For the second year Lisa Starry of Scorpius Dance Theater will bring together dancers and choreographers from around the state for a showcase of kick-ass contemporary dance.
The show is a take on the highly acclaimed Choreographer's Carnival, except Kick-A Dance Showcase features work from Arizona choreographers. If you enjoyed the performances the first time around, then you'll be happy to know the number of submissions for this year's event doubled from last year, giving Starry an even more impressive pool from which to select.
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In addition to featuring pieces from various up-and-coming choreographers, the showcase will include several new works from Starry.
"I want the audiences to be surprised with new works," she says.
Though she said she couldn't reveal much about the new pieces before the première of the show, Starry said one would be a re-working of a piece she's already shown and another would be a "pretty intense small group piece" set to music from the score of the recent Great Gatsby movie. Her four works in the showcase will be called "No More Walls," "Rotation," "I'm Your DJ," and "Deep Web."
Kick-A isn't a themed production, but each of the pieces had to have just the right qualities to make it into the show. Choreographers and dancers had to present their work in front of a panel of judges in order to be selected. Starry said she and the judges were looking for "highly entertaining" works that were, of course, totally kick-ass. Each of the pieces is also shorter than five minutes, meaning they had to pack a lot of punch to meet her qualifications of being inspirational, original, and indicative of a strong choreographer-dancer partnership.
The majority of the dances fall into the contemporary/modern category though some hip hop and other dance forms are included. Starry says the styles in the showcase will look familiar to those people may have seen on the T. show So You Think You Can Dance.
"It's just a great time to go out and get introduced to some choreographers I'm supporting," Starry said of the show. "Scorpius is all me so this is my chance to let others shine."
Kick-A will run from June 13 through the 15 for a total of five performances at the Phoenix Theater Little Theater. Tickets will be available through the Phoenix Theater and cost $25 a person.
