Friends of Brockport Dance Newsletter

Posted on January 21, 2012 by hseid1

The newest edition of the Friends of Brockport Dance Newsletter is hot off the presses. Enjoy!

Friends_of_Brockport_January_2012_Newsletter pdf






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Brockport Professor Performs at the Joyce Theatre in NYC

Posted on January 15, 2012 by hseid1

Karl Rogers in Prophets of Funk

Assistant Professor Karl Rogers will be performing with New York City-based company David Dorfman Dance later this month at the “Broadway” of modern dance: The Joyce Theatre. The show, Prophets of Funk: Dance to the Music, has toured extensively throughout the country, and will now be making its New York City debut.

Set to music by Sly and the Family Stone, Prophets of Funk “(invites) everyday people to find ardor in the muck and mess-the funk- of life. Prophets of Funk seeks to lift up the spirit of Sly: insisting that in the face of this funk, there are still hopes and aspirations that reside in all of us.” (http://www.daviddorfmandance.org/)

Performances will take place January 24 and 25 at 7:30pm, January 26 and 28 at 8pm, and January 29 at 2pm. For details and tickets, visit www.joyce.org or call 212-242-0800. Tickets start at $10.

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DANSCORE a Commitment to Artistic Excellence

Posted on December 21, 2011 by hseid1

By Marielys Burgos Meléndez

photo by Rebecca Puretz

The nationally renowned faculty of the department of dance at The College at Brockport recently presented their choreographic work in DANSCORE, the annual faculty concert. Graduate and undergraduate dance major students delighted spectators with their extraordinary performance skills. During the evenings of November 16th and 17th the concert was held at Hartwell Dance Theater at the academic institution. The Hochstein School of Music and Dance in the Rochester area hosted the subsequent Saturday evening concert in a collaborative effort to integrate the dance community of Rochester and The College at Brockport.

photo by Rebecca Puretz

As audience member I experienced humor, irony, celebration, camaraderie, love, and intrigue through a variety of dance styles that evoked powerful and breathtaking images. Diversity was beautifully displayed and appreciated by the people that supported this successful artistic endeavor. DANSCORE was coordinated by graduate student Nicole Kaplan and was made possible thanks the arduous work of artists like lightning designer Benoit Beuchamp, sound director Gregory Ketchum, costume designer Heidi Henderson, and artistic director Maura Keefe. The concert featured a total of nine dance pieces created by professors James Hansen, Mariah Maloney, Suzanne Oliver, Kevin Warner, William Evans, Darwin Prioleau, Maura Keefe, Karl Rogers, and Vanessa VanWormer. Professor Rogers and adjunct lecture Prof. VanWormer joined the faculty at the beginning of the Fall Semester of the current year. DANSCORE was a demonstration of the department of dance’s commitment to artistic excellence.

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Brockport Well-Represented at National Conference

Posted on December 4, 2011 by hseid1

photo by Rebecca McArthur

This past October, six graduate students attended the National Dance Education Organization conference in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This year’s conference was titled “Collaborations: Different Identities, Mutual Paths.” Two students, Yuko Hashimoto and Hannah Seidel, presented sessions investigating this theme from unique angles. Hashimoto, winner of the Ann Zirulnik conference scholarship, offered “A Comparison of Traditional Dances from Japan and Korea,” which emerged from a collaboration with recent MA graduate Sunghae Park. Seidel’s presentation, “Teaching Touch,” drew upon her work with survivors of domestic violence in New York City as a member of Gibney Dance. Falon Baltzell, Anna Corvera, Rebecca McArthur, and Elizabeth Osborn also attended the conference, and shared their valuable experiences with fellow students at a recent meeting of the campus chapter of NDEO.

The department faculty were also well represented, with William Evans, Suzanne Oliver, Darwin Prioleau, Juanita Suarez, Kevin Warner, and Tamara Wilcox presenting or participating in sessions. Students from Brockport and elsewhere were privileged to work with Evans as part of the Passing On the Legacy series, which culminated in a performance at the closing ceremonies of the conference. Oliver facilitated a Higher Education Special Interest Group, co-presented a paper, and performed in the Master Artist Collaboration. Wilcox offered “Score Interpretation for Dancers with Minimal Music Literacy,” and Warner “Discovering Nijinsky: the Role of Collaboration in a Dance-Themed Drama.” To top it all off, FOBD would like to offer congratulations to Dean Darwin Prioleau, the new President of NDEO’s Board of Directors.

