Follow the Light
Bodiography
Friday, March 18 @ 8pm
Booth Playhouse
130 N. Tryon St.
Follow the Light will open with all of Caruso’s regional works, performed by all of the local artists and students, and Bodiography will travel from Pittsburgh to showcase their successful rock ballet set to the sounds of Coldplay. The contemporary ballet company, made up of eight full time artists and three apprentices, will take the stage to not only represent the embodiment of the ballet within
contemporary choreographic structures but that of the pointe shoe. Caruso’s use of the pointe shoe as a tool to accentuate movement rather than being used to create the movement is something that has long set her apart from other contemporary ballet choreographers. “I believe that the pointe shoe is an extension of oneself and should be revered in such a way that it accessorizes the vocabulary rather than limits its potential,” Caruso conveys. Follow the Light focuses on patterns of light and love in our life. Bodiography is thrilled to bring the work to Charlotte. With a combined cast of 30 plus dancers for the entire show and an array of works by Ms. Caruso, it is truly a performance not to be missed.
Charlotte Dance Festival Gala
March 11, 2023
8:00 pm
Location: Charlotte Ballet
701 N. Tryon Street
Charlotte, NC 28202
Featured Companies / Choreographers
Yin Yue
(CDF Ensemble Choreographer)
New York, NY
The founder and artistic director of YY Dance Company (YYDC), Yue Yin is an internationally recognized performer and choreographer. Yin studied at the prestigious Shanghai Dance Academy and NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts where she received her MFA in 2008.
In 2018, Yin founded YYDC, a NYC-based, non-profit contemporary dance company dedicated to the teaching, production and performance of original choreographic works by Yin. Yin’s signature FoCo Technique™ represents a dynamic fusion of folk, ballet and contemporary dance. YYDC’s mission is to incorporate Yin’s signature movement style into live performances and choreographic commissions as well as educational endeavor.
Under Yin’s direction, the company has presented its work to live audiences on U.S. and international stages. The company boasts international touring credits, including Schrit_tmacher Festival (Germany), SummerStage in New York City, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival, New York International Fringe Festival, The Open Door Dance Festival in Iowa City, Iowa, DancenowNYC at Joe’s pub and many more. In addition, YYDC has performed at venues such as International Choreographic Competition Hanover, BAM Fisher, Joyce SoHo Theater, Peridance Center, Lincoln Center Rose Hall, New York Live Arts and many others. In addition to performance, the company also re-staged repertories at universities, companies and dance studios around the world.
Yue Yue was recipient of 2021 Harkness Promise Award. This prestigious award recognizes her innovation in choreography and education. She was the winner of Hubbard Street Dance Chicago 2015 International Commissioning Project, winner of the 2015 BalletX Choreographic Fellowship, and winner of Northwest Dance Project’s 5th Annual Pretty Creatives International Choreographic Competition in 2013. Through these high-profile successes, Yin has received commissions from all three widely-recognized companies as well as other companies and organizations namely Martha Graham Dance Company, Boston Ballet, Philadelphia Ballet, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet, Limon Dance Company, Alberta Ballet, Balletto Teatro di Torino, Gibney Dance Company, Peridance Contemporary Dance Company, Whim W’him, Bruce Wood Dance, Ririe Woodbury Dance Company, Boston Dance Theater, 10 Hairy Legs, New Dialect, Backhausdance, Tisch School of The Arts, George Mason University, Rutgers University, Point Park University, West Michigan University and Juilliard School for Dance.
Photo Shot by: Paul B Goode
Ballet Inc.
Aaron Atkins
New York, NY/Charlotte, NC
Ballet Inc. was founded in 2012, Ballet Inc. gives a platform to an array of diverse, talented artists while challenging the performing arts and dance normative. Our goal is provide opportunities to these individuals regardless of race, ethnicity, body type or traditional dancer ‘limitations’. Since founding, In 2017, Ballet Inc. was award by the state of New York The Multicultural Award of Excellence for its mission .
Critically as acclaimed nationally and internationally as:
'"Hard-hitting...Powerful..Beautiful.." - Broadway World Dance -
Baran Dance
Audrey Baran
Charlotte, NC
Audrey Baran (she / her) is a Filipina-American dance maker, performer, and educator based in the land of the Catawba people / Charlotte, North Carolina. She holds a MFA in Dance from Hollins University and a BA in Dance and Graduate Certificate in Anti-Racism in Urban Education from the UNC Charlotte, where she is the Visiting Assistant Professor of Dance. As the the founder / director of Baran Dance, she is dedicated to broadening definitions and accessibility of contemporary dance throughout the Southeast by presenting collaborative, multimedia productions in a variety of venues. Baran was a selected choreographer for Joffrey Ballet Academy’s Winning Works 2022 and Charlotte Ballet’s Innovative: Direct from the LAB 2021. She was the 2019 UNC Charlotte Department of Dance Distinguished Alum, an inaugural recipient of the Creative Renewal Fellowship from Charlotte’s Arts and Science Council, and has presented work through Richmond Dance Festival, Sites in the City, FEMMEfest, NDEO Conference, Bill Evans Somatic Dance Conference, NC Dance Festival, Tobacco Road Dance Productions, Triangle Dance Project, Ladyfest CLT, Charlotte Dance Festival and numerous independent and collaborative productions. As a 500-hour Registered Yoga Teacher, Baran thrives on sharing her research on movement and mindfulness throughout the Queen City and beyond.
