By Han Zhao
College of Fine Arts and Communication Media Office
CONWAY — The Martha Graham Dance Company will perform at the University of Central Arkansas at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 11.
The evening will present some of the world’s best modern dancers in some of Martha Graham’s iconoclastic pieces. The program includes Prelude & Revolt, Diversion of Angels, Lamentation Variations and Appalachian Spring.
“We are excited to be bringing this to Conway, especially accompanied by live musicians drawn from the ranks of the Conway Symphony Orchestra,” said Jerry Biebesheimer, director of UCA Public Appearances. “The Martha Graham Company is one of the world’s best-known dance companies. Their tour routing made a visit to Conway a possibility, and we acted to make it a reality. ”
The Martha Graham Dance Company will open the Night Out Series for the 2011-12 UCA Public Appearances season.
Besides the performance, residency activities will include a masterclass on campus for UCA theatre students in movement and voice and a residency at UALR with dance students of the state’s only accredited dance program.
According to www.marthagraham.org, the Martha Graham Dance Company has been a leader in the development of contemporary dance since its founding in 1926. The company was founded and named for the pioneering choreographer who is considered the mother of modern dance.
According to the website, “Graham and her company have expanded contemporary dance’s vocabulary of movement and forever altered the scope of the art form by rooting works in contemporary social, political, psychological, and sexual contexts, deepening their impact and resonance.”
Among the company’s alumni are Merce Cunningham, Erick Hawkins, Pearl Lang, Pascal Rioult, Paul Taylor, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Claire Bloom, Margot Fonteyn, Liza Minnelli, Rudolf Nureyev, Maya Plisetskaya and Kathleen Turner. The company has toured more than 50 countries across the world.
Tickets, available at the UCA Ticket Central Box Office, are $30-$40 for adults, $27-$37 for senior citizens, $25-35 for UCA alumni, $28-$33 for UCA faculty and staff, and $10 for all students. For tickets, call (501) 450-3265 or toll free from anywhere in Arkansas at 1-866-810-0012, Monday–Friday, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. or visit www.uca.edu/reynolds.
For more information, contact Jerry Biebesheimer, director of UCA Public Appearances, at (501) 450-3682 or jerryb@uca.edu or Catherine Marhenke, director of marketing and development for UCA Public Appearances, at (501) 450-3406 or cmarhenke@uca.edu.
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