Hope College's annual major dance concert, Dance 34, will run Thursday, Feb. 28, to Saturday, March 1, at 8 p.m. at the Knickerbocker Theatre.

 Hope College's annual major dance concert, Dance 34, will run Thursday, Feb. 28, to Saturday, March 1, at 8 p.m. at the Knickerbocker Theatre.

The program will present works created by Hope's dance faculty as well as guest faculty/choreographers Anne-Rene Petrarca and Dorrell Martin.

Petrarca resides in New York City where she teaches, choreographs and performs. She is an assistant faculty member at The Juilliard School, teaching Alexander Technique in the dance department; on the faculty at Dance New Amsterdam; and on the faculty at Dancewave, teaching modern dance technique.

Martin is a faculty member at the Joffrey Ballet School and Dance New Amsterdam. Martin has performed in musicals such as "The Lion King," "Aida," "Swing" and "West Side Story." He is the former artistic director of Houston Metropolitan Dance Company in Houston, Texas. In 2003, the company made its first international debut performance in Veracruz, Mexico. He received honorable mention for choreography at the World Jazz Congress.

The program will open with Rosanne Barton-DeVries' piece, "Nasheem," a transliteration of the Hebrew word meaning "women." DeVries noted that the piece was inspired by the experience of women as they prepare for a wedding celebration. The work is set to an original composition by Richard VanVoorst and Anna L Taylor-Jonkman and features rich moments of intricate rhythmic layering coupled with symbolic gestures exploring the lively dialogue of leaving adolescence behind and expectantly, though tentatively becoming a woman.

Amanda Smith-Heynen's work, "Con Intencion," is inspired by the piece's music, "Classic Meets Cuba," by the Klazz Brothers & Cuba Percussion. The Klazz Brothers are classically trained musicians from Germany, who upon taking a trip to Cuba fell in love with Cuban percussion.

"All Things Come to the Frog," choreographed by Linda Graham with music by Tim Sparks, is loosely based on a poem of the same name written in 1974 by John Graham. Incorporating fantasy costumes and some unusual set options, it tells the tale of a frog's transformative encounter with a very special fly and a happy emo-prince.

Watching people try and maintain their self- idealistic image when confronted by unexpected, uncomfortable, and humorous situations inspired Ray Tadio's piece, "Out Loud." This piece was premiered in Nagoya, Japan in 2000.

Guest artist Anne-Rene Petrarca's piece, "Taking Flight," is a journey and exploration of the ability to be invisibly nourished by hope. By embracing the ebb and flow vibrations of life, one creates a pattern, an endlessly changing beauty of unfolding.

Choreographer Steven Iannacone's piece, "Nostalgia," is inspired by the Portuguese word "Fado." Fado is "a state of the soul." It is the incarnation of the path between the divine and the terrestrial.

Dorrell Martin's work, "Electric Counterpart," emphasizes the state of balance. This work uses contrast or interplay of elements that is vibrant and explosive in movement.

Tickets for the performance cost $7 for regular admission and $5 for senior citizens, students, and members of the Hope faculty and staff, and are on sale at the ticket office in the front lobby of the DeVos Fieldhouse. The ticket office is open weekdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and can be called at (616) 395-7890.

The DeVos Fieldhouse is located at 222 Fairbanks Ave., between Ninth and 11th streets. The Knickerbocker Theatre is located in downtown Holland at 86 E. Eighth St.