Orchesis Dance Theatre Spring Concert @ WSU (Ogden: March 31 - April 2)

Orchesis Dance Theatre Spring Concert: Environs
WHO: Weber State University Department of Performing Arts
WHAT: Orchesis Dance Theatre, directed by Joanne Lawrence
WHERE: Allred Theater, Val A. Browning Center for the Performing Arts
WHEN: March 31, April 1, 2 at 7:30 pm

Weber State University Department of Performing Arts presents Orchesis Dance Theatre’s Spring Concert, directed by Joanne Lawrence and featuring the choreography of a guest artists, three faculty members, one student, the restaging of a 1928 dance classic as well as a 1994 classic, March 31, April 1 and 2 at 7:30 in the Allred Theater, Val A. Browning Center for the Performing Arts.

“Green Map® Icon Studies II” is choreographed by Zvi Gotheiner, RDT (Repertory Dance Theatre) dancers and WSU Moving Company dancers. This dance is a product of the Green Map® Project and is an evolution of a work presented on the Orchesis Dance Theatre fall concert. WSU Moving Company and Geography Department, in partnership with the visionary RDT, created the Green Map® Project, a transformative, community building project designed to create paths of inquiry, exploration and expression while inspiring young people to be thoughtful and productive citizens. The project was made possible, in part, by funding from Weber County R.A.M.P. (Recreation, Arts, Museums and Parks).

“Water Study,” choreographed in 1928 and restaged by Joni Urry Wilson for this performance, is one of the most stunning achievements in abstract dance. While the movement vocabulary is simple, almost primal, the form of the dance is highly selective. Doris Humphrey believed that the absence of music increases the spectator’s attention to movement. Water Study is performed in silence, building rhythmic phrases from the natural ebb and balance of the tides. Three main types of water motion are suggested: the swell and draw of the tide, the cumulative force and burst of the waves, and the surging subsurface flow of flat calm. (More information in separate release.

“Watermark” by RDT alumnus, Ford Evans, with original score by composer, Ricklen Nobis, examines the mysteries and the movement of water, the most conspicuous, the most powerful and the most essential element sustaining life in the desert. Evans is Director of Hopkins Center Dance and the Dartmouth Dance Ensemble. He was a professor at the University of Utah in the Department of Modern Dance, 1985-97.

Todd Courage and WSU’s Amanda Sowerby’s collaboration is a non-narrative exploration involving simultaneous dance performances in San Francisco and Ogden with the use of video conferencing. This dance portrays different ways of seeing each other. The video conferencing is supported by UEN (Utah Education Network) and WSU.

Dance faculty Erik Stern describes his dance: “Persist in the moment and you will find a way through - even in a moment of boredom.” This phrase and the dance arose naturally as they worked together.

WSU adjunct Laura Blakely portrays one’s relationship with oneself. Individuals struggle and get frustrated but through introspection can find humility, humor and even tenderness. This duet examines how regard for others can be translated into regard for oneself.

Student Natalie Porter’s piece has two themes: dealing with mental disabilities and the effect of dance, music and art therapy

Tickets are $10/$7 and can be purchased at the Dee Events Center Ticket Office, 1-800-WSU-TIKS or at the Browning Center Box Office beginning one hour before each performance.

For more information about this production contact director Joanne Lawrence, jlawrence@weber.edu.