New Dance Partners
September 20-21 the Midwest Trust Center will present New Dance Partners featuring four world premiere pieces from four local dance companies. The evening will include modern and contemporary dance from national and international choreographers under the artistic advisement of Michael Uthoff.
This year’s companies and choreographers include:
The Kansas City Ballet with Peter Chu
Peter Chu is an award-winning multi-faceted movement artist, embodying roles from director, choreographer, stager, mentor, educator, and performer. His ongoing curiosity informs his voracious appetite for learning across contexts, and his compassion leads him to generously share his wide range of experiences and knowledge with others. Chu’s passion for the arts and entertainment drives his vivid imagination and creativity throughout his work.
Kansas City Ballet is a 30-member professional ballet company under the leadership of Artistic Director Devon Carney and Executive Director David Gray. The company’s mission is to establish Kansas City Ballet as an indispensable asset in its community through exceptional performances, excellence in dance training and quality community education programs for all ages. This marks Kansas City Ballet’s ninth year with New Dance Partners.
Owen/Cox Dance Group with Alexander Anderson
Alexander Anderson is a South Florida native where he attended the Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts, Class of 2010. Upon graduation, Alexander was accepted to The Juilliard School. During his time at Juilliard, Alexander performed works by renowned choreographers such as Nacho Duato, William Forsythe, Pina Baush, and Jiri Kylian among others. While currently residing in New York City, Alexander has served on the faculty of the Ailey Fordham BFA (Professional Division), Peridance, Steps On Broadway, Gibney Dance, School of American Ballet (SAB) and ABT’s Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School.
Owen/Cox Dance Group’s mission is to create new music and dance collaborations, present high-quality contemporary dance performances with live music, and engage as wide an audience as possible through affordable live performance, education and outreach programs. Founders Jennifer Owen and Brad Cox bring together talented artists representing a variety of genres to perform contemporary dance with live music. This will be Owen/Cox’s eleventh year with New Dance Partners.
Störling Dance Theater with Hélène Simoneau
Hélène Simoneau is a French-Canadian choreographer exploring themes of intimacy, agency, identity, sexuality, and power. Her choreography has been commissioned by Oregon Ballet Theatre, The Juilliard School, Charlotte Ballet, PARA.MAR Dance Theatre, Vitacca Ballet, Amy Seiwert’s Imagery, BalletX, the Ailey School, Dimensions Dance Theatre, and the American Dance Festival. She was recently a Choreography Fellow at New York City Center and received a 2021 Guggenheim Fellowship.
Störling Dance Theater is the artistic vision of Mona Störling-Enna who moved to Kansas City in 1995 to launch the company. With beauty and story as her skillset, Mona set out to enrich the community with stories and visions that would inspire others with concepts of relationships, community and hope. 2022 will be Störling’s eighth year with New Dance Partners.
Regina Klenjoski Dance Company with Kia S Smith
Kia S. Smith is a Chicago native and founder of South Chicago Dance Theatre. Smith was named one of DANCE MAGAZINE’S 25 TO WATCH for 2024 and her recent choreographic commissions include Southeast Missouri State University (2024), Chautauqua Opera (2023), Chicago Opera Theater (2023, 2022), Giordano Dance Chicago (2023), Houston Contemporary Dance Company (2023), Middle Tennessee State University (2023), University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee (2023), Western Michigan University (2023), Chicago Repertory Ballet (2022), Ruth Page Civic Ballet Training Company (2022), and Madison Ballet (2021).
Founded in 1999 in Los Angeles and expanded to Wichita, Kansas, in 2014, Regina Klenjoski Dance Company (RKDC) is a prominent contemporary dance company that has captivated audiences with its innovative choreography and dynamic performances, often challenging the traditional boundaries between artist and audience. Under the visionary leadership of Founder and Artistic Director Regina Klenjoski, the company has become renowned for its interdisciplinary approach and deep commitment to collaboration, intersecting dance with poetry, original music, film, and visual art. This will be their first year participating in New Dance Partners.
To learn more, visit jccc.edu/MidwestTrustCenter. Purchase tickets here.
