2013-2015 officers also include Vice Chair Kevin Moriarty, Artistic Director at Dallas Theater Center; Secretary Charles Santos, Executive Director of TITAS; Treasurer Zenetta Drew, Executive Director of Dallas Black Dance Theatre; and Past Chair Amy Hofland, Executive Director of the Crow Collection of Asian Art.

“It’s an exciting time to be in the Arts District and for Downtown Dallas,” said Catherine Cuellar, Executive Director of the Dallas Arts District. “We can outline and achieve common goals to spark momentum and enhance the vibrancy of the city so that everyone — not just in our neighborhood — wins.”

The Dallas Arts District is no stranger to collaboration. This month, The AT&T Performing Arts Center opens the District’s first coffee shop inside its new Ticket and Information Center, partnering with local vendor The Pearl Cup. Last week, TITAS announced its new season, including the Dallas debut of Shen Wei, the lead choreographer for the Opening Ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Olympics; in conjunction, The Crow Collection of Asian Art will present an exhibition and salon discussion series. Next month’s Theater Communications Group national conference has received support from the Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau to be presented at the Dallas City Performance Hall, the AT&T Performing Arts Center and the Latino Cultural Center in Deep Ellum.

About the Dallas Arts District

Dallas Arts District was created in 2009 as a nonprofit organization that advocates for the 68-acre Dallas Arts District and stimulates the economic and cultural life of the region. The Dallas Arts District is funded by grants, voluntary membership dues, sponsorships, donations and operational support from Downtown Dallas, Inc. For more information on memberships and sponsorships, please visit www.thedallasartsdistrict.org.

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Media Inquiries:

Catherine Cuellar
Executive Director, The Dallas Arts District
cuellar@downtowndallas.org
214-744-6643

Q&A: Robert Battle of the Alvin Ailey American Theater

Photo: Andrew Eccles

The artistic director of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater on his new position, his plans for its future and Ailey’s masterpiece, Revelations.

Dallas — TITAS closes its diverse 2012-2013 season with the beloved Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. Hailed as one of the first truly American modern dance companies, the Ailey Company makes its debut at the Winspear Opera House, May 3-4, after a 20-year absence in Dallas (it has been to Fort Worth’s Bass Hall several times since, though). The program will feature works by Alvin Ailey, Robert Battle, Ohad Naharin, Paul Taylor, Rennie Harris and Ronald K. Brown and will also include Ailey’s signature work, Revelations (1960).

Dancer, choreographer and visionary Alvin Ailey created Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater to carry out his vision of a company dedicated to enriching the American modern dance heritage and preserving the uniqueness of the African-American cultural experience, according to the Ailey website.

Robert Battle is only the third person to head the Ailey Company since it was founded in 1958. Led by Judith Jamison since Ailey’s untimely death in 1989, Jamison personally selected Battle as her successor on July, 1 2011.

Growing up in Miami, Battle trained at the New World School of the Arts before moving on to The Julliard School where he met his mentor Carolyn Adams. Battle performed with the Parsons Dance Company from 1994 to 2001 and began setting his choreography on the company in 1998. A frequent chorographer and artist-in-residence at Ailey since 1999, Battle has set many of his works, including Strange Humors, The Hunt, In/Side and Takademe on the Ailey Company, Ailey II and The Ailey School.

TheaterJones asks Robert Battle about the challenges of running the legendary Ailey Company, his plans for the future and preserving the Ailey legacy.

TheaterJones: This is your second season as artistic director of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. How has the transition been going for you?

Robert Battle: It’s been a fairly smooth transition. Partly because Judith Jamison chose me ‘cause she felt that this would be the right fit for the company moving forward. So, I think that has been reflected in the ease in which we’ve made this transition. It’s also comforting to know that she is there if I need advice or just to say “Woo! This is intense!” Whatever it might be she’s always right there to encourage me to trust my own instincts and to follow my own singular voice. So, in that way the transition has been painless.

But taking the helm of such a major institution that has meant so much too so many has brought about the question about whether or not it would be recognizable with a new artistic director. But it’s really more like a calling than a job, and so I have just been moving forward and doing the things that I think are important to keep the company going. And to keep it exciting! I think that’s represented in the repertoire and certainly in some of the repertoire that I have brought into the company.

How do you find that balance between the Ailey tradition and your own singular voice?

It’s a fun challenge. It’s challenging, but it’s also rewarding. There is so much great work and finding ways to play off of the company’s history and to think about people who may come in with certain expectations and to sometimes defy those expectations, all that is built into what I do as a choreographer.

Ailey Company in Ohad Naharin”s Minus 16. Photo: Paul Kolnik

I also use the same principles when I’m looking at potential work for the repertoire. For instance, looking at Minus 16 and some of the elements of that work I’m thinking this would be different for the audience, but the heart and soul of the work really speaks to the company’s core values. [The Ailey Company will perform Minus 16 opening night.]

Did you always have a passion to choreograph?

I was a member of the Parsons Dance Company for many years, but I always knew that there were other things I wanted to do beyond dancing myself. I have always had that instinct to create movement. Even when I didn’t know how it would manifest there was always this restlessness about it. So, in some ways, it was an internal compass that steered me toward the position that I’m in now.

When I was little I used to take apart my grandfather’s old-fashioned tape recorders just to see what made the things turn and be able to record sound. And then I would try to put them back together and end up forgetting pieces so, my Grandfather would yell at me and have to get a new one. So, there has always been that curiosity about construction and deconstruction, the manipulation about how people see things and the magic around what you’re presenting to an audience. That whole notion is why I am where I am today.

