Summerdances: Uncovered Kicks Off, Features UWM Dance Students 6/3-5

The UW-Milwaukee Peck School of the Arts Department of Dance launches the summer dance season with five choreographic premieres and an American masterpiece in its production of Summerdances:Uncovered from June 3-5. Showcasing Tony Award-winning choreographer Garth Fagan's seminal work "From Before," the Department concludes its yearlong investigation of Race & Identity in this celebration of contemporary dance.

Supported by a National Endowment for the Arts American Masters: Dance-College Component Award, Peck School dance students have had the unique opportunity to study Mr. Fagan's work. Their experience began in Fall 2009 when they auditioned for Mr. Fagan and his re-stager Natalie Rogers-Cropper and has continued all year long, during which time they have rehearsed and perfected the work. Mr. Fagan visited the Department in November 2009 to work directly with the students and is returning for the opening night of Summerdances:Uncovered on June 3rd. He has also selected four Peck School students and offered them scholarships to attend the elite Garth Fagan Summer Movement Intensive this July.

The program for Summerdances: Uncovered will also include the following faculty premieres:

-Prologue and Boi Redux: Simone Ferro - two high-energy performances that bring Northeast Brazil to the Mainstage.
-What You're Thinking: Elizabeth Johnson with visual artist Heather Warren-Crow - A collaborative feast of visual imagery, text, and movement.
-Covered: Janet Lilly - A peek-a-boo look at liminality that incorporates surprising covers of popular songs. -Sink, Gasp, Float: Dani Kuepper - A complex and mysterious exploration of mythic female characters.
-The Ultimate Sun Package: Krislyn World - A colorful theatrical adventure featuring showgirls, salsa, and rumba.

Summerdances: Uncovered will be presented in the UWM Mainstage Theatre, 2400 E. Kenwood Blvd on Thursday-Saturday, June 3-5, at 7:30 p.m. A reception will follow the June 3rd performance and selected choreographers will host a 6:45 p.m. pre-performance talk each evening. Click here for a preview of the performances!

Information and Tickets
Tickets for Summerdances: Uncovered are $15 general admission and $9 for UWM students, seniors, alumni, faculty and staff, and may be purchased by calling the Peck School of the Arts Box Office at 414-229-4308. A pay-what-you-can performance will be open to the public on June 2nd at 7:30 pm.

The Department of Dance summer season will also include the following performances:

-ScreenDance
July 10, 9:15 p.m. at Danceworks, 1661 N. Water Street, Milwaukee
-MFA Thesis Show: create.collide.combust
July 16-17, 7:30 p.m. at Danceworks, 1661 N. Water Street, Milwaukee
-Dancemakers 2010
July 30-31, 7:30 p.m., Mainstage Theatre, Fine Arts Center, 2400 E. Kenwood Blvd, Milwaukee

About Race & Identity
Each year, the Dance Department selects a new theme for faculty, students and guest choreographers to explore, evaluate and study. Race & Identity, the 2009-10 season focus, investigates the array of realities, beliefs and influences that impact our art and our lives. This year, through a generous grant from New England Foundation for the Arts, the Peck School has been honored to welcome Garth Fagan, choreographer and founder/artistic director of internationally acclaimed Garth Fagan Dance, as our guest artist.

About the UWM Department of Dance
The Department of Dance at UWM is committed to the development and training of skillful and creatively vibrant dance artists. Through its diverse faculty, curriculum and students, the department offers undergraduate and graduate dancers a learning environment that emphasizes creative artistic individuality and the development of professional skills.

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