Dance

2012-01-24T20:25:00.003-05:00

Angela Gallo, Chair of Dance at Coker College, taught two master classes at the FAC on January 23rd. Her background is in the Limón technique, so students were able to work more deeply in that movement vocabulary in her class. The morning class explored partnering and sharing weight toward the end of the class. She spent a few minutes in both classes talking about the Dance program at Coker and answered questions about the audition process as well.

2012-01-23T07:04:00.003-05:00

Rebecca Lee, a FAC Dance Alumna, was a guest artist at the Fine Arts Center October 17-21 and choreographed a dance titled Birr for the AM dancers. She came to the Winter Honors Showcase Performance to see the dancers perform her work on December 16th and is pictured with the dancers following the performance. Rebecca received her M.F.A. from Florida State University in Dance.

2012-01-14T08:42:00.003-05:00

FAC Alumna, Amanda Porter, performed in both of the evening concerts of the Florida State University’s Days of Dance, which were two different programs. Amanda performed in Rick McCullough’s Cool Tunes! on Saturday evening and another dance work titled Awakening on Friday night, choreographed by an FSU student. Gerri Houlihan, who has been a guest at the FAC, and is a professor of dance at FSU, also had a lovely piece of choreography performed on the Friday concert. Photos are of Amanda Porter in Cool Tunes!, and the FAC students after the concert in the lobby of the Nancy Smith Fichter Dance Theatre.

2012-01-02T22:28:00.004-05:00

Jan Woodward, who earned her M.F.A. in dance from FSU had time to speak with Patty Phillips, co-chair of the department and one of her professors in graduate school, and Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, who is the Founder and Artistic Director of Urban Bush Women and was named FSU’s 2011-2012 Robert O. Lawton Distinguished Professor, the highest award granted to FSU faculty.

2012-01-02T22:24:00.003-05:00

The FAC students visit Annie Fox’s dorm room and ask her questions about being a dance major at FSU and what college life is really like. Blake Ulmer, an FAC graduate (2011) and current FSU dance major, helped set up the dorm visit and talked with the FAC dancers, as well. Annie, who comes from Philadelphia, is a freshman majoring in dance.

2012-01-02T22:07:00.003-05:00

Following the tour of the Dance Department, Larry Gerber, Professor of Voice and Coordinator of the Voice Program in the College of Music, gave a tour of the Music building and facilities along with graduate student Heather Stuyverson. Larry Gerber was the first voice teacher at the Fine Arts Center and was Karen Parks’ first voice teacher. Karen Parks is the current voice instructor at the Fine Arts Center.

2011-12-11T20:33:00.011-05:00

The PM dancers traveled to Tallahassee, Florida to visit the Florida State University's Dance Department and to attend two evening concerts. Joyce Fausone, the Dance Department’s Coordinator of Special Events and Community Relations, arranged a tour of the Dance Department and scheduled the dancers to observe a contemporary class taught by Jawole Willa Jo Zollar and the centre of a ballet class with Rick McCullough. Patty Phillips, the co-chair of the department spoke to the dancers about the curriculum and Joyce Fausone about special programs, such as the FSU in NYC, Dance in Paris and the Summer Program in Valencia, Spain. For more information about the FSU Dance Department visit www.dance.fsu.edu. Dirk Holleman, FAC Theatre Tech teacher, chaperone and driver, was instrumental on the field trip managing the bus and navigating Tallahassee and the FSU campus. Dirk is an FSU (and FAC) alum.

The group photos are in front of the Westcott Building at the main entrance into the campus. Pictured are: Dirk Holleman, Maren Trofatter, Lauren Pittman, Rhiannon Laymon, Beth (Elizabeth) Byouk, Jacki (Jacqueline) Calle, Kara Nightingale, Hannah Winton, Samantha Patterson, Nikki Morath, Coryn Owens, Jan Woodward, Charlotte Brown, Tiffany Bunch (theatre student).

2011-11-04T19:45:00.002-05:00

New members Jacqueline Calle, Mireille Fehler, Mattison Williams and Hannah Winton were inducted into the FAC chapter of the National Honor Society for Dance Arts (NHSDA). Current members have their photo taken in the dance studio.

Pictured in the back row: Mireille Fehler, Jacqueline Calle, Charlotte Brown, Coryn Owens, Lauren Pittman, Samantha Patterson, Hannah Winton, Maren Trofatter. Front row: Mattison Williams, Rhiannon Laymon, Lael King.

2011-11-04T19:37:00.003-05:00

Wanda Ebright from Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, NC taught a modern dance master class to both classes on October 25th. Ms. Ebright is the chair of a new interdisciplinary department that includes the Visual and Performing Arts. She spent some time speaking with the dancers about the new program and about the university at the end of the classes.

2011-10-29T18:03:00.003-05:00

Rebecca Lee, a FAC Dance Alumna, was a guest artist at the Fine Arts Center October 17-21. She set a new piece of choreography on the AM dancers during her week residency. Rebecca received her M.F.A. in Dance from Florida State University and currently teaches ballet to the A.R.M.E.S. dancers (the after school dance program for elementary and middle school students held at the Fine Arts Center). This is her second choreography residency at the Fine Arts Center.

2011-10-29T17:36:00.002-05:00

Marcy Jo Yonkey-Clayton taught a master class in dance improvisation focusing on the use of weight to the PM dancers on October 20th. Following the class Ms. Yonkey-Clayton spoke about the Dance Program at Columbia College, where she is a Visiting Professor of Dance in Columbia, SC. She received her M.F.A. in Dance from Texas Women’s University and her B.A. in Dance and Philosophy from Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania. She also is a member of The Power Company, the professional modern dance company based at Columbia College. Lauren Miller, a graduate in Dance from the Fine Arts Center, is currently a junior in the Dance Program at Columbia College and assisted Ms. Yonkey-Clayton.

2011-10-21T19:20:00.005-05:00

Brian McGinnis returned to the FAC for a two-week choreography residency from September 12-23 when he set a piece of choreography on the AM dancers titled Tranceaccordian and the PM dancers titled Mi Corazon Esta en Fuego. Mi Corazon Esta Fuego uses cubes as props for the dancers to sit on, but never really stand on. Both classes showed the pieces to the FAC students and faculty on Mr. McGinnis’ last day. Both dances will be performed in the final Fine Arts Center Dance Concert on April 27th. Brian McGinnis is in rehearsal with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company for their next performance in New York City in November.

