Jeremiah and Mona Enna, founders of Störling Dance Theater and The Culture House (photo by Isaac Alongi)
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. What about an entire ballet of moving pictures?
Known for her brilliant choreography of both movement and stories, Mona Störling-Enna, Artistic Director of Störling Dance Theater, is at it again.
Störling Dance Theater is a Kansas City-based, neo-classical modern dance company.
This April, just after the company celebrates its 30th anniversary, they will premiere Störling-Enna’s newest creation, “Dorothea’s Lens.”
Based on the work of Great Depression-era photographer Dorothea Lange, her iconic photos that uplifted communities and impacted cultures will come to life in this riveting new production.
Incorporating live music with period costumes, sets and props, Dorothea’s Lens shines a light on Störling-Enna’s unending innovation.
“I love history, and I’m drawn to creating story ballets with themes that take the audience on a transformational journey,” said Störling-Enna. “My goal is to transport the audience into a beautiful world that doesn’t shy away from truth. I hope they see themselves in the characters and are inspired in their own lives.”
Another such production is “Underground,” the story ballet for which the company is most well-known.
The idea for the production came in response to the racial unrest the Ennas witnessed in the late ’90s. “Underground” has become a Kansas City staple, bringing diverse audiences to the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts year after year. It even inspired, in part, the creation and strategy of a local nonprofit working toward racial healing, Unite KC.
This year, the production will take a new form as “Underground: An American Experience” takes the stages of schools throughout the Kansas City metro, bringing an educational assembly that highlights the same lesson of fighting evil with good.
Since Finnish-born Störling-Enna and her American husband, Jeremiah Enna, Störling’s Executive Director, moved to the States from Europe in 1996, their aim has been to make meaningful contributions of beauty, truth and goodness to the Kansas City community and beyond. The dynamic duo has found inventive ways to do just that, incorporating their Christian worldview as the foundation, their creativity as the means, and their heart for people as the resilience, bringing them to 30 years of sharing the beauty of dance and the power of story.
The company will celebrate 30 years on March 6, 2026, and 2026-2027 will commemorate the 30th anniversary season.
For more about Störling Dance Theater and tickets to “Dorothea’s Lens,” visit www.storlingdance.org.
–Shannon Renée
