Thodos Dance's Timeless Motion Saturday February 25th

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar: Timeless Motion Saturday, February 25, 7:30 p.m. at the  North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie 9501 N. Skokie Blvd. DON'T MISS TDC'S FINAL  COMPANY PERFORMANCE ON THE NORTH SHORE! With the announcement of a new chapter for Thodos Dance Chicago  after the conclusion of this season,Timeless Motion will be TDC's final performance at the North Shore Center as an ensemble-based company.  Program highlights include the world premieres of  Changing Strangers by Melissa Thodos  boasting her singular fluid, kinetic style, and Acid Reign  in which TDC guest choreographer Brian Enos answers the question  "what might a celebration look like on another planet in the future?"

THODOS DANCE CHICAGO'S TIMELESS MOTION CONCERT WITH WORLD PREMIERE WORKS 

BY MELISSA THODOS AND BRIAN ENOS 

IS FEBRUARY 25 

AT NORTH SHORE CENTER 

Near Light by Melissa Thodos 

Timeless Motion program, February 25, 2017 at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie. 
Photo credit: Cheryl Mann.

Thodos Dance Chicago makes its annual return to Skokie's North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie with a fun, fresh and electrifying concert titled Timeless Motion, Saturday, February 25, 2017 at 7:30 p.m.

Highlights of this unique program include the world premieres of Changing Strangers by Melissa Thodos boasting her singular fluid, kinetic style, and Acid Reign in which TDC guest choreographer Brian Enos answers the question "what might a celebration look like on another planet in the future?" 

Also on TDC's Timeless Motion program are Near Light, a very personal 2015 work by Melissa Thodos with glistening lighting and daunting lifts that combine for a memorable story of healing and support. 

Sunrise by Shannon Alvis

North Shore Thodos fans can also look forward to three more works that have emerged from the company's New Dances in-house choreography series: Flawed, a lovely 2014 duet by TDC ensemble member John Cartwright, and two works that premiered at New Dances 2016, now making their official debut in Skokie as part of Thodos Dance Chicago's repertoire, Uncovering by Thodos ensemble member Briana Robinson, and Sunrise by guest choreographer Shannon Alvis.

Timeless Motion will be performed at theNorth Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, Center Theatre; located at 9501 Skokie Boulevard, Skokie, Illinois. 

Tickets range from $28 to $58 and are available online HERE or by calling (847) 673-6300.

Flawed by John Cartwright and Uncovering by Briana Robinson. 

                                                         

Also on tap for Thodos Dance Chicago in 2017

In addition to Timeless Motion at North Shore Center, Thodos Dance Chicago will celebrate its 25th Anniversary Season Saturday, March 11, 2017 at 7:30 p.m. at Chicago's majestic Auditorium Theatre. 

The program, titled FULL CIRCLE, promises an exhilarating evening of dance celebrating a quarter century of the company's innovation and artistry. Highlights include the Chicago premiere of Nos Duraturi, a compelling and dramatic commentary on mankind's ability to endure by the legendary Bella Lewitzky, "the Grand Dame of West Coast modern dance" as part of the company's American Dance Legacy Project. 

The program will also boast Acid Reign by Brian Enos, a triumphant world premiere signature work by Melissa Thodos that will complete a trilogy by Thodos when paired with two signature works from the company's near and distant past. Note: this will be the only time this trilogy will be performed, ever. Single tickets are $29-$68. Purchase HERE or call (312) 341-2300 or buy in-person at Auditorium Theatre's Box Office, 50 E. Congress Parkway, Chicago.

A gala is also on tap to celebrate the company's 25 years as an integral part of Chicago's dance community, with Broadway legend and frequent Thodos collaborator Ann Reinking as Honorary Chair. 

On Saturday, February 4, 2017 at 6 p.m., hundreds of TDC friends and supporters will gather at the Chicago History Museum for the Thodos Dance Chicago FULL CIRCLE Silver Anniversary Gala. Tickets are $300; $2,500 for a table of 10. Purchase tickets HERE or call (312) 266-6255.

Proceeds will support Thodos Dance Chicago's popular New Dances in-house choreography series, building Chicago's future choreographers and new works. Always a highlight of Chicago's summer dance scene, New Dances 2017 will showcase the company's dancer's own, self-created works, Saturday and Sunday, July 15 and 16 at Chicago's Athenaeum Theatre.

About Thodos Dance Chicago

Twenty five years ago, in 1992, Melissa Thodos, a young Evanston-born, Chicago-based dancer and choreographer, was frustrated with the lack of opportunities for dancers to work in what in her mind was the obvious environment for a well-rounded dance professional: A place to perform. A place to create. And a place to educate.

Fast-forward 25 years, and Thodos is the only Chicago-based female choreographer and director to have helmed her own mid-sized, contemporary dance company with this unique mission for a quarter century. 

True to her original idea, Thodos Dance Chicago has been performing, creating and teaching dance in Chicago, across the country in 27 states, and around the world on six continents ever since. The company's unique mission of inspiring expression through dance education, dance creation and dance performance has established Thodos Dance Chicago as an innovative, internationally known presence in American contemporary dance.

Today, Thodos Dance Chicago (TDC) is an ensemble of 14 versatile dance artists with a captivating style that uses a variety of dance forms. In addition to performing works by Melissa Thodos, TDC performs works created by guest and other renowned choreographers. Notably, Melissa Thodos has collaborated on several new works with Broadway legend Ann Reinking, resulting in some of the company's most high-profile, critically acclaimed, full-length "story ballets" including The White City: Chicago's Columbian Exposition of 1893 ("Best dance of 2011" - Chicago Sun-Times) and their equally acclaimed A Light in the Dark: The Story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan in 2013. 

Through its American Dance Legacy Project, dedicated to keeping the creative voice on stage of renowned American dance artists no long visible to the public, Thodos Dance Chicago has presented Fosse Trilogy, a trio of rarely performed works by Bob Fosse, a suite of choreography originally created by iconic modern dance legend Sybil Shearer, last season's highly successful Sono's Journey, a tribute to legendary Japanese-American dance artist, Sono Osato, conceived and choreographed by Melissa Thodos, and this season's Nos Duraturi by West Coast modern dance legend Bella Lewitzky.

Numerous guest choreographers from the national dance landscape have set works on the company as well, including Ann Reinking, Lar Lubovitch, Shapiro & Smith, Jon Lehrer, Garfield Lemonius, Zachary Whittenburg, Lucas Crandall, Brian Enos, Amy Ernst, Ron De Jesús, Gustavo Ramírez Sansano, Ahmad Simmons, KT Nelson, Robyn Mineko Williams and Kevin Iega Jeff.

