TOUGH TO BEAT MODERN DANCE TROUPE TOUTS RESILIENCE IN 'STICKS & STONES'.Byline: Vicki Smith Paluch Correspondent IMMEDIATELY AFTER the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, the childhood chant ``Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me'' kept popping up in the mind of contemporary dance choreographer Kitty McNamee. Three of the members of her Los Angeles-based Hysterica Dance Company - costume designer Grant Krajecki and dancers Ryan Heffington and Shari Nyce - were in New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. for fashion week on that horrific day. ``They were stuck in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , and I couldn't think of anything else,'' recalls the 33-year-old choreographer. ``I began working on 'Red Wagon,' the genus of 'Sticks & Stones,' '' an evening-length dance work that will be performed tonight at the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre List of Ford Amphitheatres
`` 'Sticks & Stones' is about our resilience: how things bounce off us and we go forward,'' McNamee says. ``After 9/11, your eyes are more open because you can't take anything for granted.'' In ``Sticks & Stones'' - which is performed by Hysterica's seven dancers to the music and lyrics of composer Matthew Sims and singer-musician H. Katie Eastburn - Techno Everyman (Heffington) wakes to find himself in a world that isn't quite what it seems. ``The work is very personal. Ryan is from a small town in Northern California Northern California, sometimes referred to as NorCal, is the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The region contains the San Francisco Bay Area, the state capital, Sacramento; as well as the substantial natural beauty of the redwood forests, the northern (Yuba City), and now he's part of L.A.'s creative scene. I have this image of Ryan in this crazy, brave new world Brave New World Aldous Huxley’s grim picture of the future, where scientific and social developments have turned life into a tragic travesty. [Br. Lit.: Magill I, 79] See : Dystopia Brave New World ,'' McNamee says. ``He's wandering around in a daze. That's how everyone feels when they first get to L.A., and that's how everyone felt after 9/11 when our world was shaken up.'' McNamee knows the feeling of being lost in a new town and finding yourself, as well as your calling. She started dancing at age 15 in her home state of Ohio as a member of the drill team. When her family moved to Texas, she studied modern dance and ballet at the High School for Performing and Visual Arts in Houston. She earned her BFA BFA abbr. Bachelor of Fine Arts BFA abbr BFA, B.F.A Bachelor of Fine Arts; first degree in Fine Arts. in dance at the University of Texas at Austin “University of Texas” redirects here. For other system schools, see University of Texas System. The University of Texas at Austin (often referred to as The University of Texas, UT Austin, UT, or Texas . She performed with Dance Repertory Theatre, Sharir Dance Company, Sara Brumgart and Woody McGriff. McNamee then moved to Hollywood to develop her edgy, urban pop-influenced style of contemporary dance. In ``Sticks & Stones,'' she uses an angular, contemporary dance style with the precision of ballet. Her dancers hit slightly odd, brash angles and change from disjointed, mechanized mech·a·nize tr.v. mech·a·nized, mech·a·niz·ing, mech·a·niz·es 1. To equip with machinery: mechanize a factory. 2. movements to sultry undulations. McNamee established Hysterica Dance Company in 1997. In two of her earlier works presented at the Ford Amphitheatre, McNamee collaborated with video artists, creating multimedia dance works. She has also choreographed for film, television and stage, including choreographing for Lily Tomlin in ``Happy Birthday Elizabeth Taylor,'' Sheryl Lee Ralph Sheryl Lee Ralph (born on December 30, 1956, in Waterbury, Connecticut) is a Tony Award-nominated American actress and singer of Jamaican ancestry. Biography Ralph graduated from high school at age 16. She graduated from Rutgers University at age 19 in 1975. in ``Divas Simply Singing'' and ``Moscow,'' the winner of the best-musical award at the 2001 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. Creating urban dances, McNamee dresses her dancers to kill, using Krajecki, the fashion designer whose Grey Ant clothing line is known for its ``roughly elegant retro-fashions,'' and the emerging design team of Rock OEN OEN Optical Entertainment Network (Houston, Texas) OEN Ontario Education Number OEN OpEdNews (website) OEN Ontario Environmental Network OEN Original Equipment Number Sissy sis·sy n. pl. sis·sies 1. A boy or man regarded as effeminate. 2. A person regarded as timid or cowardly. 3. Informal Sister. , whose look is described by McNamee as ``trash chic.'' McNamee's work is influenced by cinema, new-wave music and pop culture. Her edgy and theatrical dances are not simply about movement; they are about human emotions and psychology. ``This work is extremely personal,'' she said. ``I believe that by telling individual stories, you reach universal truths.'' STICKS & STONES Who: Hysterica Dance Company. Where: John Anson Ford Amphitheatre, 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Hollywood. When: 8 tonight. Tickets: $20 for adults, $12 for students and children. (323) 461-3673. CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1 -- 2) R.J. Durell and Lisa Eaton in Hysterica Dance Company's ``Sticks & Stones,'' tonight at the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre. |
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