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New Dancers’ Showcase This Week

Posted on November 27, 2011 by hseid1

The Department of Dance at The College at Brockport, State University of New York, is proud to announce the eighth annual New Dancers’ Showcase, Friday, Dec. 2nd at 7:30pm and Saturday, Dec. 3rd at 4:30pm and 7:30pm, in the Rose L. Strasser Studio, Hartwell Hall, Kenyon St.

With artistic direction by Undergraduate Program Director William Evans and second-year Master of Fine Arts candidate Falon Baltzell, the concert features new choreography by dance graduate students and Adjunct Lecturer Vanessa VanWormer. The choreographic works range from modern to ballet, hip-hop to tap, and jazz-funk to Brazilian Samba.

Traditionally, the New Dancers’ Showcase presents two performances, but due to the substantial number of new dancers and high anticipated attendance, there will be three performances this year. The showcase is open to the public and admission is free to all. Donations will be gratefully accepted at the door, and will contribute to funding undergraduate dance major scholarships. Call (585) 395-ARTS for more information.

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A Look at DANCE/Strasser

Posted on November 19, 2011 by hseid1

By Janet Schroeder

Works of student choreography presented in the fall 2011 DANCE/Strasser concert were nicely crafted and beautifully performed, and they offered a striking variety of moods. Some concertgoers have argued the concert was all doom and gloom, but with further consideration, each piece indeed managed to set a fresh and different tone.

photo by Rebecca Puretz

While contemplative, the mood of the solo Spoken as a Whisper should not be confused with sadness. The quiet simplicity of the choreography by Juliana Utz kept the dancer on one quarter of the stage’s width but utilized its entire depth. Through precise, clearly articulated movements, dancer Caitlin Thurgood captivated the audience with her focus and her soft gaze. While continually looking back to where she began, Thurgood’s expression wasn’t one of longing for the past, but instead was one of peace and contentment.

Shannon Freeman choreographed a trio titled The Breaking Point. Freeman, along with dancers Caitlin Milizia and Lauren Palmieri put the audience under a spell as they traveled from the upstage right corner of the stage towards the audience. In the midst of even, sustained steps, each dancer was caught up externally in her own gestural world and internally on something about which we as an audience could only speculate. Brief moments of individual dancers breaking free from the constraints of her fellow travelers accented this beautiful meditation on relationships and control.

photo by Rebecca Puretz

Three pieces on the program projected a ‘Thriller’ vibe, but perhaps it was just the spirit of Halloween weekend. They included Y2K, by Tom Ciccone, Medicine Hat, by Trent Furnace, and Gestural Response, by Sarah Bennett. Other pieces on the program were Reticent, by Jessie Sector, Ensuing Ataraxia, by Nicole Kaplan, Projected from Above, by Ian Heckman, Noah’s Dance, by Grace Cohen, June, by Corina Ferro, and (2kNO2)2, by Jessica Lynch.

Illuminating all the works on the program were lighting designs using all new lighting fixtures installed by Director of Dance Production, Benoit Beauchamp.

 

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DANSCORE Returns to Hartwell and Hochstein

Posted on November 12, 2011 by hseid1


Faculty from the Department of Dance at Brockport will present choreography this coming week. Karl Rogers, Vanessa VanWormer, and Kevin Warner will offer new works for the first time in DANSCORE; William Evans “For Betty” is being restaged with current Brockport students; and James Hansen, Maura Keefe, Mariah Maloney, Suzanne Oliver, and Darwin Prioleau will each share their enticing and stimulating creations.

Wednesday and Thursday, November 16-17 the show can be seen in the Hartwell Theater at 7:30pm. On Saturday, November 19 the show travels to Rochester’s Hochstein Performance Hall at 50 N. Plymouth Avenue. Following the 7:30pm Hochstein performance, the audience is invited to stay for a reception with the performers and choreographers.

Tickets prices for all performances are $15/General; $10/Seniors, College at Brockport Alumni, Faculty and Staff; and $8/Students and are available by phone at (585) 395-ARTS or at the Tower Fine Arts Center Box Office, 180 Holley Street, Brockport. They will also be available at the Box Office in Hartwell Hall or Hochstein one hour prior to each performance. Visit www.brockport.edu/finearts for more information. (Please note: Only cash and checks will be accepted at the door for the November 19 performance at Hochstein.)

