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7:30 PM THURSDAY, JUNE 7, 2018
BENNETT GORDON HALL
7:30 PM FRIDAY, JUNE 8, 2018
CONCERT DANCE INC.
VENETIA STIFLER,
artistic director
THE COMPANY
GUEST ARTISTS
EDSON CABRERA
CHRISTINA KALOYANIDES,
soprano
JAMIE FARRELL
JAMES MOREHEAD,
piano
ALBERTO GONZALEZ
BRIAN TOROSIAN,
guitar
OLIVIA GONZALEZ
JESSIE GUTIERREZ
PRODUCTION AND LIGHTING
MARY O’ROURKE
MARGARET NELSON
TAIMY RAMOS
JACOB SNODGRASS
ALEJANDRO RANSOLI
RODOLFO SANCHEZ
Fly Me to the Moon
(2015 Ravinia commission)
Choreography: Venetia Stifler
Movement Development: The Company
Music: Frank Sinatra
Soundscape: Venetia Stifler, Victor Sanders
Lighting: Jacob Snodgrass
Costumes: Vin Reed
Dancers: The Company
Words With Music and Dance
(work in progress)
Choreography: Venetia Stifler
Movement Development: The Company
Soprano: Christina Kaloyanides
Piano: James Morehead
Guitar: Brian Torosian
Lighting: Jacob Snodgrass
Dancers: The Company
The Chicago Project: Future Present
(2017)
Choreography: Venetia Stifler
Movement Development: The Company
Visual Design: Frank Vodvarka, professor emeritus, Loyola University Chicago
Animation: Kelli Evans
Music: Johann Sebastian Bach, Pinch & MumDance, Ólafur Arnalds, Autechre
Lighting: Margaret Nelson
Costumes: Jordon Ross
Section I –
Louis Sullivan’s Sketch
Dancers: Jamie Farrell, Alberto Gonzalez, Taimy Ramos, Alejandro Ransoli
Section II –
Carson Pirie Scott
Dancers: Edson Cabrera, Jamie Farrell, Olivia Gonzalez, Alberto Gonzalez,
Mary O’Rourke, Alejandro Ransoli
Section III –
Structures, Glass and Steel
Dancers: Jamie Farrell, Jessie Gutierrez, Alberto Gonzalez, Mary O’Rourke
Section IV –
Bridges
Dancers: The Company
Section V – Reprise
Dancers: The Company
These performances are presented as part of
The Ruth Page Festival of Dance
, an annual
series of dance performances at Ravinia in collaboration with The Ruth Page Foundation
and honoring one of Chicago’s most celebrated dancers of all time.
RUTH PAGE (1899–1991)
On the eve of the new millennium,
Dance
Magazine
published its “Timeline of Amer-
ican Ballet in the 20th Century,” in which
Ruth Page was noted as being a “vital force
in American dance.” Page is also included
in Olga Maynard’s book
The American Bal-
let
as one of the “immortal few” pioneers of
American ballet and one of the first Ameri-
can classical dancer-choreographers. John
Martin, the
New York Times
dance editor and
critic for over 35 years, wrote in his biography
of Page: “Among our most American icons is
this pioneer woman dedicatedly scanning the
distant frontier.” From the American heart-
land in Chicago, she choreographed, danced,
toured and produced in all parts of the world.
Her legacy is not just in being an American
choreographer, however. She was an early cre-
ative force, home-grown in the Midwest and
eschewing any thoughts that the creative light
of dance came only from Europe or the East
Coast. As her life in art unfolded, Page estab-
lished a record of being an American dance
pioneer by creating at the forefront of social,
political and artistic issues. Upon her death in
1991, this American dance icon left behind a
rich artistic legacy that included an extensive
body of groundbreaking choreography.
The Ruth Page Center for the Arts carries for-
ward the mission and vision of its founder to
be a platform for developing great artists and
connecting them with audiences and com-
munity. With a primary focus on dance as
a critical art form, its programming ensures
that children and dance artists have a place to
train, work, and perform at the highest lev-
el of excellence. Under the aegis of The Ruth
Page Foundation, the center has for over 43
years committed its resources to a unique
combination of artistic programs that annu-
ally impact over 40,000 children and adults.
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