2011-10-20T19:27:00.003-05:00

Fine Arts Center Dancers share classes with Tanglewood Middle School students
The Fine Arts Center Dancers took a field trip to Tanglewood Middle School and shared classes with 7th and 8th grade students, which Jan Woodward, the Fine Arts Center dance instructor taught. The Tanglewood Middle School students take dance from Jeanne Castor, who graduated from the Fine Arts Center when she was in high school.

2011-10-14T09:34:00.004-05:00

Brian McGinnis was guest artist-in-residence at the Fine Arts Center for two weeks setting two pieces of choreography on the student dancers. Mr. McGinnis graduated from The Juilliard School with a B.F.A. in dance, and has danced with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Elisa Monte Dance, David Parsons Dance Company, and currently with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company based in New York City.

While he was in residence, the film students collaborated on a documentary film that will be shown on the Arts Schools Network website, sponsored by Santa Fe University of Art and Design. The Fine Arts Center film crew pictured in the photo are Stephen Simmons, Sofia Yankelevitch and Weston Catron along with Brian McGinnis and Fine Arts Center Director, Dr. Roy Fluhrer.

2011-09-21T19:48:00.001-05:00

The dancers held a car wash on September 10th to raise funds for the annual dues for NHSDA (National Honor Society for Dance Arts) year. Dancers receive recognition on their college application and are eligible for nomination, by the Chapter Sponsor, to receive the NDEO Artistic Merit, Leadership, and Academic Achievement Award. We have had 3 dancers place at the national level for this award! NHSDA is the dancer’s honor society and a good way for dancers to receive recognition for their hard work in dance. We want to thank Mr. Bill Tyler and Chick-Fil-A in Greer for hosting the event.

2011-09-11T20:37:00.001-05:00

Photography Instructor, Rod Fincannon, took photos of the dancers creating with their bodies numerals 0-9 to be used as the numbers for the month of January in the calendar that another faculty member, Jim Campbell, is designing. The calendar will also include photos from other departments from the Fine Arts Center and will be for sale later in the year.

Dancers are: Jacqueline Calle, Lael King, Coryn Owens, Maren Trofatter, Mattison Williams

2011-08-30T19:09:00.002-05:00

Jacqueline Calle (Dance) attended the Lar Lubovitch Dance Workshop at Skidmore College for pre-professional and professional dancers in Saratoga Springs, New York this summer. The workshop was led by Lar Lubovitch and his ten-member dance company, which includes Brian McGinnis and Kate Skarpetowska who have been dance guest artists at the Fine Arts Center.

In repertory she learned Smoke Rings, which was a solo originally choreographed for Mikhail Baryshnikov, an excerpt from Legends of Ten, which is Lar Lubovitch’s newest work on the company, Cryptoglyph with music by Meredith Monk and two older works Marimba and Pardon My Affection and the duet Concerto 622.

Jacqueline saw the Lubovitch company perform Legend Of Ten, North Star and Coltrane's Favorite Things among others in lecture demonstrations. The Lar Lubovitch Dance Company also performed a full dance concert at SPAC (Saratoga Performing Arts Center). She also had the opportunity to see the New York City Ballet perform Balanchine's Apollo as well as Justin Peck's world premier of The Enormous Room at SPAC as well.

Photos: Jacqueline Calle, Brian McGinnis and Lar Lubovitch; Class during the Lubovitch Summer Intensive.

Mireille Fehler (Dance) attended the five-week Atlanta Ballet Summer Intensive this summer. The program was led by John McFall (artistic director) and Sharon Story (Centre's Dean). Mireille was also accepted into the American Ballet Theater’s (ABT) Summer Intensive in Alabama, but chose to attend the Atlanta Ballet program.

Photo of Mireille Fehler in partnering class during Atlanta Ballet's Summer Intensive

2011-08-25T21:17:00.002-05:00

The FAC dancers Caroline Hafer, Kara Nichols, Anna Noble, Samantha Patterson, Kaitlyn Schultz and Hannah Winton and theatre tech student Andrew Mulkey took a field trip to Spoleto to see the Corella Ballet at the end of May. Jan Woodward and Dirk Holleman organized the trip, which also included a brief visit to the beach.

2011-05-26T14:39:00.001-05:00

Samantha Patterson, a junior in Dance III, was a state winner in SC for the prestigious National Dance Education Organization (NDEO) Artistic Merit, Leadership, and Academic Achievement Award and earned high enough marks to be considered at the national level.

Samantha placed as a Finalist at the national level, which means that she is one of the top five in the nation to receive the award, one of the highest dance honors program in the US. Her solo, titled “Crutch” is on their website. For more information and to view her solo go to: www.ndeo.org

2011-05-25T08:13:00.002-05:00

Gerri Houlihan, Professor of Dance at Florida State University and Interim Dean at the American Dance Festival, restaged her dance “Mercy” on the dancers in October. The dance was performed throughout the year and closed the concert on May 6th. The uplifting and fun dance is choreographed to music by Roy Orbison.

2011-05-25T08:01:00.002-05:00

Joan Wadopian (dancer with Shen Wei Dance Arts) choreographed “Spatial 9” to music composed and performed by Free Planet Radio. The choreographic work was a collaboration between the choreographer and the dancers. The music was a little more challenging using counts in 4, 9 and 12. A grant from the Metropolitan Arts Council helped pay for the two-week residency to set the new work. We were fortunate that she was able to join us in the audience and on the stage for the May 6th concert.

2011-05-25T07:52:00.003-05:00

Gerri Houlihan restaged her dance Mercy. Hebrides was choreographed for the dancers last year by Brian McGinnis and was performed again, but this time on a proscenium stage. Rebecca Lee choreographed Poppets and was invited onto the stage for bows.

2011-05-24T19:55:00.002-05:00

Student pieces of choreography

2011-05-24T19:20:00.003-05:00

FAC Dancers performed works by Rebecca Lee and Brian McGinnis in the FAC Dance Concert.