Can you describe your relationship with Judith Jamison?

When I first started dancing I saw these iconic photos of her dancing Cry, the masterpiece Alvin Ailey created for her, so I have always been in awe of her. So, it has always been one of admiration and respect which has grown into mutual respect as she enjoyed my choreography and chose me to do works for the main company. But I have always maintained that respect and reverence for her because that was my initiation into knowing who she was. I keep those things sacred because that’s my upbringing. She will always be held in my eyes as a legend in the field. And that is how the relationship has developed. It’s a wonderful connection that we have and relationship that we keep.

I am so excited to see Revelations again. Why are audiences still so drawn to this particular Ailey work?

Ailey Company in Revelations. Photo: Nan Melville

I think the intent of the work is clear and everyone gets something from experiencing it. No matter what your age, cultural background or how much of dance you know Revelations manages to have some impact on you. And I think the mark of any true masterpiece is that it defies place, time and circumstance.

But the work is also joyous. It really takes you on this journey that is almost like a baptismal in a way. It brings people together. Most people in the audience don’t know one another, but by the time Revelations is done everybody feels united in the experience that they’ve had. It’s more than seeing dance, it’s having a visceral experience and in some ways a spiritual one. And no matter what anyone’s religious preference is they have this kind of intense experience.

You talked about being welcomed into the Ailey family. Can you describe this family dynamic?

Well, I think that has a lot to do with the founding of the Ailey Company. The African American experience in this country was one in which the idea of family was extremely important for survival. And this lesson that it wasn’t just about dance, but it was also about opportunity, a social and political statement and the personal experiences of Alvin Ailey is the foundation on which this company was built. So, I think the very notion of the way the company started has so much to do with the sense of family and humanity that is displayed in the work.

What are some of your long-term goals for the company?

That’s really to be seen. I really am just following my instincts. I don’t have a five-year plan laid out. I am responding to the times, to the new choreographers who are saying things in a different way and in a way to the dancers in the company who are inspiring me to do different works. So, that part of it is very more organic and difficult to plot out.

But you always want more. You want to make sure you reach more people. In addition to the main company we also have the Ailey II touring company and the Ailey School, which also has a BFA program in conjunction with Fordham University. All of this is an extension of the initial vision of the company. So, in a way it’s really about moving on from where we are and reaching out. Alvin Ailey’s oft repeated quote is that dance comes from the people and should be delivered back to the people. So, I want to make sure that continues to happen and we reach even more people. That’s my hope for the future.

This Q&A was originally posted on TheaterJones.com.

Review: LakeCities Ballet Theatre’s Coppelia

Madison McKay and Nigel Burgoine in LBT’s Coppelia. Photo: Nancy Loch

ALL DOLLED UP

LakeCities Ballet Theatre closes its 2012-13 season with a well-executed version of Coppelia.

Lewisville — The LakeCities Ballet Theatre’s presentation of Coppelia Friday night at the Medical Center of Lewisville Grand Theater encompassed everything the company strives for: crisp technique, an innate sense of musicality and authentic storytelling.

Originally staged in Paris in 1870 by Arthur Saint-Leon with music by Leo Delibes, Coppelia tells the tale of soon-to-be-married Swanilda and Franz. Franz’s obsession with Coppelia who sits in the upstairs window of Dr. Coppelius’ house creates a rift with his future bride, but Swanilda is just as curious about the motionless girl. When opportunity knocks, Swanilda and her friends sneak into the house only to discover that Coppelia is actually a doll. When Dr. Coppelius returns Swanilda switches places with Coppelia to avoid getting caught. She then convinces Franz that she is really the one he loves and they live happily ever after.

Madison McKay and Steven Loch. Photo: Nancy Loch

Madison McKay played a delightful Swanilda. Her solid technique and intricate point work only enhanced her character’s strong, yet loveable personality. Even though her fast foot work appeared labored at times, her graceful lines and natural stage presence overshadowed all of that.

The chemistry between McKay and Pacific Northwest Ballet corps member Steven Loch (Franz) was evenly balanced. Both are powerful dancers with amazing stamina, which only enhanced the audiences’ anticipation for their pas de deux at the end of the show. We were not disappointed. Loch ate up the stage with his grande jetes and double tours en l’air while McKay dazzled with her pique turns sequence.

Guest artist Nigel Burgoine tied the whole performance together with his kooky and over-the-top interpretation of Dr. Coppelius.

Kelly Lannin and Allan Kinzie’s choreography throughout the show really played to the Company’s strengths. The group pieces in Act 1 and 3 contained a lot of fast movement taking the dancers through a maze of weaving patterns and direction changes that were both unexpected and visually pleasing. The choreographers also mixed in some adagio sequences to display the older company member’s superb control and seamless leg extensions.

LBT’s presentation of Coppelia. Photo: Nancy Loch

The scene in Dr. Coppelius’ house opened with a view of 12 beautifully costumed, perfectly still performers posing as dolls. While the story was captivating, the audience’s attention was drawn most to the still dolls in anticipation of a grand sequence that never really happened. While there were tastes of each doll’s quirky personality and staccato way of moving with each one occasionally coming to life, we wanted to see more.

Overall it was a very well-executed performance by LakeCities Ballet Theatre. The practically flawless technique, well-thought out and clean choreography and the understated, yet effective lighting and detailed set design made for a very enjoyable evening.

This review was originally posted on TheaterJones.com.

