CHICAGO, February 4, 2015 - Thodos Dance Chicago's 23rd Anniversary Winter Concerts, titled Chicago Inspired, promise a rich tapestry of dance anchored by rarely performed works by Chicago native and Broadway legend Bob Fosse restaged by Ann Reinking, recreations of works by Chicago modern dance pioneer Sybil Shearer, and cutting edge present day creations by Melissa Thodos, Garfield Lemonius, Brian Enos, John Cartwright and Tenley Dorrill.
Thodos Dance's Chicago Inspired concerts are Saturday, February 21 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, 9501 Skokie Boulevard in Skokie. Tickets are $28-$50. For tickets and information, call ( 847 ) 673-6300 or visit northshorecenter.org .
Chicago Inspired will also be presented Saturday, March 7 at 7:30 p.m. at the Harris Theatre for Music and Dance, 205 E. Randolph St., Chicago. Tickets are $15-$65; 40% off for students and seniors. Purchase tickets at the Harris by calling ( 312 ) 334-7777 or visiting harristheaterchicago.org .
The program includes a revival of TDC audience favorite Fosse Trilogy, a trio of three rarely performed works from Bob Fosse's archives originally created for TV in the late 1960s, set on Thodos Dance more than 30 years later with new transition choreography by Broadway and film veteran and Fosse collaborator Ann Reinking.
"No one is better than Reinking at channeling the great man," wrote the Chicago Tribune when Fosse Trilogy debuted in 2009, "and here she glories in the inimitable quirks, microscopic gestures and mischievous love of line and the body that make Fosse's work irresistible."
Dance Magazine praised its "in-your-face theatricality" adding "clear intention, honest impulse and streamlined design characterize the subtle sophistication of Fosse's aesthetic."
Three 1960s pop songs - Cool Hand Luke, Tijuana Shuffle and Mexican Breakfast - are the retro score for this sassy celebration of Fosse's work. Behind-the-scenes, the savvy observer will note Fosse's choreography for Mexican Breakfast, originally created for The Ed Sullivan Show in 1969 and featuring his wife Gwen Verdon fronting a trio of dancers, was the template for Beyonce's wildly popular Single Ladies video.
Also on the program: the world premiere of Near Light by Artistic Director Melissa Thodos, the Chicago premiere of Memoirs by first-time TDC guest choreographer Garfield Lemonius, reprises of Sybil Shearer's Salute to Old Friends and Brian Enos's Lullaby, and the official debuts into TDC's repertoire of John Cartwright's Flawed and Tenley Dorrill's Night Windows, both created by these TDC ensemble dancers via the company's New Dances 2014 series.
Harris performance followed by benefit party on Pritzker Pavilion stage
Immediately following the Harris performance on March 7, Thodos Dance will host a fantastic Chicago Inspired post-show VIP gala on the enclosed stage of the beautiful Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park.
At approximately 9:30 p.m. gala guests will be spirited pied-piper style to the Harris back stage to enjoy signature cocktails in the Green Room. Then guests will be escorted on a festive, Chicago Inspired decorated elevator to the glass enclosed stage of the Pritzker Pavilion.
With incredible night views of Millennium Park and the Art Institute as an appropriate backdrop, the post-concert gala will continue the company's celebration of Chicago as its inspiration for creativity and community. Thodos' supporters will enjoy a fabulous Chicago Inspired menu, open bar, savory passed hors d'oeuvres, coffee and dessert stations.
Don't forget your dancing shoes, because the enclosed Pritzker stage will have a night club feel when some of Chicago's finest young dance professionals join their guests on the Pritzker stage to dance the night away to live music.
Tickets to the company's Chicago Inspired performance and post-show gala are $275 or $500. In addition, gala guests will be treated to VIP seating at the concert, and cocktails and hors d'oeuvres during intermission in the Donor Room with a performance by the Thodos Dance Chicago Youth Ensemble.
Purchase gala tickets at thodosdancechicago.org or call ( 312 ) 266-6255 .
Looking Ahead: Thodos celebrates 15 years of dance creation with New Dances series,
July 18 & 19 at the Athenaeum
Thodos Dance Chicago's New Dances is one of the city's earliest, most respected in-house choreography series, and is unique and immensely admired in the national dance circuit.
2015 marks the 15th consecutive year Thodos Dance Chicago will offer its dancers the unique opportunity to grow as choreographers, directors and producers via New Dances.
Be part of an amazing evening of new dance discovery when TDC's ensemble members are given
complete freedom to create and present their own new works. Performances are Saturday, July 18 at 7:30 pm, and Sunday, July 19 at 5 p.m. at the Athenaeum Theatre, 2936 N. Southport, Chicago. Tickets are $35; $28 for students and seniors; $20 industry ( dancers and teachers ); $10 for children 12 and under and for groups of 10 or more.
For tickets, visit athenaeum.org or call the Athenaeum Theatre box office, ( 773 ) 935-6875 .
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 23 years, and Thodos is the only female choreographer and director to have helmed her own mid-sized, contemporary dance company in Chicago for more than 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 TDC 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, Lucas Crandall, Brian Enos, Amy Ernst, Ron De Jesús, Gustavo RamÃrez Sansano, Ahmad Simmons and KT Nelson. Thodos Dance Chicago ensemble members, who each teach, choreograph and perform for the company, include veterans John Cartwright, Tenley Dorrill, Kyle Hadenfeldt, Brandon Harneck, Alissa Tollefson, Jessica Miller Tomlinson, Diana Winfree and Lauren Zimmerer. New ensemble members this season are Abby Ellison, Taylor Mitchell, Brennen Renteria and Briana Robinson.
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, Rehearsal Director and Ballet Mistress Laura Gates, Resident Lighting Designer Nathan Tomlinson, Marketing and Operations Manager Annie Zahour, Education and Outreach Associate Kate Weatherly, current Board President Elaine Rosenfeld Margulis, Board President Elect Sharon Lear ( effective April 1, 2015 ), 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 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, The Service Club of Chicago and many individual and corporate sponsors.
For more information, visit thodosdancechicago.org .