Theater, film, music key to year’s first dance concert at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½

A scene from a 2014 rehearsal by the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College Dance Company. (Sarah Crosby/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

A scene from a 2014 rehearsal by the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College Dance Company. (Sarah Crosby/ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College)

The title may say “dance,” but theater, film and music are also key to performances of the “Back to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½” Weekend Dance Concert at noon Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 3–4, in ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ College’s Schaeffer Theatre, 329 College St.

Representing work by local community members as well as ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty, students and artists in residence, the performances are open to the public at no cost. For more information, please call 207-786-6161.

Students in a 200-level repertory and performance class taught by Carol Dilley, professor of dance and chair of the theater and dance department, will perform two works: A modern partners piece by Dilley and a jazz dance by guest artist Cathy Young, director of the Dance Division at the Boston Conservatory.

Rachel Boggia, assistant professor of dance at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, has collaborated with first-year students to make a modern work set to live a cappella music sung by first-years.

“This year both of the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ faculty choreographers are making dance pieces with student musicians as well as student dancers,” says Dilley.

Ben Cuba, a senior from Worcester, Mass., “has been studying the composition of music for dance for a few semesters now and is creating the score for my piece,” she says. “Rachel is taking advantage of the wonderful crossover between dance and the lively a cappella community here at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½.”

Dilley adds, “We’re also both using a choreographic approach in which the dancers share the creative process of generating movement material for the piece. It’s a real pleasure to get to work with such talented and dedicated student artists.”

Also on the program are works by student choreographers. Jorge Piccole, a sophomore from Middleton, Mass., and Bryana Newton, a senior from Granby, Conn., will present a hip hop duet.

A senior dance major, Mary Anne Bodnar of New York City, will present the first phases of her dance thesis research in a solo and in a duet with Kelsey Schober of Palmer, Ark.

A junior from Yarmouth, Maine, Laura Pietropaoli, will screen a film that she made this summer at the ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Dance Festival featuring Alexandra Freed, a senior from Magnolia, Mass. A sophomore from Sherrill, N.Y., Emma Zulch will perform a solo.

Finally, students in the cast of the forthcoming ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ theater production of Marie and The Nutcracker will perform a scene from the play. The Nov. 5–9 production will be the world premiere of a dramatic adaptation by Martin Andrucki, Charles A. Dana Professor of Theater at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½, of the classic story by E.T.A. Hoffman.

The public dance performances take place under the aegis of “Back to ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ Weekend,” an all-college event combining the traditional Parents & Family and Homecoming weekends.

Dance at ÀÖ²¥´«Ã½ returns Dec. 5–7 with the Fall Dance Concert, featuring professional works set on the repertory and performance class students, Bodnar’s full thesis and a new collaboration between Boggia and Wesleyan University Artist-in-Residence Iddrisu Saaka.