TDC's ensemble for the current 25th Anniversary season, who each teach, choreograph and perform for the company, include John Cartwright, Abby Ellison, Marchetta Genis, Alex Gordon, Hattie Haggard, Thomas Jacobson, Jessica Miller Tomlinson, Shelby Moran, Melissa Panetta, Richard Peña, Brennen Renteria, Briana Robinson and Luis Vasquez, plus performing trainee Tyler Ring. 

In addition to performing the work of others, these talented young dancers have the opportunity to create their own works via the company's annual New Dances initiative. Ensemble dancers also teach a full roster of dance classes for adults and children year round at the company's rehearsal home, the Drucker Center Menomonee Club in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood. Thodos Dance also teaches after school dance classes for 50 at-risk youth at the Barreto Club in Humboldt Park and Club One in Pilsen. Both are branches of the Union League Boys and Girls Club improving the lives of children in underserved Chicago neighborhoods.                                                                

Thodos Dance Chicago continues to expand its artistic and institutional boundaries under the guidance of Founder and Artistic Director Melissa Thodos, Executive Director Gail Ford, Booking Director Rick Johnston, Artistic Associate Laura Gates, Resident Lighting Designer Nathan Tomlinson, Education Outreach and Operations Manager Kate Weatherly, Board President Sharon Lear, a dedicated board of directors and the support of thousands of contemporary dance enthusiasts both in Chicago and nationwide. 

The company is supported by The Sono and Victor Elmaleh Foundation, The Garden of the Phoenix Foundation, the Illinois Arts Council-a state agency, Target, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, the MacArthur Fund for Arts & Culture at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, The Arts Work Fund, The Morrison-Shearer Foundation, The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, Service Club of Chicago, Project 120, The Garden of the Phoenix Foundation, the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs & Special Events and many individual and corporate sponsors. 

For more information, visit the main Thodos Dance Chicago site here. 

“Opus Cactus” To Open McAninch Arts Center's 30th Season With Whimsical Wonder

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

College of DuPage is located 25 miles west of Chi, IL

MOMIX BRINGS THE DYNAMIC FULL-LENGTH MULTIMEDIA DANCE SPECTACULAR

“OPUS CACTUS” 

TO THE MAC SATURDAY, SEPT. 10

McAninch Arts Center (MAC) opens its 30^th Anniversary Season Performance Series with MOMIX’s full-length multimedia spectacular “Opus Cactus,” Saturday, Sept. 10, 7:30 p.m.This mesmerizing production explores the wonders of the desert through dynamic acrobatic images of cacti, slithering lizards, fire dancers and more. New York Times hails Opus Cactus as “exploding with a sense of magic, danger, sensuality, quirkiness, humor and beauty.”

After a 10-year hiatus, “Opus Cactus” returns with a new look, fresh energy and fun surprises. Set to a hypnotic mix of music from J.S. Bach to new age to tribal, this prop-laden piece of 19 seamless vignettes uses low-flying trapeze, harnesses, belly dollies, vaulting poles, oversized fan, puppets and skirts, a swing-like hammock, a rolling metal sculpture and outrageous costumes to transport audiences to the exotic world of the desert.

Sections such as “Dream Catcher,” “Pole Dance,” “Ostrich of the Imagination,” “Gila Monster,” and “Desert Blooms” showcase the virtuosity and versatility of the dancer-illusionists. The dancers include Steven Ezra, who was a 2011 finalist on “America’s Got Talent” with the shadow performance troupe Catapult; Jonathan Eden, who joined MOMIX in 2004; Jason Williams who has been touring with the company since 2011; Greg DeArmond who has been with the company since 2014; Anthony Bocconi, formerly with the Lar Lubovitch Dance company, now with MOMIX since 2015;  Rebecca Rasmussen, a member of the company since 2006; and Sarah Nachbauer, a 10 year veteran of MOMIX. Two more dancers will be announced at a later date.

Moses Pendelton (choreographer and MOMIX artistic director) formed the MOMIX in 1981 as an offshoot of the dance company Pilobolus, which he co-founded while a senior at Dartmouth College in 1971 and performed with as full-time member with the company until 1980.

Known internationally for presenting work of exceptional inventiveness and physical beauty, MOMIX, now in its 36^th year, is a company of dancer-illusionists celebrated for its ability to conjure up a world of surrealistic images using props, light, shadow, humor and the human body. In addition to stage performances world-wide, the company has frequently worked on special projects and in film and television. MOMIX has made five Italian RAI television features broadcast to 55 countries (including the USSR and China) and has performed on Antenne II in France. MOMIX was featured in PBS’s “Dance in America” series and one of the first IMAX films in 3-D, “IMAGINE”, which premiered at the Taejon Expo 93 and was subsequently released at IMAX theaters world-wide. MOMIX has performed throughout the United States, Canada, Spain, Greece, Italy, France, Germany, Russia, Denmark, England, Austria, Ireland, Holland, Argentina, Mexico, Brazil, Chile, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and Australia. The company is based in Washington, Conn.

Tickets:

McAninch Arts Center (MAC) located at 425 Fawell Blvd. on the campus of College of DuPage presents MOMIX in “Opus Cactus,” Saturday, Sept. 10, 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $42-$52. New for 2016-2017: for selected shows, the MAC offers the VIP Experience featuring a private, pre-show cocktail and hor d’oeuvres, reception and coffee and dessert at intermission. The VIP experience is available for this event for an additional $30 per person. For tickets or more information visit AtTheMAC.org or call 630.942.4000.

About the MAC

McAninch Arts Center (MAC) at College of DuPage is located 25 miles west of Chicago near I-88 and I-355, and houses three performance spaces (the 780-seat proscenium Belushi Performance Hall; the 186-seat soft-thrust Playhouse Theatre; and the versatile black box Studio Theatre), plus the Cleve Carney Art Gallery, classrooms for the college’s academic programming and the Lakeside Pavilion. The MAC, now celebrating its 30^th Anniversary, has presented theater, music, dance and visual art to more than 1.5 million people since its opening in 1986 and typically welcomes more than 75,000 patrons from the greater Chicago area to more than 230 performances each season.

The mission of the MAC is to foster enlightened educational and performance opportunities, which encourage artistic expression, establish a lasting relationship between people and art, and enrich the cultural vitality of the community. For more information about the MAC, visit AtTheMAC.org, facebook.com/AtTheMAC or twitter.com/AtTheMAC.

