Monday, May 21, 2018

[415] Dance, stretch, play at April 27-29 tribute to dance icon Isadora Duncan

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — AnMTSUprofessor will share the artistry of the woman known as “The Mother of Modern Dance” in a three-day festival of workshops, performances and master classes.

“Isadora Duncan: Art, Myth & Movement”is slated April 27-29at various Nashville locations. Meg Brooker, an assistant professor of dance, will lead the event in partnership with Metro Nashville Parks and Recreation.

“Isadora Duncan created an expressive dance reflective of natural forces like wind and waves and danced in silk tunics with bare feet,” Brooker said. 

“Her philosophy of dance and life emphasized free expression and, during her lifetime, she became a globally visible celebrity, using her fame to advocate for the rights of women and children.” 

Brooker is a founder and steering committee member of the Isadora Duncan International Symposium. She has performed Duncan’s works throughout North America, Europe and Russia. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Yale University and a master’s in fine arts from the University of Texas-Austin.

The Duncan Dance Project, a regional dance company co-founded by Brooker, will facilitate a master class on Duncan’s technique and repertoire at 9:30 a.m. Friday, April 27, in Suite 257 of Houston Station, 457 Houston St. 

Dancers of all levels are welcome to explore dynamic, whole-body movement through space powered by rhythmic footwork and breath-supported gestures. 

New Dialect, a Nashville-based nonprofit dance collective and training program, offers the class through its contemporary cross-training series. They encourage participants to arrive in time to sign in and warm up.

“The Art of Dance,”a new exhibit, will open with a reception Friday, April 27, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Centennial Art Center. In celebration of the exhibit, Brooker and other dancers will perform Duncan’s choreography to the music of Frederic Chopin and Franz Schubert beginning at 7:15 p.m. Friday in the Centennial Art Center. 

Children are invited to experience the joy of dance in “Workshop: Kidsville at the Parthenon”at 11 a.m. Saturday, April 28, inside the Parthenon. Dancers will show youngsters how the runs, skips and leaps that are natural parts of their playtimes can be integrated into dances.

From noon to 2 p.m. Saturday, Brooker will deliver a lecture about the intersections among Duncan’s life, world events and the body of work she created. Brooker also will show videos of iconic repertory pieces that illustrate Duncan’s development over the course of her career. Attendees are invited to bring their lunches with them.

Dancers will demonstrate the freedom of expression that Duncan embodied in “Community Workshop: The Aesthetics of Isadora”at 12:30 p.m. Saturday at the Centennial Performing Arts Studios. This movement workshop is open to all levels and will culminate in a shared dance experience.

The Duncan Dance Project, in collaboration with Duncan Dance South, will perform choreographies inspired by two Christoph Gluck operas in “Isadora Duncan: Dances of Orpheus and Iphigenia”at 5 p.m. Sunday, April 29, at the Parthenon. 

Dancers from the MTSU dance program, the Centennial Youth Ballet and the Barfield School of Dance will join the two professional companies.

All events are free except the Friday master class, which costs $12, and the Saturday community workshop, which is $10. For more information, contact Brooker at 615-898-5023 or margaret.brooker@mtsu.eduor go to http://www.friendsofmetrodance.org/duncan-weekend.html.

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