2011-04-13T19:12:00.004-05:00

Gerri Houlihan, who is Professor of Dance at Florida State University and Interim Dean at the American Dance Festival, set one of her dances on the FAC dancers in October, 2010. The dance, "Mercy" will be performed in the May 6th FAC Dance Concert in the Wade Hampton High School Theatre. Curtain is at 7:00 p.m.

2011-04-13T19:01:00.002-05:00

A few studio photos of Rebecca Lee’s dance "Poppets", which will be performed in our May 6th Dance Concert.

2011-04-12T18:32:00.005-05:00

Dancers are preparing for the May 6th FAC Dance Concert to be held in the Wade Hampton High School Theatre. Curtain is at 7:00 pm. Photos of the dance "Hebrides" choreographed by Brian McGinnis and costumes created and designed by Carol Phillips. Other guest choreographers are Gerri Houlihan, Joan Wadopian and Rebecca Lee.

2011-04-12T18:28:00.003-05:00

Students dressed as their favorite teacher during the week of our Gala. Photo of Maren dressed as Ms. Woodward!

2011-02-06T17:16:00.004-05:00

February 4th Fine Arts Center dancers took a field trip to see the Merce Cunningham Dance Company’s final performance in North Carolina at the Durham Performing Arts Center. The company will disband in December 2011, which is two years after Merce Cunningham’s death. The dancers saw the company perform Sounddance (1975), Duets (1980) and Biped (1999).

Merce Cunningham’s dance company was formed at Black Mountain, NC in 1953 and influenced American art and the avant-garde. He worked with musician and composer John Cage and artists Robert Rauschenberg and Jasper Johns.

On Friday the dancers visited UNCSA in Winston-Salem, NC where they were able to observe a partnering class and have a campus tour. On Saturday morning the dancers visited Duke University where the acclaimed American Dance Festival is held every summer.

Photos were taken on the campus of Duke University.

2011-01-25T06:33:00.004-05:00

The FAC chapter of the National Honor Society for Dance Arts inducted new members on Friday January 21^st. The NHSDA is part of the National Dance Education Organization with a chapter in South Carolina. For more information: www.ndeo.org The new members are Caroline Hafer, Rhiannon Laymon, Coryn Owens and Samantha Patterson. Charlotte Brown and Lauren Pittman earned the Star Award.

2011-01-19T21:25:00.003-05:00

Rebecca Lee is setting a dance work on the AM class. She is a graduate of the FAC and recently earned her MFA from Florida State University. Photos are of Rebecca rehearsing the dancers.

2010-11-02T17:34:00.003-05:00

Gerri Houlihan was our visiting dance artist October 18-23 during which time she restaged one of her choreographic works Mercy on the FAC afternoon dancers. The dance is in several sections set to music performed by Roy Orbison. She is currently a Professor of Dance at the Florida State University and serves as Interim Dean at the American Dance Festival. Ms. Houlihan has an extensive and impressive biography having attended Juilliard at the beginning of her senior year in high school, performed with renowned dance companies such as the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company as well as directing her own dance companies for many years.

She teaches company classes for the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater when she is in New York and was the mentor of Robert Battle, who has been named the new Artistic Director of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. She has trained dancers who are now dancing is the major dance companies throughout the world. Joan Wadopian, one of our previous guest artists this year, loves taking her classes, too, which she does when Shen Wei Dance Arts performs at ADF during the summer.

The photos are of rehearsals with Gerri Houlihan during her residency.

2010-11-02T13:54:00.003-05:00

Gerri Houlihan was our visiting dance artist October 18-23 during which time she restaged one of her choreographic works Mercy on the FAC afternoon dancers and taught two master classes for the morning dancers. We were fortunate to have Don Shabkie accompany the master classes on the keyboard. Photos are of the technique class with the AM dancers.

2010-10-28T17:45:00.005-05:00

Brian McGinnis was the highlighted guest artist at the Greenville Dance Festival held October 9th, where he taught the FAC dancers in the advanced modern /contemporary dance class. The photos were taken during his master class at the Greenville Dance Festival.

2010-10-28T17:10:00.003-05:00

Twenty-five (25) FAC dancers as well as other dancers in the Upstate participated in the 5^th Greenville Dance Festival on October 9th, which was held in the FAC and Wade Hampton High School. FAC dance students took classes with Brian McGinnis in modern dance/contemporary, Japanese with Toshiko Joerger, Classical Indian dance with Krishna Kumar Venkataraman and Sivakami Bhavnandnan, dance improvisation with Dr. Stephanie Milling, African dance taught by Melina Palumbo, ballet with Andrew Kuharsky, and yoga with Janice Batson and Brian Delaney. Other classes at the Festival were English Country dance with Eve King, improvisation with Jennifer Becker and Cathy Maschek, and jazz with Michelle Bays. A lecture/demonstration was held at the end of the day with dancers performing Classical Indian, Japanese and African dance.

2010-10-11T17:29:00.005-05:00

Brian McGinnis was choreographer and artist in residence at the Fine Arts Center from October 4-8. He set a new choreographic work on the PM dancers, titled “Terminus”, which is very fast-paced to music by Frederic Chopin. “Terminus” is the last section in the dance 3 Shorts of 8, which he choreographed during the week of his Greenville residency for three different groups of dancers. The first section is “Orsa” which he choreographed for the ARMES dancers, the second section is “Medius” which he choreographed for the FAC AM dancers, and “Terminus” which is the last section, for the PM dancers. The photos were taken during the PM rehearsal with Brian.

2010-10-10T20:13:00.003-05:00

Brian McGinnis was choreographer/artist in residence at the Fine Arts Center from October 4-8. He set a new choreographic work on the AM dancers and also taught them master classes. Brian’s piece is a very sculptural adagio. The photos were taken in class rehearsing the new dance piece.

2010-10-07T17:38:00.003-05:00

The evening performance with Joan Wadopian and Free Planet Radio in the black box theatre at the Fine Arts Center, was packed! The solo dancer and the 3 musicians improvised together so that they truly became 4 instruments. It was a rare opportunity for Joan and her father, Eliot, to perform together.

Strings students performed with Free Planet Radio as did FAC faculty Dr. Jon Grier and Steve Watson. The four-day residency and performance with Free Planet Radio was made possible by a grant from The Braitmayer Foundation.

