Dance Break - Department of Dance - Wayne State University

the
DVD Gift for
75th Fund
2Donation
In the Wings:
New
Maggie
Allesee Studio
3Series
dance
break
Alumni Reunion
Weekend:
People and
4Events
THIRD NATIONAL COLLEGE DANCE
FESTIVAL INVITATION TO KENNEDY CENTER
For the third consecutive time, students from
the Maggie Allesee Department of Dance
were honored by the National American
College Dance Festival (ACDFA). On June 1,
2004 the Wayne State Dance Company took
center stage at the John F. Kennedy Center for
the Performing Arts in Washington, DC as the
finale to the evening’s Gala Concert.
As one of only 30 premiere dance institutions in
the U.S. invited to perform, the WSU Dance Company
performed “Hairstories” (2001) by award-winning
choreographer Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, artistic
director of the New York-based Urban Bush Women
professional dance company. UBW served as Winter
2004 Allesee Dance Artist-in-Residence at Wayne State,
during which the WSU dancers learned her high-energy
choreography that fuses dance, music, spoken-word
storytelling and video. “Hairstories” draws upon the
spiritual traditions, cultural heritage and vast history
of African-Americans by channeling issues surrounding
women’s experiences with their own hair. Even the hair
types of the WSU dancers themselves are woven into
the stories told via the dance suite, which includes music
by James Brown and Parliament Funkedelic. Sophmore
Della Hamby noted that, “Everyone in Hairstories is an
inspiration to me in a different unique way. I was excited
to be a part of such a fun group!”
Led by WSU dance faculty and company directors,
Kelly Gottesman and Linda Cleveland Simmons,
eleven WSU dancers spent five days in the nation’s
capital. Each day of the festival presented with once
in a lifetime opportunities, including master classes
with renowned dance faculty, gala performances from
universities across the nation and other exciting events
in Washington celebrating the students’ remarkable
accomplishments.
ACDFA is the foremost adjudicating organization in
collegiate dance. The organization’s biennial national
festival is seen as the culmination of the most exemplary
dance in higher education.
Immediately following the WSU performance at the
Kennedy Center, Dr. Doug Risner, chair of the Maggie
Allesee Department of Dance, hosted a special reception
for the students and important guests at the Watergate
Hotel, including Maggie Allesee, newly appointed
CFPCA Dean Sharon Vasquez and Associate Provost
Jack Kay.
The following morning, the dancers were honored
with a special breakfast at the Capitol hosted by Marda
(continued on page 2)
WSU Dance Season 2004-05
New special DancePass ticket (all seven concerts/special seating & other pre/post-performance
special events), $100 available at dance@wayne.edu
New Faculty & Friends Concert (MASS)
September 18-19
ONSTAGE! Dance Performances
for Children
November 16-20, 2004
New December Departmental Concert
(MASS)
December 3-5
New Telematics Dance Concert (MASS)
January 22-23
New WSU Dance Umbrella (MASS)
February 10-13
76th Annual Spring Dance Gala
March 25-26
New Emerging Choreographers:
Senior Capstone
April 23-24
volume 1
issue 1
summer 2004
YEAR-LONG
75th ANNIVERSARY
CELEBRATED
What a year it was! All through the 2003-
04 season, the dance department presented
special lectures, events, and performances
commemorating the Diamond Anniversary
of the WSU Dance Company. The yearlong
festivities celebrated our impressive
accomplishments with a renewed sense of
tradition along with important new initiatives
for the department’s national and global
presence in dance.
In September, the department began a series of
guest lectures and lecture demonstrations entitled,
Dance Matters, devoted to historical and current
topics in dance. Presenters included dance alumni, guest
artists, and dance faculty.
ONSTAGE! Dance Performances for Children
celebrated 50 years of dance for children in its weeklong
November golden anniversary production, Dancing
Golden Feet. Directed by Interim Associate Chair, Linda
Simmons and narrated by dance alumni, Portia Fields-
Anderson as the indefatigable “Freda Frump,” ONSTAGE!
is now presented by the department’s CompanyOne and
tours area public schools throughout Winter Term.
