University Dance Theatre Spring Concert Performances Set for April 16-19

Dance majors Lauren Kidd and Elijah Motley. Photo by Anne Peterson

Ballroom, jazz and modern dance choreography by faculty members and selected students will be featured at the annual University Dance Theatre Spring Concert, April 16-19.

All performances will be at the University Theatre. Show times are 8 p.m., with an additional performance at 2 p.m. April 19.

The performances will include a piece by guest artist Natalie Teichmann. She is the artistic director of Anahata Dance, a New York City-based company known for stimulating stage work and exciting site-specific performances. Teichmann was at ODU for a six-day residency in March, when she taught classes and worked with students on a group piece that will be presented at the concert.

ODU dance program director Amanda Kinzer and assistant professor Megan Thompson will present new works. Kinzer will premiere a new modern dance group work to music by Josh Woodward. The playful and energetic piece, titled "Up and Down," explores the potential highs and lows of a group dynamic. Thompson's new work, "Without Sinking," is inspired by water, sinking vessels and beacons of light.

Katie Iacono, adjunct professor and guest artist, will present excerpts from "Tie Shopping With My Father," her master's degree thesis about the heart-and-soul-wrenching sport of wrestling. Specifically, she will present a solo, titled "Vals Boston," and a restructured group work with nine students, called "The Beginning."

Also on the program is a piece by graduate student Sheena Jeffers, titled "Intransigence." This dance was recently performed at the American College Dance Festival, hosted by George Mason University.

The concert will include additional new works by adjunct faculty members and guest artists Cara Goodwin, Danny Charles and Rachel Thorne Germond, and undergraduate student Elijah Motley.

Tickets are $14 for general admission and $12 for ODU students. Tickets are available online at www.oduartstix.com, at the Arts and Letters Box Office inside the University Theatre, by phone at 683-5305 and at the door. For more information about the concert, contact Amanda Kinzer at 683-3002 or akinzer@odu.edu.