 *Events, dates, artists and prices subject to change.

The MAC’s 2016-2017 Season is made possible in part with support by The DuPage Foundation, Hilton  Lisle/Naperville, Brookdale-Glen Ellyn; The JCS Arts & Education Fund of the DuPage Foundation; the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency; Smith Financial Advisors, Inc; SlTlG Sullivan Taylor & Gumina, P.C.; Follett’s College of DuPage Bookstore; Paramount Theatre; WFMT 98.7 FM; WBEZ 91.5 FM; WDCB 90.9 FM and the College of DuPage Foundation. 

Established as a 501(c) 3 not-for-profit charitable organization in 1967, the College of DuPage Foundation raises monetary and in-kind gifts to increase access to education and to enhance cultural opportunities for the surrounding community. For more information about the College of DuPage Foundation, visit foundation.cod.edu or call 630.942.2462.

Programs at the MAC are partially supported through a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency.  

Kudos To Our Friends at Lucky Plush Productions On Their Prestigious MacArthur Award

Lucky Plush Productions Receives Prestigious MacArthur Award

for Extraordinary Creativity and Effectiveness

Big congrats to our friends over at Lucky Plush Productions! Here at ChiIL Live Shows & ChiIL Mama we've been fans of the creative dance stylings of Lucky Plush for years. We're thrilled to announce they were just awarded the prestigious MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions. 

Through this award, the MacArthur Foundation recognizes exceptional nonprofit organizations that demonstrate creativity and impact, and invests in their long-term sustainability with sizable one-time grants. 

Led by founder and artistic director Julia Rhoads, Lucky Plush Productions creates a hybrid form of dance theater that blends nuanced dialogue, lush choreography, and unexpected humor. The company has premiered more than 30 original works, including 13 evening-length dance theater productions, and has built a national reputation for work that is both thought provoking and relatable. The company has performed in more than 40 venues, nationally and internationally, in just the past five seasons.

"Receiving the MacArthur Award is both an honor and a financial grace for Lucky Plush Productions. It validates over 15 years of dedicated risk-taking, inspires a renewed sense of responsibility and purpose in fulfilling our mission, and will deepen our efforts to create a sustainable model for our work," said Julia Rhoads, Founder and Producing Artistic Director, Lucky Plush Productions.

Lucky Plush is committed to moving the dance field forward through risk taking and innovation, coupled with consistently responsible administrative and financial practice. It collaborates widely with performance arts groups and presenters and it consistently hires and collaborates with the city's most highly sought-after talent. 

In 2009, well before it was a regular practice, Lucky Plush began inviting audiences into the creative process by building a website where people could comment, donate material, and engage in conversations about the work's content. 

In addition, Lucky Plush also led the effort to establish Creative Partners, a collaborative effort with eighth blackbird and Blair Thomas and Company to provide for a shared full time development staff to drive growth and generate new resources.

Lucky Plush also is the first Chicago dance company that the Harris Theater for Music and Dance has both commissioned and fully presented. In just two weeks at the Harris, Lucky Plush debuts Trip the Light Fantastic: The Making of SuperStrip, Thursday, March 3 at 7:30 p.m. 

In SuperStrip, the ensemble plays a group of washed up superheroes whom attempt to reinvent themselves as a non-profit think tank, complete with comic book graphics, sound effects and immersive video. For tickets and information, visit HarrisTheaterChicago.org or call (312) 334-7777.

                                                                        

In addition to Julia Rhoads, the company manager of Lucky Plush is Kim Goldman, and the current ensemble includes Michel Rodriguez Cintra, Daniel Gibson, Marc Macaranas, Elizabeth Luse, Melinda Jean Myers, Benjamin Wardell and Meghann Wilkinson. 

For more information, visit LuckyPlush.com or follow the company on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

More about The MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions

The MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions has been presented annually since 2006 to organizations across the country and around the world that demonstrate exceptional creativity and effectiveness. Lucky Plush Productions will use the $200,000 that accompanies its MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions to increase its reserve fund, with a small portion earmarked for technology upgrades and marketing.

This year's 14 recipients are drawn exclusively from Chicago's diverse arts and culture community in order to strengthen the city's vibrant cultural life and underscore the Foundation's commitment to its hometown. 

"These superbly imaginative organizations exemplify Chicago's thriving arts and culture community, which is vibrant and economically vital to the region," said MacArthur President Julia Stasch. "Support for these diverse and leading organizations reflects our enduring commitment to Chicago and to its cultural life that enriches us all."

According to MacArthur, the Award is not only recognition for past leadership and success but also an investment in the future. For these Awards, the Foundation does not seek or accept nominations. To qualify, organizations must demonstrate exceptional creativity and effectiveness; have reached a critical or strategic point in their development; show strong leadership and stable financial management; have previously received MacArthur support; and engage in work central to one of MacArthur's core programs.

Each year, MacArthur supports more than 300 arts and culture group in Chicago, awarding more than $10 million in grants, mostly through general operating support. Additional information about this year's MacArthur Awards is at macfound.org/MacAward.

FREE TICKETS RELEASE THIS WEEK, JULY 8 & 9 Chicago Dancing Festival: August 20-23, 2014

ADDITIONAL PROGRAMMING ANNOUNCED FOR 

CHICAGO DANCING FESTIVAL

Chicago Dancing Festival founders Lar Lubovitch and Jay Franke are pleased to announce today additional works being added to the 2014 Festival lineup, including two more World Premieres, plus plans for a pre- and post-performance sponsors party around the “Celebration of Dance” Grand Finale performance, Saturday, August 23. Free tickets for the Festival’s indoor performances become available to the public this week, July 8 and 9.  The 2014 Chicago Dancing Festival, featuring top ballet, modern and hip-hop companies from Chicago and across the country, is set to take place August 20 – 23.

The Joffrey Ballet 

in 'Bells' by Yuri Possokhov

Dancers: Temur Suluashvili and Victoria Jaiani

Photo by Cheryl Mann

Additional Programming

Chicago-based choreographer Ron De Jesus, a former dancer with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and now Artistic Director of Ron De Jesus Dance, has been commissioned by the Dancing Festival to create a new duet for the dancing male pair of Ben Wardell (Nexus Project, Lucky Plush Productions, formerly Hubbard Street Dance Chicago) and Michel Rodriguez (Nexus Project, formerly Hedwig Dances). Transition Zone will premiere as part of the Festival’s “Dances for 2” at the Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Ave., in two performances, Friday, August 22.

