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Sept. 25, 2015 — Antaeus Dance, a Cleveland-based company founded by Allegheny College alumna Joan Meggitt, presents its annual fall concert in the college’s Montgomery Performance Space at 8 p.m. on Saturday, October 24. (Please note: This concert was originally scheduled for October 3.)

The company will also offer a free master class at 3 p.m. on October 24. Both events are free and open to the public. Reservations can be made by calling the college’s Dance and Movement Studies program at 814-332-2813.

The concert – which moves through themes of cooperative movement, friendly competition, individual struggle and doubt, and the joys and solace of community –opens with a celebration of dance and community. Director Joan Meggitt’s “Promenade” features four dancers romping through the space, alternating between leisurely duets and buoyant ensemble interludes. Drawing from both modern dance and contra dance, the Pennsylvania premiere of “Promenade” will be performed by Desmond L. Davis, Jessica Hodges, Rhian Virostko and Halle Spero.

The program also includes Davis’ “Now fades the glimmering landscape…,” a poignant elegy to loss and the need to connect in times of pain and suffering. Originally premiered by seven Allegheny students in 2014, the dance has been reworked for Antaeus members Davis, Hodges and Meggitt to perform in more intimate settings.

The centerpiece of the concert is Meggitt’s “Holding Patterns,” a trio performed by Meggitt, Virostko and Shannon Sefcki that portrays the dichotomy of struggle and acceptance.

“This piece operates on two very distinct levels that I see as happening simultaneously, even though the choreography progresses linearly,” Meggitt says. “One is the visceral reality of daily life. It reveals idiosyncrasies of being, nervous twitches, and urges to escape. The other is the internalized calm at the center of the storm; although it is not without its own sadness.” Arvo Part’s music provides a moving score to the action of the dance.

Director Meggitt and dancer/choreographer Davis close the concert in “Are You Ready?” This fast-paced competitive duet, by choreographer Maurice Fraga, director of Ekilibre Dance Company, weaves intricate phrasing through the space. The commission for this piece was provided by Lynn Deering, director of dance at Cleveland State University.

Antaeus Dance has been performing at Allegheny College since 2001. More information about the company can be found at www.AntaeusDance.com.

Photo by Mark G. Horning