New Dances 2018

• Program

  Everyday, Choreographed

  Choreographer: Marissa Lynn Citro
  Music: Mychael Danna and DeVotchKa, original sound score by Marissa Lynn Citro
  Lighting Design: James Branstetter
  Costumes: Diesel X
  Performers: Sienza Chandler, Jonah Gonzales, Halsey Howard, Marlee Hughes, Anna Padrick

  Choreographer’s Note: “This piece was a journey my dedicated cast took with me into the choreographic process of translating actions into an aesthetic. As dancers, we move through life in a rhythmic way and I found myself inspired for this dance by how I moved outside the studio.”

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  Resolve

  Choreographer: Katie O’Loughlin
  Music: Steven Bacon and Lane 8
  Lighting Design: Galina Deitz
  Costumes: Diesel X
  Performers: Katie O’Loughlin

  Choreographer’s Note: “I believe there is a part of everyone that desires to live in wonder; a romance of sorts. In my work I aspire to focus on those moments of awe, examining their details and imbuing them with clarity through movement. I aim to discover the connections between the ordinary and the romanticized. This work in particular is an introspection on windswept tenacity. A special shout-out goes to local Alaskan musician, Steven Bacon, for generously donating his music to this piece.”

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  Corrosion

  Choreographer: Brian Jeffery
  Music: Cowboy Junkies
  Lighting Design: Daniel J. Anteau
  Costumes: Diesel X
  Dance Ensemble: Marissa Lynn Citro, Marlee Mathews Hughes, Stephanie Lahn,Kimberly McGrath, Kristal Perez Aviles, Rhiannon Roseman

  Choreographer’s Note: “I’m consistently inspired by the many generous and intriguing personalities that make up Dance Ensemble. Big thanks to all of the company for their enthusiasm, playfulness and movement contributions!”

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  A Tribute to the Mother Town

  Choreographer: Marlee Hughes
  Music: Nancy Sinatra, Yamboo, Kesha, featuring Pitbull
  Lighting Design: Joshuah Rutten
  Costumes: Diesel X
  Performers: Brenna Bigelo, Sienza Chandler, Jonah Gonzales, Stephanie Lahn, Anna Padrick, Isabella Saxe, Lydia Smith

  Choreographer’s Note: “As a girl in my small community in Utah every year we celebrated the town’s birthday with dance, music, and song. Some of the choreography here is derived from this jubilee. Please enjoy this celebration of dance and some of my hometown heritage.”
  

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  Taking Care

  Choreographer: Rhiannon Roseman
  Music: Max Richter, LP, Sia, Ben Lucas Boyson & Sebastian Plano, Levi The Poet, found sounds by Rhiannon Roseman
  Lighting Design: Kaeli Meno
  Costumes: Diesel X
  Performers: Te’Shawn Anderson-Johnson, Tu’aqi (Dun) Balnchett, Kylie Guidry, Stephanie Lahn, Annali Metz, Kristal Perez Aviles, Tia Wagner, Samantha Wanner, Heather Werning

  Choreographer’s Note: “Taking care of ourselves, the ones we love, and learning to let those who love us do the same.”

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  If You Say So

  Choreographer: Katie O’Loughlin
  Music: TÁCHES
  Lighting Design: Krisha-Nicole Manuel
  Costumes: Diesel X
  Dance Ensemble: Marissa Lynn Citro, Marlee Mathews Hughes, Stephanie Lahn, Kimberly McGrath, Kristal Perez Aviles, Rhiannon Roseman

  Choreographer’s Note: “Regarding the growth of subtle, callous confidence”

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  Within You

  Choreographer: Stephanie Brenner
  Music: Darren Criss, Florence and the Machine, Sam Smith
  Spoken Word: Kavya Bhagawatula, Stephanie Brenner, Isaac McElwee, Petra Murray, Samantha Wanner
  Lighting Design: James Kendall
  Costumes: Diesel X
  Performers: Te’Shawn Anderson-Johnson, Kavya Bhagawatula, Bao Her, Brenna McCarthy, Isaac McElwee, Petra Murray, Emily Jenee Raines, Rhiannon Roseman, Isabella Saxe, Lydia Smith, Tia Wagner, Samantha Wanner,
  with Marissa Lynn Citro, Marlee Mathews Hughes, Kimberly McGrath, Anna Padrick, Kristal Perez Aviles, Jonah Gonzales

  Choreographer’s Note: “When you are put down you choose how to react. You can make the choice to either let it drag you down or use it as fuel to your fire and laugh.”