New York-based choreographer Darrell Grand Moultrie, who has set work on and collaborated with pop stars like Beyoncé as well as highly regarded institutions like The Juilliard School, the Alvin Ailey B.F.A. Program and tap legend Savion Glover, has been commissioned by the Festival to create a new work for the student dancers of After School Matters, to premiere on the Pritzker “Celebration of Dance” program, August 23.

These new commissioned works are in addition to the previously announced World Premiere the Festival has commissioned from New York mixed-genre choreographer Kyle Abraham for the dancers of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, entitled Counterpoint. This work, to be performed at the Harris Theater as part of the “Classics and Creations” program August 20, is set to Tu Non Mi Perderai Mai by Peter Gregson and Brahms Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor: Third Movement, performed by Arthur Rubinstein.   The full schedule of performances follows below.

“Last Dance” Sponsors Party

This year, the Chicago Dancing Festival hosts “Last Dance,” a party to acknowledge the sponsors whose support is crucial to keeping the Festival’s performances free for the public.  “Last Dance” takes place Saturday, August 23, on the Terrace at the Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph Street.  The evening includes pre-show cocktails beginning at 6 pm followed by reserved seating for the performance at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion, then a post-show picnic with cocktails and a chance to mingle with the artists.  Those interested in donating or learning more about sponsorship opportunities can visit www.chicagodancingfestival.com or, for questions, call 773-609-2335.

Ticket Release This Week

Tickets for the indoor performances at Harris Theater and Museum of Contemporary become available this week.  All tickets are free but tickets for indoor events must be reserved in advance through each venue’s box office. 

Tickets for the August 20 program at the Harris Theater will be released Tuesday, July 8 at noon, available in person at the Harris Theater Box Office, 205 E. Randolph Drive, or by calling (312) 334-7777.  Limit two (2) tickets per order; tickets ordered by phone will be held at Will-Call.

Tickets for the August 22 programs at the Museum of Contemporary Art will be release Wednesday, July 9 at noon, available in person at the MCA Stage Box Office, 220 E. Chicago Avenue, or by calling (312) 397-4010.  Limit two (2) tickets per order; tickets ordered by phone will be held at Will-Call.

No tickets are needed for the outdoor Pritzker Pavilion events, including the Opening Night Simulcast presented by the Harris Theater on August 20 and the Grand Finale performance on August 23. 

Any empty seats or tickets unclaimed at 15 minutes prior to curtain time will be released to those in a Stand-by line.  Stand-by lines begin one hour before each performance, in person only. All seating is general admission. 

Chicago Dancing Festival 2014 Schedule

Wednesday, August 20 – 7:30 pm

Harris Theater for Music and Dance, 205 E. Randolph Street

“Classics and Creations”

The Chicago Dancing Festival opening night program will be simulcast on the outdoor screen of the Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park, thanks to Presenting Sponsor, the Harris Theater. 

• Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Counterpoint, CDF original commission by Kyle Abraham          
• The Juilliard School, The Jig Is Up by Eliot Feld
• Martha Graham Dance Company, Errand into the Maze by Martha Graham
• Stars of American Ballet*, Fancy Free by Jerome Robbins
• The Joffrey Ballet, Bells (excerpt) by Yuri Possokhov

Chelsea Bonosky 

in 'Belladonna' by Adam Barruch

Photo by Nel Shelby

Friday, August 22 – 6 pm and 8 pm

Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Avenue

“Dances for 2”

• Adam Barruch, Belladonna by Adam Barruch
• The Joffrey Ballet, Bells (excerpt) by Yuri Possokhov
• Martha Graham Dance Company, Errand into the Maze by Martha Graham
• Ron De Jesus Dance*, Transition Zone, CDF original commission by Ron De Jesus
• Pam Tanowitz Dance*, Passagen by Pam Tanowitz (live music)

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago Spring Series

"Falling Angels" Dress Rehearsal by Jiri­ Kylian 

Photo by Todd Rosenberg Photography

Saturday, August 23 – 7:30 pm

Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park, 201 E. Randolph Street

“Celebration of Dance” Grand Finale

• After School Matters, CDF original commission by Darrell Grand Moultrie
• The Joffrey Ballet, Nine Sinatra Songs by Twyla Tharp
• The Juilliard School, The Jig Is Up by Eliot Feld
• Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Falling Angels by Jiří Kylián
• Rennie Harris Puremovement*, Students of the Asphalt Jungle by Dr. Rennie Harris
• Stars of Washington Ballet Brooklyn Mack and Maki Onuki, pas de deux from Le Corsaire by Marius Petipa

All programs are subject to change.

*CDF Debut

About the Chicago Dancing Festival

Established in 2007, the Chicago Dancing Festival was founded to elevate awareness of dance in Chicago, to increase accessibility to the art form and to provide inspiration for local artists.  Its mission is to present a wide variety of excellent dance, enrich the lives of the people of Chicago and provide increased accessibility to the art form, thereby helping create a new audience.  Its vision is to raise the national and international profile of dance in the city, furthering Chicago as the “dance capital of the world” (as Mayor Rahm Emanuel put it at the 2012 Chicago Dancing Festival). 

Lar Lubovitch (Founder, Artistic Director) is one of America's most versatile and highly acclaimed choreographers and founded the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company 45 years ago.  In the years since, he has choreographed more than 100 dances for his New York-based company, which has performed in nearly all 50 American states as well as in more than 30 foreign countries.  Born in Chicago, Mr. Lubovitch was educated at the University of Iowa and the Juilliard School in New York.

Jay Franke (Founder, Artistic Director) began his formal training at Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Dallas, Texas.  In 1993, he was selected as a Finalist for the Presidential Scholar in the Arts and accepted into the Juilliard School.  Upon receiving his BFA in Dance from the Juilliard School, Mr. Franke went to work with the Twyla Tharp Dance Company, “THARP!”  Mr. Franke has since danced with The 58 Group, Lyric Opera Ballet Chicago, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and was a leading dancer in the Lar Lubovitch Dance Company from 2005 to 2010.

The Chicago Dancing Festival is grateful for its 2014 supporters including: InterContinental Chicago Magnificent Mile, Official Hotel Partner; Museum of Contemporary Art; Harris Theater for Music and Dance; City of Chicago, Millennium Park; The Robert and Jamie Taylor Foundation; David Herro and Jay Franke; Illinois Arts Council; National Endowment for the Arts, Art Works; The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation; The Chicago Community Trust; Arts Work Fund for Organizational Development; The MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture at Prince; The Elizabeth Morse Charitable Trust; and the Irving Harris Foundation. The Harris Theater is proud to have the support of The Northern Trust Company as its 2014-2015 season sponsor.