Over 700 students and faculty from 37 institutions
across the region joined our 75th anniversary
celebration when the American College Dance
Festival Association (ACDFA) Great Lakes Region
Festival once again was hosted by the department in
March. We previously hosted a highly successful festival
in 2000. Linda Simmons,
assisted by dance alumni
Tressa Allard served as
festival coordinators with
esteemed adjudicators:
Bill Evans, SUNY-
Brockport, Bill Evans
Dance Company; Alvin
Mayes, University of
Maryland; and Denise
Jefferson, Director, the
Alvin Ailey School.
Later in March,
former graduates,
friends, supporters,
faculty, parents,
and invited guests
gathered in Detroit
for the many
specials events and
performances
of the 75th Anniversary Alumni
Reunion Weekend. The three-day celebration began
with a lovely Welcome Back Reception at nearby Twingo’s,
followed by an Old Main Tour of the newly renovated
dance department facility including the Maggie Allesee
Studio Theatre. Dance alumni and friends were treated
with a special archives exhibit, “75 Years of Dance at
WSU,” beautifully curated by Harriet Berg (WSU ’54) and
displayed throughout the weekend.
Following the afternoon events, the celebration
continued at the Bonstelle Theatre for the 75th Annual
Spring Dance Concert: Captured Thoughts with
an exceptional program of faculty, guest artist, and
(continued on page 4)

Chair’s
Riff
Volume 1, Issue 1 of dancebreak! It gives me great
pleasure to bring you the first issue of the Maggie Allesee
Department of Dance newsletter and to welcome you to
all that’s dance at Wayne State.
In this first issue we’ll catch you up on recent department
happenings and give you a glimpse of exciting
performances, programs and initiatives planned for 2004-
05.
Each dancebreak issue will present regular features of
interest to our alumni, friends, supporters, and colleagues
across the US. In this inaugural issue, our Solo column
lets you get to know senior dance major, Elaine Sledge.
Our danceBreak-ing News brings you important updates
on faculty, guest artist, student and alumni news. In the
Wings updates readers on the upcoming performance
season, touring, and other events.
We’d also like to hear from you! Please send us your
comments and important news to dance@wayne.edu
with dancebreak in the subject line.
Visit our website at www.dance.wayne.edu where you can
also read dancebreak online.
Doug Risner, Ph.D.
Kennedy Center
(continued from page 1)
DVD GIFT FOR 75th FUND DONATION
One of the most exciting highlights of the 75th Annual Spring Dance Concert last March was
the opening film retrospective tribute to dance at WSU. The nine-minute piece, entitled: All the
Dances Danced: A Retrospective, chronicles over seven decades of continuous excellence
in dance performance, as well as important Arts Achievement recipients in Dance from 1976 to
2004, and a special tribute to Maggie Allesee for her generous gifts to the department.
The dynamic and moving presentation illustrates the
remarkable legacy of the WSU dance program and at
the same time illuminates new and exciting possibilities
for the department on both a national and international
level. The remarkable accomplishments of what started
as the Dance Club of Detroit Teachers College and the
Dance Workshop founded by Ruth Lovell Murray in
1928, are featured in four themes in the retrospective.
“Vision” pays tribute to the many significant
individuals in dance whose leadership, pioneering spirit,
and advocacy have played a vitally important role in our
department’s progress. “Passion” honors the generous
support of longtime supporter, volunteer and friend of
WSU and dance, Maggie Allesee. “Legacy” presents
the dance department’s history in a breathtaking
assemblage of still images and stirring video segments.
The retrospective brings viewers full circle to the present
excitement in the department with its rousing finale,
“Promise.”
This 75-year tribute, as many audience members
remarked, was one of the most poignant tributes ever
seen at Wayne State, capturing the essence of dance,
community, and the overarching mission of the College
of Fine, Performing, and Communication Arts.
