Dance Coalition presents Annual Spring Concert at Walton Arts Center

Dance Coalition will present its Annual Spring Dance Concert at the Walton Arts Center Starr Theater, 495 W. Dickson, in Fayetteville on April 4, 5, and 6, 2008.

This year’s program will include new choreography in many styles of dance, including classical and contemporary ballet – some inspired by life right here in Arkansas – as well as, jazz and lyrical, modern dance, and Irish dance.

Choreographers and Guest Artists presenting work this year are Michelle Brekelbaum, Emily Viator, Hannah Pasquinzo, Tamarah Jonason, Anabelle Steeleman-Berry, Ana Ayala, Mary Trulock, Amy Kessler, and Sally Ashcraft.   

The Friday and Saturday, April 4th and 5th, performances will begin at 7:00 p.m., and the Sunday, April 6th, matinee will begin at 2:00 p.m.  Tickets are available at the Walton Arts Center box office at 479-443-5600 and online at www.waltonartscenter.org. Tickets are $15 for adults, $8 for children age 12 and under.

Dance Coalition’s member choreographers and guest artists are a diverse group of Northwest Arkansas artists who come from a variety of dance training backgrounds from all over the United States.  The coalition continues to actively seek local choreographers and dancers to join the organization as it continues to grow and support the local dance arts.  To learn about how to become involved as a dancer, guest artist, or choreographer, visit www.dancecoalition.com.

Michelle Brekelbaum, a member choreographer, has set her work for this year’s concert on young adult dancers.  With music by Yanni and flowing costuming, the dancers will perform a modern dance called “A Study”.

Emily Viator, who is also a member choreographer, will perform with her dancers in a jazz and hip-hop stylized piece called “The Whole World” to the song by the same name by Outkast.  The piece is a unique and upbeat number, with Victorian-inspired costuming with an urban twist.

Hannah Pasquinzo, Dance Coalition member choreographer, Mrs. Pasquinzo was inspired to create two choreographic works for this year’s concert.  The dancers will perform “Ruby Blue” with music by Roisen Murphy and “Falling” with music by Missy Higgins.  The costuming for “Ruby Blue” is shimmery and black, and the dance is described as being stylized, funky jazz.  For Pasquinzo’s second piece, “Falling,” the style is more lyrical, and at times throughout the dance, the movements of the dancers give the appearance that they are dolls or puppets.
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Tamarah Jonason, long-time guest artist with Dance Coalition, will be performing a piece called “Voices of the Spirit,” featuring both music by Karunesh and spoken word, by Deerwoman, a local Shamanic Improvisational Prayerformer.

Anabelle Steeleman-Berry, a Dance Coalition member choreographer, has set a piece for this year’s concert called “Fates,” to music by Trevor Jones.  The piece was inspired by the music, and features the three Fates of mythology, Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropis, who measure the thread of life, thread the thread of life, and cut the thread of life.  The theme of the dance explores the idea that fate rules our existence, and that mortals only have a certain amount of control over their future.

Ana Ayala, guest artist, has choreographed a traditional Irish reel with a twist of contemporary movement called “Exploding Bow.”  The work will feature six Irish dancers, dancing to music by Boega.

Mary Trulock, Dance Coalition member choreographer, has created a three-section ballet called “Arkansas Suite.” Each segment represents one of the major regions of Arkansas:  The Delta, The Ouachitas, and The Ozarks.  The music for the ballet was composed by Steven Trulock, long-time musician, specifically for this choreographic work.

Amy Kessler, also a Dance Coalition member choreographer, is reprising a piece called “Poses” with music by Rufus Wainwright, which she originally set on dancer, Nina Shirkey.  Nina’s unique style of flowing, languid, and lackadaisical movement, along with the music, inspired this work.  The piece is costumed in trench coats, and, as a dance meant to be performed by mature dancers, it is stylized especially to compliment the adult female dancer’s body.

Sally Ashcraft, Dance Coalition member choreographer, will present a contemporary ballet, in three sections, called “The Color of Memory,” to music by J.S. Bach, James Blunt, and Israel Kamakawaiwo’ole.  The work, which features 13 dancers, takes a journey through an overnight dreamscape, traveling from dusk, to dream, to dawn.  The piece was inspired by the thought that our memories are important to us emotionally, and, accurate or not, can offer us a sweet, brief respite from the present reality.  The work is dedicated to Ashcraft’s late grandfather, Chester Byron Snider.

For more information, contact the Dance Coalition at 479-422-6132 or via email at thedancecoalition@yahoo.com.

Dance Coalition is a non-profit group of local artists who have been creating and presenting new and original choreography in the Northwest Arkansas community since 1996.  They are the only cooperative of choreographers in the state of Arkansas.  The Coalition has a yearly concert in the spring to showcase new choreography and talented dancers in the area, and continues to offer unique dance events and dance education opportunities throughout the year.  For further information about Dance Coalition, and how you can become involved as a choreographer, donor, or volunteer, please visit www.dancecoalition.com , call 479-422-6132, or email thedancecoalition@yahoo.com

For additional information about this Press Release and for PHOTO OPPORTUNITIES contact:

Sally Ashcraft, PR
Dance Coalition
479-422-6132
thedancecoalition@yahoo.com
www.dancecoalition.com
Dance Coalition, a non-profit arts organization, was formed in 1996 as a vehicle for introducing Northwest Arkansas to this region’s talented choreographers and dancers.
Dance Coalition provides the community with diverse dance events, as well as educates and cultivates audience and dancers through workshops, concert performances, and community involvement.
Dance Coalition is the only choreographers cooperative in the state of Arkansas, and its members are collectively and individually committed to seeing dance flourish in the place we call home.