March 17,1999
Meredith Herald
Campus Extras 5
• Assert Yourself! team assertiveness sidUs wfelch will help you in
your reaitiofiships. in the classroom^ and ia your woilcplace. Today -
Wed. Mm". 17 12 noon - 1 p.m. in Dogwood A. Presented by Stephanie
HelmsH&tis.
• \jt Cercle Francais'tiext meeting is this Friday. M^. 19 at 10 a.m.
in Joyoer 215. Be
• Dofi^t Forgft - Angd’s WINGS award oominaiion forn» and eli
gible candidates lists aie available in the Office of Orotinuing Educa-
UMt-Each 234-student may nominate one peisoo. , !
• Hey Seniorst Ptose turn in SENIOR PICNIC INFO as sooti as
possible - inciudiag seniOT superf^ves and laist will 2md lestamwits.
Give infonmtion to D^ma (109 Heilman) or Ann (IH Heilman). Ques-
tifmsca!ix2510c^x2512. '
• The Art Ikparfment seniors will be having their Senior Exhibi
tions thK weekend in Gaddy-Hamrick. The opening reception will be
this Sunday, Mar. 21 from 2-4 p.m. ThC; show will be up throa^ Apr.
5 and features media by ^ists Allison DeRoeck, Juliana Bunn.
Illingworth. ABison Ljuae, Lisa Bauer and Anna Taylor.
• SGA Ematlve Board Is looking for a few go^ women, tlie fol
lowing positioos are available; Treasurer, Student Life Chair, Resi
dence Hall Bc«rd Chair and Chief College Marshall. Stop by ttie
Offke of Student Activities to sign-up for an interview. Call Jeiuiifer
Ricks (x2572) with any questions.
• It’s time for Ae Firrt Annual Junioi^Bior Dinner on Tuesday,
Mar, 30 at 6 p.m. in Belk Dining Hall. Admission is FREEII You must
sign up in either Center (Info. Desk) or in Belk Dining Hall by
this Friday - Mar. 19! (Questions? C^l Erin Grant x2537.
Lj&AGn.UAM
AAs & Eenai>«nent stOof
18 - *n»e NC Symphony suid Triangle Musicians 2nd AnnaaJ “Kay
with tiie Pros" Cffltcert. Cary community Centet Spm. No charge for
the conceit.
19-»At7:3(^&2d'2l at 2pm. Raleigh Littleltieaire Family Series
ft^uction. OPQRS, ETC.! Msuige Milier’s delt^iful comedy abcwi
the pow«- of art and freedom of thou^t. Flod y»raelf io C^ville.
where the alt^abet staits with *t)PQRS.’' $6 for children; $8 for adul^
Caimi-3U1-
- Cartooning, Le^ Cartooning a^f drawasg techniques kt this
workshop at the alkor Aits and History Center. I session. 10-12. $25.
' Call 460-4963 for rnore info.
21 - The Bla:kCmwesiacon£Srt. Ovens Auditorium. CharloRe,NC.
8pm. $23. Cril 704-522-6500 foriickets.
23 - Timotiiy Sp^ks, tenor, and James Clybum. pi^o. Faculty
Recital. Cowell Concert Hall. Meredith Coltege. 8pm. Admission
Free,
26 - Big Band Concert / Dance, “Big Band Es^vaganza ” feitfuting
Jim Millet and the limmy Doreey Orchestra and Guy Ltanbardo with
AI Pferson. €:45pm. Mcl&nrtiOQ Center. KC State. $ I S. Cafl 515-1100.
“ Briefs “
♦ College paduates with a strong intercst in a cweer in communi
on administf^ion are invited to apply for a Community A«s Admin-
istnUion Internship sponscaed by the NC Arts OMincil. the deadline for
ai^lications in May 3. 1999. For an applicati(» form and more info, ■
please contact Viola Bullock at 919-733-789? ext, 29.
Dance Theatre presents spring concert
Tory Hoke
Features Editor
It is a credit to Meredith Dance
Theatre’s talents and range of
expression that they can produce a
performance that can a;^>eal to an
audience with even the liltlest
knowledge of dance. The concert
that MDT delivered on Mar, 4 and
5 was as professional and poised
as an Ivory-Merchant film, yet
each of its seven components
made a gut-level connection with
its crowded Jones Auditorium
house that was as gripping as a De
Palma finale.
This year is David Beadle's
first at the helm of MDT, filling in
for usual director Alyson Colwell-
Waber, who had other commit
ments.
“It has been a great experi
ence.” said Beadle, “both chal*
ienging and exciting because of
MDT’s many projects. This year
has been designated Year of
Dance by Meredith’s Center for
Women in the Arts, and we have
been especially busy hosting the
NC Dance Alliance’s Annual
Event in September and the NC
Dance Festival concerts in Janu-
aty, in addition to our usual sched
ule of classes and rehearsals for
the fall and spring conceits.”
