Monumental Movement: a repertory showcase by University Dance Theater

Foehringer, Whitaker, Cathleen McCarthy, Albirda Rose, Ray Tadio and Susan Whipp explore feminism, civil rights, sensuality, urban streets, Afro-Haitian folklore and more. In addition, choreography by advanced student Sierrah Dietz gets a second look after debuting in December at SF State’s New Moves Dance Showcase. Altogether, the works cover contemporary, modern, Afro-Haitian and other styles. The concert celebrates the legacies of Professor Emeritus Jerry Duke and Rose, who will retire at the end of the spring semester.

The University Dance Theater is comprised of 26 advanced students, selected by audition. Admission is $8 general admission and $13 for students and seniors.

Mark Foehringer, “Host”
“Host,” featuring 14 dancers, was developed out of the common ground that people share despite their inherent differences. Based heavily in ritual, it is set to an original world-music composition by AAVA.

Foehringer is a Fulbright scholar in dance. Hailed by San Francisco Chronicle as “an inventive choreographer with a great company,” he is the artistic director of Mark Foehringer Dance Project/SF, a San Francisco-based contemporary dance organization founded in 1996. Mark Foehringer Dance Project/SF has been presented throughout the Bay Area, in Aruba, Peru and New York City. Since his 1996 U.S. debut, he has emerged as a choreographer of richly layered, often witty and unfailingly musical works.

Adia Tamar Whitaker, “Ezili”
Inspired by a powerful spirit in the pantheon of Haitian voodoo and the late SF State instructor Alicia Pierce, “Ezili” is a personal, folkloric journey of love, beauty, prosperity, home and good health. The goddess Ezili “gets what she wants but has a longing for what she needs,” Whitaker said.

Whitaker, an SF State alumna who grew up in San Francisco, is one of America’s youngest professional choreographers and master teachers of Afro-Haitian folkloric dance. The artistic director of Brooklyn-based Ase Dance Theatre Collective, she has studied and performed Afro-Haitian dance in the U.S. and abroad for 13 years, beginning at the University. Her artistic work focuses on neo-folklore of the African diaspora, linking contemporary modern dance, original vernacular movement and traditional dance theater. Whitaker recently completed the first part of a Jerome Foundation grant, studying traditional Ewe dance and music in Ghana, and debuted new pieces at CounterPULSE and the San Francisco Black Choreographers’ Festival.

Cathleen McCarthy, “24th and Mission”
“24th and Mission” is based on an everyday street scene on a unique and colorful San Francisco intersection. Pedestrians in a hurry, litter on the street, graffiti and two lovers make up the kaleidoscope of this fun frolic. The piece is set to electronic music by Argentinean singer Juana Molina.

In New York, McCarthy danced with the Kevin Wynn Collection and Larry Clark. In the Bay Area, she has danced in the companies of Cliff Keuter, Della Davidson and Joanna Haigood. McCarthy founded Summerfest/Dance in 1991 and served as artistic director for 10 years. She has taught at the Shawl-Anderson Dance Center and School of the Arts and taught master classes at several U.S. universities. She has been a lecturer at SF State since 1998 and is co-director of University Dance Theater.

Albirda Rose, “A Journey of Love”
Featuring eight dancers, “A Journey of Love” is inspired by Rose’s parents, who were married for 68 years.

Rose has trained and performed professionally as a dramatic artist, vocal artist, dancer and choreographer. In 1995 she was one of the featured choreographers at Black Choreographers Moving Toward the 21st Century. Her work has been performed throughout the Bay Area and at the American College Dance Festival. A designated master teacher of Dunham Technique, Rose serves as certification director and a member of the administrative dance faculty for the Katherine Dunham Technique Seminar in St. Louis. She has won the Jefferson Award for Public Service and KQED Unsung Hero Award for her efforts to offer free dance classes to disadvantaged children in San Francisco.

Ray Tadio, “The Bus Ride Home”
Reflecting on the Civil Rights Movement and its impact on today’s youth, “The Bus Ride Home” is pensive, athletic and furious. The piece includes audio from interviews with Rosa Parks and includes modern, contemporary, jazz, improvisation and partnering styles.

Tadio, an assistant professor of Dance, received his dance training at the Alvin Ailey School. He danced with the Ailey II Co. for three years and later was assistant to the director on several national and Caribbean tours. His performing credits include the Joyce Trisler Danscompany, Kevin Wynn Collection, David Rousseve, Asian American Dance Theater, Philippine Dance Co. of New York and other companies. Tadio has choreographed for Ailey II, Reflections Dance Co., Pori Dance Co., Benetton Corp., National Ballet Academy of the Netherlands and others. He joined SF State in 2008 and is co-director of University Dance Theater.

Susan Whipp, “Hitch in Your Giddy Up”
Whipp describes her contemporary piece “Hitch in Your Giddy Up,” featuring seven performers, as “robust—a fling with one’s spirit.”

Whipp, professor of Dance, performed with Jan Van Dyke and Dancers in San Francisco, New York and Washington, D.C. She has taught at SF State for 27 years and serves as coordinator of the Bachelor of Arts program in Dance. Whipp received the 2002 Dance Educator Award from the California Dance Educators Association.

“keep your enemies closer,” Sierrah Dietz
University Dance Theater also features an encore performance of a student work: “keep your enemies closer,” a duet choreographed by Sierrah Dietz. The piece premiered at SF State’s New Moves Dance Showcase, an annual December show highlighting advanced student choreography.

Location and Parking
McKenna Theatre is located in the Creative Arts Building on the SF State campus, 1600 Holloway Ave. (at 19th Ave.), San Francisco. Public parking is available in Lot 20, accessed from Lake Merced Boulevard between Winston Drive and Font Boulevard. On weekends and evenings only, public parking is available in Lots 1 and 2, on Holloway Ave. (at 19th Ave.). Parking is $1 per hour with a $5 daily maximum. Nearby street parking is readily available on weekends. For details, visit www.sfsu.edu/~parking.

Calendar Editors, Please Note:
University Dance Theater: Monumental Movement
Directors: Cathleen McCarthy and Ray Tadio
March 4–6, 8 p.m.
$13 general/$8 students and seniors
McKenna Theatre, Creative Arts Building, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Ave. (at 19th Ave.), San Francisco
Information/Tickets: http://creativearts.sfsu.edu/node/1413 ; 415/338-2467

This year’s University Dance Theater takes movement to a higher level, celebrating the legacies of Dance Professors Jerry Duke and Albirda Rose in new choreography exploring feminism, civil rights, sensuality, urban streets, Afro-Haitian folklore and more. Premiering choreography by guest artists Mark Foehringer and Adia Tamar Whitaker and faculty members Cathleen McCarthy, Albirda Rose, Ray Tadio and Susan Whipp.

Program:
• “Host” by guest artist Mark Foehringer;
• “Ezili” by guest artist Adia Tamar Whitaker;
• “24th and Mission” by faculty member Cathleen McCarth;
• “A Journey of Love” by faculty member Albirda Rose;
• “The Bus Ride Home” by faculty member Ray Tadio;
• “Hitch in Your Giddy Up” by faculty member Susan Whipp; and
• “keep your enemies closer,” by Sierrah Dietz.

PHOTOS: Press photos are available for download at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/musicdance-sfsu-edu/sets/72157623006952468/