The film, now available in VHS or DVD format, is
available as a complimentary gift to those who make
a gift of $125 to the 75th Anniversary Fund. This
fund, established to commemorate the department’s
outstanding achievements, makes it possible to
enhance departmental dance scholarships and to
produce publications, such as dancebreak. Donors to
the 75th Anniversary Fund will also receive a copy of
the Diamond Celebration Souvenir Program.
We hope that you’ll consider donating to the 75th
Anniversary Fund and enjoy your own individual copy of
75 years of dance at Wayne State University. db
Robillard, Assistant Vice President, WSU’s
Office of Federal Affairs. Students visited
with members of the Michigan congressional
delegation and toured the Capitol. Before
leaving, the students were treated by
office visits with Michigan Senator Debbie
Stabenow and Detroit Congresswoman
Carolyn Kilpatrick, both of whom were
presented with a commemorative poster of
WSU’s third consecutive national honors at the
Kennedy Center.
“For this, our third ACDFA trip to
Washington, DC, I felt that the dance
department’s exceptional accomplishments,
especially the outstanding talents and efforts
of our students, needed to be a very special
trip. We wanted to plan the kind of trip they
will always remember when they leave Wayne
State,” Risner said. “Having the hard work
pay off and being chosen to perform at
the National ACDFA Gala is such an honor
I will remember forever,” sophomore
Jennifer Oller noted.
Although the students were on very
tight schedules throughout the week, free
time for sightseeing and tours allowed
the dancers to take in other Washington
attractions and landmarks. Junior Katie
Bonbrisco said of the trip, “It was a great
cultural experience to be in the nation's
capital with students from universities from
all over who share our same ambitions and
goals.” db
WSU Dancers at the Capitol: Sophia Martinez, Hannah Risner, Elaine Sledge, Della
Hamby, Lindsey Hinderliter, Shara Thompson, Melissa Nemeth, Congresswoman
Carolyn Kilpatrick, Katie Bonbrisco, Sharissa Thompson, Jennifer Oller, Starkesha Brown,
and WSU Dance Company Director, Kelly Gottesman.
Dean Vasquez
Goes to Washington, too
Newly appointed CFPCA Dean Sharon Vasquez joined the WSU Dance Company celebration and performance
at the Kennedy Center. Dean Vasquez comes to Wayne State from the State University of New York-Brockport,
where she was Dean of Arts & Performance. The Dance Department is delighted to have this professor of dance
as the College’s new academic leader. She began her career as a dancer and choreographer and received a
Fulbright grant to teach in Peru. Vasquez holds an M.F.A. in Dance from Florida State University.
db
Dean Sharon Vasquez, Doug Risner, and Maggie Allesee at the Watergate Hotel reception following the 11th
Annual National College Dance Festival Gala Concert.
2 dancebreak

In the Wings:
Maggie Allesee Studio Series
In the Wings is a regular dancebreak
column that features upcoming performances
and events in the dance department. For 2004-
05, we’re pleased to announce the inaugural
season of the Maggie Allesee Studio Series
(MASS), a five concert series of outstanding
dance performances from September through
April, featuring the best of contemporary
dance in the Detroit metropolitan area. We
hope you will join us for this exciting dance
concert series.
The season kicks off with the Faculty & Friends
Concert, September 18-19 (Saturday-Sunday)
featuring works and performances by faculty, guests,
and professional dance artists. In December, the Fall
Departmental Concert, December 3–5 (Friday
– Sunday) features important new faculty and student
work, as well as repertory works of the WSU Dance
Company.
Dance technology and innovation take center stage
in the Telematics Concert, January 22-23 (Saturday
- Sunday) with interdisciplinary performance art works
directed by WSU faculty member, Kelly Gottesman with
virtual artists and guests from across the nation and
globe.
The first annual WSU Dance Umbrella will be
presented February 10–13 (Thursday – Sunday) featuring
outstanding new works commissioned especially for this
concert series by premiere Detroit professional dance
companies, community dance groups in the metro area,
as well as outstanding high school dance companies.