MDT’s work fix this year is far
from thittugh, as in April it will
host the High School Day
Dance as well as Andrea Mar-
tinez-Alien’s Senior Thesis Dance
Concert. Next week is MDT's
panicipation in the American Col
lege Dance Festival in Maryland,
in which Martinez-Allen and the
dancers in “Failing Grace’’ will
perform their respective works for
peers and dance professionals for
feedback and conversation.
“Failing Grace,” the center
piece of the student and faculty
works presented Mar. 4 and 5. was
choreographed by aitist-in-resi-
dence Kei^ Johnson and his assis
tant Stephanie Nugent, both of
California State University. Long
Beach. The piece contrasted nat
ural movement with what Johnson
called the “monster walk”—a bru
tal. lock-kneed walk, the shock of
which made some members of the
audience audibly draw breath.
Said “Failing Grace” dancer
Tami Necrason, "{Johnson] chore*
ograi^ed it on us as we were
there. It took two and ahalf weeks
to learn. It gave us a chance to
explore types of movement,
allowed us K) show strong emo
tion on our faces, allowed this
intensity to come through."
The work that followed was an
appropriate counteipoint to the
tense smd moving Johnson piece.
Set to Willie Dixon’s “All Your
Love,” performed by John Mayall
and die Bluesbreakers, die kx>se
and active “Double Take" had its
dancers, appropriately, in blue
Jeans. ChoiTOgraphers Traci Mon
roe and Misty Squires matched
the piece’s movements to the
music's difHcult tempo changes.
Similarly active was "Backing
the Bounce," a celebration of
Duke Ellington diat involved all
of Meredith Dance Theatre’s per
formers. In tuxedo shirts. MDTs
women produced vivid impro
vised movements under the direc
tion of Beadle. The piece effec
tively communicated Uie pleasure
of dance, as well as the pleasures
of perfcMTnance and cool jazz.
Beadle’s contribution, “[Parallel
357,” was the fust of tiie evening
to involve contact between
dancers and therefore conveyed a
sense of liveliness arxl intimacy
that made a strong connection
with the audience.
Said Beadle, ‘“Parallel 357’
was made from movement phras
es crea^ by the dancers, i direct
ed the develc^ment and transfor
mation of the material into longer
phrases and partnering sections.
(The dancers) had a lot of freedom
in the movement they chose,
while! provided the structure and
sequencing.”
Beadle explained that the title
“implies a geographic location -
an imaginary world where
nomadic tribes or people travel,
meet, mingle, share their cultures
with one another, change, evolve
and continue U3veling.” Accord
ing to Beadle, the piece’s theme of
the “prone figure," adancer “lying
down, rolling back and forth with
one arm raised,’’ expressed the
“active state of dreaming where
we create our own worlds.”
Ttme spent on the floor was
used to a very differ«it effect in
Kimberly Clendenen’s solo work,
“The Thin Line Between,” which
was so well matched to its music
that it seemed Clendenen had
commissioned Peter Gabriel for
the piece. The ^are stage, teamed
with Clendenen’s spare white
tunic and black slacks, set a cold
and remote tone for her dance that
made the intimacy of Gabriel's
lyrics and Clender»en’s sudden
gaze into the audience on the word
“you” more deeply affecting for
their contrast There was a stunned
silence after her piece that was fol
lowed with impassioned applause.
“Mujeril," a too-brief \wrk in
progress from NC State student
Brianne Barrow, used four
dancers performing similar
motions at different speeds that
conveyed how the same experi
ence can affect pec^le differently.
The dancer’s facial expressions
and nuance of movement were at
once subtle and strong, and the
sample lefii hunger for the finished
fwece.
The evening’s first piece,
“Rite,” stood out for its richness
and traditional dance structure.
The ripeness of the lighting and
the sleekness of Melody Eggen’s
jewel-toned costumes set apart the
formalized movements and the
repeated theme of circles.
Althou^ MDT participation is
open to all students, regardless of
major, it is an uncommon student
who has the commitment neces
sary to become a part of the com
pany. As a class, MDT provides
one hour of credit and demands
four per week; as an experience, it
demands an additional four hours
a week for eadi individual piece
the student dances.
“I've been a of MDT ail
four years.” said Martinez-Allen.
“It sheds some light on how much
goes into a dance major.” Of
course, the company is more than
hard work. “We have a good
time.” she added. “We’re really
good friends. After all, we came
up from being freshmen together”
Unfoftunately, few students on
campus know what the results of
MDT’s commitment and chem-
isoy are.
“It’s hard to get a lot of students
involved,’’ noted Martinez-Allen.
“We got a lot of good comments,
like T could really relate.’ We'd
like to get more of the campus
involved, but these performances
don’t really attract a k3t of stu
dents.'’