UW Theatre and Dance Presents Spring to Dance March 6-8

The University of Wyoming Department of Theatre and Dance will present “Spring to Dance,” a collaborative concert, Friday, March 6-Saturday, March 7, at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, March 8, at 2 p.m. on the Buchanan Center for the Performing Arts main stage.

The production will feature new works by UW dance faculty members Marsha Knight and Cat Kamrath, and UW alumnus and Repertory Dance Theatre member Dan Higgins. Limón Dance Company artists and members will stage two Limón repertory works.

Tickets cost $14 for the public, $11 for senior citizens and $7 for students. Tickets are available at the Performing Arts box office and the Wyoming Union information desk, by calling (307) 766-6666 or going online at www.uwyo.edu/finearts.

The concert opens with Knight’s “In the Garden,” a piece developed around Brahms’ “Sixteen Waltzes,” with a movement vocabulary coming from classroom work showcasing some of the department’s younger dancers.

“Dancers spend hours in daily training, our students in a blend of modern dance and ballet technique classes,” Knight says. “Since childhood, Brahms’ waltzes, in particular, have been a familiar sound for me in the studio classroom, with various pieces played by accompanists during the routine of barre and center work.”

The piece features a backdrop created by scenic designer and Professor Emeritus Ron Steger for a Nutcracker “Waltz of the Flowers” concept in 1998.

“I wanted to find a way to see that gorgeous piece of Ron’s art again on the stage,” Knight says. “‘In the Garden’ provides that opportunity.”

“Stripped,” a new work by Higgins, follows. His work with the dancers began early in February for a week of creation and process. Higgins graduated from the UW Department of Theatre and Dance program in 2014 and contracted with Repertory Dance Theatre in Salt Lake City, rising through the ranks to become a senior company member. Higgins is now receiving attention not only for his dancing but also for his work as an emerging choreographer.

“We are happy to have dancer and choreographer Dan Higgins back at his theater and dance home,” Knight says. “It was especially exciting for our students to work alongside a graduate of their program, who is relatively close to them in age and professionally inspiring.”

The concert continues with “Chaconne,” the 1942 piece created by acclaimed American dancer and choreographer José Limón. It is set to J.S. Bach’s “Chaconne” from the Partita No. 2 in D Minor for solo violin.

Kamrath, a UW assistant lecturer, presents two contemporary modern works in the concert: “Soft Front,” a reimagining of a 2019 work of Kamrath’s company, Cat + Fish Dances, and “Alpenglow,” a new work she created in collaboration with the eight performers.

Closing out the concert is “Corvidae,” choreographed by Limón Dance Company artistic director Colin Connor, and staged on UW’s dancers by company member David Glista during last summer’s Snowy Range Summer Dance Festival.

“‘Corvidae’ is one of five works over five years that the department has presented that are either in the repertoire or created by Limón Company artists,” Knight says. “It is quite an honor and challenge to present the piece.”

For more information, call Kathy Kirkaldie, UW Fine Arts coordinator, at (307) 766-2160 or email kirisk@uwyo.edu.