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Dancing from Norway to Brockport

Posted on November 6, 2011 by hseid1

By Liz Osborn

This semester, the Department of Dance is hosting two guest students from the University of Stavanger in Norway as part of an educational exchange program. Brockport students Kaitlyn Marquette and Robin Wonka are currently in Norway (more on their adventures to come), while Elise Aabakken from Oslo and Karin Midgard from Harnar arrived here late in August and will remain until winter break.

photo by Rebecca Puretz

Aabakken and Midgard are both fourth year university students studying dance performance and education in Stavanger. Each of the girls had spent a year in the United States growing up, Aabakken when she was seven and Midgard when she was 18. They both wished to spend more time living, studying, and dancing in America, and the exchange program presented a perfect opportunity. The College at Brockport offers the only exchange program for dance students at the University of Stavanger outside of Europe, making the decision a relatively simple one for both students.

Part of the appeal of studying in the U.S. is the cultural acceptance of standing out, being noticed, and celebrating one’s own successes, marking a decided difference from Norwegian culture. Both young women are thriving here at the Brockport Department of Dance, speaking highly of the safe, welcoming, supportive environment created by students and faculty. Each is rehearsing with both students and faculty and will perform this November in Danscore. Elise and Karin both have plans to finish their degrees at Stavanger before moving to Oslo, where dance classes are free of charge and they can audition and perform with companies supported by public and private funding in Norway. Midgard is also pursuing an education degree to teach dance and English, and has expressed a desire to travel more extensively, while Aabakken is studying acting and theatre improvisation to enhance her performance skills and make her more marketable.

photo by Rebecca Puretz

They both animatedly expressed that their favorite thing about Brockport is the people; they have created a fantastic network of friends and fellow artists in their short time here. What they miss the most are family, friends, and Norwegian food, but as Aabakken stated, “They will always be there to go back to, we are only in America for a short time.” As Midgard pointed out so beautifully, it is important to be where you are, and to appreciate how lucky we are to be studying the art of dance that we share a passion for; we are the truly self-actualized!

 

 

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To London and Back

Posted on October 30, 2011 by hseid1

By Nicole Kaplan

Last spring, juniors Christy Benincasa and Jeanine Donohue spent the second semester of their sophomore year hand in hand in southwest London where they attended Roehampton University. Together they enrolled in a full course schedule that included Ballet, Contact Improvisation and various movement intensives; individually, Christy registered for Dance Science, and World Music and Dance, while Jeanine attended People and Organizations, and Epistemology. While Roehampton does not generally offer many performance opportunities in the spring, the girls were not left unmoved. Christy noted how innovative London’s dance scene was as a whole, and Jeanine added how the informal (after-hours) dance scene was just as inspiring and alive. “Some of the most exciting dancing I did was outside of the classroom and in London at different dance centers.”–Benincasa.

Jeanine expressed a strong sentiment for the University life in London, and noted how quickly the campus turned into a community, “The school did a great job of bringing the campus together, I was only there one semester and I felt like I knew almost everyone.” The student government at Roehampton played a strong role in creating this dynamic, as well as the faculty members that the girls encountered during their stay. Both dancers conveyed a strong respect for their contact improvisation instructor Lalitariaja, who provided an exceptionally safe space for the dancers to explore personal and creative boundaries in an otherwise foreign environment.

Both dancers claim that their trip was life changing, and that the relationships they built while overseas were extremely unique and like nothing they have ever experienced before. As Jeanine said, “The people I met, cultures I indulged in, food I tasted and the general things I was able to see and learn about have forever impacted me and I am more than grateful.”

 

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DANCE/Strasser Is Here! October 27-29

Posted on October 27, 2011 by hseid1

Student choreography will be showcased in this fall’s engaging DANCE/Strasser in the College at Brockport’s own Hartwell Hall on Kenyon Street. Graduate and undergraduate students will share their artistic investigations on the stage, and will then stick around for post-performance discussions during which the audience can engage in dialog about the works they have just experienced.

This season’s concert is the first to boast new lighting equipment, installed by Director of Dance Production Benoit Beauchamp. Dance Department students will demonstrate their skills in lighting design in addition to choreography and performance.

The show takes place at 7:30pm Thursday, October 27 through Saturday, October 29. Tickets are $15 for general public, $10 for Seniors, College at Brockport Alumni, Faculty and Staff, and $8 for Students. They are available by phone at (585) 395-2787 or at the Tower Fine Arts Center Box Office, 180 Holley Street, Brockport. Any previously unsold tickets will be available for purchase at the Hartwell Box Office one hour prior to each performance.

Visit www.brockport.edu/finearts for more information.

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