For more information on the Chicago Dancing Festival, its history and programs, visit www.chicagodancingfestival.com.

The Joffrey Ballet Celebrates 20 YEARS IN CHICAGO with 2014-15 Season #Dance

Here at ChiIL Mama and ChiIL Live Shows, it's been our pleasure to promote and work with the Joffrey Ballet for years.  They put on world class productions and are a true Chicago treasure.  Check out their new season and reserve your tickets early for the best seats for their 20th anniversary season.  We're particularly jazzed about The Man in Black, Johnny Cash ballet. ChiIL Mama will be there... will YOU?!  Click here for some of our past photo and video filled Joffrey coverage. 

Chicago Premieres include a ballet set to Johnny Cash music by James Kudelka,

A major newly envisioned Swan Lake by Christopher Wheeldon,

And work by New York City Ballet’s Justin Peck,

Alongside work by George Balanchine, Nicolas Blanc, Alexander Ekman, Ashley Page, Yuri Possokhov, Antony Tudor and Stanton Welch

Ashley Wheater, Artistic Director of The Joffrey Ballet, announces programming for the company’s 2014-15 season celebrating 20 years of the Joffrey calling Chicago home. The 2014-15 anniversary season features both company favorites and a slate of eight premieres.

For the second year, following the success of the Joffrey’s “Russian Masters” program that launched the 2013-14 season, an additional season opener will be presented in September, a one-weekend-only engagement featuring the return of two Joffrey repertory favorites, George Balanchine’s Prodigal Son and Antony Tudor’s Lilac Garden, along with the Joffrey/Chicago Premiere of Yuri Possokhov’s Asian-themed RAkU, September 18-21, 2014. The Joffrey’s annual fall engagement brings the Joffrey/Chicago Premiere of Christopher Wheeldon’s newly envisioned Swan Lake, October 15-26, 2014, followed by the return of the classic holiday chestnut, Robert Joffrey’s The Nutcracker, December 5-28, 2014. The Joffrey continues its recent tradition of presenting a contemporary program for its winter engagement, featuring three company premieres, James Kudelka’s The Man in Black set to Johnny Cash music, Stanton Welch’s Maninyas and Alexander Ekman’s humorous Tulle, February 11-22, 2015. Rounding out the season is a spring program featuring the Joffrey/Chicago Premiere of New York City Ballet soloist Justin Peck’s In Creases, a World Premiere by British choreographer Ashley Page and Evenfall from the Joffrey’s own ballet master, Nicolas Blanc, April 22-May 3, 2015.

All performances take place in the Joffrey’s home venue, the historic Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University, in downtown Chicago at 50 East Congress Parkway. Various programs throughout the season feature live orchestral accompaniment by the Chicago Philharmonic conducted by Scott Speck, Music Director of The Joffrey Ballet.

In 1995, escaping a crowded New York City ballet market, then Joffrey Artistic Director Gerald Arpino relocated the company he had started with Robert Joffrey from the East Coast to Chicago with the help of a group of ardent supporters. Having successfully toured through Chicago since 1957, the company found fertile soil in a city with a rich dance heritage but, until then, no major ballet company of its own. The Joffrey Ballet quickly became a bedrock of Chicago’s burgeoning theater district, moving into its own state-of-the-art home of Joffrey Tower at State and Randolph Streets in 2008 and soon after, opening The Joffrey Academy of Dance, Official School of the Joffrey Ballet.

In its 20^th Chicago Anniversary season, the Joffrey focuses on narrative in dance, exploring the concept of “story ballet” with a series of both repertory and evening length work that each tell a story in a freshly conceived way, either through iconic music, a familiar fantasy re-imagined, or by seeing human relationships through fresh eyes. Many choreographers who have made recent contributions to Joffrey’s repertory return this season, becoming signature artists of the company.

“Next season, The Joffrey Ballet celebrates twenty years in the city of Chicago with a series of programs exploring the expressive power of dance.  By telling stories drawn from diverse sources, by embracing our history and our future, we celebrate the voice and spirit of this great American city,” said Wheater.

About the Season

September

The Joffrey launches its new season with a mixed repertory program featuring George Balanchine’s Prodigal Son, Antony Tudor’s Lilac Garden and the Joffrey Premiere of Yuri Possokhov’s RAkU. 

Prodigal Son, not performed by the Joffrey since 2000, was one of the first Balanchine ballets to achieve an international reputation. Set to music by Sergei Prokofiev, it is a dramatic story of sin and redemption based on the Gospel according to St. Luke. Wheater will make a rare return to the stage portraying the Father.

Lilac Garden, set to music by Ernest Chausson, is an intimate work showing Tudor’s increasing interest in revealing psychological motivation through choreography. It is a story of a young woman who must say farewell to her lover on the eve of her arranged marriage to a man she does not love. It was last performed by The Joffrey Ballet in 2008.

Finally, Possokhov, San Francisco Ballet Resident Choreographer, brings RAkU to Chicago for the first time since its San Francisco Ballet debut in 2011. Set to music by Shinji Eshima, this contemporary ballet with a modernist, sepia-toned costume and set design with projections and moving screens, tells the tale of a Japanese emperor, his wife and a jealous monk driven mad by obsessive love. It is a stylized interpretation of the burning of the Kyoto Temple of the Golden Pavilion, brimming with lush lyricism and dark drama.

Lilac Garden, Prodigal Son and RAkU are presented in five performances only, September 18-21, 2014.

October

For its main fall production, The Joffrey Ballet brings a newly re-imagined Swan Lake to Chicago, choreographed by one of ballet’s most acclaimed choreographers, Christopher Wheeldon. A $1.5 million production with lavish costumes by Jean-Marc Puissant and scenic design by Adrianne Lobel, Wheeldon’s Swan Lake was commissioned for the Pennsylvania Ballet in 2004 to celebrate the company’s 40^th Anniversary. Set to Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s score and modeled from the original Lev Ivanov and Marius Petipa choreography, Wheeldon sets Swan Lake in the 19^th century milieu of the Paris Opera Ballet, during the time when Tchaikovsky was actually composing Swan Lake and when Edgar Degas was on the rise. The ballet uses actual Degas imagery to create an Opera Ballet studio as young boy Siegfried daydreams of escaping rehearsal for the lake, while the ensemble prepares for a major opening night gala. The ballerinas and their wealthy patrons serve as the central characters of the ballet in a re-telling of the classical fantasy. Swan Lake is presented in 10 performances only, October 15-26, 2014.