The two-week choreographic residency with Joan Wadopian was made possible in part by a grant from the Metropolitan Arts Council.

2010-10-07T17:05:00.003-05:00

2010-10-07T16:50:00.009-05:00

September 23rd the FAC PM Dancers performed a dance choreographed by Joan Wadopian during an open rehearsal in the dance studio of the FAC. The dancers performed their dance to the song "Radio Toure" by Free Planet Radio on their album The Unraveling. The choreographic work was performed "live" with the three musicians from Free Planet Radio so that the dancers and musicians were listening and feeding off of each other's energy and performance. The musicians in Free Planet Radio, from Asheville, are River Guerguerian, Chris Roser and Eliot Wadopian. Their four-day residency was made possible by a grant by The Braitmayer Foundation.

2010-09-26T15:57:00.004-05:00

Joan Wadopian was guest artist at the Fine Arts Center for 2 weeks teaching classes and setting a new work on the afternoon dancers to music composed and performed by Free Planet Radio. Joan originally from Asheville, NC, received her B.F.A. from the Conservatory of Dance at SUNY Purchase (2002) and has danced with New York-based Shen Wei Dance Arts (SWDA) since 2005. She has performed in renowned festivals and venues in the United States, Mexico, Europe, Israel, South Korea, Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand and Australia. Prior to joining SWDA, Joan performed with the Kevin Wynn Collection and as a guest artist with the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater.

The dance residency was in part made possible by the Quarterly Grants Program from the Metropolitan Arts Council which is made possible by support provided by public and private entities including MAC's workplace giving program, Campaign for the Arts, the City of Greenville, BMW Manufacturing Corp., Michelin North America, Inc., and the South Carolina Arts Commission which receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts and the John and Susan Bennett Memorial Arts Fund of the Coastal Community Foundation of SC.

2010-09-23T06:35:00.004-05:00

The Fine Arts Center dancers held a car wash at Pebble Creek Pizza on September 19th and were able to raise enough money to pay for their annual National Honor Society for Dance Arts membership fee. The annual fee is $150. The FAC has had two state winners in their NDEO Artist Merit, Leadership, and Academic Achievement Award who have gone on to recognition and Honorable Mention at the national level (Amanda Porter and Lauren Miller). For more information go to http://www.ndeo.org/

2010-08-24T17:23:00.002-05:00

Joan Wadopian will be in residence at the Fine Arts Center from September 13-14. She has extensive performing experience with the dance company Shen Wei Dance Arts in the major venues world-wide. Shen Wei is currently one of the most important and celebrated choreographers and directors internationally in the field of dance. Ms. Wadopian has taught conservatory dancers to professional dancers throughout the country developing skills in dance technique, dynamics, and musical phrasing in such schools as the Baryshnikov Arts Center (New York City); Duke Ellington School for the Arts (Washington, DC); Lehigh Valley Charter School for the Performing Arts (Bethlehem, PA); and The Dalton School (New York City).

During her two-week residence (September 13-24) she will work in the studio each day with all of the dance students and will choreography a dance on the afternoon dancers to a piece of music composed and performed by Free Planet Radio, a music trio, which will be in residence at the Fine Arts Center working with student musicians and composers. Ms. Wadopian will perform with Free Planet Radio in an evening performance (September 23) at the Fine Arts Center, open to the public. Another level of collaboration is the fact that her father, Eliot Wadopian, is an award-winning bass player with Free Planet Radio.

An open rehearsal and informal performance for Fine Arts Center students and faculty is scheduled for September 23rd where she will give insight into her choreographic work and process. The dancers will perform to the rehearsal CD of one of Free Planet Radio's pieces and the the dancers will perform to the same piece of music played "live" by the Free Planet Radio musicans. We are expecting to have a lively discussion with comments, observations and questions from the audience as well as the performers. It is rare for two different arts disciplines to have this opportunity to interact artistically on such a personal and multi-generational level.

The life of this project extends beyond the two weeks Joan Wadopian is in residence as the Fine Arts Center dancers will perform the choreographed work in their dance concert May 6th. There may be other opportunities throughout the year for the dancers to perform the piece as well.

2010-08-09T14:34:00.005-05:00

Brian McGinnis and Kate Skarpetowska perform in Boone, NC

Dancers and friends of Brian McGinnis and Kate (Katarzyna) Skarpetowska traveled to Boone, NC to see them perform with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company on July 16th. Brian and Kate performed beautifully in all three of the dances, but especially in the duet, "Prelude to a Kiss" in the dance piece Nature Boy: Kurt Elling, choreographed by Lar Lubovitch.

In the talk with the artistic director and choreographer, Lar Lubovitch after the performance, several in the audience wanted to know more about the duet and the dancers (Brian and Kate) as they thought that it was one of the most beautiful duets they had ever seen! They wanted to know how the two dancers made their dancing so seamless and fluid. The duet was definitely the highlight of the performance, not only in our opinion, but obviously many in the audience as well. Brian met with us following the concert.

Brian will be back in Greenville in early October and will be the featured guest in the Greenville District Dance Festival on October 9th.

2010-04-29T06:01:00.005-05:00

FAC Dancers from the morning class will be performing three ensemble pieces choreographed by guest choreographers on May 7th at 7:00 pm in the Black Box Theatre of the Fine Arts Center. Brian McGinnis choreographed two dances Run and Bisque. Andrew Kuharsky choreographed the ballet Comings and Goings for the ensemble.

2010-04-23T06:45:00.002-05:00

Fine Arts Center Dance students Ashley Attaway, Charlotte Brown, Lael King, Abigail Pinkerton, Jamie Taylor and Maren Trofatter were inducted into the National Honor Society for Dance Arts on April 22nd. Receiving the distinction of the Gold Star Award were current members Allison Leisgang, Jillian Leisgang, Gianni Monteleon and Jamie Taylor. Ashley Becking received two Gold Star Awards. NHSDA President Ashley Becking and Vice-President Ashley Brown conducted the ceremony. Flowers were donated by A Arrangements Florist for each new inducted NHSDA Dance student. Students must earn 30 points through dance performances and events as well as maintain a good academic grade aversage to be eligible for membership and may earn a Gold Star Award by earning an additional 10 points.

2010-04-20T18:01:00.002-05:00

On Thursday April 22nd several of the dancers will be performing in our Generation-to-Generation performance, which is a celebration of student created artwork. Please come and visit the visual art students' exhibit and reception at 6:00 pm at the Fine Arts Center. The performance portion begins at 7:00 in the Recital Hall with student music compositions and then moves into the Black Box Theatre for the dance and theatre portion. A selection of six student pieces of choreography will be performed followed by a student created/directed condensed play. The performance should run just over an hour.

2010-03-01T19:09:00.006-05:00

DANCE MASTER CLASSES and CHOREOGRAPHY

Vladislav Soldatenko, Artistic Director and Ballet Master of the Dance Department of the Ukrainian National Academy of Dance taught a ballet

master class to the afternoon dancers on December 7th. Mr. Soldatenko completed graduate Master classes at the Vaganova Academy in St.

Petersburg and performed as a soloist with Kiev National Theater of

Opera and Ballet and Kiev Theater of Classical Ballet.

Wanda Ebright, Associate Professor of Dance at Johnson C. Smith

University, visited the Fine Arts Center and taught modern dance

master classes to both morning and afternoon dancers. Ms. Ebright

who received her MFA from Florida State University, is also the

director of her own dance company, The Wanda Project.

On December 8th Dr. Stephanie Milling, Assistant Professor at

Winthrop University, taught master classes to both dance classes

at the Fine Arts Center. She will set a dance on the afternoon

dancers during February, which she originally choreographed

for dancers at Winthrop University. Dr. Milling earned her Ph.D.

in Dance from Texas Women’s University.

The second week in February, Andrew Kuharsky choreographed

a new dance work for the morning dancers, which is titled

“Comings and Goings”. Mr. Kuharsky graduated from the

esteemed National Ballet School in Canada, was an apprentice

with the Joffrey Ballet in New York, a principal dancer with

The Atlanta Ballet, and a soloist with Les Grands Ballets

Canadiens in Montreal.

Marcy Yonkey, Visiting Artist-in-Residence at Columbia College,

will teach master classes to both dance classes on March 12th.

Ms. Yonkey received her MFA in Dance from Texas Women’s

University where she was the recipient of the 2008 Excellence

in Teaching Award. She currently performs with The Power

Company in Columbia, SC as well as teaching and

choreographing at Columbia College.

DANCE FIELD TRIP to LEAGUE ACADEMY

On January 27th the afternoon dancers traveled to League Academy

(thank you to Dirk Holleman for driving the bus for us) to dance

with the advanced 8th grade class. The dancers shared and discussed

their choreography with each other. Several of the Fine Arts Center

dancers had taken dance at League Academy with Lynne McCain

Sargent, so it was a great visit.

DANCE CLASS LECTURE-DEMONSTRATION

The afternoon dancers performed their class demonstration, which

included solos created by Dance III and Dance IV dancers (dancers

who are in their third and fourth year at the Fine Arts Center). The

lecture-demonstration for the morning dancers had to be rescheduled

due to the weather and so was performed on February 3rd. The

dancers showed what they do in class as well as their own

compositional dance “studies”.

SATURDAY DANCE FESTIVALS at the FINE ARTS CENTER

The idea of a Saturday Dance Festival was formed and implemented

by a former ARMES and FAC dance graduate, Lauren Miller (2009),

during her senior year last year. The event proved to be so successful

that the afternoon dancers helped organize and run three Saturdays

of dance this year. The intent of the all day workshops is to offer

dancers the opportunity to take class with other dancers in the

community who have a similar passion and interest in dance. Classes

included modern dance technique, improvisation, repertory,

Japanese dance, ballet and jazz.

DANCE ALUMNI NEWS

Fulton Burns (FAC Dance 1988) has been awarded two grants

from the University of South Alabama where he is an assistant

professor. They are the Summer 2010 Arts and Sciences

Professional Summer Development Award and the Spring 2010

Support & Development Award.

Kevin Boseman (FAC Dance 1990) is performing with the

National Tour of “The Color Purple.”

2010-02-21T18:45:00.002-05:00

Students and Faculty Visit Florida State University
The afternoon dance students, theatre tech student Andrew Mulkey, Dirk Holleman and Jan Woodward traveled to Tallahassee, Florida to visit Florida State University November 12-15. The dance students observed two classes in two of the six dance studios in the spacious Dance Department building. All of the dancers watched a modern technique class with Dan Wagoner. Mr. Wagoner was a member of the Martha Graham Dance Company and the original Paul Taylor Dance Company before founding his own company Dan Wagoner and Dancers. Students were also able to observe a second class choosing from four different classes. Several of the dancers watched a class with Gerri Houlihan, who has been a guest artist at the Fine Arts Center, or a Graham technique class with Anthony Morgan, who danced with the Martha Graham Dance Company. Ms. Houlihan danced with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, formed her own dance company and is currently directing the international Choreographers in Residence Program at the American Dance Festival. Several dancers also had the opportunity to observe ballet classes with Anjali Austin, who danced with Dance Theatre of Harlem or Rick McCullough, who danced with Netherlands Dance Theatre. Jan Woodward also had a chance to speak with her FSU mentor, Lynda Davis, who performed with the Bella Lewitzky Dance Company.
The highlight of the visit was seeing FAC dance graduates Amanda Porter (Dance 2009) and Maggie Base (Dance 2009) perform in two different Days of Dance Concerts. Besides attending the dance matinee and evening performances, the group saw the theatre production of Waiting for Godot in the Theatre Department’s black box theatre.
Students were taken on a backstage tour with Ralph Walker, Scenic Studio Manager of the Theatre Department which was arranged by Dirk Holleman who worked with Mr. Walker as a student at FSU. The dancers were also given an hour-long tour of the Music Department by Associate Dean Dr. Leo Welch along with Larry Gerber, who has recently been named head of their Voice Program. Mr. Gerber was the Voice Teacher at the Fine Arts Center when the school first opened and helped arrange our tour of the music facilities at FSU. The students also had a chance to take a walking tour of the campus and enjoy the beautiful Tallahassee weather on Saturday morning.

2009-11-04T20:20:00.003-05:00

Brian McGinnis was artist-in-residence at the Fine Arts Center for 11 days in October. He set 2 three minute pieces of choreography on the morning dancers titled Bisque and Run. In the afternoon class, Mr. McGinnis set a much longer work to the Hebrides Overture by Felix Mendelssohn. The students performed for students, parents and invited guests on the last day of the choreographic residency, October 23rd. The dances will be performed in the in-school Honors Showcase December 18th at the Fine Arts Center as well as in the Fine Arts Center Dance Concert on May 8th at 7:00 pm. The performances will be held in the black box theatre.

Photo: Brian McGinnis
Company: Lar Lubovitch Dance Company
Photographer: Chris Callis

Dancers attended the SCDAncing Festival in Spartanburg October 16-18th. Guest artists Gerri Houlihan and Brian McGinnis, former guest artists at the Fine Arts Center, taught master classes during the festival. The South Carolina Dance Association also sponsors an audition for a scholarship awarded to a South Carolina dance student who majors in dance in a South Carolina college. Dancers who were high school juniors or seniors and college freshmen were eligible to audition. The winner of the scholarship is Ashley Brown, a junior at the Fine Arts Center. The afternoon dancers also performed "thee who holds the key" choreographed by Brian McGinnis in the gala concert on Saturday evening October 17th.

2009-04-29T21:29:00.003-05:00

Dance student choreographers Maggie Base, Ashley Becking, Lauren Miller and Amanda Porter presented their choreographic pieces in Generation-to-Generation on April 23rd. The choreographic works, duets and small group dances created by the Dance III Honors students, will be performed in the final dance concert on May 8th at 7:00 pm in the Black Box Theatre at the Fine Arts Center. Dances choreographed by guest artists Brian McGinnis and Anna Jordan will also be performed along with former guest choreographer, Lisa Wheeler.

Brian McGinnis, who has been a guest artist for three years, graduated from Juilliard and danced with the David Parsons Dance Company and currently with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company, both dance companies are based in New York City. His piece "Sirens and the Undercurrent" will be performed by both dance classes with a cast of 24 dancers.

Guest artist, Anna Jordan, set an original piece of choreography "Drawn Onward" on the morning dance students. Ms. Jordan attended Idyllwild Arts Academy in high school and received her BFA in dance from New York University. Most of the funds for her dance residency were raised through bake sales by the dancers.

Lisa Wheeler, who was a guest artist for several years, choreographed the dance “Drifting” which we have reconstructed for the performance in the Black Box Theatre. Ms. Wheeler danced with Dan Wagoner and Dancers and is a distinguished alumna from Columbia College.

2009-04-29T06:31:00.003-05:00

The FAC dancers held an NHSDA Induction ceremony for the newest members into the National Honor Society for Dance Arts: Gianni Monteleon, Brooke Poole and Katelyn Scherer. Ashley Brown earned 1 star, Lauren Miller earned 2 stars, Maggie Base earned 3 stars and Amanda Porter earned 4 stars. Students must earn 30 points in dance related events to become members and may earn a star for each additional 10 points.

Lauren Miller (Dance) has won the prestigious honor of the SCDEO (South Carolina Dance Education Organization) Artistic Merit, Leadership, and Academic Achievement Award at the state level. Her application will now go on to the national level for the NDEO Award. Amanda Porter received the state honor last year. Dancers who are members of NHSDA and are a junior or senior may apply for the award. Information is handed out to students at the beginning of the year so that they can make plans to apply for the award.

2009-03-04T07:42:00.002-05:00

Fine Arts Center students had the pleasure of seeing the lecture/demonstration performance created and performed by Brian McGinnis and Kate Skarpetowska as part of the Big Leap 2009 underwritten by the Peace Center. They performed an excerpt from their commissioned work, “Romeo and Juliet—A Death Marked Love” in our black box theatre as well as excerpts from duets that they have performed with other dance companies. Kate taught master classes to the Fine Arts Center dancers who also had opportunities to observe open rehearsals and take master classes in technique and choreography. The culmination of the three-week residency was the premiere performance in Gunter Theatre of their original work “Romeo and Juliet-A Death Marked Love” which was enthusiastically received by the audience. There is talk of a repeat performance this summer in Greenville. Dr. Roy Fluhrer and Maggie Base were also in the performance.
Photos are of Kate and Brian with Allison Leisgang, Jill Leisgang and Anna Patrick after the performance on March 2nd in the lobby of Gunter Theatre and master classes at the FAC.

2009-01-19T15:27:00.002-05:00

The morning dancers will have an informal lecture/demonstration for parents on Friday, January 30th at 6:30 pm in the dance studio of the Fine Arts Center. This is an opportunity to observe what your student has been learning during her classes throughout the year. The dancers will demonstrate a few class combinations as well as dance compositions.

This is not a performance, but more of a behind the scenes—the process, if you will—of the training of a dancer.

2009-01-19T15:21:00.001-05:00

The afternoon dancers had a ballet master class on December 9th with Vladislav Soldatenko, the Artistic Director and Ballet Master of the Dance Department of the Ukrainian National Academy of Dance. Mr. Soldantenko graduated from the Kiev Choreographic Institute and completed graduate classes at the Vaganova Academy in St. Petersburg. He performed extensively as a soloist with Kiev National Theater of Opera and Ballet and Kiev Theater of Classical Ballet. The International Ballet in Greenville brought Mr. Soldantenko and several dancers from the Ukraine as part of their exchange program.

2009-01-19T15:12:00.001-05:00

Alonzo King, Artistic Director and Choreographer for LINES Ballet, based in San Francisco, taught a master class for the afternoon dancers on December 2nd. His visionary choreography is represented in repertories throughout the world in major dance companies such as Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre, Joffrey Ballet, Frankfurt Ballet, Swedish Royal Ballet, Dance Theater of Harlem, Washington Ballet and North Carolina Dance Theatre. Renowned as a highly skilled master teacher, he has been a guest ballet master for National Ballet of Canada, Ballet Rambert, Ballet West, and San Francisco Ballet among others.
Mr. King, always the consummate artist, made it clear during his master class why he is considered a living legend in the art world. The dancers were totally focused on the power and energy of dance and how to trust their own individual movements. The challenging, memorable master class will resonate with the dancers for years giving them ideas and information that they will continue to use and revisit as they continue to develop as dancers and artists.

