OU’S School of=0D=0A=
Dance Presents Dance Partners Event
Norman,=0D=0A=
Oklahoma, February 11, 2013 -- The University of Oklahoma School of Dance (SOD)=0D=0A=
will host a meeting and presentations for Dance Partners, SOD’s support=0D=0A=
organization, on Thursday, February 21, 2013, at 7:00 p.m. in Room 3002 of the=0D=0A=
Donald W. Reynolds Performing Arts Center. Dance Partners was established by patrons=0D=0A=
of the School of Dance in 2003 to provide support for SOD endeavors, especially=0D=0A=
scholarships. Charles Oppenheim is the=0D=0A=
current president.
The=0D=0A=
program will present highlights from Contemporary Dance Oklahoma’s (CDO)=0D=0A=
upcoming concert in April. CDO will be=0D=0A=
showing pieces from Trio Syncopated, choreographed by Austin Hartel, as well as a new work=0D=0A=
by Derrick Minter. The excerpts will be=0D=0A=
performed by students in the cast.
Dance=0D=0A=
Partners will also learn about “Pantomime and Acting in Ballet” during a lecture=0D=0A=
and presentation given collaboratively by dance faculty members Clara Cravey=0D=0A=
and Steve Brule. Cravey and Brule will=0D=0A=
give a brief synopsis on the topic. =0D=0A=
Subsequently, students who have previously participated in pantomime=0D=0A=
classes at OU, will present a variety of mimed scenarios. An array of=0D=0A=
performances will depict excerpts from classical ballet, along with comedic=0D=0A=
scenarios. Cravey’s students will=0D=0A=
perform sequences from such ballets as Coppelia and Swan Lake. In addition,=0D=0A=
audience members who raved at the comedy in Oklahoma Festival Ballet’s Cinderella during the=0D=0A=
2012 holiday season will have the opportunity to learn insider tips. The Step=0D=0A=
Sisters were fan favorites who piqued the interest of many, so there will be a=0D=0A=
behind-the-scenes look at the details that went into making those roles so=0D=0A=
hilarious and successful. Brule, who=0D=0A=
played one of the sisters in travesty, stated: “There are many factors that go=0D=0A=
into making comedy in ballet a success. =0D=0A=
I'll talk a bit about slapstick and more subtle comedy in=0D=0A=
ballet pantomime and acting. Timing is everything. When you consider music, movement, expression=0D=0A=
and props -- all while you are reacting to other performers – timing has to be=0D=0A=
split second and right on."
The=0D=0A=
Dance Partners event will close with refreshments and conversation with dancers=0D=0A=
and faculty and a special toast to the organization’s tenth anniversary.
The=0D=0A= University of Oklahoma’s program in dance was founded in 1963 by Yvonne=0D=0A= Chouteau and Miguel Terekhov, former principal dancers with Ballet Russe de=0D=0A= Monte Carlo. What had been a department became the School of Dance in 1998 with=0D=0A= Mary Margaret Holt as Director. Undergraduate and graduate dance majors, along=0D=0A= with general education students, total approximately 1000 enrollees in dance=0D=0A= classes per semester. The School of Dance’s state-of-the-art facility in the=0D=0A= Donald W. Reynolds Performing Art Center was completed in 2005.
=0D=0A= =0D=0A= SUMMARY;ENCODING=QUOTED-PRINTABLE:Dance Partners Event PRIORITY:3END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR