‘Soulstice,’ Westover’s Dance Concert Performances, April 11 & 12

Westover School’s Annual Dance Concert, “Soulstice,” will be performed Friday, April 11th, and Saturday, April 12th, starting at 7:00 pm in Westover’s Louise B. Dillingham Performing Arts Center Theater. The performances are open to the public at no charge, but donations to support the dance program will be gratefully accepted.

This year’s concert will feature two repertory pieces that embrace Westover’s year-long theme, “The Face of the Other.”

One of the pieces, “Strange Fruit,” was conceived by Director of Dance Patti Buchanan for a 2007 Big Read event based on that year’s selection, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. “I had just recently heard Karen Casey’s haunting vocal rendition of the song, “Strange Fruit,” which took me back to a dark time in our history,” Ms. Buchanan recalled. “The image that came to my mind was of two young women before the Civil War, probably raised together, waking to the horrific sight of lynchings.” The 1939 song, made famous by Billie Holiday, had been adapted from the poem, “Strange Fruit,” written by Abel Meeropol, a Bronx high school teacher, after he had seen a photograph of the 1930 lynching of Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith in Marion, Indiana.

“Losing Your Todays,” a second dance piece choreographed Ms. Buchanan, is set to “Nostalgie Amoureuse” by Zap Mama and explores the world of the homeless. “Seeing the world differently sets some of us apart, and the rest of society struggles to understand this viewpoint,” Ms. Buchanan explained. “I’ve had a series of exchanges with people in downtown Waterbury who have lost their todays. These exchanges have been very illuminating and memorable.”

This year’s concert also will include a contemporary pointe piece by Sarah Surber, the Dance Director at Taft School, and will feature Westover Dance Ensemble members Paige Calabrese and Hannah Meharg.

“We Wish You Well” – set to “Gold,” from the latest release of the music group Cinema 12 – has a special connection to Westover. Bob Kinkel, one of the members of Cinema 12, is the father of Gretchen Kinkel, a member of the Dance Ensemble. “Bob Kinkel, Dina Fanai, Dave Eggar, and Nik Chinboukas of Cinema 12 have generously encouraged us to explore this piece,” Ms. Buchanan said.

Other pieces in the concert will include classical variations, additional faculty works, and student choreography, as well as a guest appearance by the Kiva Dance Collective.

Members of the Dance Ensemble are Paige Calabrese, London Dixon, Chloe Eggert, Gretchen Kinkel, Leigh Kulpa, and Hannah Meharg. Members of Westover’s Dance Team are Nadia Kim, Maggie Liao, Mia McClain, Chelsea Miller, Tracy Nkulikiyimfura, Alyssa Wolak, and Jessica You. Other students participating in the concert include Lauren Benedetto, Mairead Fay, Lexi Fielding, Tina Heinrichs, Charlotte Iwasaki, Karina Sorrels, Nuala Stone, Evie Summermatter, and Sofiya Syrovatskaya.

Reservations for the dance performances may be made by calling 203.577.4535. Parking is available on South Street.

Westover is a selective boarding and day school in Middlebury, Connecticut, with 205 students in grades 9-12 from 17 states and 20 countries. The School offers its students more than 20 Advanced Placement courses as well as signature programs in science, engineering, art history, and music.