Q&A: Carla Maxwell of the Limón Dance Company

Artistic Director Carla Maxwell. Photo courtesy of Limon Dance Company

The Artistic Director discusses the Limón Dance Company’s upcoming Dallas performance and preserving Limón’s legacy.

Mexican dance pioneer José Limón (1908-1972) succeeded in creating a company that still entices audiences decades after his passing. Based off the movement experiments of his mentors Doris Humphrey and Charles Weidman, what is known as the Limón technique emphasizes the natural rhythms of fall and recovery and the interplay between weight and weightlessness.

Founded in 1946 by Limón and Humphrey, the Limón Dance Company is now led by Carla Maxwell. Maxwell attended The Juilliard School before joining the company in 1965. She soon became a principal dancer under Limón’s direction and was appointed artistic director in 1978. Acclaimed as a brilliant dramatic dancer, Maxwell danced many major roles with the company, including the title role in Limón’s final ballet Carlota (1972). She teaches internationally as both a representative of the Limón Dance Company and a guest artist-in-residence.

TheaterJones asks Carla Maxwell about the company’s collaboration with Rodrigo Pederneiras, the inspiration behind the technique and preserving Limón’s legacy.

The Limón Dance Company will be presenting three Limón classics, including Chaconne (1942), The Moor’s Pavane (1949) and There is a Time (1956) as well as a new commission by Brazilian choreographer Rodrigo Pederneiras at the Latino Cultural Center in Dallas this Saturday. (The concert, originally scheduled for October 2012, was postponed because of Hurricane Sandy.)

TheaterJones: Can you tell me a little bit about the pieces the company will be performing?

Well, you’re going to see 70 years of dance. We have three Limón classics starting with his first important solo in 1942, Chaconne in D minor; then The Moor’s Pavane (1949) which is his retelling of Othello; and then we’re also doing There is a Time (1956) another signature work with an original score by Norman Dello Joio which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1957. It’s a beautiful lyric telling of the life cycle and is based on a quote from Ecclesiastes “To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.”  

And then we’re closing the program with our newest commission Come With Me which is collaboration between Rodrigo Pederneiras from Grupo Corpo and Paquito D’Rivera who did a beautiful new score for us. If you don’t know him he’s like a superstar in the Latin Jazz genre and also an extraordinary classical musician. It was a thrilling collaboration and a beautiful stretch for our dancers.

I always try to have a range for the company to dance. Mixing up classic work with new commissions is always tricky so, for me it’s very important that whoever we invite has a strong sense of composition, musicality and that there is humanity in the work as well. We’ve been performing Come With Me for a year now so the work is really in the dancers’ bones and I think they look spectacular. So, it’s going to be a real high to end the evening.

For those who are not familiar with Limón technique how would you describe it?

Photo: Rosalie O’Connor

Well, his mentors Doris Humphrey and Charles Weidman really started a whole new movement vocabulary and as José put it they wanted to show themselves as mature men and women dancing about themes that were important in their own lives. Humphrey and Weidman really wanted to create a movement vocabulary that was as human as possible. So, this idea of using the natural movements of the body and the natural actions of everyday life became the basics for their movement.

José would sometimes tell people that we just use every day things like walking, falling and turning. So, the work looks effortless, but that takes hours of work and tremendous practice. It’s not like in ballet where you can see the physical effort of how many turns they can do. We have the same kind of virtuosity as needed, but it manifests itself differently.

The work itself is very formal. It’s not a free-for-all. The architecture alone of each Limón work can tell you the message. It’s a holistic philosophy. Through the movement, idea, the spatial concepts, every element has to contribute to the idea that we’re trying to tell.

The technique itself can look very lyric, but it’s really a rhythmically-based, dramatically-oriented technique. It’s also action-oriented. It’s not movement for movement sake ever. There’s always an objective. The idea again is that we’re not trying to show the technique. We’re trying to take you on a journey. And I think the choreographers that have come to work with us are always pleased and surprised because of the training and exploration that we do.

What other modern techniques have you trained in?

I was lucky enough to go to Juilliard where I trained with Martha Hill who had a diet of ballet, Limón and Martha Graham. That was a terrific combination to hone my skills and learn. There were always overlaps between them. We also had Antony Tudor whose musicality and artistry was integrated into his classes as well as José’s.

When looking at choreographers how familiar would you like them to be with the company and Mr. Limón’s philosophy?

I would like them to be familiar with our work and I think any choreographer looking to collaborate would want to be. We had a wonderful collaboration with Lar Lubovitch. He allowed us to do his Concerto 622 which I think is one of his greatest works. And it was a way for him to learn about the company and the dancers. Then he made a beautiful new work for us for our 60^th anniversary called Recordare, which was a play on the day of the dead. I always prefer this or if somebody comes and does a workshop with us.

Again, I think it’s very important for the choreographers to know about the company and dancers. Even with the work with Rodrigo we were touring in Brazil and he came to see us in Sao Paulo. He stayed for two shows and we got to meet. And then he and Paquito met over Skye so the whole collaboration was very interesting.

Photo: Rosalie O’Connor

How do you stay competitive in today’s dance arena?

It’s very hard because I think economics is ruing the day for everyone. You just have to keep enticing people. Everyone wants what’s new and fast.

I think part of it is also education and reaching out to new audiences. We have been connecting more with the Hispanic and Latino audiences to let them know who José was as a person because his life alone is so inspiring. He immigrated to the United States when he was 7 from war-torn Mexico with his parents. It was 1915 when he came and he wasn’t welcomed with opened arms. He had every possibility to drop out of society, but he didn’t. He took every life challenge and turned it into something positive and creative. And that is very inspiring to young people no matter who they are.

