There were plenty of captivating moments in two programs to cap the inaugural Dance West Summer Fest – hosted by Repertory Dance Theatre, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company and The University of Utah’s Salt Dance Fest. There was a satisfying range of works in Topography, presented by dance artists and choreographers who led the three-week schedule of workshops. From classics to complete works … Read more
As a compelling testimony to the impact of three immensely successful artistic institutions coming together in the heart of Utah’s dance culture, the inaugural Dance West Summer Fest – hosted by Repertory Dance Theatre, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company and The University of Utah’s Salt Dance Fest – is poised to become the destination event in the … Read more
Many florists and horticulturists associate metaphorical themes with flowers and plants. Indeed, in every spring bloom, there is a unique significance: friendship, perseverance, patience, enthusiasm, honesty, unconditional love and affection, rebirth, dignity, strength of character, trust, just to name a few. Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company delivered all of these blooms in a magnificent bouquet in its … Read more
In the hands of the collaborators for the recent Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company concert, the stories of the Red Fred Project were transformed into a vibrant, colorful, innocent, joyful, poignant and glistening landscape. For the project’s young authors and their curator Dallas Graham, the live creature and ethereal things concert was like an animated film made … Read more
Artistic collaborations lead to many strategic benefits. They can make a lesser known creative group more visible, expand the potential audience base, secure additional financial resources and fine-tune longer term objectives for organizations that must prove their relevance in a community. Most importantly, they can lead to a unique performing and creative moment on the … Read more
In their respective season openers, two of Salt Lake City’s most distinguished dance institutions — Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company and Repertory Dance Theatre — gave more than ample proof of why their artistic excellence commands attention not just locally but also nationally and internationally. The Utah Review offers reviews of both season openers. RIRIE-WOODBURY DANCE COMPANY: … Read more
In between its 54th and 55th seasons, the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company traveled in May to Mongolia and South Korea, as part of DanceMotion USA℠’s cultural diplomacy program. In Mongolia, the dancers and company staff taught master classes in contemporary dance and improvisational technique at a state university as well as the police academy. In South … Read more
In the middle of a season flanked by two programs of world premieres of dance works that expand the genre’s story-telling abilities, the Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company will present Strata, encompassing some of the best known works of Alwin Nikolais, one of the 20th century’s most forward-looking choreographers. It has been 25 years since Nikolais died … Read more
While the competing theoretical, philosophical and ontological discussions of dance’s unique status as a performing arts form are too complex and dense to handle or digest in a compact peroration, it is sufficient to acknowledge the extraordinary happenings in the world of dance that challenge conventional ideals. Choreographers and performers are probing new territories that … Read more
The eyes stream data to the brain through something like two million fiber bundles of nerves. Consider the exponential aspects of perception when you multiply this kind of density by the fact that not only does the brain do this all the time, but the millions of bits of information streaming through your mind at … Read more