Date: Nov 16, 2012

Performance for a Cause

Dance Program and Music Department Present an Exciting Stage Experience, Nov. 29-Dec. 2

Left Nicole Broussard, Right Laura Haley

Left Tracey Katoff, Back: Danielle Schultz

Proceeds from Sat., Dec. 1, 8 p.m. Performance to Benefit Island Harvest to Help Hurricane Sandy Victims

Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY … The Fall 2012 Faculty Dance Concert marks an ambitious, first-time collaboration between Hofstra’s Dance Program and the Music Department, featuring a timeline of musical compositions stretching from the Baroque to the 21st century.  Dance pieces will range from the delicate beauty of a formal minuet to the thrilling athletic power of contemporary dance.

Hofstra’s Department of Music and Department of Drama and Dance have turned their Saturday, December 1, 8 p.m. performance into a benefit for Island Harvest, the largest hunger relief organization on Long Island. Proceeds will help families impacted by Hurricane Sandy and the following week’s Nor’easter.

It is very rare for college and university dance programs to be accompanied by live music. This collaboration between Hofstra’s dance program and the Department of Music is the largest of its kind ever at the University, in terms of faculty support, guest artist talent and student participation.

Performances will be held at the John Cranford Adams Playhouse, South Campus. Show times are: Thursday, November 29, and Friday, November 30, at 8 p.m.; Saturday, December 1, at 2 and 8 p.m.; and Sunday, December 2, at 2 p.m. Tickets are $12; $10 for senior citizens (over 65) or matriculated non-Hofstra students with ID. Members of the Hofstra community are entitled to receive up to two free tickets upon presentation of a current HofstraCard, but are encouraged to purchase their tickets for the 8 p.m. performance on Saturday, December 1, so they can benefit Island Harvest.

For tickets and more information please call the Hofstra Box Office at 516-463-6644, Monday through Friday, 11 a.m.-3:45 p.m. Tickets will also be sold at the door.

More about the featured dances and musical compositions:

Guest choreographers are Catherine Turocy, artistic director of the New York Baroque Dance Company, and Nathan Trice, artistic director of Nathan Trice/RITUALS. Faculty choreographers are Darrah Carr, Rachel List, Amy Marshall, and Karla Wolfangle. 

Conductor David Ramael, director of Orchestral Activities at Hofstra, will lead the Hofstra Symphony Orchestra to accompany all but one of the dances; Montgomery Hatch and Arthur Solari will direct the Hofstra Percussion Ensemble for that particular piece (“Credo”). Additionally, the concert will feature an original musical composition by Hofstra alumnus Mitchell McCarthy (Class of 2010) and a guitar solo by faculty member William Zito.

Rachel List, director of Hofstra’s Dance Program, choreographed “Au Jardin,” a suite of Baroque dances set to the music of Bach and Handel. The suite begins and ends with a minuet, a dance form that was popular for more than 100 years. Also included are a lively bourree and a stately sarabande for two. Baroque dance, the predecessor of ballet, incorporates a vertical carriage of the body, intricate footwork, ornamental hand gestures and complex floor patterns.

Catherine Turocy is the choreographer of “Les Petits Riens,” the only ballet composed by Mozart. This delightful piece tells the story of what happens when Cupid creates romantic mischief in an 18th century household. Building upon the step vocabulary from the Baroque period, this piece expands in scope to illustrate the “ballet d’action” as exemplified by dancing master Noverre.

"Night's Sky" is a multimedia dance choreographed by Karla Wolfangle for 11 dancers of the junior class. The music is a guitar concerto composed by Leo Brouwer. The dance also includes projection design by Devin Gee of the night sky and what lies beyond and into space.

"Step Dance Suite" is inspired by the music of Percival Grainger – an Australian-born composer who played a prominent role in the revival of folk music from the British Isles at the turn of the 20th century.  Choreographer Darrah Carr shares Grainger's interest in breathing new life into old traditions. She calls her style "ModERIN" – a playful combination of traditional Irish step and contemporary modern dance.

"Credo," translated from Latin, means "I believe." Choreographer Amy Marshall writes:  “Through war and natural disasters, people are reminded of their faith, belief, and compassion toward mankind.   In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, this work took on an even more poignant perspective and reminds us of our compassion towards one another.”

"Tactics," choreographed by Nathan Trice, is an abstract dance where dancers use athletic yet complex movement as a means to express something intangible or unexplainable.

Hofstra University is a dynamic private institution of higher education where more than 11,000 full and part-time students choose from undergraduate and graduate offerings in liberal arts and sciences, business, engineering, applied science, communication, education, health sciences and human services, honors studies, the Maurice A. Deane School of Law and the Hofstra North Shore-LIJ School of Medicine.

More about Island Harvest’s Work Post- Hurricane Sandy and the Nor’Easter:
Operating in emergency response mode since Hurricane Sandy hit, hundreds of Island Harvest volunteers and staff have been working around the clock to assist hurricane-stricken Long Islanders. In coordination with government officials, first responders, and local relief agencies, Island Harvest has been distributing tens of thousands of sandwiches, water, and nonperishable food items, including cereal, peanut butter, and shelf stable canned goods throughout the region.

Island Harvest’s mobile food pantries have been visiting some of the hardest hit communities devastated by the super storm bringing food and personal care items to thousands of residents in need. Volunteers and staff have been on the road; walking the streets; and going door to door, delivering much needed food and supplies.

On the day of the Nor’easter, Island Harvest distributed 117,100 pounds of food — more than 97,500 meals — and water to hard-hit neighborhoods, including Coram, Center Moriches, Hauppauge, Huntington, Long Beach, Oceanside, Roosevelt, Wantagh, Mastic, Shirley, Amityville, Baldwin Harbor, Island Park, and Far Rockaway.
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