December

Robert Joffrey’s The Nutcracker, Chicago’s most popular holiday tradition and America’s #1 Nutcracker, returns for its seasonal run at the Auditorium Theatre, bringing Tchaikovsky’s classic score to life with battling toys, raucous rodents, swirling snowflakes, waltzing flowers and the splendor of the full Joffrey company on stage with over 100 young dancers from the Chicagoland area.  Robert Joffrey’s The Nutcracker is presented in 24 performances, December 5-28, 2014.

February

Three leading contemporary ballet choreographers, all former Joffrey guest artists – James Kudelka, Stanton Welch and Alexander Ekman – return with Joffrey Premieres in the winter of 2015, each working in a distinctly different mode from what Chicagoans have seen of them before.

Kudelka’s The Man in Black sets an ensemble of three men and a woman, all in cowboy boots, against the songs of soulful American crooner Johnny Cash. Six songs, all from the latter part of Cash’s career, reflect working-class grit, lighthearted looseness and moving tenderness as Kudelka’s choreography seamlessly sways between ballet and country western dance styles including line, square, swing and step dance. A 2010 premiere for the BalletMet Columbus, The Man in Black has garnered rave reviews from restagings by the National Ballet of Canada, Atlanta Ballet and Cincinnati Ballet. This will be the first time it’s seen in Chicago.

Originally created for San Francisco Ballet in 1996, Welch’s Maninyas is also a small ensemble work, a series of duets and trios, though more abstract in nature. It is set to Maninyas Concerto for Violin and Orchestra by Australian composer Ross Edwards and presents dancers moving in and out of a series of shimmering veils, a dance metaphor for the unveiling of one’s self in a relationship, that gradual and sometimes frightening process of revealing layers both physical and emotional. 

Completing the contemporary program is Swedish choreographer Ekman’s Tulle (Tyll in Swedish), a ballet about ballet. Premiered in 2012 at the Royal Opera House of Stockholm, it was Ekman’s first piece working with pointe shoes and classical ballet vocabulary and is his affectionate commentary on the art form and where it comes from. Tulle, in characteristic Ekman style, incorporates video projected on three huge LED screens featuring interviews with the Joffrey dancers with their candid and often humorous thoughts on ballet.

The Man in Black, Maninyas and Tulle are presented in 10 performances only, February 11-22, 2015.

April/May

The season closes with a third mixed repertory program featuring three more premieres, including the Joffrey Premiere of In Creases by New York City Ballet soloist Justin Peck, a World Premiere by British choreographer Ashley Page, and the Joffrey Premiere of Evenfall by the company’s own ballet master Nicolas Blanc.

The first work Peck choreographed for New York City Ballet, In Creases premiered in 2012 at the company’s annual summer residency at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. Set to Philip Glass’ Four Movements for Two Pianos, the choreography playfully uses neoclassical symmetry and geometry, matching the score’s energetic, looping melodies, throughout seven movements that build in speed and power as they unfold.

Page began his professional career as a dancer with London’s Royal Ballet in 1984, working closely with Frederick Ashton and Kenneth MacMillan. He was promoted to Principal in 1984, the same year in which he choreographed his first professional work for the company, A Broken Set of Rules. Page continued to develop his choreographic voice alongside his dancing career, creating 17 ballets for the company. In 2002, after 27 years with the Royal Ballet, Page was offered the artistic directorship of the then-failing Scottish Ballet, and over the subsequent 10 years redeveloped the Company into an internationally renowned modern ballet company with an eclectic repertoire. Now in the third phase of his career as a freelance choreographer and director, Page is currently working on numerous commissions from ballet and contemporary dance companies around the world.

A ballet master with The Joffrey Ballet since 2011 after a career dancing with such companies as the Nice Opera Ballet, Deutsche Oper am Rhein in Dusseldorf, Zurich Ballet and San Francisco Ballet, Frenchman Blanc created Evenfall in 2013 for Joffrey dancers Derrick Agnoletti, Fabrice Calmels, Rory Hohenstein, Anastacia Holden and Victoria Jaiani, premiering it at the “Festival Danse en PlaceS” in Montauban, France. Set to Max Richter’s The Four Seasons, this lyrical piece follows the thread of poetry running through the lives of a couple at the beginning of their romance and then through their autumn years.  As the poet suggests, life is a collection of memories.

In Creases, Ashley Page’s World Premiere and Evenfall are presented in 10 performances only, April 22-May 3, 2015.

In the spring, the Joffrey plans a special gala performance celebrating 20 years in Chicago.

Tickets and Subscriptions

Three-program subscriptions, which do not include the September engagement or The Nutcracker, start at $84.  Subscriptions will be available for purchase as of February 19, 2014, online at joffrey.org, by mail (Joffrey Ballet Subscriptions, The Joffrey Ballet, Joffrey Tower, 10 East Randolph Street, Chicago, IL 60601), by telephone at 312-386-8905, by fax at 312-739-0119, or by email at subscriptions@joffrey.org.  Subscribers have the option to add on the September engagement at 50% off the single ticket price.

Single tickets are priced from $32 to $170 for the September, October, February and April/May performances.  Single tickets for The Nutcracker are priced from $32 to $134.  Single tickets for the September engagement will be available for purchase June 2; single tickets for all other programs will be available starting August 1, 2014. Single tickets are available at The Joffrey Ballet’s official Box Office located in the lobby of 10 East Randolph Street, as well as the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University Box Office, all Ticketmaster Ticket Centers, by telephone at 800-982-2787, or online at www.ticketmaster.com.  

The Joffrey Ballet is grateful for the support of its 2014-2015 Season Sponsors and Partners.  With special thanks to Alphawood Foundation Chicago, The Anne and Burt Kaplan Fund of the Mayer & Morris Kaplan Family Foundation, NIB Foundation, Abbott Fund, Chicago Center for Orthopedics at Weiss, Dr. and Mrs. Josef Lakonishok, JW Marriott, United Airlines and AthletiCo.

For more information on The Joffrey Ballet and its programs please visit joffrey.org.

ACT OUT OPENING: Heartbeat of Home #BroadwayInChicago

ChiIL Live Shows will be there tonight to review opening night of Heartbeat of Home.  We can't wait to experience this multicultural melding of Irish, Latin and Afro-Cuban music and dance.  The Oriental Theatre is one of our favorite venues in Chicago and sure to enhance the production with it's intricate artwork adorned walls.

