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July 13, 1998

DOUG HAMBY DANCE PRESENTS ITS ECLECTIC STYLE AT DANCE PLACE IN WASHINGTON D.C. Saturday, July 25 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, July 26 at 7 p.m.

BALTIMORE -- Doug Hamby Dance a professional dance company in residence at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, presents an evening of collaboration at Dance Place in Washington D.C. on Saturday, July 25 at 8 p.m. and Sunday, July 26 at 7 p.m. Hamby, hailed by The Washington Post as "a bold and ambitious artist willing to take risks," draws inspiration from World Cup Soccer, robotics, Picasso, and T.S. Eliot to create an evening of dance that features not only humans but also a robot.

Speaking from the heart and mind, Hamby's concert of new and previously performed work pushes the limits of kinetic creativity. Letting Go, a solo performed by one of Hamby's seasoned dancers, Jean Denney, is about coming to terms with loss and saying good-bye for the last time in the midst of the AIDS epidemic. Opus 98, a premiere, displays air-born feats of strength, passion and partnering inspired by World Cup Soccer, accompanied by a live percussion score. Maurice Tomb, another premiere, is performed solely by a 6-legged robot, named Maurice Tomb, constructed in collaboration with Dr. Tony Farquhar and Todd McCleaf of UMBC's Mechanical Engineering Department. The choreography challenges the essence of the robot's design and structure to create a robotic dancer with character and wit.

The program also includes:

Walk to Heaven (1997), in which a cadre of post-modern Coppelias and Harlequins come alive in a lovely, airy, quirky fantasy inspired by Picasso's Family of Saltimbanques.

Juncture (1992), in which a woman explores the sudden and mysterious emptiness of her mind, as in a line by T.S. Eliot, "In the halt between stations, the mental emptiness deepens."

Quintet (1991), born in chaos and ending in serenity, in which five dancers visualize the sensual ebb and flow of Washington composer Scott Pinder's music.Dancers: Sunhwa Chung, Adrienne Clancy, Dave Clark, Jean Denney, Steven Kellert, Julie Peoples, Sarah Seely and Renata Zilionis.

Tickets are available by calling 202-269-1600.

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Posted by dwinds1 at July 13, 1998 12:00 AM