Orchesis Dance Company: Cal Poly San Luis Obispo
Encyclopedia
The “Orchesis” idea
In the early twentieth century, the idea of women studying the art of dance or participating freely in an artistic experience was not widely accepted. Margaret H’Doubler, however, created the first dance education program in the university system. Her legacy begins at the University of Michigan in the Physical Education Department.http://www.wisc.edu/ H’Doubler combined creative and scientific approaches to dance. She wanted to give the dancers on campus a chance to perform and eventually founded the "Orchesis Dance Club" in 1918. The word "orchesis," derived from the Greek word "orchestra," means the art or act of dancing. This idea of a performing dance club spread through universities nationwide.Orchesis at Cal Poly
The Orchesis Dance Company at Cal Poly was created by Dr. Moon Ja Minn Suhr. She received her schooling in Korea and graduated from Ewha Women’s University http://www.ewha.ac.kr/eng/index.html. She received her Master’s degree in Dance Education from The University of Northern Colorado and founded the Orchesis Dance Company at Cal Poly in the same year. In 1988, Dr. Suhr received her Ph.D. from Texas Women’s University http://www.twu.edu/ in Dance and the Related Arts. Dr. Suhr directed the Orchesis Dance Company at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo from 1969 until 2000. She remains an avid supporter of the company and continues to teach in the Theatre and Dance Department.Auditions
To become a member of the Orchesis Dance Company, one must auditionAudition
An audition is a sample performance by an actor, singer, musician, dancer or other performing artist.Audition may also refer to:* The sense of hearing* Adobe Audition, audio editing software...
due to the limited amount of places in the company. Auditions occur during the first week of Fall Quarter in the Moon Ja Minn Suhr Dance Studio (located by Crandall Gymnasium)http://www.maps.calpoly.edu/flashmap/CalPolyMap.html. Preparatory workshops are held that Tuesday and Wednesday, and the student officers teach auditioning dancers a modern, jazz, and ballet combination. A panel of dance faculty from Cal Poly
California Polytechnic State University
California Polytechnic State University, or Cal Poly, is a public university located in San Luis Obispo, California, United States. The university is one of two polytechnic campuses in the 23-member California State University system....
and the student officers watch groups of 3 perform these combinations. Audition results are usually posted by midnight.
Once members accept their invitation into the company, they are required to enroll into Dance 345: Choreography & Workshop in Dance Concert Preparation (4 units), and in Winter Quarter with Dance 346: Dance Production (also 4 units). Both of these classes (345 and 346) include an activity (class) and a lab. Although Orchesis is an ASI
ASI
-Names:* ASI Solutions, an Australian IT company* Asi, a Russian name for the Ossetians* Asi, another name for the Orontes River* Asi language, a language spoken by Bantoanons from the island of Banton, Philippines...
Club, it is also known as an academic organization because it is funded through the Instructionally Related Activities for the Theatre and Dance Department at Cal Poly.
Style: Technique and choreography
Dance
Dance is an art form that generally refers to movement of the body, usually rhythmic and to music, used as a form of expression, social interaction or presented in a spiritual or performance setting....
, including ballet
Ballet
Ballet is a type of performance dance, that originated in the Italian Renaissance courts of the 15th century, and which was further developed in France and Russia as a concert dance form. The early portions preceded the invention of the proscenium stage and were presented in large chambers with...
, modern
Modern dance
Modern dance is a dance form developed in the early 20th century. Although the term Modern dance has also been applied to a category of 20th Century ballroom dances, Modern dance as a term usually refers to 20th century concert dance.-Intro:...
, contemporary
Contemporary dance
Contemporary dance is a genre of concert dance that employs compositional philosophy, rather than choreography, to guide unchoreographed movement...
, jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, lyrical
Lyrical
The term lyrical may mean:*Lyrics, or words in songs*Lyrical dance, a style of dancing*Emotional, expressing strong feelings*Lyric poetry, poetry that expresses a subjective, personal point of view...
, and tap
Tap dance
Tap dance is a form of dance characterized by using the sound of one's tap shoes hitting the floor as a percussive instrument. As such, it is also commonly considered to be a form of music. Two major variations on tap dance exist: rhythm tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses more on the...
. Ballet is the basis of other styles and is a requirement for Orchesis members. Modern dance is any style that rejects traditional ballet training. Contemporary dance focuses on choreographic and performance processes. Jazz dance is more rhythmic and isolated than the other forms of dance. Lyrical dance is a fusion of ballet and jazz techniques and focuses on interpreting lyrics to a song, words of a poem, or the emotions of the dancer or choreographer. Tap dancing is connected to Scottish and Irish reels and American slave dances. It pays strict attention to rhythm. All of these styles are featured in the Orchesis Dance Company Annual Concert. http://www.answers.com/main/entertainment.jsp
Guest choreographers
Guest Artists Dennon and Sayhber Rawles, Davis Robertson, whose choreography was featured in Robert AltmanRobert Altman
Robert Bernard Altman was an American film director and screenwriter known for making films that are highly naturalistic, but with a stylized perspective. In 2006, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences recognized his body of work with an Academy Honorary Award.His films MASH , McCabe and...
’s film The Company
The Company
The Company is a 2003 film about the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago. It was released on December 26, 2003 in the United States and around the world in the first half of 2004. The movie was directed by Robert Altman and stars Neve Campbell, who also co-wrote and co-produced the film...
, has set modern ballet pieces for Orchesis members. Robert Moses
Robert Moses
Robert Moses was the "master builder" of mid-20th century New York City, Long Island, Rockland County, and Westchester County, New York. As the shaper of a modern city, he is sometimes compared to Baron Haussmann of Second Empire Paris, and is one of the most polarizing figures in the history of...
, of the San Francisco based company Robert Moses’ Kin, choreographed his piece called Lucifer’s Prance for Orchesis' 2008 production. Mike Esperanza, founder of the BARE Dance Company in Southern California set a piece for the company in 2006.