The UNC Charlotte Department of Dance will present its Fall Student Dance Concert, Thursday through Sunday, Nov. 21-24, in the Belk Theater of the Robinson Hall for the Performing Arts. Performances begin at 7:30 p.m., except for Sunday, which is a 2 p.m. matinee.
Four new works by dance faculty members comprise a varied program that features interdisciplinary collaboration, a multiplicity of movement styles and dance forms and a wide range of emotional expression.
Kim Jones, assistant professor of dance, created “The Waiter Chronicles.” This is a dance theater piece that blends various dance forms, acting, and physical theater to celebrate the lives and struggles of those working in the service industry. Physical theatre professor Carlos Alexis Cruz and flamenco specialists Rodrigo and Wendy Jimenez joined Jones to work with eight dance students and two theatre students to develop this comedic piece.
Donna Dragon, assistant professor of dance, created “Go 'round,” with contributions from 12 dance majors, who studied cycles and repeating patterns in society and in their own lives. In the work, they use movement, vocalization and spoken word to create a metaphoric merry-go-round. Alissa Deeter, assistant professor of voice, worked with the dancers to develop a “human-made soundscape.”
Remixed arrangements of music by Steve Reich make up the musical environment for “don’t say a word,” choreographed by E.E. Balcos, associate professor of dance, in collaboration with the performers. The movement is rooted in students’ personal statements of identity and life experience, taking the viewer on an intimate journey of discovery, vulnerability, intimacy and power.
Rachel Tucker’s “Broken Pärts” uses movement, text and haunting music by Arvo Pärt to evoke the universal experience of loss through a choreographic exploration of the five stages of grief: denial, isolation, guilt, anger and acceptance.
Tickets, which are $6 for students, $9 for seniors and UNC Charlotte faculty and staff and $14 for general admission, can be purchased online or by calling 704-687-1849.