Through a National Endowment for the Arts grant, the College-Conservatory of Music Dance Division presents Twyla Tharp’s ballet
THE STORY TELLER
Rehearsal photography courtesy of Rene Micheo.
CINCINNATI, OH – The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) Ballet Ensemble is excited to present its Fall Dance Concert December 2-4. The concert features new and innovative programming, including Twyla Tharp’s THE STORY TELLER, which recently made its North American premier, along with a newly premiered dance choreographed by CCM’s Shellie Cash and other works.
Through a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, CCM’s Dance Division presents THE STORY TELLER staged by guest artist Benjamin Bowman with music by Kiyoung Kim. THE STORY TELLER originally premiered in 1997 with The Australian Ballet and had its North American premier earlier this year with the Nashville Ballet. The ballet chronicles the life of one character through movements of four dancers and this cutting-edge performance promises to impress with its seamless expression and athleticism.
The program will also include “Siete Canciones Populares Españolas” (“Seven Spanish Folksongs”) choreographed by Dance Division Head Shellie Cash to music composed by Manuel de Falla for tenor and piano. The work had its world-premier in October of this year at CCM’s Sueños de España (Dreams of Spain) concert.
Additionally the concert will showcase Paquita (Act II) with music by Ludwig Minkus, restaged by CCM Professor Jiang Qi. Jiang will also restage Danish choreographer August Bournonville’s Flower Festival in Genzano pas de deux to music originally by Matthias Strebinger and adapted by Holger Simon Pauli.
Students and audiences alike will have the opportunity on Tuesday, Nov. 29, to meet the guest artist, Benjamin Bowman, at 9:30 a.m. in CCM’s Baur Room. This event is free and open to the public.
About Benjamin Bowman
Benjamin G. Bowman began his studies in dance after serendipitously being offered a chance to study ballet at the North Carolina School of the Arts as part of a pilot outreach program in the Winston-Salem public schools. After moving to Kansas City, Missouri, Bowman was fortunate in studying with world-class instructors such as Todd Bolender, Una Kai, Jonathan Watts, Diana Adams and Eckhard Heidrich. He undertook further studies as a summer scholarship student at both the School of American Ballet and the San Francisco Ballet School, and both institutions eventually awarded him scholarships as a full-time student.
Bowman’s professional career began with the Kansas City Ballet where he performed works by such choreographers as Bolender, Balanchine, Christiansen, William Dollar and Alvin Ailey. He then spent five years with the Fort Worth Ballet as a principal dancer before joining New York City Ballet (NYCB) in 1993. During his tenure with NYCB he performed in a diverse repertoire of existing works by Balanchine, Martens and Robbins as well as being involved in the creation of new works by Robbins, Martens and other notables. In 2000 Bowman was invited to join Twyla Tharp Dance and toured extensively for the next two years. With Twyla Tharp Dance he was privileged to originate the role of James in the hit Broadway show Movin’ Out. Bowman has worked on-stage as both a dancer and actor, performing works by Kathy Posin, Nilas Martens and John Selya and in the re-imagined “Garden of Earthly Delights” by Martha Clarke.
As a director and choreographer, he has most recently set Twyla Tharp’s Surfer at the River Styx with Company C Contemporary Ballet in Walnut Creek, California, Tharp’s The Storyteller with the Nashville Ballet, and co-choreographed the critically acclaimed Indoor Fireworks set to the music of Elvis Costello with Company C founder Charles Anderson.
Bowman currently resides in New York City.
Tickets & Parking Information
Tickets to the Fall Dance Concert are $15 general admission, $10 non-UC students, and free for UC students. Parking is available in the CCM Garage (at the base of Corry Boulevard off of Jefferson Avenue) and additional garages throughout the UC campus. For complete ticket and parking information, visit ccm.uc.edu or call the CCM Box Office at 513-556-4183.
University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music
CCM DANCE SERIES
Fall Dance Concert
Jiang Qi, director
Performance Dates:
Friday, Dec. 2, 8 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 3, 2 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 3, 8 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 4, 3 p.m.
Location:
Patricia Corbett Theater, College-Conservatory of Music
University of Cincinnati
Tickets:
$15 general admission
$10 non-UC students
UC students FREE
This project has been made possible by the National Endowment for the Arts as part of American Masterpieces: Three Centuries of Artistic Genius.
CCM Season Presenting Sponsor and Musical Theatre Program Sponsor: The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation.
The Dance Division gratefully acknowledges the support of The Corbett Endowment at CCM.
All event dates and programs are subject to change. For a calendar of events or to view CCM’s 2011-2012 Mainstage Performance brochure visit our website at ccm.uc.edu.
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