Looking for a taste of culture this summer? Try experiencing dances from the Vietnamese, Chinese, modern, hip-hop, Tibetan, African and musical-theater performance styles at The Moore Theatre.
In its 14th year running, the DANCE This program, presented by the Seattle Theater Group (STG), brings together diverse dance styles to educate and express world cultures in an annual performance. The program involves local teen dancers, young choreographers, professionals and a guest artist.
Vicky Lee, the DANCE This director of education and performance programs, said this year guest artists from the Spectrum Dance Theater in Madrona will perform “Zombie,” a scene from the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical
“Fela!” Daniel Soto, the assistant dance captain for the touring “Fela!” production, helped stage the scene for DANCE This as one of this year’s guest artists.
“Learning someone else’s dance and meeting a new person from a different culture is always the highlight at the end of the program on evaluations,” Lee said. “It is an important part to have the master artists working with the young artists.”
New perspectives on dance
Participants will have the opportunity to work with and see choreographed pieces by DANCE This artistic director Daniel Cruz, nationally renowned choreographer Mark Haim, Jasmmine Ramgotra from the STG Young Choreographer’s Lab, Etienne Cakpo, Melody Xie of the Melody Institute and local upcoming choreographer Aaron Gordon.
The program also includes collaborations with Tsering Lodoe’s Tibetan Language and Culture Class for the Tibetan piece and the Au Lac Vovinam Lion Dance Team for the Vietnamese piece.
Aaron Gordon, a previous DANCE This participant and upcoming choreographer, said his piece in the production, “Electriq,” uses the hip-hop and house styles of dance. Like all of his other works — which can range from hip-hop to jazz to contemporary — the choreography has a storyline.
“It explores turbulence in relationships, especially loving ones and how loving relationships can exist between anyone,” He explained. “It just shows the fluidity of relationships and love.”
During this dance, nine performers will represent multiple relationship styles both romantic and familial. Gordon uses a sense of turbulence in some of the movements to represent fighting, but the scene ends with a happy resolution, he said.
Stephanie Dehrkoop, a participant in the DANCE This program, has previously danced with Global Dance Party, a program for young local dancers, but this is her first year with DANCE This. Having seen all of the different styles of dance come together in past DANCE This performances, she is excited about participating this year.
“A lot of times, I would hear about a performance like the Tibetan dance, and I wouldn’t really want to go because I’ve never seen it and wouldn’t know what to expect,” Dehrkoop said. “Then when you see it and see how cool it is, the next time you see a poster, you go see it. DANCE This exposes you to a lot of those different experiences.”
Dehrkoop works with Gordon on his piece. She said her part involves fighting with a man with whom she is in a relationship. In rehearsals, she at first found it difficult to portray the anger because her dance partner is a close friend, but the emotion was forced out of her using acting skills, she said.
Dance exploration
Amy O’Neal, the Young Choreographer’s Lab lead mentor and choreographer, said, in the fall, students write essays about why they want to learn about dance and choreography for acceptance into the Young Choreographer’s Lab program.
Then selected students participate in an eight-week program, which includes master classes with guest artists, learning about making a dance and working on their own pieces.
Finally, she said, in the spring, one choreographer’s piece is chosen and staged with dancers for the DANCE This performance.
“We bring in guest artists to give the choreographers feedback, and they then get to audition their own dancers,” O’Neal said.
Alysha Shroff, another DANCE This performer, said DANCE This provides young dancers with a great opportunity to explore diverse dance styles and new studios. Having studied dance her entire life, she returned to Seattle after college to delve into the dance scene and learn from different studios.
“It’s really awesome to bring a bunch of styles together and see all the places you could go,” Shroff said. “It is great to expand the network of where you can train because I think, for me, it has always been important to get as much training in all styles possible.”
The DANCE This performance runs July 13 and 14 at The Moore Theatre at 7:30 p.m. For tickets and details, visit the stgpresents.org website.