• Production Crew

  New Dances Director: Brian Jeffery
  Assistant Director: Stephanie Brenner
  Faculty Technical Director: Daniel J. Anteau
  Stage Manager: James Kendall
  Assistant Stage Manager: Stephanie Brenner
  Lighting Designers: Daniel J. Anteau, James Branstetter, Galina Deitz, James Kendall, Krisha-Nicole Manuel, Kaeli Meno, Joshuah Rutten
  Light & Sound Board Operator: Grant Kniefel
  Master Electrician: James Branstetter
  Costume Shop Supervisor: Kaie Promish
  Wardrobe Lead: Stephanie Brenner
  Wardrobe Crew: Addie George, Halsey Howard, Andrew Miller, Lydia Smith, Chardonnay Stone

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  HOUSE
  Communications & Graphic Design: Asia Bauzon
  House Manager: Paitton Reid, Alina Markina
  Box Office: Hope Hughes, Lawrence Wynn, Cedar Cussins

• Choreographer & Designer Bios

  Daniel J. Anteau received a B.A. from the University of Alaska Anchorage and his M.F.A from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana in Lighting Design. He now serves as department chair, professor in design and technical director for the dance program. Professionally, Daniel’s lighting designs have been seen across Alaska & Hawaii, in New York City and internationally in Africa. For the past six summers Daniel served as technical director for Trollwood Performing Arts School in Moorhead, MN. In Hawaii, Daniel continues to stay active as lighting designer working with Manoa Valley Theatre on their January production.

  James Branstetter is a Mechanical Engineering/Theatre Major at UAA. He has recently designed lights for 2017’s Dance in Performance and is currently the Lighting Designer for the upcoming play, Rain and Zoe Save the World. He loves reading, long walks in the shadows and believes that cats are the second most interesting creatures in existence. Can you guess the first?
  

  Stephanie Brenner grew up as a competitive gymnast before turning her attention to dance once she enrolled at UAA. She burst out performing in many shows and choreographed for multiple New Dances and Dance in Performance shows including the musical Working. Recently graduated, Stephanie obtained her degree in Theatre with a concentration in Dance. Along with choreographing Stephanie has started peering into the world of film. Moving away from performing, she hopes to help other people tell their story through the use of movement and videography. Stephanie strives to leave a positive impact everywhere she goes. She hopes to pursue a career in choreography and directing.

  Marissa Lynn Citro has been dancing as long as she can remember and is excited to have choreographed her first piece for UAA. She started taking Ballet/Jazz class at the Alaska Moving Arts Center when she was five years old and later branched out to Modern Dance. She is an East High Dance Contempo alumni and runs the AMAC Modern Dance program. In addition to choreographing for her students and creating alumni pieces for Dance Contempo, she has choreographed numerous musicals and collaborative works. Marissa is a Psychology major, a Dance minor and is a member of Dance Ensemble.

  Diesel X has had the joy of putting costumes on thousands of beautiful bodies over many, many years. Diesel and his trustworthy companion Sock Monkey often travel on fantastic adventures to far away exotic destinations as they wander the planet in search of the truth. Next stop, Shanghai!

  Marlee Hughes I have always loved dance and everything about it. I started studio dance when I was 3 years old and danced until I was a freshman in high school and at that time joined my high school drill team. After marrying my sweet husband in 2015 I moved to Alaska to be with him. I then began my college dance career here at UAA spring 2016. I have been trained in all kinds of dance including jazz, ballet, hip hop, modern, and clogging. I have traveled all over the state of Utah to compete as well as traveled to Las Vegas and Boston to receive more education in dance. This will be my fifth show with UAA and my second time having the honor to choreograph.

  Brian Jeffery has directed over 30 productions for UAA’s Department of Theatre and Dance. He originally hails from Chicago where he was active in the city’s performing arts communities for over twenty years. He has previously served on faculty at Northwestern University, Columbia College Chicago and University of Wisconsin Milwaukee. As artistic director of XSIGHT! Performance Group for fifteen years his vision of exploring the amalgamation of theater, dance and the visual arts, has been consistently recognized by popular and critical acclaim. Jeffery created over fifty original multidisciplinary works for XSIGHT! and toured throughout the U.S. as well as Australia, Egypt, Cyprus, The Netherlands, France, Switzerland and Yugoslavia. Jeffery has premiered work on numerous professional companies internationally, notably Danz Abierta of Havana at the National Theater of Cuba, Trinity Irish Dance Company at the Joyce Theater New York City, Itinerant Theatre Guild at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival Scotland, Lucky Plush Productions Chicago, and Ghana Dance Ensemble in West Africa. Jeffery has lectured and presented at many conferences including African Studies Association, American College Dance Association, Congress on Research in Dance and Society of Ethnomusicology. Jeffery is also part of Secrets Under the Skin, a collaborative multidisciplinary art installation that reflects upon religious rites and rituals linked between Ghana and Cuba as a result of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. Secrets has been presented on numerous venues internationally since 2010. Secrets Under the Skin website

  James Kendall is an aspiring film director spending time broadening his skill set studying theatre. He’s excited to learn more about Stage Management and Lighting Design, and coincidentally, he’s doing both on this show (for the first time, mind you). He’s worked as Master Electrician and Assistant Stage Manager on several shows at UAA and was an Assistant Stage Manager on A Christmas Carol for Perseverance Theatre this past December.