Photo shot by: Brian Twitty
Emily Cargill & Dancers
Emily Cargill
Neptune Beach, FL
Emily Cargill is the Founder and Artistic Director of Emily Cargill & Dancers. Her work has been presented at venues and festivals all across the East Coast, including the High Museum of Art, the Mint Museum, Art on the Atlanta Beltline, North Carolina Dance Festival, LadyfestCLT, Skwhirlhaus Theatre, Richmond’s Dogtown Dance Theatre’s Touring Artist Series, Emory University’s Performing Arts Studio, Dance Canvas’ Emerging Choreographer Initiative, New Grounds Dance Festival, New Seeds Festival, OneSpark Festival, Modern Atlanta Dance Festival, Detroit Dance City Festival, Boston Contemporary Dance Festival, and the NYC10 Dance Festival.
Emily was a founding member of the Atlanta-based modern dance company, Staibdance, as well as dancing in works by Gregory Catellier, Corian Ellisor, Kathleen Wessel and David Dorfman. Emily has her MFA in Dance Performance and Choreography from Florida State University and her BA in Dance from James Madison University.
This season, Emily Cargill and Dancers is performing in Boulder, CO as a featured artist at the Versatility Dance Festival, at the Jessie DuPont Center for their Moving the Margins series, at the 1st Annual Women Arts Exchange, (produced by ECD), at The Charlotte Dance Festival and at Emory University’s Performing Arts Center.
Emily has taught modern and ballet technique, improvisation, dance history, and choreography courses at Winthrop University, Spelman College, Kennesaw State University and Georgia College and State University. Emily has also been on faculty at the Atlanta Ballet, Georgia Ballet, Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, Callanwolde Fine Arts Center, and the Performing Arts Center of Tallahassee.
Photo Shot by: Michael Keeling
Priyadarshini Inman
Charlotte, NC
Born and brought up in a small village in India, Priyadarshini has been in Dance for 32 yrs. She has performed not only in India but in different countries. She is trained in Sattriya Dance from Uttar Kamalabari Sattra under the Guidance of Monk Sri Gobind Kalita Bayan and Anita Tamuly. She founded Nritya Dhwani Cultural Foundation to promote Sattriya Dance& Culture. By profession, a Digital Marketer, she is a proud wife and mother of a son. At present, she is pursuing her Ph.D. in performing arts.
Moving Spirits, Inc.
Tamara Williams
Charlotte, NC
Moving Spirits, Inc. is a contemporary arts organization dedicated to performing, researching, documenting, cultivating, and producing arts of the African diaspora. Africanistic aesthetics heavily influences our company's repertory. Our work blends modern, ballet, African diaspora dance forms, and contemporary West African dances.
We believe that the creative arts should be used as a vehicle to bring awareness to injustices and obstacles impacting our communities. Moving Spirits' artists dedicate themselves to evolving social change through dance performances and community engagement.
Most recently, Moving Spirits, Inc was commissioned to create a dance film by the National Center for Choreography curated by Cara Hagan.
Photo courtesy of: Ohio Dance
Trifecta Dance Collective
Tori Stewart
Chicago, IL
Tori Stewart is a choreographer, professional dancer, and instructor based in Chicago, IL. She has been dancing with Trifecta Dance Collective since 2019 and currently is a Principal Dancer and Choreographer for the company. She helped conceptualize TDC 2, Trifecta's second company, and leads both TDC 2 and Trifecta Youth Ensemble as Artistic Director. Tori utilizes contemporary techniques and improvisational practices for movement generation, resulting in thoughtful, athletic, expansive, and experimental choreographic works. Her works have performed across stages in the greater Chicagoland area as well as at festivals and showcases across the nation including Charlotte Dance Festival’s Youth Gala (2018), American College Dance Association, Wake Forest Dance Festival, Loose Leaves Showcase, Trifecta Dance Festival, Peridance Spring Choreographers’ Showcase, Alluvion Dance Chicago's Emergence, and Detroit Dance City Festival.
Company Photo & Headshot Credit- Siglerphotographics
