Collage Dance Collective, a contemporary ballet company and conservatory in Memphis, Tenn., comes to campus Oct 18-20as part of the Theater and Dance Department’s annual Stephanie C. Davis Dance Residency.
This not-to-be-missed opportunity includes classes at Union and a public performance at the Egg theater, Empire State Plaza, Albany.
Under the artistic direction of Kevin Thomas, the company is dedicated to inspiring the growth of ballet, and in particular, to increasing ballet training for people of color, through relevant choreography and world-class dancers.
Thomas trained at L’École Supérieure du Québec in Montreal, and danced with Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, the Dance Theatre of Harlem and London’s Royal Ballet. As a principal dancer, he performed prestigious lead roles in The Prodigal Son, Othello, Agon, Don Quixote, The Four Temperaments, Who Cares? and other renowned ballets.
While in residency at Union, Collage Dance Collective will present a wide range of classical and contemporary works. The dancers’ fine-tuned bodies display their intensive classical training in works that are athletic, accessible and inspiring to all audiences.
Visit the company’s website to see their innovative dance style.
The campus community can experience the beauty and bravura of Collage in several ways.
Bernard Dubois II and Kimberley Ho-Tsaï will hold a master class for dance students on Wednesday, Oct. 18. Artistic director Thomas will give a lecture/demonstration, open to the Union community, on Thursday, Oct. 19. Both events will take place in the Henle Dance Studio, 6:30-8:00 p.m.
In addition, the company will perform at the Egg on Friday, Oct. 20, 8 p.m. An informal pre-talk with Thomas in the lobby at 7:15 p.m. will offer insights into the artistic director’s creative process and the company’s mission.
A limited number of tickets to the Egg event are free for Union faculty, students and staff with a Union ID.
Free round-trip bus transportation also will be provided. Buses leave from the Nott/Seward parking lot at 7 p.m. and return to campus after the performance.
Tickets to the performance are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. They can be picked up at the Yulman Theater Box Office weekdays 12:30-1:30 p.m. and at the Feigenbaum Center for Visual Arts (main office) 3-4 p.m.
Now in its tenth year, the Stephanie C. Davis Dance Residency is made possible by a generous gift from Sue and Gus Davis ’59, in memory of their daughter, who was a modern dancer and environmental activist with a lifelong love of the performing arts.
Contact Miryam Moutillet at moutillm@union.edu to register for the master class.