Dancers Perform Excerpts from 'Sleeping Beauty'
A wide variety of dance styles, ranging from classical ballet to contemporary jazz, including variations from “Sleeping Beauty,” will highlight the fall performance of the Alma College Dance Company.
The concerts take place at 8 p.m. Friday, Nov. 11 and Saturday, Nov. 12 and 3 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 13 in the Remick Heritage Center. Tickets are $10 for adults, $5 for seniors 62 and over, and free for Alma College staff, students, and youth 18 and under. Seating is reserved. Call (989) 463-7304 for ticket information.
Alma College Dance Company
Excerpts from the operatic “Sleeping Beauty” were set on Alma’s dancers by visiting assistant professor Samantha Shelton.
“’Sleeping Beauty’ premiered at the Maryinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia, in 1890 and has been performed by major companies all over the world ever since,” explains Shelton. “We are doing a section from the Prologue and two sections from Act III, the Jewels and the Grand Pas de Deux.”
The program also will feature “17:23,” set by Carol Fike, chair of the theater and dance department at Alma College. Inspired by the teamwork of choreographer Merce Cunningham and musician John Cage, Fike utilizes the idea of chance operations, in which a roll of the dice determines lighting, costumes and even the order of the dance. A different dance may be performed each night.
Alma 2009 alumnus Justin Rito composed the music for the piece; however, there is a catch in relation to the music and the performers.
“The dancers will not hear the music until opening night,” explains Fike. “Cunningham and Cage believed that music and dance could happen simultaneously. I told Rito how long I wanted the music to be, I gave him a few adjectives, and he went to his studio, and I went to mine.”
ACDC performs Nov. 11-13 in the Remick Heritage Center.
Kristen Bennett, adjunct instructor, showcases her jazz piece, “Part of Me You’ll Never Know,” set to music by the band Muse. It is inspired by aliens to create a “gritty, earthy” piece, explains Fike.
Also featured in the concert is “Shattered,” choreographed by Gregory Glade Hancock, artistic director of the Hancock Dance Theatre in Carmel, Ind. Hancock originally set his piece on the dancers during four days of intense rehearsals, explains Fike.
“This is a powerhouse of a piece with a very powerful theme,” says Fike. “The piece is about the Hindu and Muslim conflict, and how they work to achieve peace.”
Posted: Wed, November 2nd, 2011 at 3:24PM