Created by the Producers and Director of Riverdance, HEARTBEAT OF HOME is a music and dance spectacular featuring the dynamic, vibrant components of traditional Irish, Latin and Afro-Cuban music and dance. The world-class cast of forty includes a ten-piece band creating a new and electrifying sound written by award-winning, Golden-Globe-nominated composer Brian Byrne.

The show employs high-definition, cutting-edge projection technology and has an engaging narrative structure. Produced by Moya Doherty, devised and directed by John McColgan with narrative and lyrics by award-winning Irish writer Joseph O'Connor. Joseph comments: 'when we marry the sexiness of salsa to the thunder of Irish dance, the lyricism of tango to the yearning of Sean-nós, what a night of storytelling we shall have'. 

The cast includes world-class Irish, Latin and Afro-Cuban dancers and with choreography by David Bolger, the production will create a dream-world of joyous, heart-stopping, high-energy music and dance.

Thodos Dance Winter Concert at Harris Theatre #dance

Winter Concert 2014 featuring A world premiere collaboration  by  Jeanne Gang Founder and Principal Studio Gang Architects  and  Melissa Thodos Founder and Artistic Director Thodos Dance Chicago  The return of A Light in the Dark, the story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan co-choreographed by  Melissa Thodos  and  Broadway legend  Ann Reinking The world premiere of Tsuru by Lucas Crandall  Ballet Master Hubbard Street Dance Chicago And TDC  New Dances 2013 standout  Panem Nostrum Quoditianum ("Our Daily Bread") by Ahmad Simmons River North Dance Chicago THODOS DANCE CHICAGO AND STUDIO GANG ARCHITECTS INVESTIGATE THE INTERSECTION OF ARCHITECTURE AND DANCE WITH WORLD PREMIERE COLLABORATION MAR. 8 & 9 AT CHICAGO'S HARRIS THEATRE      Thodos Dance ensemble members at one of Studio Gang's signature Chicago structures,   the Nature Boardwalk at Lincoln Park Zoo (photos by Katie Graves.)        Melissa Thodos                                             Jeanne Gang  Photo by Cheryl Mann                                   © Sally Ryan Photography, Courtesy of Studio Gang Architects ALSO ON THE PROGRAM:   A REPRISE OF LAST YEAR'S SMASH HIT   A LIGHT IN THE DARK,  THE STORY OF HELEN KELLER AND ANNE SULLIVAN  BY MELISSA THODOS AND ANN REINKING       Pictured:  Thodos ensemble members Alissa Tollefson as Anne Sullivan and Jessica Miller Tomlinson as Helen Keller; Melissa Thodos with Ann Reinking.  Photos by Cheryl Mann A WORLD PREMIERE,  TSURU, BY HUBBARD STREET'S LUCAS CRANDALL  AND  PANEM NOSTRUM QUODITIANUM  ("OUR DAILY BREAD") BY AHMAD SIMMONS, RIVER NORTH DANCE CHICAGO Leading artists from Chicago's culture scene, Melissa Thodos and Jeanne Gang, have combined their singular talents to create a cross-disciplinary, world-premiere dance that explores the fascinating worlds of-and intersections among-dance, architecture and physics. The program also boasts the return of TDC's acclaimed story ballet A Light in the Dark, the story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan, co-choreographed by Melissa Thodos and Broadway legend Ann Reinking; Tsuru, a world premiere by Hubbard Street Dance Chicago's Lucas Crandall; and Panem Nostrum Quoditianum (Latin for "our daily bread") by Ahmad Simmons of River North Dance Chicago. Two shows only at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance, 205 East Randolph Street, Chicago, on Saturday, March 8 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, March 9 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $20-$60; half off for students, seniors and industry. Purchase tickets at the Harris by calling (312) 334-7777 or visiting harristheaterchicago.org. More about the Thodos Dance Chicago/Studio Gang Architects collaboration    (Photo on right, from left) Thodos Dance Chicago Artistic Director Melissa Thodos and Jeanne Gang at an initial meeting at Studio Gang Architects (photo on right, from left: Jeanne Gang and Melissa Thodos; photos by Claire Cahan).      Melissa Thodos, founder and artistic director of Thodos Dance Chicago, is the only female choreographer in Chicago to have helmed her own mid-sized, contemporary dance company for more than two decades with the unique mission of providing her ensemble dancers a platform to pursue dance as a performer, choreographer and educator.    Jeanne Gang is founder and principal of Studio Gang Architects, recognized as one of architecture's most innovative, well-regarded, and closely watched firms - and one uniquely interested in projects aimed at connecting, enhancing, and restoring urban and natural landscapes.  Studio Gang Architects is designing an interactive structure that combines art and science, tapping into cutting-edge research being performed by physicist Sidney Nagel and the Nagel Group at the University of Chicago.This new process, informally called "jamming," is being used to create vacuum-supported membrane structures with load-bearing properties. Responding to movement and other stimuli, the structure, stage set and dancers will transform into a live study of motion, material, shape, composition and light.  According to Gang, "Studio Gang Architects has long admired the work of Thodos Dance Chicago and its mission to inspire expression. As architects we are interested in how TDC uses the body's physicality and the mechanism of performance to catalyze community and creative discovery. We are thrilled to collaborate with Thodos Dance Chicago on this unique project exploring parallels between the worlds of audience and performer, art and science, movement and stasis." "Jeanne and her Studio Gang colleagues are true visionaries, and we've so enjoyed bringing our different but not altogether dissimilar creative worlds together with this project," Thodos added. "This collaboration reinforces many facets of Thodos Dance Chicago's mission of inspiring expression through performance, education and creation. This work will reflect the transformative power of dance and design as we blend our visions, fueled by cutting-edge science and the body, light and atmosphere, form and function, and create a brand new environment for our audiences to experience." More about A Light in the Dark, the story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan, back by popular demand Back by popular demand, Thodos Dance Chicago's Winter Concert 2014 will also boast a revival of the company's critically acclaimed smash hit A Light in the Dark, the story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan. This full-length story ballet, co-choreographed by Melissa Thodos and Broadway legend Ann Reinking, tells the intimate family story of Helen Keller, the extraordinary woman who was deaf and blind yet went on to become a world-famous writer, political activist and inspiration to all, and her teacher Anne Sullivan, who led Helen into a world of education, activism and intellectual celebrity.     A Light in the Dark features original music by composer Bruce Wolosoff, and was created in collaboration with dance legend Gary Chryst, rehearsal and stage direction; Nathan Tomlinson, TDC's resident lighting designer; and Nathan Rohrer, TDC's resident costume designer.   