He wasn’t even 65 when he passed away, but we have existed 40 years after him and we were the first company to do so. People always ask how that is possible and I just have to go back to the work. If the work wasn’t relevant and if it still didn’t move people and engage them then we wouldn’t be here.

I also have to pay tribute to my colleagues who are working and teaching his work all over the world. We have a wonderful Limón community especially those who knew José personally.

How do you instill the memory of Mr. Limón in the dancers who never knew him?

Choreographer Jose Limon

We do it through the work. The work is the same. And all the time he spent with his colleagues and his company he never talked about his personal life. He was very formal and very private, but not standoffish. This man struggled with all kinds of issues of identity and of being accepted and you can see this in his work. The Moor’s Pavane is a perfect example.

It’s also through education and teaching. When people come and learn the technique and realize how difficult it is they leave with a new appreciation for what we do. It’s also a technique that feels really good when you do it. It’s also just constantly being out there and talking about José and realizing that what we are trying to bring forward as a company is much greater than him the person.

This Q&A was originally posted on TheaterJones.com.

Q&A: Paul Taylor

Choreographer Paul Taylor. Photo: Paul Palmaro

The iconic choreographer discusses modern dance in the 21st century, the popularity of contemporary ballet, and his company’s longevity.

Richardson — The legendary Paul Taylor Dance Company returns to the Eisemann Center for Performing Arts on April 13, 2013 for a one-night-only performance. The evening’s program includes The Uncommitted (2011), Brandenburgs (1988) and Le Sacre du Printemps (The Rehearsal) (1980).This marks the company’s sixth appearance as part of the Eisemann Center Presents series and also includes a master class on April 12 and an open educational rehearsal prior to Saturday’s performance.

Choreographer Paul Taylor is known as the last living pioneer of modern dance. Born during the Great Depression, Taylor attended Syracuse University in the late 1940s before transferring to The Juilliard School. In 1954 he assembled a small company of dancers and began choreographing. His most notable works include 3 Epitaphs (1956), Aureole (1962), Esplanade (1975) and Company B (1991). Taylor joined the Martha Graham Dance Company in 1955 and was invited to be a guest artist with the New York City Ballet in 1959, where George Balanchine created the Episodes solo for him.

Taylor has received every important honor given to artists in the United States. His accolades include the Kennedy Center Honors in 1992, the National Medal of Arts awarded by President Clinton in 1993, and the Algur H. Meadows Award for Excellence in the Arts in 1995. He is also the recipient of three Guggenheim Fellowships and was named one of 50 prominent Americans honored in recognition of their outstanding achievement by the Library of Congress’s Office of Scholarly Programs.

Today, Taylor’s dances are performed by the Paul Taylor Dance Company, the six-member Paul Taylor 2 Dance Company and dance companies throughout the world, including the Royal Danish Ballet, Rambert Dance Company, American Ballet Theatre, San Francisco Ballet, Miami City Ballet and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. He remains among the most sought-after choreographers working in the industry today.

TheaterJones asks Paul Taylor about his company’s longevity, preserving his work, and how modern dance has changed over the last 50 years.

TheaterJones: The Paul Taylor Dance Company has been going since 1954. How do you keep yourself from burning out?

Paul Taylor: It’s really not a problem for me. I love to work, I love what I do and I enjoy the people I work with, so the concept of burning out doesn’t occur to me. I don’t think I am burning out.

To what do you attribute your company’s success?

Paul Taylor’s The Uncommitted. Photo: Andrea Mohin/The New York Times

(He laughs.) Well, to a lot of things, but especially the dancers, my managers over years, my fundraisers and then the fact that I know how to cut expenses. I was born in the Great Depression and my family really set the example as to how to cut costs.

Have the qualities you look for in a dancer changed over time?

I really haven’t changed in that way. I still look for the same qualities that I always did. I will say that dancers today are usually more technically advanced than in my day, but I don’t look for anything different than I always have. For me it’s all about communication both verbally and through the movement.

What is it about your work that makes it so relatable to people of all different generations? I am speaking primarily of your piece Company B.

Well, I don’t really think about how the audience is going to relate to the work when I am creating it. I try to make things that I think I’d like to see. I don’t know how to work any other way. With Company B, it’s really the music that draws people in. It’s basically a war dance and most people know about war and therefore can relate to it. It’s about the people who stay home, with glimpses of the people who don’t. So, on the surface it seems like lots of fun with the spritely and happy music when actually from the very beginning there are hints that it’s not going to be that kind of dance.

What challenges have you encountered when it comes to archiving and preserving your work?

Fortunately, I have an archivist that takes care of all that.

What are your thoughts on contemporary ballet and the influx of contemporary ballet companies in the U.S.?

I’m not really the person to ask about that because I rarely go out to see dancing. What I will say is that modern dance has always had an influence on classical ballet dance, and so dancers today are more interested in doing work that is not totally classic. You know quite a few ballet companies take my work and put it in their reps and that is very nice.

Paul Taylor Dance Company in Company B. Photo: Rex C. Curry

American Ballet Theatre performed Company B in Dallas last year. Were you happy with their version?

I was there when ABT learned the piece and I thought it was very good. There are differences between their style and mine, but it takes years of training to get the kind of weight in the movement that most of my dancers have. I figure if the dance is solid and structurally firm it can stand on its own.

Where does traditional modern dance fit in the 21^st century?

It’s hard to say what is traditional because each generation has its own version of what they think modern dance should be. It’s constantly changing. What people use to call modern dance is now called something else. So, I think it will just go on changing according to the different generations that come along and add to it.

 You have done and accomplished so much in the modern dance field. Is there anything else you would like to do?

Oh sure! I mean dance is a bottomless pit, and I would just like to keep on working as long as I can.

This Q&A was originally posted on TheaterJones.com.

Q&A: Emilie Skinner of Dallas Neo-Classical Ballet

Dallas Neo-Classical Ballet Co-Founders Victoria Dolph (left) and Emilie Skinner (right)

The co-founder of Dallas Neo-Classical Ballet talks about collaborating with local dance companies and guest artists for its upcoming Spring Mixed Repertoire Concert.

Plano — Dallas Neo-Classical Ballet (DNCB) continues its mission to establish a supportive, healthy environment in which dancers, artists and musicians can express their passion for the arts with its upcoming Spring Mixed Repertoire Concert, April 14 at the Courtyard Theatre in Plano. The program includes new works by DNCB,Collin County Ballet Theatre (CCBT), Danielle Georgiou Dance Group (DGDG) and guest choreographers Anna Ward and Michael Scott.

Growing up, Emilie Skinner trained with Gilbert Rome and Victoria Vittum in Houston. She has performed roles in The Nutcracker, Sleeping Beauty, Giselle and Swan Lake with the Houston Repertoire Ballet. And while her primary training has been in ballet, Skinner also has training in modern, jazz and contemporary dance.

Since graduating from the University of North Texas with a BA in French and a minor in art history, Skinner has been teaching, performing and choreographing in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. In addition to her role as co-founder of Dallas Neo-Classical Ballet alongside Victoria Dolph, Skinner also performs with Contemporary Ballet Dallas.

Theater Jones asked Emilie Skinner about the inspiration behind the Spring Mixed Repertoire Concert, the benefits of working with local dance talent, and what DNCB has in store for the future.

TheaterJones: What was the inspiration for this year’s Spring Concert?

Emilie Skinner: With the exception of our principal dancer, Lea Essmyer, we have a whole new group of dancers this spring, and we wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to bring fresh, new choreography to the stage. Apart from one of my pieces most of the works are more contemporary, which is rather atypical of us. We really wanted to explore and extend our choreographic boundaries in order to show the versatility of our company. Up to this point the majority of our work has been largely classical in style.

What specific works will your company be presenting? Any premieres? Who are the choreographers?

Victoria Dolph has set two new contemporary pieces to the music of Balmorhea, a local band from Austin, and I have three new pieces to present, one of which I am extra enthusiastic about. What a Doll! set to music by Fats Waller is a collaboration between DGDG’s Danielle Georgiou and myself. This piece comments on the increasingly bizarre norms of our society due to the mainstreaming of social media and mounting lack of personal connections, which can result in complete social incompetence. Despite its meaning the piece is fun and quirky and we hope to make the audience LOL.

Courtesy of DNCB

We are also featuring three guest companies and works by guest choreographers Anna Ward and Michael Scott. Michael Scott’s piece is a romantic pas de deux performed by company members Jaclyn Brewer-Poole and Brandon Chase McGee. Anna Ward’s piece is set to music by Native American singer Buffy St. Marie and exhibits a primitive nature layered on top of classical choreography. It is conceptually based on a community which has been all but erased from our society, but remains the axiom of the Native American culture.

Have you worked with Collin County Ballet Theatre or Danielle Georgiou Dance Group previously?

Yes, we have worked with both companies. We have performed as guest artists for CCBT and the directors, Kirt and Linda Hathaway, graciously donate rehearsal space to DNCB weekly. My partner Victoria Dolph also teaches and choreographs for the Hathaway Ballet Academy.

We had the pleasure of working with DGDG last spring when they guested as our “moon people” for the premiere of Kaguya-Hime at the Bishop Arts Theatre Center. This section of the ballet was choreographed by Danielle Georgiou and inspired by the Butoh style which originated in Japan in the early 1950s. Ms. Georgiou has also invited DNCB to perform at events such as the HARAKIRI: To Die

For performances at CentralTrak last May and, as I mentioned earlier, is collaborating with us on the upcoming performance on the 14th. We have a great deal of respect for the aesthetics DGDG regularly brings to the stage.

What do you enjoy most about working with other local dance companies?

It is extremely important to us to create opportunities for companies who share our passion for the arts to perform and express themselves. Dallas is full of small, independent dance companies who have a lot to offer, and the best way to generate growth of the dance community and produce quality art is through collaboration. I love seeing what these companies bring to the stage. We are never disappointed.

What challenges can occur when working with guest companies?

Although we have yet to run across this issue (luckily), I always worry about having to pull a guest piece due to artistic differences or for any other reason. We try to work with companies who share similar goals with DNCB in order to avoid uncomfortable situations such as this.

What piece(s) are you most looking forward to seeing?

I suppose I am anticipating seeing my pieces the most and to see what kind of feedback I receive just for my own personal reflection and growth as a choreographer, but I am really excited to see the whole show come together. With all new works there’s no way to foresee how the audience will react or what kind of review we will get, which is both exciting and a little scary.

Courtesy of DNCB

What would you like the audience to take away from the performance?

I would love for them to come away with a sense of satisfaction; for them to feel they witnessed a full range of dance and passed an evening well-spent supporting the arts.

What can we expect to see from Dallas Neo-Classical Ballet in the future?

