Repertory Dance Theatre’s 59th season opener showcasing Noa Zuk choreography wows audience with invigorating, incisive performances

Outdoors, Noa Zuk, Repertory Dance Theatre. Photo Credit: Sharon Kain.

Invigorated and sharp in every moment of the trio of works by choreographer Noa Zuk, the Repertory Dance Theatre’s (RDT) dancers put on a master class about the Gaga movement language to open the company’s 59th season. This season’s theme is Reflection, as the company paves the path for the forthcoming 60th anniversary celebration in the … Read more

Daniel Charon to step down as Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company artistic director next spring after 12 seasons: A detailed look at his tenure, forthcoming transition

EDITOR’S NOTE: Daniel Charon, artistic director of Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company, has announced that he will step down at the end of his 12th season in the spring of 2025. This feature encompasses interviews with Charon and Thom Dancy, executive director, as well as an overview of Charon’s work over the last 12 years. In the … Read more

A treasured friendship: Repertory Dance Theatre’s 59th season opener features works by choreographer Noa Zuk

For choreographer Noa Zuk, her long-time friendship with Repertory Dance Theatre (RDT) feels so natural and strong that even when months or years lapse before they connect again, they can pick up wherever they left off, just as easily as if they had chatted earlier that day.  That relationship started in 2014 when the Israeli … Read more

Making a bit of Utah dance history: Audience’s roaring approval propels Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s Re-Play season opener

Made evident by the consistently enthusiastic response by the audience throughout the 90-minute show, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s 61st season opener, Re-Play, was a roaring successful sampler of the legendary institution’s artistic brand and character. Joining a sharper, more rousing rendition of LajaMartin’s The Bunker (2022), the two world premieres — Purple Sonata 24 by Daniel … Read more

Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company set to open its 61st season with Re-Play, including two world premieres, 28 guest dancers from six Utah universities

Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s 61st season will open with Re-Play this week, featuring two world premieres and a reprise of a 2022 dance theater piece that was tapped as one of The Utah Review’s Top 10 Moments of the Utah Enlightenment that year. The production features the first regular season performance of two new company dancers … Read more

Backstage at the 2024 Utah Arts Festival: Numerous fresh highlights for the 48th edition, which runs June 28-30

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Utah Review begins its preview coverage today of the 48th Utah Arts Festival, which will be held June 28-30 (noon to 11 p.m. on June 28-30) on the Library Square in downtown Salt Lake City. As this is the state’s largest multidisciplinary arts and cultural gathering each year, The Utah Review considers … Read more

Ballet West’s stupendous Choreographic Festival VI: Asian Voices sets gold standard for artistic innovation

In 2017, when Ballet West launched its choreographic festival, Adam Sklute, artistic director, told Dance Magazine, “We want this festival for choreography to do what the Sundance Film Festival does for film—create a hub for creativity in dance.” Judging by the exceptionally enthusiastic response from the opening night audience, this week’s Choreographic Festival VI: Asian … Read more

Subdued, intimate Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s Ascent closes with perfect treat, featuring Storyograph and live original music

Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s 60th anniversary season has been a unique experience. Last fall, Groundworks, its superb season opener which honored its founders (Shirley Ririe and Joan Woodbury) reminded us of legacies, which define why we cherish and prize something for its excellence and its value in the community. High school dancers were the focus of … Read more

Wow, wow and wow: Repertory Dance Theatre’s Gamut closes 58th season on a thrilling emotional note

In 2021, when the Repertory Dance Theatre (RDT) premiered Ihsan Rustem’s ebullient Hallelujah Junction, it was the evening program’s closing work and it drew a rousing roar of applause from the audience. Last week, Hallelujah Junction opened RDT’s Gamut show, a performance that immediately guaranteed a record mark was about to be set for a … Read more

Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company set to close 60th anniversary season with Ascent, including two world premieres, live performance by Salt Lake Electric Ensemble

Set to close out a superb 60th anniversary season, Ririe-Woodbury Dance Company’s Ascent show is pulling out all the stops for a thriller. There are two world premieres: Chapters of Being by Charlotte Boye-Christensen, who served as the company’s artistic director for 11 years, beginning in 2002, and Storyograph by current artistic director Daniel Charon. … Read more