Dancing People Company to perform at UO

Nov. 14, 2013—The University of Oregon’s Department of Dance is pleased to present the 2013 Fall Feature Dance Concert. Entitled "Aspects of the Heart," the concert will feature the Ashland, Ore.-based Dancing People Company.

The concert is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Nov. 22 and 23 in the Dougherty Dance Theatre on the third floor of the Gerlinger Annex on the UO campus, a wheelchair-accessible facility. Tickets are $10 general, $5 for students and seniors, available at the door or in advance from the UO Ticket Office in the Erb Memorial Union, 1222 E. 13th Avenue.

The concert takes its name from "Aspects of the Heart," a new work by Dancing People artistic director Robin Stiehm. The piece was created especially for the four women of the company, and embraces their philosophies about life, intimacy, and human relationships.

Performances will also include "Vapor Shape," a nuanced and abstract piece suggesting ancient female prophecies; the Dancing People signature piece "Leaving," a duet about the many small leavings and returns that make up a final separation; "Numbers Game," an intricate construction of dance phrases suggesting an insistent, mechanistic game; and a premiere work entitled "Wild and Private" with three dancers representing one character embracing life with a newfound joy.

"The UO Department of Dance has enjoyed a longstanding relationship with Dancing People Company," said department chair Jenifer Craig. "Dancing People has garnered international acclaim, so we simply cannot wait to share this Oregon-based company with our University of Oregon and Eugene communities."

Dancing People Company has gained a reputation since its 1994 inception as an innovative and cohesive modern dance company. In 2003 DPC relocated from Minneapolis, Minn. to Ashland, where they've developed a strong base of support and community involvement.

Dancing People's five-member company has performed for appreciative audiences at numerous international festivals, including in Poland, Russia, and Japan. The company's dances ride the fine edge of post-modernism while maintaining a lyricism and humanism that audiences welcome. DPC dances are about people and their innate desire to communicate, connect, and discover a common voice.