2008-12-08T18:01:00.004-05:00

The Greenville Dance Festival was held at the Fine Arts Center and the FAC dancers were again privileged to have another master class with Gerri Houlihan who was the special guest artist at the Greenville Dance Festival on October 11th. The main purpose of the festival was to bring guest artists to teach a variety of dance styles in an effort to broaden the breadth of understanding in our dancers and community.

Dance classes in the traditional techniques of Classical Ballet and Modern/Contemporary Dance as well as dance from other cultures were offered. Besides Gerri Houlihan, other guest artists were Sybil Huskey, Professor of Dance and former Chair of the Department of Dance and Theatre at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte; Stephanie Milling, Assistant Professor of Dance Education at Winthrop University; Wanda Ebright, Associate Professor of Dance at Coker College; Krishna Kumar Venkataraman and Sivakami Bhavnandnan (“Sivi”), trained at the world renowned Dhananjayans and Padmashri Adyar Lakshman of Madras, India. Donald Shabkie accompanied Gerri Houlihan’s class.

Adam Maalouf (FAC Jazz student) accompanied Gerri Houlihan’s master classes during the Greenville Dance Festival and two dance alumnae were guest teachers, Jennifer Becker (Dance 2006) and Kaitlyn Martinez (Dance 2008) each taught two classes.

2008-12-08T17:52:00.002-05:00

Fine Arts Center Dance Residency with Master Teacher and Guest Artist Gerri Houlihan
Gerri Houlihan was in residence for two days teaching master classes to the dance students at the Fine Arts Center. Ms. Houlihan is Associate Professor of Dance at Florida State University, on the faculty at the American Dance Festival and is currently the international representative for the American Dance Festival having participated in fifteen international residencies. She trained at Juilliard, earned an M.F.A. in dance from Hollins University and has danced professionally with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company. Don Shabkie accompanied the classes on the piano. Funding for her residency was made possible in part by a grant from the Metropolitan Arts Council, which receives funding from the City of Greenville, BMW Manufacturing Company, LLC, Michelin North America, Inc., and the South Carolina Arts Commission with support from the National Endowment for the Arts and the John and Susan Bennett Memorial Arts Fund of the Coastal Community Foundation of SC.

2008-10-15T20:22:00.001-05:00

The Fine Arts Center dance and creative writing (morning) students collaborated using movements and sounds to create short compositions. The students used the elements of dance design (Body, Energy, Space, Time--BEST) and the sounds of letters and words to create a "sound score" for the original small group compositions.

2008-09-14T09:32:00.003-05:00

The dance students rehearsed Brian McGinnis's dance piece, "Sirens and the Undercurrent" in the black box theatre on the last day of his residency.

2008-09-14T09:24:00.002-05:00

The Fine Arts Center Dancers had guest artist, Brian McGinnis in residence the week of August 25-29. He set an original piece of choreography using both classes. The title of the piece is "Sirens and the Undercurrent." Mr. McGinnis is currently dancing with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company and also danced with the Parsons Dance Company, Hubbard Street, and is a graduate of Juilliard. He will be back in Greenville in February, 2009 performing at the Peace Center on Monday, March 2nd.

2008-04-08T17:59:00.002-05:00

The Fine Arts Center Dance Ensemble performed in The Greenville County Museum of Art celebrating the silver anniversary of Emerys and the opening of the exhibition Katherine Porter: Celestial Electric on Tuesday, April 1st. It was estimated that 400 people attended the event, which also included the music composition “Triple Dances” by faculty member, Dr. Jon Jeffrey Grier. The dancers were fortunate to have professional musicians Connie Frigo (Baritone Saxophone), Peggy Dees (Clarinet) and Ann Shoemaker (Bassoon) perform the music. Keller Freeman, a founding member of Emerys, was instrumental in organizing the collaborative event.

2008-02-11T22:25:00.000-05:00

Brian McGinnis was the guest choreographer in residence for 7 days at the Fine Arts Center. Fourteen dancers from the afternoon class rehearsed his piece "thee who holds the key" for the District Dance Showcase. Mr. McGinnis is a graduate of Juilliard and danced with David Parsons and Elisa Monte. He will be dancing with the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company beginning in March 2008. The skirts for the piece were designed and created by Carol Phillips, a costume designer who has created costumes for the Greenville Ballet.

2008-02-11T22:16:00.001-05:00

Fine Arts Center afternoon dancers rehearsing guest choreographer, Lisa Wheeler's piece for the District Showcase. The piece, "The Wonderful Thing," is an excerpt from a longer work created for The Power Company based in Columbia, SC. Ms. Wheeler danced with Dan Wagoner and Dancers and is the Associate Artistic Director of Ben Munisteri Dance Projects. She is a graduate of Columbia College.

2008-02-11T22:06:00.000-05:00

The Fine Arts Center Dancers rehearsed "Vanishing Point (of View)" choreographed by Lisa Wheeler for the District Dance Showcase. The costumes were created by Tina Monteleon, the mother of dancer Gianni Monteleon.

2008-02-11T22:02:00.000-05:00

Three dancers, Margaret Base, Emily Hammond and Amanda Porter were inducted into the National Honor Society for Dance Arts. The primary mission of the National Honor Society for Dance Arts (NHSDA) is to promote and honor outstanding dance achievement and to encourage well-rounded dance artists to become leaders in their

communities after high school graduation.

2007-10-07T22:30:00.001-05:00

On September 25th and 27th the Fine Arts Center dance and painting students traveled to the Greenville County Museum of Art. On the 25th, Martha Severens guided the students through the Jasper Johns’ exhibit giving insight into the artist’s work. The following visit on the 27th, students used the concepts and elements of visual design and dance composition. Students drew sketches and then moved in the gallery space itself creating shapes, lines and tableaus.

2007-09-23T19:24:00.001-05:00

Fine Arts Center dance students viewed dance companies and college sites in the new FAC computer lab.

2007-03-18T19:19:00.000-05:00

Guest Artist, Lisa Wheeler set two pieces of choreography on the Fine Arts Center Dancers in February. The pieces "A Gentle Release of Gravity" and "Shift" will be performed in the School District Dance Showcase on April 15th in the Wade Hampton High School Theatre. Curtain is at 3:00.

