 | | | Photo provided | | | | | | This year's dance thesis candidates will be presenting "Unearthed," a series of two concerts featuring work by eight choreographers - the culminating work of Saint Mary's College of California Class of 2018 MFA in Dance students that includes themes of healing, belonging, and transformation. The concerts will be performed at 3 p.m. (Concert 1) and 7 p.m. (Concert 2) on June 15 and 16 at LeFevre Theatre - and nearby locations for some site-specific works - on the Saint Mary's campus.
Concert 1 features works choreographed by Stephanie Brumer, Emily Denham, Summer Logan, and Ashley Mott. Within Concert 1, choreographer Brumer investigates dance as language; she examines how our healing inner voice can bridge the connection between emotion, language, and movement to allow healing strength and wisdom.
Denham's work explores the concept of "home" through a somatic lens; it is a homecoming to self, in hopes of cultivating a sense of belonging through movement. Logan's piece explores the intersectionality of gender, poverty and politics through the lived female experience in Appalachia. Mott's work examines the embodiment of trauma and is a somatic investigation into where and how our traumatic memories - especially those pertaining to grief and loss - are stored and processed in our bodies.
Concert 2 includes works choreographed by Surabhi Bharadwaj, KJ Dahlaw, Laura Natario, and Hilary Snider. In Concert 2, Bharadwaj's work interprets the voice of Devadasi women, who bequeathed the traditional Indian dance to future generations, and it hopes to open a dialogue about the betterment of their unfortunate condition today. Dahlaw is creating an installation work that lives in the intersections of queer theory, incarnational queer theology, and sacrament. Natario's piece explores the transient and undefinable experience of the embodied American identity and how it is expressed by diverse bodies. Finally, Snider is exploring the experiences of an acrobat, an angel, and an artist of the trapeze through a blend of yoga and qigong.
The MFA in Dance program at Saint Mary's College of California offers two distinct tracks of study: the MFA in Dance: Creative Practice, and the MFA in Dance: Design and Production, which is the first program of its kind in the nation. Students in the MFA program span multiple generations and come from all over the world to study in the San Francisco Bay Area, home of one of the largest dance communities in the United States.
Tickets are $15 for one concert or $25 for both concerts; children 12 and under are free. Tickets are available online at https://www.stmarys-ca.edu/unearthed.
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Lamorinda Weekly, Moraga CA