Department Of Dance

Brigham Young University’s Department of Dance will present “A Showcase of New Work” during the dancEnsemble winter concert Friday and Saturday, March 21-22, at 7:30 p.m. in the Richards Building Dance Studio Theatre. A special 2 p.m. matinee performance will be held on Saturday, March 22.

Brigham Young University’s Living Legends will perform a celebration of Latin American, Native American and Polynesian song and dance in a concert at the de Jong Concert Hall Friday and Saturday, Feb. 21-22, at 7:30 p.m.

Students, faculty and the local community are invited to attend free lectures this week about a famous 1940’s musical composition and its accompanying choreography.

The Brigham Young University Theatre Ballet will present “Swan Lake” during “Ballet in Concert” Thursday through Saturday, Jan. 30-Feb. 1, at 7:30 p.m. at the de Jong Concert Hall. A matinee will be performed Saturday, Feb. 1, at 2 p.m.

Long-time adjunct dance instructor Delynne Peay passed away on Monday, January 13, 2014 at 10:05 p.m. due to complications with the flu. Peay has been on the Department of Dance faculty since 1974, and was the longest standing faculty member. She was heavily involved with the World of Dance and danced with the founder of BYU Folk Dance, Mary Bee Jensen. “Delynne was a woman of great energy and life,” said department chair, Marilyn Berrett. “She gave so much to the world of dance and will be dearly missed. She has certainly left a large set of shoes to fill.” Peay was beloved by many in the Department of Dance. One of her students, Katilyn T. Gourley, has set up a donation site: http://www.gofundme.com/61wafw to assist with the medical bills. All donations are welcome. A celebration of Delynne's life will be held Monday, January 20, 2014, 11:00 a.m. at the Edgemont Stake Center (381 West 3700 North, Provo, Utah 84604). Family and friends will be received from 9:30 am to 10:30am that morning. A viewing will also be held the night prior, Sunday, January 19 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm at the Stake Center. See Deseret News obituary.

Sharing a passion for the arts brought dancers from Brigham Young University and China together in a unique cross-cultural experience.

This year’s “Christmas Around the World” celebration at Brigham Young University, “See the Wonder,” featuring the International Folk Dance Ensemble, will take place Friday and Saturday, Dec. 6-7, at 7:30 p.m. with a 2 p.m. Saturday matinee in the Marriott Center.

Style, grace and athleticism take center stage during the annual Brigham Young University DanceSport Championships Friday and Saturday, Nov. 15-16, in the Wilkinson Student Center Ballroom.

This month, the National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA) in Beijing will host BYU’s Contemporary Dance Theatre (CDT) in a performance of their latest show, “Encounters.” The performance is part of the larger “Chun Hua Oiu Shi” festival, a week of selected performances from arts universities in China. Stephen Jones, Dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communications, expressed his appreciation for the opportunity of BYU students and faculty to take part in the event November 13. “Our Department of Dance is honored to be invited to participate with you in this prestigious festival, honoring the growth, the strength, and the superb skills of our students,” Jones said. The invitation to perform at this festival emerges from the relationships that BYU has been building with the Chinese audiences and arts administrators for more than thirty years. “Despite our differences in language and the differences that separate us in geography, the value of the arts, including those human expressions of love, goodness, truth, beauty and excellence that unite us,” Jones said. For Jones, the invitation is a natural outgrowth of not just of the mutual admiration between BYU and its Chinese counterparts but also from the hard work and creativity espoused by BYU’s dance program. “These students and their faculty strive for excellence and regularly receive national and international recognition for the quality of their performance,” Jones said. The NCPA has been host to hundreds of outstanding dancers, musicians and actors since its inaugural concert in 2007. BYU’s contemporary dance team joins this long list of world-class talent with their performance. “The meaning of the title of our concert, Encounters, include the ideas, images and possibilities of all the ways that we might connect, and the notion that every encounter might change us,” said Marylin Berrett, chair of the Department of Dance. The CDT will dance to the music of composers George Gershwin, Ishan Rustem, and others as they portray captivating encounters with people, places and ideas. After exploring all of these encounters, the show will reach its fitting culmination in a collaboration between BYU and the Beijing Dance Academy. “We are so thrilled that the students from the Beijing Dance Academy are joining with the students from Brigham Young University in an East meets West encounter. This is a most remarkable opportunity for us,” Berrett said. Visit dance.byu.edu for more information on BYU’s dance programs.

Brigham Young University’s Department of Dance will present the dancEnsemble fall concert, “You,” conceived and directed by Graham Brown, Friday and Saturday, Nov. 15-16 at 7:30 p.m. in the Richard’s Building Auditorium. There will also be a 2 p.m. matinee Saturday, Nov. 16.

Every year, students who are a part of select performing arts groups from BYU’s School of Music and Department of Dance have the incredible opportunity to travel abroad and share their talents with the world as well as spread values that represent BYU.

eviDANCE brings changes to the stage this year with Pat Debenham, a former faculty of BYU dance department, escorting the audience through the discovery of five BYU dance groups on Sept. 18- 21.

The top ensembles from Brigham Young University's Department of Dance will present “eviDANCE” Wednesday through Saturday, Sept. 18-21, at 7:30 p.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall. There will also be a matinee performance Saturday at 2 p.m.

Will include 'Special Olympics' event for special needs dancers The Brigham Young University Department of Dance will host this year’s Summer DanceSport Challenge Friday, Aug. 9, at the Wilkinson Student Center Ballroom.

The Brigham Young University Department of Dance presents a senior project showcase Friday, Aug. 2, at 7:30 p.m. in the Dance Studio Theatre, 169 Richards Building.

Curt Holman, an associate chair of the Department of Dance at Brigham Young University, will give an address titled “Raising your Ebenezer — A Monument to Remember” at the campus devotional Tuesday, July 30, at 11:05 a.m. in the de Jong Concert Hall.

The highlight of this past week for the Ballroom Dance Company was their experience in Hamm, Germany, just northeast of the city of Dortmund. There the group's sponsor - a combined effort by a local business, two noteworthy charities, and the Dortmund LDS Stake - provided an unforgettable evening. Over 1,800 people came to the Maxipark Arena to enjoy the presentation of Capture the Magic. Filled to near-capacity, with professional staging, lighting, and sound, the performance had the added benefit of a major donation to the charities (Christliches Hospiz Hamm & Deutschen Kinderhospizverein) of 75,000 Euros! These funds were raised through ticket sales for the performance and significant business and community donations. Two costumed dancers participated in the presentation of the checks, and the mayor of Hamm City also presented a 'thank you' expression and gift to the sponsorin! g groups and BYU. It was a huge success in every way.Other performances this week on tour were given in NÁ¼rnberg (FÁ¼rth City), Germany and in two cities of Switzerland - Basel and ZÁ¼rich. The final presentation, given in the Schinzenhof Kongress Salle in Horgen (in the ZÁ¼rich area) had an excited, enthusiastic crowd who gave a standing ovation as well as gifts to Directors Lee and Linda Wakefield and to members of the team.

This week started off with a three mile hand cart trek, led by President and Sister Call (counselor to the mission president). Many inspirational pioneer stories were shared along the way. The students had a great time pulling the carts through the streams, mud and prairie fields.