Ten local dance companies are ready to take to the Playhouse Square stage at Dance Showcase presented by Terry and Sheldon Adelman on September 29. The annual, free event will feature a wide range of dance styles – from ballet to hip hop – plus a special guest appearance by the groundbreaking, all-female tap production, Chloé Arnold's Syncopated Ladies.
Local companies performing include Catherine Meredith & Artists, Christina Lindhout, Cleveland Dance Project Company, Dancing Wheels Company, ELEVĀTED, GroundWorks DanceTheater, Inlet Dance Theatre, SOĀR, Tabitha in Motion and Verb Ballets.
The event is free, but tickets are required. Tickets are available at playhousesquare.org or by calling 216-241-6000.
Dance Showcase Repertoire
Catherine Meredith & Artists
Touch
One of the vital things we lost as a community during COVID was the intimacy and comfort of touch. This piece is a commentary on mending this disruption and rediscovering the wonder & beauty of true human connection.
Christina Lindhout
just a vibe
"just a vibe" is an original tongue-in-cheek contemporary dance piece inspired by the many definitions and applications of the word "vibe." The piece explores how we spend our leisure time, both together and alone. “just a vibe” (jēst ah vīb): Adverb, noun (1)- A state of being where one is simply relaxing with no emotion at all. Adverb, verb (2)- To be fully invested in oneself, ignorant to the outside world. To display confidence. See also: "feeling myself." Adverb, verb; adjective (3)- To directly or indirectly enjoy the company of other people; To be in harmony with the energies and activities of others. (Sources: Merriam Webster, Oxford Languages, Urban Dictionary). This piece premiered in 2023 as a commission by Verb Ballets.
Cleveland Dance Project Company
Seeking Serenity
This piece is an introspective look at today's busy culture tendencies and the toll that being constantly busy is taking on our mental health. We explore the dissonance between societal praise for the constant drive to succeed, and the resulting anxiety disorders that can plague us behind closed doors. This project aims to normalize self-care and recognize the beauty in pause. We encourage the viewer to take a deep breath and identify where in their own lives they may need to reflect and reprioritize. This piece was originally created as a video work and has been reset for stage.
Dancing Wheels Company
Trust
We live for hope. We comfort each other through diversity. We are together as individuals and as one. “Trust” was choreographed by Brian Murphy in 2022 on the Dancing Wheels Company for “Beyond Boundaries, Barriers & Belief!”, a nationally touring concert created to recognize the distinct talents of the artists with and without disabilities that participate in physically integrated dance.
ELEVĀTED
Sunday School: LOVE
This piece is about Love. We want to share our love for dance and each other by having our audience join us at Sunday School. This lesson is on LOVE!
GroundWorks DanceTheater
Sheep’s Gothic (Excerpt)
“Sheep’s Gothic” explores the common idiom, “A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing” and inverts the subject to find individual pathways to one’s true sense of self. What happens when one detaches from the herd and what is underneath, sheep or wolf?
Inlet Dance Theatre
Cohering
This work is the result of a recent collaboration with the Cleveland Orchestra, in which Inlet performed in their family concert in Feb 2023. To cohere is to be united, form a whole, or hold together. Cohesion is a desire I have for our fractured community and world. Inlet is actively cohering with others in our studios, in theaters, and throughout our and other communities.
SOĀR
Haunted
The piece is about learning to live with the past BUT loving the present.
Tabitha in Motion
Before You Go
“Before You Go” is a dance inspired by the suicide awareness project. This piece shows the struggle of both the victim and their loved ones feel when the burden becomes too heavy.
Verb Ballets
Celebration
Verb, “Ohio Contemporary Ballet” is honored to participate in the Centennial Celebration of the 100th birthday of former Joffrey Ballet Co-Artistic Director and founder, Gerald Arpino. Throughout his 50-year career, Arpino created nearly 50 ballets for Joffrey Ballet. Verb, “Ohio Contemporary Ballet” is the first company to ever license the work, Celebration. This ballet is a high voltage bravura ballet set to a dynamic Shostakovich score. Premiering in Chicago, which later became Joffrey Ballet's home, Celebration was initially created for Joffrey Ballet's 25th Anniversary National Tour and was revived for Joffrey Ballet's 50th Anniversary Season in Chicago.
Syncopated Ladies
Syncopated Ladies: Live is a ground-breaking All-Female Tap production that propels beautiful, classy, and diverse women onto a re-invigorated stage, weaving their inspiring stories with intricate footwork, feminine prowess, and life-renewing energy. It is a celebration of sisterhood, empowerment, and black girl magic wrapped up in the package of a music video.
Dancing to today’s cutting-edge music, from Pop to Hip-hop to Salsa, and even a couple tear-jerking Ballads, Syncopated Ladies: Live is electrifying, stirring, and energizing, a nonstop action-filled show.
Founded by Emmy Nominated Choreographer, Chloé Arnold, who was discovered at a young age in Washington, DC by Debbie Allen. Her choreography has been featured on hit television shows such as So You Think You Can Dance, Good Morning America, The Ellen Show, The Talk, and over 30 episodes of The Late Late Show With James Corden. Syncopated Ladies’ viral videos have amassed over 100 million views, and they have worked with Mega star Beyonce, FOX’s So You Think You Can Dance, Good Morning America, the James Corden Show, the US Open, and most recently with Mariah Carey in her Christmas Special and on CNN’s NYE Live. In 2022 Chloé choreographed the feature film Spirited (with Ryan Reynolds, Will Ferrell, Octavia Spencer).