UWRF Dance Theatre Presents Annual Spring Concert

March 20, 2012--The University of Wisconsin-River Falls Dance Theatre will present its Annual Spring Concert March 27-31 at 7:30 p.m. in the Davis Theatre of the Kleinpell Fine Arts building on campus. 

The concert is a unique blend of faculty, guest, and student choreography offering a wide array of styles ranging from traditional Puerto Rican “Bomba” to contemporary modern dances presented by 35 dancers and a 10 member technical crew.

Guest choreographers and dance theatre alumni, Ric Suarez, Torrian Amie and Rana Kuebker, have created pieces that explore structures and various foundations of human relationships. Jane Kasper and Troy Dixen will perform a humorous yet poignant piece while swinging on a hammock. UWRF dance faculty member Mari Kline-Kluck has choreographed two dances, including  “Dereliction” which incorporates projections using Isadora, a graphic programming software that provides interactive control over digital media. The emphasis of this software is on real-time manipulation of digital video that allows technology to interact with live performance creating projections based on the dancers’ movements and placement on stage. 

This year’s concert will include the work of two professional guest artists from the Twin Cities:  Stuart Pimsler and Kari Mosel. “Islands,” choreographed by Stuart Pimsler, was originally created for the Contemporary Dance Theatre of Cincinnati and explores the complexity of homelessness. Pimsler, director of the Stuart Pimsler Dance & Theatre Company founded the company and his wife, Suzanne Costello, in New York 32 years ago. His work has been presented throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Israel, Taiwan and Russia. Pimsler has been City Pages “Artist of the Year” and honored with Choreography Fellowships from the McKnight Foundation as well as the National Endowment for the Arts. Guest artist, Kari Mosel has choreographed for UWRF Dance Theatre for three years. She has been a professional dancer in the Twin Cities for eight years. Currently, Mosel is a member of the Stuart Pimsler Dance and Theater and Shapiro and Smith Dance Company. Her work is titled “A Word With You Dear” which requires dancers to express intense facets of personal relationships.

Student choreographers Brooke Gusa, Kyra Scanlan, Laura Chandler, and Kristen Beardsley have choreographed a wide variety of pieces that deal with joyfulness, getting thrown off your groove and controlled danger. The concert will also include the traditional Puerto Rican dance “Bomba” set by dance faculty member Karla Zhe and performed by ten dancers and percussionist Derek Westholm. This performance is a result of field study research by Zhe and UWRF students in San Juan, Puerto Rico with the Cepede family known internationally as the exponents of Afro-Puerto Rican who have passed the traditional dances of the Bomba and Plena from generation to generation. For more information about Dance Theatre, contact karla.k.zhe@uwrf.edu or call 715-425-3131.
 
The week will culminate with a 30-year Dance Theatre Reunion beginning at 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 31. Dance Theatre alumni from all areas of the country including Washington D.C., Texas, and California will be back on the UWRF campus. For information about the reunion, contact the UWRF Alumni Relations office at 715-425-3505 or 877-258-6647.

Tickets are $5 for students/seniors/children and $7 for adults. Tickets are available from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. March 19-30 at the University Box Office in the Kleinpell Fine Arts building or by calling 715-425-3114. Tickets may also be purchased before each performance beginning at 6 p.m.