Hubbard Street Dance Announces Auditions and Choreographer Competition

Hubbard Street Artistic Director Glenn Edgerton and Terence Marling, Director of Hubbard Street 2 (HS2), encourage early-career and professional dancers, male and female, to audition for 2014-15 season contracts with Hubbard Street's main company and HS2.

Individuals interested in a position with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago should have at minimum two years of professional experience. Hubbard Street 2 invites dancers ages 18 to 24 with strong backgrounds in classical and contemporary techniques.

The single audition for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, and first of two auditions for Hubbard Street 2, will be held on Saturday, March 8, 2014 from 10am to 6pm at the Hubbard Street Dance Center's Lou Conte Dance Studio, 1147 West Jackson Boulevard at Racine Avenue in Chicago. This audition will consist of a ballet technique class and work with contemporary choreography. After the ballet class, some dancers will be asked to stay for the repertoire portion of the audition. Hubbard Street 2 callbacks will be held at the same location on Sunday, March 9 from 10am to 4pm. Dancers auditioning for HS2 must be available both days.

Dancers planning to audition are strongly encouraged to register in advance using the form online at http://bit.ly/HubbardStreetAudition2014. This form will remain accessible until 12am on March 8, 2014. Day-of-audition registration in person begins at 8am on March 8, 2014; dancers using this option are encouraged to arrive as early as possible. The application requires complete contact information, headshot and resume uploads, and two references at minimum.

Each audition includes a $10.00 fee, cash or check made payable to "Hubbard Street Dance Chicago." Questions are welcome via email to auditions@hubbardstreetdance.com.

CHICAGO - Terence Marling, Director of Hubbard Street 2 (HS2) and Hubbard Street Artistic Director Glenn Edgerton encourage experienced dancemakers to apply for commissions through HS2's 15th annual National Choreographic Competition (NCC), one of three programs of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago's Choreographic Development Initiative.

As part of its mission to identify and nurture young choreographers, HS2 initiated the National Choreographic Competition in 1999. Each year, the competition provides residencies to choreographers, offering them the opportunity to create original works for HS2's dancers and to conduct master classes. The competition has gained an esteemed reputation, international recognition, and produced more than 30 works to date, by notable artists including Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater artistic director Robert Battle, Aszure Barton, Camille Brown, Norbert De La Cruz III, Gregory Dolbashian, Jonathan Fredrickson, Ayman Harper, Maurya Kerr, Alex Ketley, Gabrielle Lamb, Jessica Lang, Edwaard Liang, Andrea Miller, Yarden Ronen, Katarzyna Skarpetowska, Samar Haddad King, Dominic Walsh and Edgar Zendejas.

2013 NCC winners Loni Landon of New York City and Alex Soares of Sa?o Paulo, Brazil both recently completed new works, to receive world premieres in 2014. Through HS2 performance engagements in Chicago and on tour, NCC winners receive domestic and international exposure, opening additional opportunities for commissions and furthering their careers.

2014 NCC applicants must complete the form available online at http://bit.ly/HS2NCC2014. All submissions require fall 2014 availability, links to videos of work samples online, the applicant's professional background and prior experience, a statement of project intent, and information about any existing recordings of music that may be used.

These applications and materials must be submitted via the online form by January 1, 2014.

2014 NCC winners will create and premiere their works during Hubbard Street 2's 2014-15 season. Questions about the application process or program details are welcome via email at ncc@hubbardstreetdance.com.

About Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and Hubbard Street 2: Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, under the artistic leadership of Glenn Edgerton, celebrates its 36th season in 2013 and 2014. Among the world's top contemporary dance companies and a global cultural ambassador, Hubbard Street demonstrates fluency in a wide range of techniques and forms, and deep comprehension of abstract artistry and emotional nuance. The company is critically acclaimed for its exuberant and innovative repertoire, featuring works by master American and international choreographers. Hubbard Street's artists hail from four countries and 12 U.S. states, and comprise a superlative ensemble of virtuosity and versatility.

Since its founding by Lou Conte in 1977, Hubbard Street has grown through the establishment of multiple platforms. Each is dedicated to the support and advancement of dance as an art form, as a practice, and as a method for generating and sustaining communities of all kinds.

Extensive Youth, Education and Community Programs, directed by Kathryn Humphreys, are models in the field of arts education, linking the performing company's creative mission to the lives of students and families. Hubbard Street also initiated the first dance-based program in the Midwest to help alleviate suffering caused by Parkinson's disease. Youth Dance Program classes at the Hubbard Street Dance Center include Creative Movement and progressive study of technique, open to young dancers ages 18 months to 16 years.

At the Lou Conte Dance Studio, directed by founding Hubbard Street Dancer Claire Bataille, workshops and master classes allow access to expertise, while a broad variety of weekly classes offer training at all levels in jazz, ballet, modern, tap, African, hip-hop, yoga, Pilates and Zumba.

Hubbard Street 2, founded by Julie Nakagawa and Lou Conte in 1997 and now led by Terence Marling, prepares dancers ages 18 to 24 for careers in contemporary dance, and identifies next- generation choreographers. While members, talented young artists receive professional experience in a dynamic environment that fosters artistic growth while allowing them to hone multiple techniques. To date, 13 members of HS2 have advanced to Hubbard Street's main company, with numerous others joining top dance companies worldwide.

HS2's dancers reach thousands annually with diverse programming that provides valuable outreach in schools, site-specific work in museums and cultural institutions, and evening-length repertoire performances. HS2 has been honored to perform at many prestigious venues including the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Joyce SoHo and North Carolina School of the Arts, and overseas in Germany, Luxembourg, South Africa and Switzerland.

Committed to the creation of quality family programming, in 2010 former HS2 Director Taryn Kaschock Russell conceived of Harold and the Purple Crayon: A Dance Adventure, the company's first program-length work created specifically for young people and families, choreographed by Terence Marling and former company dancer Robyn Mineko Williams. HS2 premiered this educational performance at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. to a sold-out house and continues to engage young audiences around the world with this imaginative program.

HS2 is an integral component of Hubbard Street's Youth, Education and Community Programs, which bring students into the world of dance by actively engaging them in perception, research, reflection and discussion, assisting them in strengthening basic proficiencies to develop analytical and abstract thinking, interpretation and problem-solving skills.