The WSU Dance Umbrella, directed by Barbara Selinger,
Founder & Artistic Director of the Detroit Dance
Collective, and dance chair, Doug Risner, seeks to
further enhance WSU’s long tradition and commitment
to the development of dance in the Detroit metropolitan
community.
The Maggie Allesee Studio Series concludes its
2004-05 season with the Emerging Choreographers:
Senior Capstone Concert, April 23-24 (Saturday
– Sunday) showcasing exemplary BFA & BS degree
candidates’ choreographic work. This concert features
the best in new choreographic approaches from the
brightest of young dance artists and performers.
As part of this inaugural season, the department
also unveils its DancePass season ticket option, which
includes the entire Maggie Allesee Studio Series, as well
as our annual performance events, ONSTAGE! Dance
Performances for Children in November and the
76th Annual Spring Dance Gala in March at the
Bonstelle Theatre. All seven concerts, plus pre- and
post-performance special events, are available for the
$100 DancePass. Order yours today at dance@wayne.
edu or phone 313.577.9333 for the best in Detroit
contemporary dance. db
s p o t l i g h t
db
Solo
In this issue’s Solo
spotlight, we feature
native Detroiter Senior
Elaine Sledge who says
“dance has always been
my first love.”
Graduating in the top ten of her Northern High School
class, Elaine was active in math & science fairs, concert
choir, debate club, and of course the high school dance
company.
Prior to majoring in dance at WSU, Elaine studied at
Marygrove College, Center for Creative Studies, and Ballet
Renaissance. As a freshmen, she was awarded a four-year
Talent Scholarship from the Dance Department.
During the past four years, Elaine’s hard work and
dedication to dance have also been recognized with the
Barbara Rochlin-Fenkell Scholarship, Karen Ruth Lacoff
Memorial Endowed Scholarship, and Ruth Lovell Murray
Endowed Scholarship.
Elaine cites guest artists as one of the most
significant parts of her dance training at Wayne. She
has been fortunate to work with many internationally
renowned choreographers while here, “One of my favorites
was Edward Franklin and his dance Spiritual Decree. Edward
encouraged me to stretch myself beyond basic technique.
He pushed me to strive for more and then even more.”
In June 2004, Elaine made her second trip to
National ACDFA and the Kennedy Center with the WSU
Dance Company’s performance of “HairStories” by Urban
Bush Women’s Jawole Willa Jo Zollar. She had previously
performed in Washington DC at the 2002 National Festival.
She noted that “performing at the Kennedy Center is such
a great honor. I salute the Maggie Allesee Department of
Dance for providing this opportunity to students.”
After graduating in December 2004, Elaine plans
to audition for as many dance companies as possible.
Doug Risner, Chair of Dance notes that “Elaine has been
a very strong leader in the dance department; she works
diligently at her technique and performance skills.
She has always represented WSU with professionalism and
great energy.” db
Stephen Stone, BFA, MFA, joins the department’s
fulltime faculty for 2004-05 as Lecturer & Director of
Ballet. Stone comes to WSU from Western Kentucky
University and will be teaching all levels of ballet,
jazz, tap, production, history, and repertory. Stephen
recently choreographed the world premiere musical
drama, Johnny Appleseed. Performances continue
through September 5 at the Johnny Appleseed
Heritage Center in Mifflin, Ohio http://www.jahci.
org. During the summer, he also taught master
classes at the Southeastern Regional Ballet Association
(SERBA), and at Berks Ballet Theatre in Redding,
PA; Stephen also performed in Cirque Mythodyssey
with Sandhills Ballet Theatre in Southern Pines, NC.
At WSU, Stephen will co-direct the WSU Dance
Company, as well as assume faculty directorship of the
department’s annual American Ballet Theatre Summer
Intensive. Welcome Stephen!