We’ve been around for just about a year and half and already I feel we have proven ourselves to be a well-rounded company. We started off performing short pieces at the MAC, Texas Theatre and CentralTrak and premiered our first original ballet, Kaguya-Hime, last spring. We have a strong group of dancers that is continuously growing. We plan to continue creating new works and perhaps take on another new full length in the not-so-distant future. We are gaining momentum and only hope to keep developing, creating and performing in order to fulfill our mission as a company.

This Q&A was originally posted on TheaterJones.com.

Q&A: Loris Anthony Beckles of Beckles Dancing Company

Photo: Supreme Dream Photography

The Artistic Director of Beckles Dancing Company on its upcoming performance, Eighteenth Movement in Space and Time, and its active role in the Dallas dance community.

The Beckles Dancing Company continues to celebrate the creative and inspiring power of dance with its spring performance entitled Eighteenth Movement in Space and Time, April 5-6, 2013, at the South Dallas Cultural Center in Dallas. The program includes works by guest artists Tina Mullone, Prathiba Natesan and Exhibit Dance Collective as well as a collaboration with jazz singer Jennifer Ann Beckles.

Loris Anthony Beckles is the artistic director of Beckles Dancing Company and the executive director of ARGA NOVA DANCE. A native of Guyana, he received a BA in Dance from Adelphi University where he studied ballet, modern, jazz and African dance. He has also studied at the New York School of Ballet and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center. Beckles has performed with the Alvin Ailey Repertory Ensemble, Eleo Pomare Dance Company, Capitol Ballet and the Syracuse Ballet Theatre.

Beckles has taught ballet and modern at Park Cities Performing Arts Center in Dallas, modern and jazz at the South Dallas Cultural Center and jazz dance at Dream Catcher and Infinite Bounds in Plano. He is also the founder and coordinator of the South Dallas Dance Festival, which celebrated its 12th season in November.

TheaterJones asks Loris Anthony Beckles about what he hopes the audience will take away from Eighteenth Movement in Space and Time, collaborating with guest artists and the company’s role in the Dallas dance community.

TheaterJones: For those unfamiliar with your company can you please give us some background?

Sure! It is a modern dance company with ballet, African and jazz influences. The ages range from 14 to 40 and we try to blend them into an ensemble. So, we are really a multi-age dance ensemble. It’s mainly my choreography, but we are also opened to guest choreographers.

Did you always want to have such a wide range of ages in your company?

I am just opened to it. I think it’s good because people have the impulse to move when they are young and when they are older they bring a certain maturity to it so, it’s good to have all that in the company.

What was the inspiration behind the title Eighteenth Movement in Space and Time?

Well, the company was formed in 1995 by Andre R. George and when he passed in 1996 I took over the company. So, it has been 18 years now and that was the inspiration behind the title Eighteenth Movement in Space and Time. It sounds very heavy and competent and in a way it is, but it’s really about celebrating our 18th year.

To what do you attribute your company’s longevity in the Dallas arts community?

Just the determination to keep going.

Are you presenting works that cover the last 18 years or is it mainly newer work?

It’s mainly newer work. The oldest work is from 2001 and it’s a solo called Suite Beauty (Parts I and II). There are four parts total and parts I and II are usually done by themselves. I actually started making it on a man and then I worked with woman and 4 years later I did it with a man and a woman. So, it has been interesting to see the different energies and how each individual’s personality shaped the work. I will also be premiering a new piece entitled Exile which I worked on with my sister Jennifer Ann Beckles.

Can you tell me a little bit about the other guest artists who will be appearing in the show?

Tina Mullone was a member of the company and now she teaches at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. She will be performing a short work by me called Thing Thing. Michelle Gibson from Exhibit Dance Collective will be presenting something that is quite different from what I do. She has a whole different vocabulary and it’s a really nice piece. And Prathiba Natesan is an Indian dancer who I have worked with before and she will be performing the solo No Net Ensnares Us which she also choreographed. So, there is quite a variety.

The Beckles Dancing Company is very active in the Dallas dance community, including the South Dallas Dance Festival and the Barefoot Brigade. Was that your goal from the beginning?

Beckles Dancing Company

It wasn’t my goal to do a whole lot of things, but curiosity and need pushed me in those directions and I was happy to go. In the Barefoot Brigade we wanted to present a forum for different companies to pool their resources. And in the South Dallas Dance Festival I wanted to see companies I had only heard about dance in the same place at the same time. There is also an artist-in-residence program at Greiner Middle School which I am a part of. I want to hopefully enrich and inspire students there.

What would you like the audience to take away from the performance?

Hopefully they will hum a tune and a certain sequence of movement will get stuck in their memory. And hopefully they will connect the movement to what they see every day like sunrise, sunset, movement of traffic or an emotion like frustration. Hopefully they can identify with those things and just remember something that was particularly moving to them.

What are your future plans for the company?

I would like to continue choreographing and I would like the organization to be stronger and to continue the various programs that we are doing, including the Barefoot Brigade, the South Dallas Dance Festival and the artist-in-residence program. So, if we could just continue to grow that would be great. And we will continue to expand because there will be more children, more companies and more dancers.

This Q&A was originally posted on TheaterJones.com.

Q&A: SMASH Dancer Chris Vo

Dancer Chris Vo on headlining Dance Planet 17, dancing on the show Smash and the growing arts scene in Dallas.

Dallas — The remarkably talented dancer, choreographer and fitness instructor Chris Vo returns home to Dallas to headline this year’s Dance Planet 17, April 6-7, 2013, at the Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in the Arts District.

