South Chicago Dance Theatre Set To Perform At Governors State University

SCDT dancer Valerie Chen - photo credit Michelle Reid.
SCDT dancer Valerie Chen - photo credit Michelle Reid.

South Chicago Dance Theatre Set To Perform At Governors State University

By Tia Carol Jones

The South Chicago Dance Theatre (SCDT) will present its Governors State University debut at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27th, at Governors State University, 1 University Parkway, University Park, Ill.

Kia Smith, Founder and Director of Vision and Strategy of the South Chicago Dance Theatre, said she always wanted to be able to perform at Governors State University. For a time, she lived in the South Suburbs and would pass the school all the time and attended a performance there. She met someone from the school at a conference, who extended an invitation to the South Chicago Dance Theatre to perform at the school.

“It’s kind of this big dream come true, because Governors State is one of the few dance presenters in the Chicagoland area that is really supporting dance,” Smith said.

Smith founded the South Chicago Dance Theatre with a mission to teach, perform and create dance on a local, national and international level. Smith said the dance company is a place for any and everyone to call home.

In addition to the performance, a Community Dance Masterclass for dancers ages 8 years old to18 years old will take place from 5:00 p.m.  to 6:15 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 27th. The masterclass is free with the purchase of a ticket to the 7:30 p.m. performance. Smith said the goal of the masterclass is to introduce young dancers to the South Chicago Dance Theatre and get them excited about the show. She said she hopes the young dancers who participate in the masterclass feel like they are part of the SCDT community and feel like they’re a part of the work the dance company is doing.

“They’re not just coming to watch a show, but they’re coming to participate in the work we do and to learn about what it is to be a professional dancer, the rigor of a professional dance career,” she said. She added that it is her hope that the young dancers can see themselves in the professional dancer track.

Smith said that with the young dancers taking the masterclass getting to learn the SCDT’s repertoire and meet the dancers, they will want to pursue their dreams and go into the kind of career in the arts that they have in their hearts later on.

Smith said for the performance, SCDT chose its greatest hits, the pieces that have been very successful in the past with audiences. The pieces include “On a Lark” by Stephanie Martinez, which has elements of musical theatre; and “Soul Power” by Monique Haley, a fusion of jazz dance and elements of African dance, which features the voice of Maya Angelou through the soundscape. “Under the Skin” by Tsai Hsi Hung and “IN/WITHIN” by Smith will also be part of the performance. Smith said “IN/WITHIN” fuses contemporary dance with theatre and is the only true mixture of dance and theatre in the company’s repertoire. She said the pieces were selected to give audiences a real mix of their repertoire. She said it feels like a big accomplishment for SCDT to be presented at Governors State University because of its reputation as a center for the performing arts.

“We want to reach audiences who are in the Southland, and we want those audiences to know we’re here and we really want them to be a part of it. Being at Governors State will help us to reach new audiences with our work,” she said.

Smith said she wants the audience to be entertained. She said people walkaway from SCDT performances feeling energized and like they had a fun night out. She said dance has the capacity to reach people in ways other art forms don’t. She also hopes to introduce people to concert dance.

For tickets to the Governors State University performance, visit centertickets.net, or call 708-235-2222. People can use the code SCDTFAN for 15% off their ticket price.

For more information about Kia S. Smith, visit www.kiassmith.com. For more information about South Chicago Dance Theatre, visit www.southchicagodancetheatre.com.

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