Nicola Conraths-Lange, BA, MA, joins the department
adjunct faculty for 2004-05 and will be teaching ballet
and modern technique, as well as our Pilates mat classes.
Nicola (Niki) is currently completing her doctorate at
Brunel University, Department of Performing Arts,
London, UK. Her dissertation: Logokinesis: Mind-Body
Strategies for Dance Pedagogy, applies neurolinguistic
programming concepts by employing multisensory
channels of communication that have been neglected
in traditional pedagogy. Her latest book, "Survival Skills
for Pilates Teachers: Thriving in the Mind-Body Fitness
World (2004), from Logokinesis Publishing Company,
Ann Arbor, MI is available at www.logokinesis.com. A
big welcome to Niki!
Senior Shara Thompson and Doug Risner, Chair,
were awarded a McNair Scholars research project grant
for Summer 2004, entitled HIV/AIDS in Dance Education:
Identifying Key Components of a Dance Education
Curriculum Guide. This pilot project will culminate in an
on-campus presentation and a co-authored publication
in the Journal of Dance Education (JODE). Upon completion
of this project, Risner and Thompson hope to secure
additional funding to create an HIV/AIDS curriculum
guide for dance educators in higher education.
Eva Powers, Associate Professor, was an invited
guest teacher and presenter at the Erasmus Intensive
Programme: Dance Extensions for Universities 3rd
Session in Lisbon, Portugal, June 3 - 12, 2004. Eva taught
a series of Pilates masterclasses and workshops.
Megan Brunke (B.S. ’04) attended the Contemplative
Dance Workshop at Hampshire College, June 20-
dancebreak-ing News
25 in Amherst, MA led by Daphne Lowell and
Alton Wasson. Contemplative Dance, also known
as Authentic Movement, is a simple yet profound
practice of movement meditation that is extremely
valuable as a spiritual practice, artistic resource,
or psychological narrative. The program offers
introductory workshops, Week I, Week II, Year-Long
Program I and Year-Long Program II workshops in this
practice. For more information, visit their website at
www.contemplativedance.org
Allesee Artists-in-Residence for 2004-05 will include the
Jan Van Dyke Dance Group and Art Bridgman &
Myrna Packer. In addition to masterclasses and lecture
demonstrations, Van Dyke will stage her repertory
work, Round Dance, originally commissioned by the
Laban Centre in London, on WSU dancers in January
2005; Bridgman & Packer have been commissioned
to create a new work especially for the WSU Dance
Company in October 2004.
Kimberli Boyd, Adjunct faculty, led workshops for
teachers and students as part of Jacob’s Pillow Curriculum
in Motion program for two weeks in June in Lee, MA.
The 2004 Arts Achievement Award in Dance will be
awarded to Sharon Unrau (M.Ed. ’82) on September
30. Unrau is widely known for her two decades work
in children’s dance and her important contributions to
dance and gifted education for younger populations.
For more information about the 2004 Arts Achievement
Awards, please visit www.cfpca.wayne.edu.
The WSU Saturday Dance Lab (SDL) continues to
develop its programming for children and their families
in a non-competitive dance environment. With a focus
on family-friendly offerings and scheduling, SDL now
offers intergenerational classes including African
Dance for Teens & Adults; plans are also underway for
a Parent/Guardian & Toddlers class. Fall classes begin
September 17. Registration information and class
schedule are available at www.dance.wayne.edu. For
further information, contact dancelab@wayne.edu.
Copperfoot Awards for 2004 were awarded on May 5 at
the Bonstelle Theatre to junior Sharissa Thompson,
for her choreography of I Never Would Have Thought…;
to sophomore Samantha Drouillard for Feet, Feet,
Feet; and to Doug Risner for his choreography in
Walk On By.
Please send us your news items and important events
at dance@wayne.edu with dancebreak in the subject
line. db
dancebreak 3

75th Anniversary
(continued from page 1)
Dance alumni and friends joined for a pre-performance reception at the Bonstelle
Theatre before attending the Diamond Celebration Alumni Dance Concert.