Vo is no stranger to Dance Planet, the oldest and largest free dance festival in U.S., according to the Dance Council of North Texas. “Growing up I had been an attendee of Dance Planet since my 4th grade year,” Vo says. “I remember the arts district, Annette Strauss Square, coming alive with dancers and supporters of dance.”

Dance Planet 17 offers 30 different kinds of dance and fitness classes from Circus Aerial Silks and Hip-Hop Smash to Flamenco and Folklorico taught by professionals from around the region. The event also includes a performance showcase featuring a wide range of styles presented by local dance studios and performance companies. Vo will be teaching Zumba, musical theater and modern dance as well as participating in a Q&A session over the two-day dance event.

Vo’s resume includes performing with the renowned Lar Lubovitch Dance Company and with the national tour of Twyla Tharp’s Come Fly with Me. Vo recently made the transition from concert to commercial dance landing a role on Season 2 of the NBC hit show SMASH, which premiered in February. Vo was also part of the Bruce Wood Dance Project’s extended version of My Brother’s Keeper this March at the Montgomery Arts Theater in Dallas.

TheaterJones asks Chris Vo about growing up in the Dallas dance scene, his first dance job and what he is most looking forward to at this year’s Dance Planet 17 event.

TheaterJones: How did you get involved with Dance Planet 17?

Chris Vo: Gayle Halperin reached out to me to headline it.

As the headliner of this year’s Dance Planet event what are you most looking forward to?

I’m most looking forward to sharing my passion and enthusiasm for dance. I will be teaching a wide range of classes: Zumba, musical theater and modern dance.

As a Dallas native you grew up attending Dance Planet events. What are some of your fondest memories?

I loved being a part of a greater arts community. We spend so much time in our own studios working day in and day out that we forget there is a dynamic and diverse dance community around us. I don’t use the word community lightly. Everyone was always supportive of one another. It really felt like for one weekend we were reminded of our tribal beginnings, gathering to celebrate life through dance.

How did growing up in the Dallas dance community prepare you for your professional career?

I am a proud graduate of all of the public arts schools in Dallas, including Sidney Lanier, Greiner and Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. In addition to being a true product of the Dallas Independent School District’s arts programs, I also had the pleasure and opportunity to take classes all around the Metroplex, including Dallas Ballet Center, City Ballet, Kitty Carter’s Dance Factory, Academy of Dance Arts and Diane Clough West Dance Studio, just to name a few.

Many thanks to the generous studio owners who have opened their doors to me and to my colleagues who allowed me to tagalong for a class or two. The culmination of all the previously mentioned experiences has shaped me into the artist that I am today.

How has the dance scene in Dallas changed since you left?

Well, for starters, Artist’s Square is nothing like it used to be. Who would have thought that in the 10 years that I’ve been gone Dallas would gain multiple state-of-the-art facilities in the heart of downtown! So much of what the Dallas audience gets exposed to is contingent on what TITAS brings to the city, and TITAS always brings the best of the best so that hasn’t changed. It is nice to see that Texas Ballet Theater comes to Dallas to use the Winspear Opera House. It’s a treat that the Bruce Wood Dance Project is working out of Dallas. I think there is a charge and bright energy surrounding the dance scene in Dallas.

Can you tell me about your first job as a professional dancer?

My first job as a professional dancer was through TITAS. I’m forever grateful for the incredible experience. To share the stage with the crème de la crème of the dance world at the Command Performance during my senior year of high school was beyond my wildest dreams. I performed two solos: And Some Look Back by Jessica Lang and Growth by Dwight Rhoden.

Did you find the transition from concert dance to television challenging?

Not particularly, dance is dance. But I did find that working on TV is very stop-and-start. Sometimes those production numbers that last only minutes long can take many many hours to film.

What was the audition process for the television show Smash like?

It was just like any other audition except the best dancers in the Broadway/commercial circuit were there. We learned a combo then they made a cut. Then we did the combo again with our shirts off. Ha! 

What lessons have you learned about dancing for television?

I’ve learned that it requires a lot of patience to be on set. There’s an aspect of instant gratification with live theater that you don’t get with TV work. But I have to say once the finished product airs it is so exciting.

What advice do you have for young aspiring dancers in Dallas?

My advice is to follow your dreams, work hard for the results you want and to keep an open mind when it comes to shaping your career.

This Q&A was originally posted on TheaterJones.com.

Q&A: Choreographer Margo Sappington

Choreographer Margo Sappington on her new rock ballet Plaza Del Fuego, part of the Spring Performance for Ballet Ensemble of Texas.

Native Texan Margo Sappington returns to her home state for the Ballet Ensemble of Texas’ Spring Performance where she will premiere her new rock ballet Plaza Del Fuego to music by Carlos Santana. The Ballet Ensemble of Texas’ Spring Performance takes place March 29-30, 2013, at the Irving Arts Center and will also feature George Balanchine’s Walpurgis Nacht, Gordon Pierce’s An American Portrait to music by Copland and No Pressure by Tammie Reinsch.

Margo Sappington began her professional dance career when she joined the Joffrey Ballet at the age of 17 and her choreographic career at the age of 21. She has created works for the Joffrey (New York/Chicago), Pennsylvania Ballet, Houston Ballet, Atlanta Ballet, Kansas City Ballet, Milwaukee Ballet, Carolina Ballet, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and Ballet Jazz de Montreal.

Sappington is most well-known for using popular music on the concert stage, including songs by Prince, William Shatner, Indigo Girls and now Carlos Santana. Her opera credits include Live from the San Francisco Opera, La Gioconda, Samson and Delilah and Aida. On Broadway, she was the dance captain in the original Promises, Promises and has choreographed revivals of Pal Joey, Oh! Calcutta! and Where’s Charley!

