The UNC Charlotte Department of Dance will hold its Fall Student Dance Concert Thursday through Sunday, Nov. 15-18, in the Belk Theater of the Robinson Hall for the Performing Arts. Three new works by Department of Dance faculty will be presented, along with the iconic “Balcony Scene” from Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s “Romeo and Juliet.”
Although not the first choreography set to Sergei Prokofiev’s 1938 ballet score, MacMillan’s “Romeo and Juliet” is considered the best known and loved. MacMillan infused the star-crossed lovers’ romance with an overt, intense passion rarely demonstrated in the ballet tradition. The “Balcony Pas de Deux” (Act I, Scene 6) is this ballet’s most romantic scene. Staged by Delia Neil, associate professor of dance, it features senior Jordan Stevens, who joins the Fort Wayne Ballet in 2013, and Alex Barnes.
E.E. Balcos’s “Of Many Places, People and Things,” for seven dancers, is set to the orchestral version of Claude Debussy’s “Children’s Corner” suite.
“This work explores the depth of experience that resonates profoundly within each dancer,” said Balcos. “By conveying this experience through movement expression, the work transports the performers and viewers to a realm of shared understanding.”
The “Trek Takes Focus,” Gretchen Alterowitz's contemporary ballet for eight female dancers, is a meditation on the act of journeying and the value of process over product.
“Excitements are fleeting,” Alterowitz stated. “The trek takes focus and dedication.” Music from the Balanescu Quartet’s album, “Maria T,” accompanies the piece.
A sound-scape of “crossover” classical music by the string quartet Bond, the violin/piano duo Secret Garden and the electronic string quartet Escala accompanies Kim Jones’s work “Unbound.” For two male and six female dancers, “Unbound” is an energetic three-part piece that mixes modern dance and street forms.
Tickets are $6 for students, $9 for seniors and UNC Charlotte faculty and staff and $14 for general admission. Performances begin at 7:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday with a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday. For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit www.coaa.uncc.edu or call 704-687-1849.