Penn State Altoona dance ensemble to present spring performance

Thursday, March 22, 2012 - 766 hits

Penn State Altoona’s Ivyside Dance Ensemble will perform April 26 and 27, 2012, at 7:30 p.m. in the Misciagna Family Center for Performing Arts. Tickets are $5 for Penn State Altoona students and $7 for general admission, with children under 12 admitted free.

Director Caitlin Osborne restages a major work, “No Tenth Act,” a tribute to the energy and stylistic diversity of dance during the era of vaudeville. This piece includes ragtime music, tap and jazz, a new “Tango Apache,” and even an animal act. Says Osborne, “This is a great way to feature some of our graduating students in a format that also includes every member of our company. Plus, it’s a truly collaborative piece – the choreography is mostly mine, but with major assistance from both the dancers and the generous work of my colleagues, KT Huckabee and Jennifer Park.”

Shannon Bishop, of Black Cat Belly Dance in State College, joins the creative team with a modern version of the old song “Oolooloo,” and Huckabee provides two pieces of work proving that dance can have a comic edge. Superheroes and villains fly and fight across the stage in her dance, “Ka-Pow,” while the dancers in “Patsy” explore the line between humor and pathos in the music of the great Patsy Cline.

The box office and galleries of the Misciagna Center are open 10 a.m. - 2 p.m., Monday - Thursday and before and during all performances. Performance and ticket information may be obtained by calling the box office at 814-949-5452.