Oregon daily emerald
arts & entertainment
January 18, 1985
t
The stage is set. The instruments are finely tun
ed. The audience holds its breath as the lights
dim. Robinson Theatre is about to come alive
with music and drama, and this concert will in
vite the spirit as well as the. senses into an ex
perience of movement, color and flowing
energy.
“Dance 85,” the third offering of University Theatre’s
1984-85 season, opens with vitality and sparkle Jan. 24. The pro
duction of six dance pieces is presented by Concert Dance
Theater, the University Dance Department’s repertory company.
Three University faculty members, a graduate student and a
choreographer from Seattle have been organizing and writing
original compositions for the program since last September.
Through auditions, 24 skilled dancers were chosen. Though each
of the pieces in the program exhibit different styles and moods,
they have been artistically blended to form a unified production.
“Everyone was absolutely free to do whatever they wanted
to do,” says Robin Collen, University dance instructor and co
producer of “Dance 85.” “ It (the production) is a collaborative
effort to offer a variety of dance styles,” she says.
For her composition entitled “Mirage,” Collen choreograph
ed elements of Mexican folk dance within the context of modem
dance and designed Spanish-styled costumes. Wearing full
Jaliscen skirts with wide ruffles, colorful sashes and Guatamalan
belts, the six dancers in her piece will swirl and stomp to the
music of Joaquin Rodrigo and Paco de Lucia. Development and
coordination of the costumes was done by Carol Nagle.
Collen says that the slow, passionate duet in her piece, per
formed by Shigeko Sara Suga and Bob Ollar, illustrates the con
cept of opposite forces. “On one hand, it is a man and a woman.
On another, it’s this whole idea of two opposite sides of the
same coin and how there’s a real meshing with opposites,” she
says.
University dance professor Joellen Meglin-Roan’s untitled
piece integrates traditional African dance with American modem
techniques. The music of pounding drums and singing, which
was recorded in Africa, provides a background of complicated
rhythms for the corps of dancers.
Meglin-Roan gathered many ideas for her piece during a re
cent trip to Africa. With a University faculty research award, she
visited Mali, Senegal and the Ivory Coast to observe dance forms
and movements. She watched ritualistic dances that occur during
ceremonies and games and applied them to her piece.
University dance instructor Susan Zadoff, who has an exten
sive background in traditional ballet, steps off the beaten track in
her composition, “In a Minor Cuneiform,” which she
choreographed to the music of J. S. Bach. It is non-narrative,
non-literal and non-traditional, though it includes hints of
classical styles. Zadoff’s composition is spiced with surprises
and wit, and “Dance 85” audiences are sure to be delighted by
its mischievousness.
Upon the recommendation of the head of the dance depart
ment, University graduate student Tony Kramer created a
modem character piece called “No Heaven” for this year’s pro
gram. With the assistance of Bruno Madrid, the music director
for the dance department, he produced a collage of music and
sounds to accompany the choreography.
Kramer dances the role of the central character — a modem
person coping with an unpredictable environment — and he says
that the title and concept of the piece originated from a striking
phrase he overheard in a conversation.
“The piece operates on a fine line between tragedy and com
edy,” he says.
His chic, professional costumes appropriately reflect the
modem setting of “No Heaven,’’and by merging jazz and
modem techniques, the dance expresses both a story and a
mood.
Two weeks before the opening of “Dance 85,” its producers
added a sixth piece, and Caroline Shell, head of the dance
department, elected to perform the modem work entitled “Lone
ly Women.” Written by Laura Nyro and choreographed by Ray
mond Clay, the piece combines jazz with the emotionally rich
style of the Martha Graham school.
“It’s a blues number,” Shell says, adding that she feels “it’s
the most serious in mood in the whole concert.”
“Dance 85” guest choreographer, Lan Huei Hon, studied
ballet and modem dance in Singapore, Europe and New York.
She currently teaches at the Cornish Institute of Performing and
Visual Arts in Seattle.
Hon choreographed a modern ballet entitled “Scriabin
Dances” for the University production. Set to the music of Rus
sian composer Alexander Scriabin, the piece combines graceful
ballet movement with unusual modern forms. Collen and Ollar
dance the poignant duet section.
The program will run Jan. 24-26, Jan. 31 and Feb. 1-2.
Tickets are $5 for the public, $4 for senior citizens and students
and $3.25 for University students. For information and reserva
tions, call the University Theatre box office at 686-4191.