TU DANCE

April 17-19, 2015

Cowles Center for Dance & the Performing Arts

528 Hennepin Avenue, Minneapolis, MN 55403

Tickets: $30-35 (fees included)

Box Office: www.thecowlescenter.org or 612-206-3600

TU Dance Spring Concert Features New Work by Uri Sands

New work inspired by Marian Andersons 1939 performance on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial

(MINNEAPOLIS; March 17, 2015) TU Dance, the acclaimed Minnesota-based dance company led by Toni Pierce-Sands and Uri Sands, returns to the Cowles Center for Dance as part of its 11^th annual performance season. On stage at 8pm on Friday-Saturday, April 17-18, and 2pm on Sunday, April 19th at the Cowles Center in downtown Minneapolis, the concerts feature world premiere work as well as selections from the rich TU Dance repertory by choreographers Uri Sands and Gregory Dolbashian (The Dash Ensemble, New York).

In his world premiere work, The More Things Change, Sands explores the incremental, underlying flux of civil rights progress, reflecting on contemporary themes and inspired by contralto Marian Andersons 1939 open-air concert on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. After having been refused permission to perform at Constitution Hall, Andersons iconic Easter concert, performed for 75,000 and broadcast to millions via radio, broke barriers for African-American artists decades before the civil rights movement.

The program also features favorites from the companys repertory, including the reprise of an audience favorite, For You (2007), centered on the experience of an intense rapport between the performers, a gracious host and a surprise guest who enters a space of trust and generosity. In Keep the Edges Wild (2013), New York choreographer Gregory Dolbashian conveys a fluid vision of urban life-- a signature hybrid of hip-hop and contemporary movement which is distinct and highly relevant for the 21st century (Caroline Palmer, StarTribune).

Uri Sands full-company work, Hikari (2014), rounds out the program. Originally commissioned by the Ordway Center for its TU Dance 10^th anniversary concert, Hikari is an immersive exploration of light, created in collaboration with print artist Hiroki Morinoue.

Over its first 10 years, Saint Paul-based TU Dance has conveyed a contemporary vision of dance as a connective power, drawing artists and audiences into a shared theater experience that celebrates, challenges and inspires. Founded in 2004 by Toni-Pierce Sands and Uri Sands, the professional 12-member company is acclaimed for its diverse, versatile artists, performing work that draws together modern dance, classical ballet, African-based and urban vernacular movements. In 2011, the organization opened TU Dance Center in Saint Paul, which provides year-round educational programming for dance students of all ages and levels of experience and also serves as a home studio for the professional company. Recently, TU Dance was named as one of 5 anchor arts organizations by The John S. And James L. Knight Foundation and granted major support from Knight to expand its dance education programming at TU Dance Center.

TU Dance company members: Darwin Black, Tara Cacciatore, Taylor Collier, Kendra Dennard, Hassan Ingraham, Demetrius McClendon, Alanna Morris-Van Tassel, David Rue, Duncan Schultz, Kaitlin Setzke, Katelyn Skelley and Elayna Waxse.

Tickets: $35, student/senior: $30 (fees included). For more information and tickets, contact the Cowles Center Box Office at 612-206-3600; Tickets can also be purchased online at thecowlescenter.org

RELATED EVENTS

TU Dance Open Rehearsal with Toni Pierce-Sands and Uri Sands and company members

Thursday, April 2, 5:00-6:30pm

TU Dance Center, 2121 University Ave. W., Saint Paul 55114

Post-Performance Discussion, immediately following the 8pm Cowles Center performance on Friday, April 17.

Media contact: Abdo Sayegh Rodríguez, abdo.sayegh@tudance.org 612-384-1202