Ten Modern Dance Program seniors will present the first weekend of their Senior Concert show, Xx, a show that highlights variability, exponential growth, and the undefined. Each evening of dance will culminate in a performance of guest choreographer Lauren Edson’s new work created with the senior class.
Xx represents the 2019 graduating class of Modern Dance Program seniors, a group of twenty rising women artists—all with two x-chromosomes. Beyond the aptness in its description of the graduating class, Xx also embodies the spirit of Senior Concert; involving change, power, and development. Xx celebrates the artistic, choreographic and technical prowess the senior class has cultivated during their time at the University of Utah.
Natalie Anderton’s piece begins with movement taken from traditional hip hop and other street styles. The piece has transformed into a style of movement she has never experienced before and Anderton is excited to see how her dancers take on this “alien” inspired piece.
Alli Ball investigates the paradox of emotion throughout daily life. She asks how we are able to feel two contrasting emotions simultaneously.
Jessica Baynes presents a lively, contemporary quartet inspired by the mechanics of trains and explores the following actions: attack, respond, and follow-through. It is performed to a Flamenco-inspired sound score and experiments with risk, athleticism and contact.
Elissa Collins explores how mental health affects the way that we physically respond to our world.
Kaelin Kaczka pays homage to the #MeToo Movement, drawing inspiration from the Sirens of Greek mythology and using movement to kinesthetically narrate the personal experiences of so many.
Ali Lorenz research involves the similarities between our world’s natural phenomena and our own emotions, working with concepts that work deep within the earth and as well as within ourselves.
Madaline Maravillas’s piece has become an intimate look into how we view certain people in our lives and the visceral responses conjured by those people: people you miss, people you need and people you love.
Aileen Norris focuses on joy in absurdity, conflict in connection and resolution in chaos.
Ruby Pfeiffer explores self-empowerment and how we are all fighting to find who we are while at the same time using people around us as a gauge. There is uniqueness in all of us, not just as a lone being but also within a community.
Eliza Zenger’s piece brings three words to mind: individuality, bounce and flow. She is interested in the dancers’ pathways, individually and collectively, and how that frames space.
This evening of new dance ends with a performance by the senior class in a work choreographed by Boise-based Lauren Edson. The work explores themes of hope, desperation, and community.
When: 2/28 at 5:30P, 3/1 at 5:30P and 3/2 at 7:30P
Where: The Marriott Center for Dance.
Tickets: Senior Concert I: Xx is free to University of Utah students through Arts Pass. General admission tickets are $12.
