Dec. 27, 2005
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Maria Junco
Cal Poly Theatre and Dance Department
(805) 756-1248
Cal Poly Orchesis Dance Company to Present 'Metamorphosis'
SAN LUIS OBISPO -- "Metamorphosis," the 36th annual Orchesis Dance Company concert, will showcase the talent of Cal Poly students plus new work from guest choreographers in a variety of dance styles, including ballet, modern, jazz, tap, hip-hop, lyrical and Filipino traditional dance.
Evening
performances are scheduled at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Jan. 27-28,
and Thursday through Saturday, Feb, 2-4. In addition, a 2 p.m. matinee
is scheduled on Sunday, Jan. 29. All performances will be in the
Spanos Theatre at Cal Poly.
The concert is under the direction of faculty members Maria Junco and Michelle Walter, assistant director. "We have an exceptional lineup of guest artists for 'Metamorphosis,'" Junco said.
They include Orchesis Dance Company founder and Professor Emeritus Moon Ja Minn Suhr; local choreographers Lisa Deyo and Diana Stanton (Stanton also teaches at Cal Poly); Los Angeles tap choreographer Gregg Russell; San Francisco hip hop choreographer Micaya; and Los Angeles choreographers Dennon and Sayhber Rawles.
"We are especially thrilled to premiere 'Witness,'" Junco said. "Mike Esperanza, emerging choreographer and artistic director of BARE Dance Company in Southern California, choreographed this striking modern dance."
Tickets for "Metamorphosis" are $12 for the public and $9 for students and senior citizens. Tickets are on sale at the Performing Arts Ticket Office from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays. To order tickets by phone, dial SLO-ARTS (756-2787); to order by fax, call 756-6088; to order online go to www.pacslo.org.
The Orchesis Dance concert is sponsored by Cal Poly's Theatre and Dance Department, College of Liberal Arts, and Instructionally Related Activities program. For more information, call Junco at 756-1248.
Summary of Dances to be Performed:
- Professor Emeritus Moon Ja Minn Suhr, Orchesis founder, director
and advisor from 1969-2000 will restage Aurora's Solo from "The
Sleeping Beauty." This ballet premiered in 1890 with choreography
by Marius Petipa and music by Peter Tchaikovsky. In this breathtaking
solo, Aurora is presented with four suitors on her 20th birthday
and quietly considers which one she will choose.
- Mike Esperanza, artistic director of Costa Mesa's BARE Dance
Company, will present a moving modern piece, "Witness,"
with music by Tori Amos and Jocelyn Pook. The dance explores how
an individual can be in the presence of others and be a witness
for them, while maintaining their individuality.
- Orchesis dancers will perform Bay Area choreographer and teacher
Micaya's exciting hip hop piece "Disko." The piece draws
from her extensive background in jazz, ballet, hip hop and ethnic
dance. Her choreography has been featured in events for the NBA,
Nike, Macy's and Girbaud Jeans, as well as music videos and touring
productions.
- Southern California choreographer Gregg Russell will premiere
the high-energy tap piece "Steel Tap 9" choreographed
to Bucky Don Gun by M.I.A. Russell dances in the new Jason Mraz
video, choreographs for the WNBA Spark Kids and kicks up his heels
in a Gap commercial. He teaches at the Edge Performing Arts Studio
in Hollywood and directs the Los Angeles-based tap club Tapsounds
Underground.
- Southern California choreographers Dennon and Sayhber Rawles
have created an exciting jazz finale for the Orchesis Dance Company
to the music "Peter Gunn" by Sarah Vaughn. The Rawles
have been working together since 1971 and are well known for their
professional work in both film and television, including choreography
for "Staying Alive" with John Travolta and "Bugsy"
with Warren Beatty.
- Cal Poly faculty member Diana Stanton, founder and co-artistic
director of Variable Velocity Performance Group of San Luis Obispo,
has created a new work to the music of Audio Slave. Titled "Looking
Out for Number One," the dance presents a hyperphysical look
at the nature of competition. Vigorous, detailed and intense choreography
showcases a surprising perspective on societal power struggles
and human needs. Stanton earned an MFA degree in dance from the
University of Colorado at Boulder.
- Local choreographer Lisa Deyo will present her newest ballet,
"Degas," inspired by the behind-the-scenes beauty of
ballet dancers captured by the famous artist Degas. "Otherworldly
in performance, these women are just as lovely, yet far more human,
in the more real world in the wings," Junco said. The movement
and costumes suggest several Degas paintings with the hope of
transporting the audience into the painter's
vision.
- Architecture sophomore Kate Barton collaborated with music senior
Chris Conley in the creation of a ballet piece "Quattro,"
set to Conley's original music. The dance demonstrates the relationship
between dancer and music.
- Biochemistry senior Sara Galon will perform a lyrical piece
using contrasting movements to the a capella song "Hide and
Seek" by Imogen Heap.
- "Boiling Point," choreographed by aerospace engineering
senior Erin Shaw, explores the many varied emotions in a relationship.
- Recreation major Amanda Ball choreographed "Rock Steady," a dynamic and exhilarating jazz piece set to "Black Betty" by Ram Jam.
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(Note to Editors: For a photo, contact the Public Affairs office at Cal Poly at 756-1511 or polynews@calpoly.edu.)