Herberger College presents “Fall Dance Collection”
WHAT: Herberger College of Fine Arts Department of Dance at ASU presents “Fall Dance Collection,” a modern dance concert comprising seven pieces.
This concert’s showcase piece is the acclaimed work created by New York-based Israeli choreographer and guest artist Neta Pulvermacher, “Goodbye and Good Luck,” set on six dancers. In this sarcastic, sweet, hungry work, each dancer performs while carrying, playing or swinging a violin.
“Goodbye and Good Luck” delves into the Jewish/Yiddish heritage of humor, hope, fate, despair, guilt and longing. This ancestral work is layered with personal and inherited memories.
WHEN: Nov. 21-23, 7:30 p.m.; Nov. 24, 2 p.m.
Special Preview! The second dress rehearsal, Nov. 20, 2002, is open to the public. Same admission charge; show time is 4 p.m.
WHERE: Dance Theatre, PE East 132, 551 E. Orange St. on the ASU campus in Tempe.
TICKETS: $14 adults, $12 seniors, faculty and staff; $5 students.
INFORMATION: 480-965-6447.
“Wherever you go, whatever you do, always remember that you are a Jew,” proclaims an ASU dancer in Neta Pulvermacher’s acclaimed work, “Good Bye and Good Luck.”
The piece is one of six diverse works in the Herberger College Department of Dance’s “Fall Dance Collection,” a concert performance of highly acclaimed faculty and student choreography. The department is known for its inventive choreography that captures the imagination and touches the spirit.
A dancer, choreographer, director and writer, Pulvermacher was born and raised in Kibbutz Lehavot Habashan and began to study dance with Ariel Peled in Tel Hai, Israel. She came to New York in 1982 and graduated from Julliard in 1985. She founded her New York-based company, The Neta Dance Company, in 1987 and has since created over 50 works for her company’s repertory.
Jennifer Dunning of The New York Times calls “Goodbye and Good Luck,” a piece with “style and pizzazz… [a] pretty, nutty dance.” Back Stage dance critic Lisa Jo Sagolla writes, “The well-crafted, image-driven movement phases are punctuated by sardonic text and interrupted by brief freeing sequences in which the performers discard their violins and dance with abandon.”
Pulvermacher set this piece on student dancers during her August guest residency in the Department of Dance. The work is double-cast, so one set of six dancers performs on two nights and another set performs on three nights.
The other pieces in “Fall Dance Collection” are:
- “Metal Garden,” choreographed by dance professor Cliff Keuter and set on six dancers.
- “Celebration,” an energetic work choreographed by dance professor Elina Mooney and set on seven dancers. The choreography puts unusual attention on the hands.
- “Storm in the Bottle,” choreographed and performed by Kimberly Karpanty, a graduate student and returning professional who is also as assistant professor at Kent State University. Inspired by the “impulsive spirit of women,” Karpanty calls the piece, “an exciting trio of dancer, music and light.”
- “Suzy Q,” choreographed by senior Natalie Greene and set on three dancers; described by Greene as “outlandish, frightening and hilarious,” the work follows three dolls and their comedic and aggressive awakening.
- “Leaving Minutia,” a piece inspired by pictures of dancers in motion as well as the music of Henry Cowell; choreographed by senior Lona Lee and set on three dancers.
- “Atonement,” a solo choreographed by Whitney Tucker.
The Department of Dance is committed to providing a stimulating and diverse environment where students develop as scholars, educators and artists through participation in innovative programs, residencies, performances and partnerships.
The department is nationally ranked in the top 10 by Dance Teacher Now magazine. Its graduate program is ranked 5th and its undergraduate program is ranked 9th. The ARCO Performance Arts College Guide calls the department one of the “most highly recommended programs” in the country.
This project is generously supported by the Arizona Commission on the Arts, with funding from the State of Arizona and the National Endowment for the Arts; ASU Public Events; the City of Tempe; and Meet the Composer program. Special thanks also to Desert Dance Theatre and String Shop of Arizona for their contributions to this project.
Media Contact:
Megan Krause
480-965-8795
megan.krause@asu.edu