Hedy Weiss, dance critic with the Chicago Sun-Times, named the 2013 debut of A Light in the Dark one of the "Top 10 Dances of 2013," calling it "a feast for the senses...a powerful portrait of the meaning of communication, movement, independence, freedom and love." The Chicago Tribune hailed it as "a visceral illustration of the power of dance to enlighten." Dance Magazine wrote "the choreography weaves a tale with an almost mythic tone that gives us great new insight into Helen Keller's world."  The making of A Light in the Dark was the subject of Shine, a half-hour documentary captured through the lens of Emmy Award-winning Chicago filmmaker Christopher Kai Olsen. The documentary, which debuted on WTTW-TV, Channel 11 last September, will be rebroadcast on Channel 11 on Sunday, February 2 at 2:30 p.m., less than three weeks before the dance is reprised in Skokie and again at the Harris in March.     Thodos Dance Chicago is conducting extensive outreach to Chicago's vision- and hearing-impaired communities by offering complimentary tickets, discounted tickets, and special services including pre-show Touch Tours of the set, live audio description of the performance via two-way headsets, and braille and large-print programs. These services, piloted with great success last year, allow this critically important audience to experience contemporary dance, many for the first time, and in particular this creative retelling of the story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan through dance. In addition, Thodos Dance has created Connections, an experiential education outreach component targeting school and community groups that will link the story of Helen Keller, A Light in the Dark and contemporary dance to spur discussions about disability awareness. A LIGHT IN THE DARK - TRAILER from Kai Harding on Vimeo. Enjoy excerpts a performance of  A Light in the Dark, the story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan Also on Thodos' Winter Concert 2014 program Internationally established choreographer Lucas Crandall, Rehearsal Director at Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, was tapped by Thodos Dance Chicago to set a new work that also will premiere at Winter Concert 2014. Titled Tsuru, this new full-company work embodies the search to find inner freedom amidst an environment full of adversity, and embraces the idea of the liberation of the soul.  Crandall has been creating works since 1982, and his pieces have been performed in the United States and abroad. Prior to re-joining Hubbard Street earlier this year, Crandall most recently  served as a guest teacher for the Ballet du Grand Theatre de Geneve, guest Ballet Master for Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal and Rehearsal Director for Northwest Dance Project.   Making the jump from TDC's New Dances series last summer to the company's official repertoire at Winter Concert 2014 is Panem Nostrum Quoditianum (Latin for "our daily bread") by guest choreographer Ahmad Simmons, a dancer with River North Dance Chicago.  Simmons first caught Melissa Thodos's eye back in 2006 when he was her student at the Broadway Theatre Project in Florida, so they have enjoyed a special connection even prior to his arrival on Chicago's dance scene.  Panem Nostrum Quoditianum is a spiritual, lyrical piece which explores the roots of Ahmad's learning; the dancers experience trust, community and freedom as they challenge their bodies to move beyond the mind. The Chicago Tribune called it "robust in technique and thought-provoking in theme, a sincere, straightforward exploration of spiritual matters in dance, a recitation of 'The Lord's Prayer' boldly part of its accompaniment."    About Thodos Dance Chicago  In 1992, Melissa Thodos, a young Evanston-born, Chicago-based dancer and choreographer, was frustrated with the lack of opportunities for local dancers to work in what in her mind was the obvious environment for any well-rounded dance professional:  A place to perform.  A place to create. And a place to educate. Fast-forward 20 years, and Thodos is the only female choreographer to have helmed her own mid-sized, contemporary dance company in Chicago for two decades with this unique mission. Today, Thodos Dance Chicago (TDC) is an ensemble of twelve versatile dance artists with a captivating style that uses a variety of dance forms. The company's unique mission of inspiring expression through dance education, dance creation and dance performance has established Thodos Dance Chicago as an innovative presence in American contemporary dance.  Thodos Dance Chicago features the American voice in contemporary dance and has created two critically acclaimed story ballets.  In addition to performing works by Melissa Thodos and resident artists, TDC performs a diverse array of works created by other reputable choreographers: Bob Fosse, Ann Reinking, Lar Lubovitch, Shapiro & Smith, Jon Lehrer, Michael Anderson, Zachary Whittenburg, Amy Ernst, Ron De Jesús, Gustavo Ramírez Sansano and KT Nelson. TDC ensemble members themselves also create highly-charged, illuminating world premieres every year in the company's acclaimed New Dances choreography series.   Thodos Dance Chicago ensemble members, who each teach, choreograph and perform with innovative flair, include veterans John Cartwright, Annie Deutz, Elizabeth Dickson, Alissa Tollefson, Kyle Hadenfeldt, Joshua Manculich, Jessica Miller Tomlinson, Jon Sloven and Diana Winfree.  New ensemble members this season are Tenley Dorrill, Brandon Harneck and Laura Zimmerer. Laura Gates is the company's rehearsal director and ballet mistress.   Thodos Dance Chicago continues to expand its artistic and institutional boundaries under the guidance of Founder and Artistic Director Melissa Thodos, Executive Director Gail Ford, Grants and Booking Director Rick Johnston, Board President Elaine Rosenfeld Margulis, a dedicated board of directors and administrative staff, and the support of thousands of contemporary dance enthusiasts both in Chicago and nationwide.     The company is supported by the Illinois Arts Council-a state agency, Target, The Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, The Richard H. Driehaus Foundation, The Arts Work Fund, The Morrison-Scherer Foundation, The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation, The Saints and many individual and corporate sponsors.       For more information, visit thodosdancechicago.org.  About Studio Gang Architects MacArthur Fellow Jeanne Gang is the founder of Studio Gang Architects, a Chicago-based collective of architects, designers, and thinkers practicing internationally. Jeanne uses architecture as a medium of active response to contemporary issues and their impact on human experience. Her work with Studio Gang is designed to resonate with its specific site and culture while addressing larger global themes such as reuse and sustainability. With this approach, Studio Gang has produced some of today's most innovative and visually compelling architecture. The firm's projects range from tall buildings like the Aqua Tower, whose façade encourages building community in the vertical dimension, to the Nature Boardwalk at Lincoln Park Zoo, where fourteen acres of biodiverse habitat are designed to double as storm water infrastructure and engaging public space. Honored and published widely, Studio Gang's work has been exhibited at the Venice Architecture Biennale, the Museum of Modern Art, the National Building Museum, and the Art Institute of Chicago. For more information, visit studiogang.net. Screen excerpts of Thodos Dance Chicago's 2013-2014 Repertoire