6th Annual MN SAGE Award for Dance Announces 2010 Honorees

The 6th Annual Minnesota SAGE Awards for Dance recognized 11 people connected to Minnesota's dance community at ceremonies held on Tuesday, September 14, at the Southern Theater. Attendees at the vibrant evening celebration included Twin Cities dance artists, administrators, patrons and supporters.

Composer Mary Ellen Childs hosted the two-hour presentation of awards that featured performances by SAGE honorees from the past and live music by Eric Mayson and 6th & Vine. Members of the panel that selected the 2010 honorees presented the awards, a commissioned work by Twin Cities visual artist Amy Rice.

The awardees:

Outstanding Dance Educator

Becky Stanchfield

Special Citation

Patrick Scully

Outstanding Performance
Francis Kofi and Hayor Bibimma for Anyendo Hwendo "Rainbow Spirit"
Ranee Ramaswamy and Aparna Ramaswamy for Ihrah: Sacred Water
Uri Sands for Earth

Outstanding Ensemble: new award in 2010
Zenon Dance Company for performances in Fall Concert, Spring Concert and the opera
Orpheus and Eurydice

Outstanding Design
Paul Herwig - Set design for The Jury
Deborah Jinza Thayer (Mathew Smith, music; Lisa Axell/Laura Adams, costumes; Jeff
Bartlett, lighting; Deirdre Murnane, puppetry; Brian Axell, set) - Concept and
production design for Ode to Dolly

Outstanding Performer
Rachel Barnes - Femme de la Swashbuckle Box; Ode to Dolly; Dougieland
Brian Evans - Just One More; In Between-Between Places; Love Triangle (from The
Jury); Abandon Me; A Word With You Dear; Tales from the Book of Longing
Penelope Freeh - We'll Survive if We Don't Protect Ourselves; Tributes; Ballet Works
Project; Ode to Dolly: The Sheep; Inter Alia; Moving Works

The Minnesota SAGE Awards for Dance provide an annual celebration of the choreographers, dancers, educators, presenters, scenic and lighting designers and others whose work make the Twin Cities a national center of dance. The Awards are named in honor of Sage Cowles, a choreographer, performer, and philanthropist recognized for her dance leadership in the Twin Cities and nationally.

The 2010 SAGE Awards were supported generously by The McKnight Foundation, Dancing Fair, Red Stag Supperclub, Surly Beer and the Twin Cities dance community.

For more information: www.sageawards.org

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