Brett Conway and Caroline Rocher will perform as guest artists at the 7 p.m. programs on Friday, April 25, and Saturday, April 26, in the Cultural Center’s Norman L. Fagan West Virginia State Theater when the West Virginia Division of Culture and History presents the 2008 West Virginia Dance Festival. This year marks the 26th year of the event.
Conway was born in Fort Wayne, Ind., where he began his dance training at the Fort Wayne Ballet School. He continued at the Virginia School of the Arts, Joffrey Ballet School, and Ballet. Currently Conway is in his sixth season with Alonzo King’s LINES Ballet, which is based in San Francisco.
Rocher began her training at the Conservatoire de Montpellier in France with Madame Claparede and later studied at the Rudra Bejart Lausanne School in Switzerland. In 1998, she came to the United States to study at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center and in 1999, she was invited to join the Dance Theatre of Harlem Company. Rocher was promoted to principal dancer the following year and performed leading roles in The Prodigal Son, Agon, and Fancy Free, among others. In 2004, she moved to Germany to join the Bayerisches Staatsballett. Rocher is now dancing with the LINES Ballet.
The festival runs April 25-27. Two nights of performances beginning on Friday, April 25, at 7 p.m., will showcase the talent of West Virginia dancers who come to perform and take classes from a nationally-acclaimed festival faculty. The Friday night concert will feature performances by 11 West Virginia dance groups and Saturday night will feature another 13 groups. In addition, the guest artists will perform one piece each night.
The evening performances are free and open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis; seating is limited. A schedule of both concerts is attached.
The West Virginia Dance Festival presents dance professionals leading workshops and classes, performance situations and a focus on dance as an art form. Thirty-three dance groups consisting of more than 300 dancers will participate in this year’s festival. Classes begin on Friday, April 25, and continue throughout the three-day festival.
For more information about the 2008 West Virginia Dance Festival or other programs of the Division of Culture and History, call (304) 558-0162.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History, an agency of the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts, brings together the state’s past, present and future through programs and services in the areas of archives and history, the arts, historic preservation and museums. Its administrative offices are located at the Cultural Center in the State Capitol Complex in Charleston, which also houses the state archives and state museum. The Cultural Center is West Virginia’s official showcase for the arts. The agency also operates a network of museums and historic sites across the state. For more information about the Division’s programs, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
Friday, April 25, 2008 Performing Groups
(in order of appearance)
Dance Underground, South Charleston
Kristen L. Hackman, director
Augusta Youth Ballet, Buckhannon
Nina Scattaregia, director
Jeslyn Performing Arts Center School, Huntington
Jessica Lynn Fox, director
Academy of Arts at January’s, Charleston
January Johnson Wolfe, director
Friends of West Virginia Culture and History Scholarship Winner
Brooke Poling, Schrader Youth Ballet, Parkersburg
Next Step School of Dance, Lewisburg
Helen Haynes-Galford and Laura Richter, directors
Inwood Dance Company, Inwood
Denna Smith, director
Princeton Dance Studio, Princeton
Janis Gunnoe, director
Guest Artists
Brett Conway and Caroline Rocher
Pineville Dance Theatre, Pineville
Toneta Akers-Toler, director
The Art Center School of Dance, Huntington
Ella Hay, director
Morgantown Dance Studio, Morgantown
Liz Finklea, administrative director
Saturday, April 26, 2008 Performing Groups
(in order of appearance)
Momentum Center for the Arts, Clarksburg
Jamie Kinney Stutler, director
Inwood Performing Arts Company, Inwood
Denna Smith, director
Jeslyn Dance Gallery, Huntington
Jessica Lynn Fox, director
Oglebay Institute School of Dance, Wheeling
Cheryl Pompeo, director
Bridgeport High School Dance Ensemble, Bridgeport
Stephanie Morris, director
Schrader Youth Ballet, Parkersburg
Velma Schrader, director
West Virginia Dance Company, Beckley
Donald Laney and Toneta Akers-Toler, directors
JADCO Contemporary Dance Company, Charleston
January Johnson Wolfe, director
School of River City Youth Ballet, Charleston
Michelle Raider, director
Guest Artists
Brett Conway and Caroline Rocher
Huntington Dance Theatre, Huntington
Jaime Turner, director
River City Youth Ballet Ensemble, Charleston
Michelle Raider, director
West Virginia Wesleyan College, Buckhannon
Gretchen Moore and Nina Scattaregia, directors
Alchemy Dance Project, Morgantown
Angela Dennis, director
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