RICHARDSON, Texas (Aug. 2, 2005 ) — The School of Arts & Humanities at The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) today announced its the 2005 –2006 season of theatre and dance performances, which will be held in the University Theatre between Sept. 23 and April 9. UTD faculty members will direct each of the plays.
All theatrical performances will run on two consecutive weekends. Friday and Saturday performances will begin at 8 p.m., and Sunday matinees will begin at 2:30 p.m. Dance performances all are scheduled to start at 8 p.m. No late seating will be permitted for these events.
The 2005–2006 Theatre and Dance Season opens on Sept. 23 with Fernando Krapp Wrote Me This Letter by Tankred Dorst and translated by Michael Roloff. Written by one of the masters of contemporary German language theatre, this play of emotions explores, in Dorst’s words, “the discrepancy between utopia and reality.” In the play, wealthy, successful Fernando Krapp returns to town and arranges to marry Julia, the beautiful young daughter of a poor man. Julia resents the forced marriage, falls in love with a count and hides in romanticism, distraught by her conflicting feelings.
Venus Opal Reese will direct Medea Nov. 4-13. This adaptation of the classic Euripides tragedy is set against the backdrop of the Antebellum South and asks a number of provocative questions: Is love ownership? Who can be bought and sold? Who has the right to give life or take it away? Are your children your property? Is your husband or wife truly yours? Are citizens the property of the state – in effect, slaves? Is anyone truly free? This performance seeks to answer those questions. Using dance, vocals and poetry, the themes of love, citizenship and property illuminate this timeless classic in an American context. Faculty members Monica Saba and Michele Hanlon will provide the choreography. UTD’s Performance Innovations Residency guest artist for 2006, nationally renowned performer, director and choreographer
Dr. Thomas DeFrantz, will create a new work combining digital technology and dance. He is the author of Dancing Revelations: Alvin Ailey’s Embodiment of African Culture and the creator of Monk’s Mood: A Performance on the Life and Music of Thelonious Monk, a solo piece that combines tap, technology and jazz. The recipient of a Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Residency and a Ford Foundation Scholarship, DeFrantz is an associate professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His month-long residency will conclude with a performance on Feb. 4.
There is Never a Reference Point , a “performance installation” inspired by the journal writings and watercolors of Jamie Dakis, a woman diagnosed with multiple personality disorder, will open Feb. 16 at 8 p.m. Directed by Thomas Riccio, the performance will take the form of a “walk-through” presentation where visitors explore, each in his or her own way, Dakis’ eight personalities. Using live and media performance, her personalities will present themselves, interacting, sharing histories, artifacts, visions, inspirations and sounds, to portray the complexity of her overlapping and multiple realities. Performances on the second weekend will be at Southside Gallery. Additional information about Southside Gallery and the UTD Southside Artist residency is available at http://ah.utdallas.edu/southside/index.htm.
A two-week joint residency involving UTD and Collin County Community College will bring Pilobolus Too, part of Pilobolus’ education outreach program, to the Dallas area. The performances on March 3 and 4 will consist of two Pilobolus Too master teachers and students from both campuses. This creative dance collective has been widely acclaimed for its choreography as well as its sense of humor and invention. UTD faculty members Monica Saba and Michele Hanlon will work with CCCC faculty member Tiffanee Arnold and Pilobolus Too throughout the residency and performances.
Fred Curchack will direct the season finale, An American Dream Play, which opens March 31. In the work, God’s daughter comes down to earth to experience what it is to be human. Feasting on the fruits of civilization, she discovers marriage, family, education, business, politics, war, religion and art and concludes, “Human beings — what a pity!” This outrageous and hilarious reworking of Strindberg’s classic, A Dream Play, follows the crazy wisdom of the subconscious on a journey into and beyond the insanity of modern life.
Additional information on each event is available on the UTD Arts & Humanities website: http://ah.utdallas.edu/. All programs are subject to change. Additional information on each event is available on the UTD Arts & Humanities website, http://ah.utdallas.edu/. All programs are subject to change. UTD ticket office hours are from 2 to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays and at the door one hour prior to show time. To purchase tickets using Visa, MasterCard or Discover during those hours, please call 972-883-2972.
For information about the many musical, arts, theatre, dance and other performances and exhibitions held throughout the year at UTD, please call 972-UTD-ARTS (972-883-2787), e-mail utdarts@utdallas.edu or visit the School of Arts and Humanities’ web site at http://ah.utdallas.edu/
Persons with disabilities needing special accommodations may call 972-883-2982, Texas Relay Operator: 1-800-RELAYVV.
About UTD
The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor®, enrolls more than 14,000 students. The school’s freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores. The university offers a broad assortment of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs. For additional information about UTD, please visit the university’s Web site at www.utdallas.edu.