Hope College is presenting its annual spring student dance concert series.
The concerts on Monday and Tuesday, April 22-23, will take place at the Knickerbocker Theatre in downtown Holland.
The concert series is featuring a variety of dance pieces. All of the works being presented have been created and are danced by Hope College students, who also design and create their own costumes and sound/music scores. The students are mentored by the concert co-producers, dance faculty members Steven Iannacone and Matthew Farmer, and are assisted with lighting and technical design by staff member Erik Alberg, who is the college’s technical director for the performing arts.
The final aspect of the presenting process consists of the department of dance inviting a professional choreographer to campus to adjudicate the students' works. This year's guest adjudicator is Jon Lehrer.
Lehrer is the artistic director and singular choreographer of the internationally touring dance company LehrerDance, and has graced the cover of "Dance Teacher Magazine" for his work with his company. As a performer, Lehrer has danced for great choreographers such as John Passafiume, the Eric Hawkins Dance Company and Giordano Jazz Dance Chicago. He was the associate director for GJDC for 10 years, and during that time built a reputation in Chicago as one of the most creative up-and-coming choreographers in the United States. Lehrer has dance works on dance companies such as Thodos Dance Chicago, Instruments of Movement, Momenta Dance Theatre, Louisiana Dance Theatre, Le Jazz Groupe from Monterrey, Mexico, and Kannon Dance of St. Petersburg, Russia. He is also a master teacher in jazz and his own dance technique (LehrerDance), and has traveled throughout the world teaching and mentoring young dancers. Recently he received the Creative Achievement Award from the National Association of Chicago Dance Masters, and he is on the Board of Advising for "Dance Spirit Magazine." His company LehrerDance recently returned from performing in Russia on behalf of the U.S. Consulate, and is scheduled to begin a three-week tour of Europe in the next few months.
The Dow Center is located at 168 E. 13th St., on the corner of 13th Street and Columbia Avenue. The Knickerbocker Theatre is located at 86 E. Eighth St.