She currently contributes works yearly to the Dreyfoos School of the Arts in West Palm Beach, FL.

TheaterJones asks Margo Sappington about working with the students at the Ballet Ensemble of Texas, her inclination for popular music and the inspiration for her new ballet Plaza Del Fuego.

TheaterJones: How did you get involved with the Ballet Ensemble of Texas?

I knew Lisa Slagle when she was dancing with the Joffrey Ballet. When she left the company I happened to be choreographing an opera in San Francisco and she auditioned for me and I hired her and that’s how we met.

Have you choreographed other pieces for the Ballet Ensemble of Texas?

Ballet Ensemble of Texas

No I haven’t. I was teaching master classes at a festival in Houston about two years when our paths crossed again. After my first class I went up to one of the little girls and asked her who her teacher was and she said Ms. Lisa Slagle. So, in the next class after only a few minutes of dancing I could pick out which students were hers based on their technique. Lisa’s students are very refined and trained so well. So, I talked to Lisa and told her I would love to do something with her group. I don’t normally choreograph on students, but I just think Lisa’s girls are really wonderful and I knew I could do a lot with them.

What was the inspiration behind your new rock ballet Plaza Del Fuego?

Well, it is Texas and so I was very interested in doing Santana. I thought it would be something different for the company to interpret. It’s contemporary ballet so it has the classical ballet technique, but I push it a little bit over the edge. So, the dancers have to utilize everything they have learned already and then take it a little further. They have to be a little more off balance and a little bit corkier.

You have a preference for using popular music when choreographing. What challenges have you encountered by doing this?

I like to figure out ways to get a sense and feeling of a song without illustrating the lyrics. I find this challenging and interesting. With Santana, of course, there isn’t any words just wonderful music. His music gives opportunities to do rhythmic things that are very different from what you would typically see in a ballet.

Do classical dancers have a harder time adapting to your musical choices?

I don’t think so. If anything it draws them in more because the music is popular so it’s not as intimating to them. They can relate a little better to it than something that is only classical. They get a little more excited and can really feel the rhythm in the music more.

What advice do you have for young dancers?

I think it is important for dancers to realize that there is more to being a professional dancer than just being a good dancer. Your love of dance has to also lead you to understand that you have be able to do basic life skills like washing your own dance clothes, sewing your own pointe shoes and getting yourself to places on time. They should also know their own schedules. Students shouldn’t have to always rely on their parents. They need to know these things so when they get out into the real world they won’t be so overwhelmed.

Ballet Ensemble of Texas

What is your biggest pet peeve as a teacher and choreographer?

What makes me sad is when I mention to a dancer the name Margot Fonteyn and they have no idea who I am talking about. Or names like Wendy Whelan or Lourdes Lopez. There are dancers who don’t know that Lourdes was a dancer with Miami City Ballet for 20 years before she became artistic director. This just makes me really sad. I mean if you were a racecar driver or baseball player you would know who came before you and it should be the same way with dancers. Dancing to me is still an expression and the technique is only a means to get there; it’s not an end by itself.

Did you enjoy working with the Ballet Ensemble of Texas?

I so enjoyed working with Lisa’s company. I was only there a week and it was really intense, but the dancers were so focused and it was just a lovely experience.

This Q&A was originally posted on TheaterJones.com.

 

Review: Bruce Wood Dance Project

My Brother’s Keeper. Photo: Sharen Bradford/The Dancing Image

Male Bonding

Bruce Wood creates a new repertory favorite with My Brother’s Keeper

I have a been a fan of choreographer Bruce Wood for a few years now, but I had my doubts about his new work My Brother‘s Keeper which premiered Friday night at the Montgomery Arts Theater in Dallas due to its masculine themes and all-male cast.

I went into the theatre feeling sort of like an outsider and left with a new found respect and understanding for the male psyche.

Wood did a magnificent job describing the complex relationships among men using song, movement and storytelling. Wood set the tone right away with eleven men dressed in suits seating on a long bench. Their faces are hidden in the shadows giving the impression that these men could be anyone we know. It made me think of my brother and father.

As the piece proceeds the men come forward into the light in groups of two’s, three’s and four’s to perform a series of signature Wood movements, including rhythmic hand gestures, concave body positions and inverted feet. Vocalist Gary Lynn Floyd and story teller Jac Alder’s passionate performances only enhanced Wood’s fragmented yet fluid movement tendencies.

Wood found a way to describe the relationships between brothers, friends and lovers that was simple in concept yet layered with emotions and movement choices.  His choreography is always jam-packed with exciting and unexpected floor work and partnering, but it never comes across muddled. How does he do it?

Albert Drake, Joshua Peugh and Harry Feril. Photo: Brian Guilliaux

The trio with Dallas Blagg, Albert Drake and Harry Feril had the biggest impact on me. Their partnering was beautiful, but it was the transitions between the lifts that really stood out. Instead of just placing Drake on his feet, Feril would place him on Blagg’s back allowing Drake to slowly slide to the floor. Rarely did the men break contact with each other; a powerful sign of their love and support for one another. It made me think of my relationship with my sister and my husband’s relationship with his three brothers. We all fight with our siblings, parents and lovers, but with this piece Wood reminds us of the strong bonds that tie us all together. Only Bruce Wood could create such a work.

The Bruce Wood Dance Project will be presenting three new works June 21-23, 2013 at the Dallas City Performance Hall. Visit www.brucewoodance.org for more information.