Wearing you heart on your leotard
Rainbow Bracey
Assistant Spectrum Editor
The department of dance and choreography will discern the depths of the human condition this weekend in the 2010 student concert “Ten of Hearts.” The beauty of love, the obstacles of communal living, breaking free of a tortured soul, and the difficulties of making decisions will be explored by the students of VCU Dance. The essence of the choreographers’ dreams and passions are reflected in the movements of their pieces.
As the title dictates, each piece stands alone as an expression of the choreographers’ hearts. Their inspirations differ but all show sincere expression of emotion. Amy Kaeberle and Nathan Altices’ “Snake Eyes,” for instance, “is inspired by human competition for success over others. This concept is visually explored using metaphors and images from the children’s game Chutes and Ladders.”
Choreographer Alyssa Gregory of “Exit Strategy” said, “The music really inspired me to create my piece. While listening in my mind I got a clear visual of a person going through a lot of pain until something created a release in the end. I think the audience will feel my dancer’s pain the most.”
“In my solo, my movement was inspired by the thought of being able to improvise on stage. I set a loose structure for the piece and allowed myself to ‘play’ in the space with the inspiration of Cher playing in the background,” said choreographer, Felix Cruz of his piece, “And Don’t You Forget It!”
“Ten of Hearts” will offer two evenings of dance to the Richmond community as their annual student concert event.
“Ten of Hearts,” features choreographers Margaret Allen, Felicia Stevens, Jasmine Domfort, Corrine Bates, Felix Cruz, Amy Kaeberle, Nathan Altices, Courtney Cook, Tiffany Jones, Jaime Dzandu and Alyssa Gregory.
“Ten of Hearts” VCU 2010 Student Dance Concert opens Jan. 29, at 8 p.m. in the Grace Street Theatre. Tickets are $10 for the general public, $5 for students with a valid VCU ID.