2007-02-02T11:35:00.001-05:00

On Saturday, January 27th, Fine Arts Center dancers performed dance improvisations at the Greenville County Museum of Art as part of their "Color in Motion" family workshop. The dancers improvised to the paintings of Marilyn Dintenfass and with music performed by Jeff Holland. The dancers created shapes and movements so that the audience members could follow and interact with them.

2007-01-21T22:39:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, January 27th, Fine Arts Center dancers will perform dance improvisations at the Greenville County Museum of Art as part of their "Color in Motion" family workshop. It will begin at 2:30 and will explore the paintings of Marilyn Dintenfass along with other performers Jeff Holland and Christy Garland. Reservations are required to attend the family workshop at the Museum: 271-7570.

2007-01-11T21:08:00.000-05:00

Fine Arts Center dancer explains how her choreography relates to the work of Jasper Johns following the performance by the Fine Arts Center Dance Ensemble in the Greenville County Museum of Art. Several students will again dance in the Art Museum on Saturday, January 27th beginning at 2:30. The dancers will move improvisationally to the paintings of Marilyn Dintenfass.

2006-11-26T08:35:00.000-05:00

The Fine Arts Center Dance Ensemble performed at the Greenville County Museum of Art on November 9th in a collaborative performance with the artwork of Jasper Johns as inspiration for the choreography.

2006-05-08T17:42:00.000-05:00

The dancers performed in the School District Dance Showcase on April 30th at Gunter Theatre to a full house. Pictured is the AM class in costume for "In Dreamy Shadows Rise" choreographed by Lisa Wheeler.

2006-03-12T21:56:00.000-05:00

Brian McGinnis, currently performing with The Parsons Dance Company, was the dance artist in residence for the week of March 6-10. The funds from the Surdna Fellowship allowed Jan Woodward to bring Mr. McGinnis to the Fine Arts Center. He is a graduate of Juilliard and danced with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and Elisa Monte before joining The Parsons Dance Company.

2006-03-09T20:42:00.000-05:00

Ten dancers participated in the SCDAncing Festival at Winthrop University in Rock Hill February 23-26th. The dancers performed "Still Life" choreographed by Lisa Wheeler in the adjudicated performance. Two student choreographic works by Morgan Bauserman and Jennifer Becker were performed in the informal dance concerts. Master classes were taught by the Amy Marshall Dance Company and the Christian von Howard Dance Project. Classes included modern dance technique, ballet, improvisation, partnering, African Dance, hip-hop, yoga, as well as others. The gala performance by the Amy Marshall Dance Company was Friday evening.

2006-02-08T22:12:00.000-05:00

The morning dance students collaborated with the advanced art students at Greenville High Academy on February 1st. The dancers performed "Floor and Air" for the art students and invited guests followed by a unit on shared dance and art elements. The students performed movements based on a student piece of art inspired by Klee and Kandinsky while the art students sketched the shapes and movements.

2006-01-08T22:03:00.000-05:00

Brittany Alverson, Morgan Bauserman, Jennifer Becker and Corinne Sutton were inducted into the National Honor Society for Dance Arts at the Fine Arts Center as charter members of their chapter. The primary mission of the National Honor Society for Dance Arts (NHSDA) is to promote and honor outstanding dance achievement in high school level students and to encourage well-rounded dance artists to become leaders in their communities after high school graduation.

2005-11-07T23:05:00.000-05:00

Surdna Fellows

Courtesy of WYFF Channel 4

2005-10-24T16:28:00.000-05:00

Dancers performed at the ArtBomb on Thursday, October 20th. The dancers choreographed the piece "Gallery Within" based on an everyday gesture.

2005-10-13T19:25:00.000-05:00

The EMRYS FOUNDATION presents the FINE ARTS CENTER at the ARTBOMB!!
Thursday, October 20th @ 6:30pm

The program will include:

"The Gallery Within"
A contemporary dance piece about viewing art from any angle. What transforms the everyday object into a work of art?
Choreographed by Jan Woodward of the FAC
Performed by the Advanced Dance Class of the FAC
With original music composition by Donald Shabkie
Music performed by Mr. Shabkie and Laurie Gentry
(see www.donaldshabkie.com)

"Thank you Kate and Nina"
One woman. One window. The taste of pure freedom.
Choreographed and performed by Teri Parker
Text by Kate Chopin
Music by Nina Simone

"Still Life"
A traditional work redesigned.
Choreographed by Lisa Wheeler
Performed by the Advanced Dance Class of the FAC
Music from the film "Orlando"

You may check the Emrys website: http://www.emrys.org.

You may check Donald Shabkie's website: www.donaldshabkie.com

The ArtBomb is a non-profit organization housed in the old Brandon Mill General Store in West Greenville. The ArtBomb Studio was established in 2002 to provide low cost Studio space for Greenville artists. The Studio building, located in West Greenville, houses 16 local artists with individual studio space for each. The building also features a gallery which is open for exhibitions as announced. Artists from the local area who desire a space to exhibit can use the gallery space for individual or group shows. The artists who are members of the ArtBomb are as follows:

Several of these artists exhibited together in an outsider exhibition in 1994 from which the Studio gets its name. They continued to show together with artists joining their ranks throughout the 1990’s.

The Studio is predominantly self supporting, with funds raised only for special projects furthering the abilities of local artists and members to expand their artistic skills and experience with new tools or services. The goal of the Studio is strong, visionary work and furthering the creative vision of both the members of the Studio and outside artists who benefit from interaction on a Studio level with other artists and by attending local shows.

Directions to the ArtBomb:
In downtown Greenville take S. Main Street until it turns into
Pendleton. Continue on Pendleton Street. Cross Academy/123. The
ArtBomb building is on the right: #1320.

2005-10-10T16:56:00.000-05:00

Dancers: Mrs. Donna Becker will be teaching a class on nutrition tomorrow--Tuesday October 11th. Please bring your homework assignment with you. I sent it as an attachment this afternoon but several came back as undeliverable. If you did not get an e-mail and/or the assignment at FAC it is to keep track of what you eat and drink today so that you will have something concrete to relate to for the class. You will NOT share this with me or the class. ALSO: Please bring your notebook, paper and pencil--and dance clothes in case.