  Krisha-Nicole Manuel (Light Designer) is a senior at UAA majoring in computer science and theatre with a concentration in technical design. She is mostly known for her sound designing and boardwork, having worked on Radium Girls and this semester’s Rain and Zoe. She has an affinity for technology, videography, and gaming, and hopes to show her creativity in one or all of these fields. While not her first time at creating light shows, this is her first time as LD for an official dance show.

  Kaeli Meno is a junior in the Theater Department with a duel degree in history and technical theater. She has worked in many capacities on UAA theatre productions Earthquake ‘64, Radium Girls and And Then There Were None. She is very excited to be designing lights for this production!

  Katie O’Loughlin is a recent graduate from the Theatre and Dance Department at UAA. During her final year, she received 2 undergraduate research grants, one of which funded her senior honors project and thesis so she could direct and choreograph her own evening length dance production. The other gave her the opportunity to travel to Havana, Cuba to research their dance community, and because of that trip she is working on finding her way back to Havana to train with a local company. She is currently working in the dance community in Alaska, a guest choreographer for Enliven Dance Company in Palmer, and is director of Sunlight Collaboration’s newest work, Concrete Roots, which was accepted into the upcoming EMOS Festival to be held in late April. She is honored to be guest artist for Dance Ensemble, as well as being offered the opportunity to perform as alumni, in New Dances 2018. Her future goals are to continue building new and original artistic works in the Alaskan community, gain national and international experience and training, and eventually attend graduate school in order to teach and choreograph at a university level.

  Rhiannon Roseman was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska and is proud to call this place her home. Her love for dance was ignited at Dance Spectrum Alaska where she studied Tap, Jazz, and Ballet for ten years and continued her dance training at Alaska Dance Theatre with a focus in Tap Dance, under the instruction of Valerie Thurston. Rhiannon also had the opportunity to attend the American College Dance Association’s 2018 conference in Boston, Massachusetts. Currently, Rhiannon is the tap instructor at Alaska Dance Theatre, and teaches community outreach classes at Benny Benson Secondary School and Roger’s Park Elementary. Her most recent work includes choreographing for Alaska Dance Theatre’s student showcases, UAA Dance in Performance 2017, Momentum Dance Collective’s Breaking Ground 2016 & 2018, collaborated with local artists for community engagement project, “Mime Spenard” and performing in Seattle Tap Jam alongside Jessie Sawyers. This is Rhiannon’s seventh time performing and second time choreographing for UAA

  Joshuah Rutten is a senior theatre student at UAA. He has been in the Theatre Department 3 years and has left a shattering and entertaining impact on the department. Though this is Joshuah’s first designing role, he has been in 2 UAA productions as an actor. Outside of the department Joshuah dedicates his time in the community as a Pokémon Professor/Judge.  After college Joshuah plans to move back to his birth city of San Antonio, Texas where he will continue working in Theatre and work towards his goal of becoming a game show host.

• Production Photos
  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

   

UAA Dance Ensemble is the resident student dance company at UAA. The purpose of the Ensemble is to replicate the experience of being part of a professional performance company. Members of the Ensemble typically work each semester with a recognized guest artist, are featured in two concerts a year at UAA, and travel out of state to attend American College Dance Association Conferences. 2017-18 Ensemble Members: Marissa Citro, Marlee Hughes, Stephanie Lahn, Kimberly McGrath, Kristal Perez Aviles, Rhiannon Roseman 

Special thanks (and Smooches!)

Robin Figueroa, Danteau, Asia Bauzon, Jill Flanders Crosby, Katie O’Loughlin, Becky Kendall, Kaie Promish,
Nova Cunningham, Colleen Metzger, Daniel Glen Carlgren

HEARTS & BIG THANK YOU’S FROM UAA DANCE CLUB TO:
Tim Flynn - Student Union Operations Coordinator
McElwee Family - Donation of Baked Goodies
Riley Andrus - Co-Coordinator of Communication
KRUA Radio - Event Advertising