Golden West College Professional Dance Invitational

Marko Westwood, Nevada Repertory Dance Theater.
[Photo by Jeff Speer]

It Takes a Festival…

Bottom line: budget cuts, closing venues, and economy-related attendance declines have made it difficult for choreographers and small dance companies to find opportunities to perform. While funding has always been an issue for artists, the current economy has made things more difficult than usual.

This makes events like Las Vegas’s annual late summer Dance in the Desert Festival and the Golden West College Professional Dance Invitational (Feb. 18 and 19) more essential than ever. Now in its sixth year, the Golden West weekend offers Southern California audiences the opportunity to experience two evenings packed with a selection of professional dance companies in a variety of disciplines, including contemporary ballet, classical modern, Middle Eastern, and jazz.

Nannette Brodie, Director of Dance for Golden West College and host of the event, brings her company Nannette Brodie Dance Theatre to perform its newest work, Body of Water, along with Tango Point. Other Southern California companies participating are Jazzworks-Long Beach, under the direction of Andrew Vaca, Kenneth Walker Dance Project, Donna Sternberg and Dancers, Intersect Dance Company, and Angelika Nemeth with the Middle Eastern Ensemble (Friday only). Luminario Ballet will present two duets, one choreographed by the late Michael Smuin.

Luminario Ballet

San Francisco Bay Area companies include Anandha Ray, with Moving Arts Dance Company, and David Herrera Performance Company.

Two Nevada groups, Kelly Roth and Dancers and Marko Westwood’s Nevada Repertory Dance Theater also will be coming. Desert Dance Theatre, Dulce Dance Company, and Scorpius Dance Company will represent Arizona.

And There’s Classes

Dancers also can take advantage of a variety of classes at the Invitational’s Master Class Series. The classes will take place at Dance Asylum Dance Studio in Costa Mesa on February 18 and 19, 2011. Classes are $10 each, cash or check.

Golden West College Professional Invitational
Robert B. Moore Theater, Orange Coast College
Costa Mesa, CA
Feb. 18–19, 8:00 p.m.
Information: 714.895.8281 or nbrodie@gwc.cccd.edu
Tickets: http://tinyurl.com/4rm5mw8

Geri Jeter

Former dancer, Geri Jeter, has been editing and writing for over fifteen years, writing on dance, food, music, NASCAR, technical theater, and Italian-American culture. For the past five years, she was the dance critic for the Las Vegas Weekly; in 2007 Nevada Ballet Theatre presented her with the Above and Beyond award. Now living in San Francisco, Geri is excited about covering the entire scope of West Coast dance. You can read more of her dance writing at her blog Dance Blitz (www.dance-blitz.com) and follow her Las Vegas and San Francisco restaurant reviews at DishKebab (www.dishkebab.com).