Harriet Berg (’54) chaired
the 75th Anniversary
Alumni Weekend
Planning Committee and
served as curator for the
photography exhibit, “75
Years of Dance at WSU.”
outstanding student work,
as well as the moving All
the Dances Danced: A
Retrospective, a film tribute
documenting the WSU Dance
Company’s past seven and a
half decades of continuous
work.
Festivities continued on
Sunday with a special Diamond
Celebration Alumni Dance
Concert planned specifically for
the department’s anniversary
weekend with choreography by
distinguished alumni including
Connie Aiken Moore, Gay
Delanghe, Paula Kramer, Alvin
Mayes, Michelle Moscone,
Barbara Selinger, Kay Rediers,
and Mme. Cadillac Dance
Theatre, directed by Harriet
Berg.
After the concert, a 75th
Anniversary Benefit Dinner
was held at the Gem Century
Club and included tributes to long-time Detroit
philanthropist and dance supporter Maggie
Allesee; Harriet Berg, Chair, 75th Anniversary
Alumni Weekend Planning Committee
& Archive Curator; Tom Kramer for
his many years of dance department
photography; and planning committee
members: Kathy Ellis, Lousie Jefferson,
Eva Powers, Pat Reese, and Linda
Simmons. The benefit dinner and raffle,
sponsored by the Choreographers, the
donor support group for dance, and
the WSU Dance Alumni Association,
helped to raise over $2000 in dance
scholarship funds.
Six senior dance majors presented
their important choreographic theses
in April’s Profiles: Senior Capstone
Dance Concert, while the Dance
Matters Lecture Series concluded
later in April with an evocative lecture
demonstration and masterclass by renowned
Isadora Duncan scholar and dancer, Dr. Jeanne Bresciani,
Artistic Director of the Isadora Duncan International
Institute.
Alumni and friends raised over $2000 for dance scholarships at the 75th Benefit
Dinner which included a lively ticket raffle and tributes to honored guests.
Following Sunday Afternoon’s Alumni Dance Concert, a 75th
Anniversary Benefit Dinner was hosted by the Dance Alumni Association
and the Choreographers, the donor support group for WSU dance at the
Gem Century Club.
As a most fitting close to the year-long diamond
celebration, our dancers were once again invited to
perform at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC in
June, as one of 30 premiere dance institutions across
the US for the 11th Annual National College Dance
Festival honoring the best in
outstanding dance in higher
education throughout the nation.
For those of you who joined
us throughout this past year, we
know you share our excitement
for the bright promise the
department holds and hope that
you will continue to support us
as you have so generously and
graciously in the past. If you
didn’t have the opportunity to
share in our celebration festivities,
please join us this year as we move
forward from a place of strength,
stability, and new vision as we
launch the new Maggie Allesee
Studio Concert Series. What a
year it has been! db
75th Anniversary Fund
Please accept my donation to the 75th Anniversary Fund.
I prefer my complimentary copy of the 75th Anniversary
Tribute video in
DVD or VHS
Name ____________________________________________________
Address __________________________________________________
City ______________________________________________________
State ______________ Zip _____________________
Phone Number ____________________________________________
Email Address _____________________________________________
Enclosed is my check in the amount of:
________ $125 (minimum donation)
________ Other Amount: $__________
Please make checks payable to:
Maggie Allesee Department of Dance
Send this form along with your check to:
Maggie Allesee Dept of Dance
4841 Cass Avenue
3226 Old Main
Wayne State University
Detroit, MI 48202
dancebreak is distributed in
summer and winter each year to the
alumni, friends, and students of the
Maggie Allesee Department of Dance
Chair: Doug Risner
Editor and Designer: Jon Anderson
Photographers: Kelly Gottesman
and Jon Anderson
Wayne State University
4841 Cass Avenue
Detroit, MI 48202
NONPROFIT ORG
US POSTAGE
PAID
DETROIT MI
PERMIT NO. 3844
dance
break
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