The following is a press release issued by the Mendocino College Repertory Dance Company:
Mendocino College Repertory Dance Company presents Light Matters, a captivating performance of original contemporary dance forms. Under the direction of Eryn Schon-Brunner, dancers will bring to life new choreographic works by local and nationally esteemed choreographers: Christopher Campbell, Katherine Abbott Dowdney, Eryn Schon-Brunner, Mel Katz, Justine Alexia Lemos, and Paloma Victoria Rodriguez Irizarry. The performance will feature live music by Larsen Brunner, Cassius Mayhue, and Hiedi Peterman.
Performances are November 21-24 in Mendocino College’s Center Theatre on the Ukiah Campus. The opening will be Thursday, November 21, 2024 at 7pm following the Mendocino College Gallery opening reception 4:30-7pm, “If you’ll never Leave Me, I’llNever Leave You: Photo, Print, Sculpture.” The Gala performance is on Friday, November 21, 2024 with food and wine generously donated by Campovida and food prepared by the MC Culinary department at 6:30pm, show at 7:30pm. The Saturday, November 23, 2024 show will be at 7:30pm, and the Sunday, November 24, 2024 show will be at 2pm. Light Matters is a family friendly event.
The Mendocino College Gallery will be open before the shows and during intermissions for viewing the current exhibit. If you’ll never Leave Me, I’ll Never Leave You: Photo, Print, Sculpture features the Mendocino College Permanent Collection, including works by David Hockney and Frank Gehry, Sculpture by Loren Madsen, and photography by faculty Markus Pfitzner and students.
Light Matters emerged from the desire to use forgotten old par can lights, which had been collecting dust in the catwalks of the CVPA theater. What started as a small idea expanded into a show theme, a collection of thoughts and ideas around light by choreographers dancers and musicians. Eryn Schon-Brunner, director of Mendocino College Repertory Dance Theater and adjunct professor of dance at Mendocino College, shares, ”We found that light in its many meanings reverberates through our lives. Working alongside the dark, light manifests color and form. Light warms us, illuminating the colorful threads of our lives, living without and within us.” Eryn in collaboration with choreographer Paloma Victoria Rodriguez Irizarry will also premiere Weaving Light.
Eryn quotes recently deceased Dancer/Director Judith Jamison who said, “Learn the craft of knowing how to open your heart and to turn on your creativity. There’s a light inside of you.” Eryn contines, ”Over the last three months, I have been touched deeply by the openness, creativity, and courage shown by the performers and creators. I am grateful that they are willing and able to do the work, ask the questions, and share their artistry. They have brought light onto our stage and into our lives.” Don’t miss this performance by Mendocino College Repertory dancers: Aurelia Bassidi, Katrina Bergmann, Peter Campbell, Hannah Hinrichs, Gerry Juszczak, Krista Messer, Rocio Ramos, Shianne Robertson, Io Sanchez, Maryanne Schmidt, Cynthia Triplett, Ashiah Wattenberger,
Guest choreographer Justine Alexia Lemos will reset Angikam,”contemporary choreography by her Guru Ranjanaa Devi, which is derived from the languages of yoga, classical and contemporary dance, Kalaripayattu (Indian martial arts), and ritual movement practices of nasya (sacred touch) and mudra (sacred gesture). Justine has a PhD in Cultural Anthropology, with a focus on the study of embodiment in South Asian cultures, and she holds an MA in Dance Studies and an MA in Anthropology. Apart-time faculty member at Mendocino College, Justine is “thrilled with the dedication of the dancers to bring this challenging work to stage!”
Katherine Abbott Dowdney, choreographer, dancer, and movement educator for over twenty-five years, is “delighted to be choreographing this semester at Mendocino College.” She worked closely over the last ten weeks with MC Repertory Dancers to ready the premiere of De-Light, which is inspired by the essay “Joy is such a Human Madness,” by Ross Gay. The writing (and this piece of movement) explores the idea that sharing what is intolerable with others is, in fact, what makes life worth living. Katherine observes that, “perhaps the joining or connecting over our sorrows is, in truth, joy and delight. The title, De-Light, suggests both ‘of light’ and ‘without light.’ Both are products of our inner and outer worlds.”
Mendocino Coast’s Christopher Campbell, MA, will premiere Katallass? (from the Greek, “to reconcile; to benefit from exchange; to exchange enmity for friendship; a thorough transformation”). Influenced by Somatics and Contact Improvisation, Yoga and Chi Gong, Butoh and multi-cultural ceremonial arts, Christopher creates interdisciplinary work, engaging in transformation through embodied contemplation, collaboration, and performance. He reveals that, “Katallass? embodies a reconciliation with our origins—spiritually and historically. Practiced in community, with tenderness and tenacity, it is our hope that this dance might inspire and empower us to move more mindfully and compassionately amid the wider web of our relations.”
Mendocino College graduate and Cornish College of the Arts Musical Theater BFA graduate Mel Katz returns to Repertory this fall to share the joys of Country Line Dancing in the premeire of Hoe Down. Embracing the levity of social dance, Mel declares that, “everyone from every walk of life can dance a fun Hoe Down together.”
Light Matters will run for one weekend only. Performances are Thursday, November 21 at 7pm, following the MC Gallery opening reception, 4:30-7 pm; Friday, November 22 Gala 6:30 pm and performance at 7:30 pm; Saturday, November 23 at 7:30; and Sunday, November, 24 at 2 pm. Tickets: $15 general; $10 ASB cardholders, seniors, and children, 12 and under. Tickets are available at the Mendocino Book Company. Tickets may also be purchased at the door or online at www.artsmendocino.org.
Get your tickets today! Family friendly event! For additional information, call (707) 468-3079.
